Two students designed an out-of-home campaign for Netflix, which encouraged viewers to stay at home. If people went outside and chose to not practice social distancing, spoiling the health of the public, they would see tactically-placed billboards with spoilers for Netflix shows. The concept was ultimately rejected by Netflix, but proceeded to go viral when the Miami Ad School students behind it (Seine Kongruangkit & Matithorn Prachuambmoh Chaimoungkalo) posted their digital renderings of the billboards online. The ads, which ruined endings to shows including Narcos and Love is Blind, was frequently mistaken as a real Netflix campaign when it was released at the end of March.
🎨 CREATIVITY IN CONTEXT
Since this campaign only exists online, its mission – to punish viewers if they go outside – has backfired. Yet this can still inspire your own work! If your brand has chosen to deliver a compelling corona-centric message or resource, consider how the medium you deliver it in can make your efforts that much more memorable and impactful. Need more unorthodox inspiration? See how Reporters Without Borders opened a library of censored articles within Minecraft, as the game can be accessed by players living under repressive regimes. Trojan also protested abstinence education, which often refers to sexually active teens as ‘chewed gum’, by creating a billboard out of exactly that. What unexpected yet impactful channel should your brand harness?
👀 CROWDSOURCED & ENDORSED
Netflix rejected this campaign because spoilers (anything that may indirectly discourage subscribers from bingeing shows) are antithetical to its brand. Despite this, just the rendering of the billboards struck a chord with consumers and went viral anyway. Take this example as a chance to look outside your company’s own, internal priorities and perspectives. What new, bold and unprecedented messaging might your customers appreciate seeing from you at this unprecedented time? Could you perhaps use this as a chance to bring on some creative freelancers, who may be struggling, to explore new directions?
P.S. If you are a freelancer, here’s an excellent resource guide from The Drum.
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