Within the technology and computer electronics space, all advertising tends to look the same. Sleek and shiny brand-new devices. Ads with bold product lighting, fantastical feature close-ups, cut to mighty music tracks. We drove traffic and revenue on Lenovo.com with a campaign that intentionally ‘zigged’ while all the competitors ‘zagged’ – showcasing tech in its overworked, tossed around, neglected glory.
Black Friday, Cyber Monday, End of year Holiday season – every year is a mad rush of mad deals. Lenovo needed to stand out in this crowded promotional arena during the holiday season. But, to do that in a marketplace riddled with deals, discounts, and price drops, we needed to stand for something more meaningful. More tangible. More human. So, we focused on the audience – and what tech has done and continues to do for them.
Lenovo salutes those who pushed their tech above and beyond for so long with a great deal to help them replace it during the holiday season. We dove deep into people's passions to show how product is worked to its core to make those passions a reality.
This scroll & skip stopping Creative spoke to Lenovo.com’s human benefits and tech solutions, standing out from the sea of sameness.
While most of the tech space focuses on complicated technical specifications and discounts, Lenovo committed to prioritizing audience needs and usage within their communications, by positioning Lenovo.com as the premier tech destination to fulfill those needs – with a great deal, of course.
We leaned into an undeniable truth about the pandemic – it showed how much more we relied on our technology:
62% increase in spending on gaming hardware and accessories from 2019 to 2020 (Source: NPD Group)
38% increase in back-to-school spending on computers and hardware from 2019 (Source: Deloitte)
Over 100% increase in average daily views of "Cook with me" videos (Source: YouTube, via AP)
53% of students received instruction entirely remotely during the 2020 school year (Source: Education Next)
We spent a lot of time with our tech. WFH’ing, gaming, homeschooling, baking, crafting, DIY nails – we’ve all beaten the hell out of our tech equipment.
By keying in on this common truth, Lenovo was able to turn our collective dependence on tech into an anthemic call-to-action. Our tech products were in their most natural state: the messy, busy, lived-in ways people use Lenovo during the holidays. Visually, we dove deep into people's passions– as their laptops and devices were subjected to spills, drops, dips, and mess. Using market data to inspire our key scenes, we captured original videography by filming realistic scenarios our audience found themselves in - parents and kids baking holiday treats, gamers taking out opponents over cookie crumbs and cocoa, people trying out gel nails at home because their local salons were closed, small biz owners spreadsheeting with sticky keyboards (lacking IT support). All with tech at the center of their world, with them through it all. It was a vivid take on a widespread reality. A messy, chaotic, beautiful reality.
Instead of the expected placements Lenovo always ran, we strategically leveraged unexpected, high impact ‘Go Big’ social units. Those like in-feed shoppable Facebook and IG units, video DPA carousels, Tiktok swipe-to-shop social video, Snapchat shoppable AR lens, Reddit Category takeovers, and surround-sound influencer posts.
Each unit leveraged our beautifully messy scenes, adapted to our varying audiences based on Lenovo’s electric brand colors. Our four core audience segments – gamers, students, small business owners, and general shoppers – got a great deal with tailored artwork and messaging that spoke to them and their needs.
We redefined the performance marketing space.
It’s a misconception that low-funnel tactics need to be dry and purely transactional. We showed tech taking a hit – and shattered category conventions. Forget shiny and slick product imagery, we showcased the messy scenes where we’ve found our tech, used our tech, and worn our tech to the max. By leveraging this highly relevant and attention-grabbing creative during the most competitively saturated time of year, we drove click-thrus to Lenovo.com and increased revenue during the biggest sales period of the year.
The results prove it.
274% increase in site traffic the month of campaign launch (October 2021)
YoY gains in creative engagement, traffic efficiency, and revenue efficiency all doubled after the launch of Tech Hard (compared to the period before)
Click-Through Rate: 29% lift in engagement (CTR) YoY
Traffic Efficiency: 59% CPV efficiency gain YoY
Revenue Efficiency (Total Media Revenue): 23% revenue efficiency gain YoY
Revenue Efficiency (Last-Touch Revenue): 73% revenue efficiency gain YoY
‘Go Big’ Media placements triggered a 95% higher Click-Through Rate, alongside a 61% lower Cost per Click compared to business-as-usual flighted Social tactics for Lenovo.
Influencers: Generated 1.5X better traffic efficiency (compared to BAU Social tactics)
