Z FLIP POCKET DENIM

Short List
TitleZ FLIP POCKET DENIM
BrandSAMSUNG
Product / ServiceSAMSUNG GALAXY Z FLIP3 PHONE
CategoryC01. Guerrilla Marketing & Stunts
EntrantCHE PROXIMITY Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Idea Creation CHE PROXIMITY Sydney, AUSTRALIA
PR EDELMAN Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Production WINIFRED Surry Hills, AUSTRALIA
Post Production ARC EDIT Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Additional Company RUMBLE STUDIOS Sydney, AUSTRALIA
Additional Company 2 DR. DENIM Stockholm, SWEDEN

Credits

Name Company Position
Gavin McLeod CHEP Network Chief Creative Officer
Justin Ruben CHEP Network Executive Creative Director
Tash Johnson CHEP Network Head of CHEP Films
Fee Millist CHEP Network Creative Director
Cass Jam CHEP Network Creative Director
Christian Hewitt CHEP Network Head of Design
Joe Tran CHEP Network Senior Digital Designer
Jonny Berger CHEP Network Managing Partner
Grace Vizor CHEP Network Group Account Director
Lucy Jones CHEP Network Senior Account Director
Cohen Chaplin CHEP Network Senior Account Manager
Kirsty Gavin CHEP Network Creative Director
Richard Shaw CHEP Network Creative Director
Jeremy Hogg CHEP Network Creative Director

Why is this work relevant for Brand Experience & Activation?

Smartphone launches have lost their shine. To launch Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip3, a phone that folds to half the size of the competition, we needed a PR idea that would stop thumbs, grab headlines and increase sales - adding clout to a traditional, feature-heavy campaign already in market. To launch the phone, we designed and launched jeans that celebrated its folding form. ‘Z Flip Pocket Denim’ were provocatively priced at $1,499 (the cost of the phone), but came with a free device. Designed with Dr Denim, the jeans had tiny, Z Flip3 sized pockets that wouldn’t fit any other phone.

Background

The world has become apathetic towards smartphone launches, gone are the news crews and the snaking lines of people outside stores. In fact, Apple’s recent launch, with minimal design changes, had been mocked and memed by the internet. Galaxy Z Flip3 is a phone that folds in half, Apple has no comparative device, giving Samsung permission to make a big deal about being small. Apple has a history of taking swipes at android users, gaining them more market share, we needed to shift the needle back the other way. Already going to market with a traditional campaign to promote Galaxy Z Flip3’s features, our brief was clear: add an element to the launch that would cut through the indifference, get people talking, and increase sales - particularly among Apple users.

Describe the creative idea (20% of vote)

To launch the phone, we launched jeans that celebrated its folding form. ‘Z Flip Pocket Denim’ were provocatively priced at $1,499 (the cost of the phone), but came with a free device. Designed in partnership with Dr Denim, the jeans had tiny, Z Flip3 sized pockets that wouldn’t fit any other phone. The large front pockets had bold Z stitching sealing them shut and the back pockets were removed completely. With a custom tiny pocket on the thigh, the jeans could only fit the Z Flip3. “$1,499 jeans by Samsung for the Z Flip3” had the desired effect, instantly getting the internet talking. A tech brand selling designer denim proved to be novel and unexpected enough stunt to capture attention.

Describe the strategy (20% of vote)

Samsung launching an updated phone model is an expected story that would get lost in the noise. So instead of just launching a phone, we launched ‘Z Flip Pocket Denim’. Provocatively priced at $1,499 (the price of the phone), every pair of jeans came with a free device. Our core target audience were fashion conscious Gen Z and millennial iPhone users, they want to stand out from the crowd, value personalisation, and are fashion focused. We needed them to reconsider Samsung, knowing that there was a smaller smartphone on the market than any Apple. Taking cues from high fashion, we launched the jeans with conceptual films and stills. We put paid spend behind these assets to target iOS users on social with messaging that cheekily called out that their Apple devices wouldn’t fit in the jeans. The internet latched on to the story and shared it far and wide.

Describe the execution (30% of vote)

The campaign announcing the jeans ran across OOH, film, social and influencer content. cheekily proclaiming they “don’t fit them apples” The campaign featured small format OOH and street posters, in CBD and urban locales in both Syd & Melb, just as fashion brands would launch. In addition, we included Retail OOH as an effective reach and awareness play for the campaign. By hand-selecting centres with a fashion focus, we reached our Millennials in a contextually relevant space. We featured notable Gen Z and Millennial local influencers to showcase the limited edition jeans and form-factor of the phone to their audience. Content was featured across both Instagram and TikTok where there is a high iOS viewership.

List the results (30% of vote)

The 3 weeks after the campaign (Nov 1 - Nov 21), visits to the Flip3 increased by 118% with a key 170% proportionate uplift in Apple users viewing the Galaxy Z Flip3. In the 2 weeks after the campaign there was a recorded 51% uplift in Z Flip3 e-Comm sales. We saw a big jump in e-comm sales from our last Flip phone launch to this one: 800% Uplift in e-Comm Units YOY 623% uplift in e-comm revenue YOY Local earned media coverage in Australia accounted for 3,077,00 million in reach. The global audience increased this with an earned social reach of 11,188,451 across 12 countries. We saw big numbers for paid social and YT: 19.8M impressions, 8.8M view, with a majority positive engagement recorded.