2013 Winners & Shortlists

The Brief

On October 26, 2012, James Bond’s new movie ‘Skyfall’ landed in Dubai. In the film, Daniel Craig can be seen using the latest Sony Xperia Ion phone. We were briefed to generate excitement around Sony's sponsorship of the film, its new flagship phone, and develop an experiential idea to capture the cinemagoer's attention at the Mall of the Emirates, Dubai.

Describe how the promotion developed from concept to implementation

Our concept let people live part of their Bond fantasy of unlocking a Bond car using their voice and Bond's phone - the Xperia ion. We combined a London phone box, 4000 meters of cabling, a 2012 Aston Martin DBS, 6 computers, Arduino technology and a voice analytics engine, which was built into an app on the phone. Participant(s) had to say "The name is Bond, James Bond" and if their impression matched Daniel Craig's to 95% or more, it wirelessly and in a very 'Bond like way' unlocked the doors and started the engine of the Aston Martin.

Describe the success of the promotion with both client and consumer including some quantifiable results

In just 10 days, "The name is Bond, James Bond" was said 5,217 times by individual cinemagoers who grabbed the chance to live a part of their Bond fantasy. And 43 superb Bond impersonators managed to unlock and start the Aston's engine. Winners were given a Sony Xperia ion phone and a racetrack driving experience in the Aston Martin. By the end of the 10 days, Sony Stores in the Mall of the Emirates had registered a 60% increase in footfall and more importantly a 30% increase in sales of the phone.

Explain why the method of promotion was most relevant to the product or service

Our target audience felt that Sony phones were less ‘cool’. The promotion combined 2 insights. One, James Bond has always been associated with advanced technology. The kind that the new Sony Xperia ion has to offer. And two, that every Bond fan has at one time or another uttered the famous line – “The name is Bond, James Bond”. We combined these insights to create an exciting game. The idea perfectly showcased the sponsorship and the phone’s technology and allowed the target audience to live a Bond fantasy – starting a Bond car using their phone and voice.