Objectives

When the Covid-19 pandemic took the world by storm in 2020, the creative community was not spared. Jobs were lost. Freelance work dried up. And creatives, oft-inspired by the outdoors, community get-togethers, and new experiences, ran out of energy and motivation. Instead, they followed orders, stayed home, and grasped at straws for creative stimulation.

Adorama quickly realized its community needed inspiration more than ever. Whether it was a smartphone or a camera, a microphone or a journal, the brand knew its community had the tools to create art. But, like many in the pandemic, they lacked the motivation. That’s why Adorama challenged and incentivized their community to Create No Matter What—and they successfully continued that rally cry all year.

Strategy and Execution

On the surface, Create No Matter What is a nice, catchy campaign name, but let us be clear: These are so much more than simple words that fit a headline. Adorama lived and breathed #CreateNoMatterWhat through video content, creative challenges, expert tips, and gear suggestions. Here’s how the campaign elements came together.

• Expert tips: With more time at home, creators had unprecedented opportunities to hone their skills, and Adorama wanted to help them use this time wisely. The brand introduced an array of video tutorials and detailed article guides on virtually all creative topics, including photography, video, vlogging, audio, podcasting, design, and editing. They aggregated all of these tips into one central Create No Matter What hub: https://www.adorama.com/g/create-no-matter-what
• Challenges: Of course, learning is only part of the creative equation. Producing work and pushing creative limits is where the magic happens. That’s why Adorama came up with a way to incentivize creators to not just learn, but do: creative challenges. Adorama ran monthly challenges from May-December, asking its community to photograph different subjects, such as landscapes or food, with mega prizes (over $3,000 in gear). The brand spearheaded these challenges alongside subject-matter-expert photography influencers to help the community continue learning from the best while working toward their goals. 
• Gear: As a camera and tech retailer, Adorama is jam-packed with all of the gear needed to pursue these creative endeavors, so the brand also created packages and recommended products based on these interest areas to help its community find the best tools while pursuing their creative dreams. 

But, here’s the thing: Adorama knew the act of creating way trumped the need to purchase gear, which is why the brand led with inspiration, tips, tricks, and challenges, and bookended content with gear. It wanted its community to Create No Matter What—high-end camera or not—and its focus on creation over consumption shows the brand walked the walk with its Create No Matter What campaign.

Results

As the Create No Matter What campaign’s nearly 160 million impressions show, this message is exactly what the Adorama community needed in 2020. The campaign had over 3.4 million engagements, with 50,000 posts using Adorama’s #CreateNoMatterWhat hashtag. And, to Adorama’s delight, its community wasn’t simply seeing the message or learning new creative tricks—it was using them. The Create No Matter What challenges had over 10,000 submissions. That’s roughly 1,000 submissions per contest—and enough inspiration for Adorama to continue the Create No Matter What challenges as the pandemic continues into 2021. 

Media