2019 Winners & Shortlists

Background

When it comes to Internet speed in Saudi Arabia, the Saudi Telecom is King. Having dominated the category for a long time, the telco wanted to cement its dominance by growing its customer base. In a landmark year for women in the Kingdom which saw a rise of new freedoms, there’s also been a rise of female gamers who’ve been silently entering this male-oriented industry. This provided us with an opportunity to tap into a new segment, women to build relevance and speed credentials with.

Describe the cultural/social/political climate in your region and the significance of your campaign within this context

While 2018 brought many changes for women: driving, voting, first time in key roles in the kingdom- stereotypical depictions of women are still plaguing the advertising landscape. Women are typically portrayed either in the kitchen or shopping. STC didn’t want to only lead the way in fixed internet, but wanted to truly talk to women and change their representation within communication. . The film was banned on 15 December 2018. Seeing a Saudi female driving was unusual a year ago – so imagine seeing a film of a Saudi female drifting on the road. Local authorities felt that the film went overboard in its content. So after several discussions with them, we finally reached an agreement. The solution to cut down on the scenes were our lead driver was distracted– and we ended our film with a message specifying that speed should be extreme only online. This was released on 1 January 2019.

Describe the creative idea

To demonstrate that our connection is not just fast, but so fast that it can change conventions, we introduced Sarah. The game changer. Through an online film we showed In a male-dominated society, a rebel woman, drifter and female gamer who wasn’t just there to dramatize STC’s fiber optics. She was challenging every convention in the book.

Describe the strategy

We tapped into an audience segment that we don’t usually address when it comes to internet speed and with their growing interesting in gaming and drifting, they presented a perfect opportunity. We decided to portray a woman in a way she’d never been portrayed. So while the world was celebrating the landmark changes, and debating the role of women, we showed them in their element.

Describe the execution

Through an online film, to not only demonstrate the speed of our fibre optics, but the speed of change, we introduced Sara. While the world was celebrating the new freedoms Our Sara was drifting, a female gamer showcasing her skills.

Describe the results/impact

We generated 1,866,074 views of the film and Female Top of mind of STC Brand increased 3% from 61% to 64%. Sara defied how Women are portrayed in Saudi advertising and She was changing the whole game. The fact that this ad was banned demonstrates one thing and one thing only: it is a game that needs a lot more players involved before it is over.