2019 Winners & Shortlists

EXTRA STORES MEGA SALE

BrandEXTRA STORES
Product/ServiceELECTRONICS
EntrantACCELERATE ME ONLINE Beirut, LEBANON
Idea Creation ACCELERATE ME ONLINE Beirut, LEBANON

Why is this work relevant for Integrated?

The comprehensive campaign covered all aspects of traditional offline marketing on one hand: in store and out of stores. On the other hand, more recent and growing online advertising techniques one could think of were adopted, alongside production videos and the announcement animation executed on Burj Khalifa. A complaint management team was available 24/7 managed to achieve unprecedented results in FCR [first contact resolution] with customers. Moreover, media buying was employed for both social media and digital comprehensive campaigns: from pre-announcements, to announcement, commercial and engaging ads.

Background

The Mega Sale is one of the largest consumer electronics events in the Middle East. Organized by the Saudi electronics giant retailer eXtra Stores every year, this sale is long-awaited by many consumers in the MENA Region. Saudi customers wait all year long to benefit from these offline and online sales, as well as multiple other neighboring country residents. 2018 was the year of higher expectations! With a client expecting a bigger success story, came expecting a lot more work and preparation. The brief for the campaign consisted of a comprehensive offline and online campaign, targeting locals, residents and expats. We were no longer targeting a local scale of consumers, we were now working on a regional level. Our main objective was not only to spread and increase local and regional awareness, but also to drive traffic to both physical and online stores, targeting an increase in sales.

Describe the creative idea.

The main campaign creatives consisted of: 1. High quality pre-announcement and announcement videos that were circulated both offline and online via multiple social media platforms. A funny yet realistic implementation showcasing everyday problems we face with electronics. 2. Animation to light up the tallest building in the world: Burj Khalifa. A visually outstanding light display, a full video animation that displayed colorful bitmap products falling in a trolley, and an aesthetic execution of the exclusive collaboration between eXtra Stores and noon.com through the collision of both companies’ logos resulting in an explosion of colorful particles, along with calligraphic designs to represent keywords of the event. 3. Ongoing commercial posts and professionally executed promotional videos promoting offers, flash sales and exclusive deals, the luxury of fast-track delivery, collection and payment options. A main visual template comprising trademark colors of the event.

Describe the strategy

As a leading electronics retailer in KSA expanding in the MENA region, with stores already in Oman and Bahrain simultaneously running Mega Sales of their own, our main audience consisted of KSA and its neighboring countries, consumers of all age categories and social backgrounds. Our main audience also expanded to specifically reach the UAE and its residents, as the exclusive partner for the Mega Sale, noon.com, has a wide reach in Dubai. We ran integrated campaigns to fit every category of our audience, going all the way from timeless traditional techniques that would allow us to reach our loyal customers, to new and advanced marketing techniques that would allow us to reach a more young, fresh and technology-demanding audience. From ad format, to content and visuals, we covered them all.

Describe the execution.

The campaign kicked off with a pre-announcement teaser campaign, exciting the audience of the long awaited, much anticipated, yearly Mega Sale! Crunched on time, the team gathered and brain stormed for endless hours to come up with video concepts for the big revealer. Part of the team traveled to Dubai for last minute touches and to ensure the Burj Khalifa revealer went according to plan, and to document the announcement live on all social media accounts. After a month of endless preparations, the campaign went live a week prior to the announcement. Throughout the campaign course, multiple changes and amendments were being made to the visuals and the plans. The campaign was live on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Google Display Network, YouTube, Product Listing Ads, Search Engine Marketing, SEO and Programmatic Audience, etc. The campaign scale was intended on a local scale, but transformed to a regional Burj Khalifa scale!

List the results.

We were able to reach approximately 300 million users online, with an astonishing 550 million impressions, and we hit 20 million views, and 8 million engagements. A campaign as big as this one, can only reap great results. Store traffic increased, online traffic increased, we were able to enhance and establish a solid and honest brand image among our customers and followers. We promised great quality and offers, and so we delivered, thus achieving far beyond what our business targets were in terms on sales and Social Media KPIs.

Credits

Name Company Role
Patrick Lahoud Accelerate ME Online Managing Director
Christine Krikorian Accelerate ME Online Social Media Director
Raya Hilany Accelerate ME Online Creative Director
Christina Karam Accelerate ME Online Production Manager
Zina Malas Accelerate ME Online Media Manager
Rodolphe Daaboul Ritix Holding Executive producer
Samir Karam Highend Films General Manager
Wael Makhoul Accelerate ME Online Head of Performance and Strategy
Elie Hawa eXtra Stores Creative and Advertising Manager
Diana Farhat Accelerate ME Online Account Manager
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