Background

In April 2020, Huawei was set to release the P40. This latest smartphone model stood out for the exceptional quality of its camera, able to render images in high detail across a wide range of lighting conditions. The P40 also was noteworthy for another major advance: the debut of Huawei AR Maps, available through an app on the model. Huawei needed a vivid way to communicate these two highlights to consumers – raising awareness of the new AR maps while also boosting consumers’ association of the P40 with beautiful, high-quality images. Specifically, Huawei aimed to boost views and interactions on its official AR maps platform.

Describe the creative idea

The Mogao Caves at Dunhuang, in the deserts of northwestern China, house a collection of intricate paintings and sculptures scattered across more than 700 subterranean shrines, with the oldest dating back more than 1,600 years. Long a site of scholarly interest, they have also become one of China’s hottest tourist attractions, visited by millions every year. But this popularity has endangered the quality of the fragile paintings, and today, visitor numbers are strictly capped, and only 12 caves open at a time. We saw the Mogao Caves as a prime venue to showcase the power and possibility of the P40 and Huawei AR Maps. Huawei was in a unique position to help the countless tourists who were unable to enjoy the splendor of the Mogao Caves in person, meeting a demand that had only grown greater as the Covid-19 outbreak kept countless would-be travelers at home around the world.

Describe the strategy

Considering the recent rise of video content as one of the most popular new media formats for the mobile generation, our campaign centered around two videos to highlight Huawei’s Augmented Archaeology project and explain the technology that made it possible. First, we planned a livestreamed virtual tour of the Mogao Caves led by the President of the Dunhuang Academy, the top research institute dedicated to studying the caves. Using Huawei AR Map, the president took viewers on a simulated visit through the caves, stopping to point out key features and explain their history. We also created a second video with a behind-the-scenes look at Huawei’s AR technology, and how the caves were scanned and mapped to transfer them to this new digital format.

Describe the execution

The livestream was simultaneously made available across a range of mobile video sites, ensuring that it reached the widest possible scope of demographics. The behind-the-scenes video was likewise made available through Huawei’s official social media accounts.

List the results

Overall, the campaign reached more than 200 million people, with an incredible 21 million watching the livestream tour. The campaign boosted views of Huawei’s official AR maps platform by 30 percent to a total of 150 million; and increased interactions by 20 percent to 30 million. The campaign was also featured in major Chinese media, including on several channels of nationwide state broadcaster CCTV and the official Xinhua News Agency, reaching more than 1.14 million people. From numerous media editorials and online comments, the campaign has raised expectations and opened countless minds to the new possibilities of AR beyond simple entertainment, showing how this unique format can be used to as an educational tool and beyond.