The world has a trust problem. AI is everywhere. And the more we see it, the less we believe what we're looking at.
With Iceland's jaw- dropping beauty, it reads as fiction. And in an era of synthetic imagery, it looked suspicious. And that's a crisis.
When travellers can't believe what they're seeing, they stop booking - and not because Iceland lacks appeal.
The villain became clear: AI-generated imagery.
In research, people said: “It looks too good to be true.” That became the breakthrough.
What if disbelief wasn’t a weakness - but proof? What if “too good to be true” was exactly what made Iceland real?
In a world of synthetic sameness, only one thing could cut through: Reality.
We didn’t fight the tension. We flipped it. And injected humour - not to dilute the issue, but to expose the absurdity of it.
While other destinations leaned into AI-enhanced fantasy, we stood still and pointed to something radical: the unfiltered truth.
We needed to make AI the villain - and reality the hero.
Not as a one-off stunt, but as a planned campaign anchored in a consistent humorous tone to achieve a long-term narrative:
Named the Enemy
Revealed the truth
Restored trust
Each phase tackled a different barrier to trust, allowing us to measure impact, optimise performance, and build momentum with purpose. Humour became the connective tissue - a playful but purposeful tone that only Icelandair could deliver, making authenticity feel like an act of rebellion:
Category Contrarian: While the industry chased AI polish, we doubled down on reality.
Cultural Timing: AI distrust wasn’t emerging - it was peaking. We entered when scepticism had momentum.
Strategic Reversal: The very thing hurting Iceland - disbelief - became our differentiator.
Humour as Narrative Architecture: Comedy became the connective logic across all mediums, making the argument feel earned, not preached.
Phased Architecture: Three chapters, planned from the start, each solving a barrier to belief and allowing optimisation between phases.
Community-Led Amplification: Truth travels further when people recognise it as real —earned media became proof of authenticity.
The campaign was structured as a three-act narrative, with each containing discrete creative elements designed to work independently and as part of an integrated whole. Humour threaded through all elements as the unifying creative device - making the serious argument feel human, relatable, and shareable.
CHAPTER ONE: THE MANIFESTO (Introducing the Enemy) – Earned Print, OOH, SoMe, Owned
We opened with defiance. A public commitment from Icelandair: Every image. Every post. 100% real.
A bold, cheeky open letter from Icelandair to tech companies, posted as a manifesto in high-traffic public spaces near major tech HQs (London, Berlin, Stockholm, Dublin). The letter reads like a tongue-in-cheek ultimatum.
This wasn’t awareness. It was a line in the sand.
Immediate impact:
400M+ global media reach
140+ earned media placements
1M+ organic Meta views
6.5M+ owned-channel reach (15× Iceland’s population)
ACT TWO: EXPEDITION ICELAND (Proving the Truth) – Video, SoMe, Earned Print
We knew belief changes through culture. So, we dialled up the humour even more! Dramatizing the ridiculousness of the problem, to give platforms like Reddit and TikTok the kind of content that would fuel intrigue.
We created our own conspiracy theorist who was adamant Iceland wasn’t real- and sent him to Iceland to disprove his own theory.
His sister tried to reason with him. Comedy followed. Reality won!
People didn’t just watch - they shared.
Results:
2M+ organic views
51% interaction rate (nearly 2× industry benchmark)
35+ global media outlets
ACT THREE: THE TRUTH TEST (Restoring Belief) – IRL engagement, SoMe, Earned Print, Owned
To expose how deeply AI had infiltrated perception, we ran a simple test: Could Icelanders be fooled by AI images of their own country? Worryingly - yes.
Then we took the test to London. Same reaction. Shock. Disbelief. Rude words.
The twist? The images of Iceland were real.
Reality had become indistinguishable from fiction - and that was exactly the problem we needed to solve.
This wasn’t attention for attention’s sake. This was measurable behaviour change.
+4.5pt lift in brand consideration across key markets
150% sustained spike in daily web traffic
+66.68% revenue growth
$13.7M incremental revenue
8.64 ROAS
Nearly 500M total reach
900K+ engagements
People didn’t just believe again. They booked.
WHY THIS WINS
It Made Reality the Rebel Move
In a world obsessed with synthetic perfection, truth became the disruption.
It Proved the Commercial Power of Authenticity
Engagement is nice. Conversion is truth. Revenue followed belief.
The Joke isn’t Random. Humour doesn’t just entertain, it advances the argument by exposing the absurdity of AI suspicion and weaponised authenticity as the solution
It Was Earned, Not Bought
200+ media placements driven by strategy and creativity - not spend.
It Built a Movement, Not a Message
People debated it, defended it, and travelled because of it.
It Solved a Real Cultural Problem
We didn’t invent the tension. We resolved it.
TRUTH IS A SUPERPOWER
In an industry busy polishing reality, Icelandair did something unthinkable.
It used its uniquely honest voice and told the truth. And proved that authenticity isn’t a tactic - it’s a competitive advantage.
