France (152)
Wacky challenge for the greater good
The “défithon “ is an initiative within the annual Telethon event broadcasted on national television in France. It aims to collect donations for a muscular disease called myopathy. The challenge for 2011 invited both sufferers of the disease and celebrities to push their boundaries. To get to see one of the participants fulfil their challenge, web users have to pay anywhere between 50 and 20,000 euros as a donation contribution. For example, for 50 euros, you can watch a myopathy patient going across a city dressed up as a sumo wrestler.
Why it matters
The Défithon helps raise awareness about the disease in a respectful yet humorous way. By allowing viewers to donate online, it also generates social buzz. Is this an innovative way to encourage people to donate? Could this strategy be effective in the long run for others social causes?
The world's first solo marathon
On November 26th 2011, Sony Ericsson created the world's first solo marathon. Participants had to run at the same time, anywhere in the world, alone or with friends. All the runners needed to do was download the bespoke app, register on the brand’s website and send the results to the website after the race. Sony Ericsson offered places for the NYC marathon and Xperia phones for the fastest runners.
Why it matters
This operation is an innovative way for Sony Ericsson to test if sport represents a good opportunity within the smartphone market. Since the brand doesn’t claim any sports positioning on its Xperia range, the risk for the brand is not very high. It is also a good way to test the possibility of creating a sports community. What initiative could you launch to test your market while keeping a coherent brand image?
Loyalty through Facebook check-in
In December 2011, the hotel group Accor improved its customer loyalty programme by allowing guests to accumulate points by simply checking in on Facebook when they are staying in one of their rooms.
Why it matters
The firm’s use of Facebook is changing. It no longer uses the social network simply as a communication tool with a lot of branded content. Companies are now beginning to integrate Facebook’s features in different ways. By facilitating the use of some services through social media, brands are getting more intertwined in their customer’s everyday life. What service can your company integrate within a widely used social media network?
