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Samsung Mobile: Viral to track stolen mobiles
Showcasing a growing trend, Samsung Mobile has come up with an interesting viral campaign to promote its mobile tracker technology
Online viral campaigns are gathering a momentum of their own. Take a look at Samsung Mobile’s recently-launched email viral to promote its E250 ‘mobile tracker’ technology, which lets the owner of the phone track it down in case it’s stolen.
Here’s how it works: An email lands in the inbox promoting a website (www.chorikamaal.com) that promises to sell ‘stolen’ mobile phones at a 90 per cent discount. By clicking on the link, users are directed to the site, which has a notice saying it’s out of business, and the promoters are in jail, thanks to a bad experience with Samsung’s ‘mobile tracker’ technology.
Users can then click (they are taken to www.lossproofmobiles.com) to learn more about Samsung’s E250 phone. The viral campaign developed by interactive agency Media2win, will be sent out to registered users of samsungfunclub.com.
| The viral e-mail |
To time with the launch of a related TV commercial for the product, Samsung called for a pitch to develop the viral, and Media2win won. The agency developed the website www.lossproofmobiles.com, which includes a lost-and-found blog where people can share their experiences with their lost phones or tell others if they have found one.
Media2win then developed the campaign further. Says Krishna Kumar, CEO of Media2win, “There was scope for a lot more: lost phones, mobile thieves and mobile resellers. That’s when we came up with the idea of a website that sells stolen goods.”
The company says it’s too early in the campaign to judge success in terms of numbers. All the same, it shows how viral campaigns are finding favour. Not only are they budget-friendly, virals are the online equivalent of worth-of-mouth, as all it takes to spread is a touch of the forward button.
Recent examples include the ‘Arey Baba and Chalis Chor’ video, a co-promotion for ‘KBC3’, developed by WebChutney. Brands such as Airtel, Mircosoft, MakeMyTrip and Happydent have also adopted the viral strategy.
Specifically, Samsung is promoting the website through online banners. It’s also doing a search marketing campaign and has bought 20,000 keywords to generate a buzz. It is certainly creating a buzz, but it’s hard to say whether mobile phone thieves have seen the campaign that’s putting them out of business!
© 2007 agencyfaqs!