General information
Sector: Technology
Media: Linear TV, VOD, social media
Time period: November – December 2021
Case description
The growth in smartphone penetration means that almost everyone has a camera in their pocket. Additionally, social media platforms like Instagram have accelerated growth in the quality and ambition of user-generated photography content. No longer is photography a niche subject and it was Adobe’s mission to drive creativity for all by providing tools that are accessible to anyone with a story to tell. Therefore, Adobe was looking for opportunities to extend communication into areas that would reach new audiences in key markets to build brand awareness and product favourability.
At a similar time, one of Sky Arts’ most popular series, Master of Photography had recently come to an end – so it was a picture-perfect moment to give the brand an opportunity to collaborate on a new photography series. Sky Media and Zinc Media Group joined forces in the Spring of 2021 to proactively pitch the first-ever Advertiser Funded Programme on Sky Arts. Sky Arts’ Commissioning experts loved the idea of democratising the hobby, as it was closely aligned with the channel’s own strategy of making the arts more accessible. The concept of a new show, “My Greatest Shot” was given the go ahead; subject to a brand fully funding the six-part series and investing in a media campaign to support it, in return for a peak slot launch and social media support.
To best ensure success for all stakeholders in the partnership, Zinc & Sky Media brought Adobe on board at the development stage of the production process. This meant that Adobe could work collaboratively to develop the format, cast the photographers and integrate Adobe Lightroom in a way that was natural, authentic, and genuinely added value for the viewer experience – showcasing the use of Lightroom as an essential phase of the development of each photographer’s career-defining images.
Alongside the show’s Linear and VoD broadcast, the campaign used social and digital formats to extend the reach and engagement of the series amongst a targeted audience of photo enthusiasts and creative professionals. Sky Arts included #MyGreatestShot within the programme and pushed it out across @skytv social channels to drive engagement.
Additionally, culture and photojournalism magazine brand ‘Huck’ was enlisted to create promotional content that included double-page editorial interviews and digital features with the series’ contributing photographers – all directing their highly targeted viewers to watch the Sky Arts series.
Campaign results
The series was a massive success, delivering over 11,000 downloads on Sky Arts VoD – and making it the 6th most downloaded programme on Sky Arts VOD during Q4 2021; while the activity in Sky’s social channels, which exceeded all targets, racked up over 1m video views and over 2.2 million impressions. Furthermore, independent research from Differentology proved My Greatest Shot successfully communicated product purpose and significantly shifted brand awareness (by 11pp) and product favourability with 7 in 10 claiming a more positive opinion as a result. 94% of viewers claimed to have taken action as a result of exposure to Lightroom, with 40% of respondents searching online for more information on Adobe’s product. And as a true testament to the quality of the production, this My Greatest Shot AFP partnership has also now been shortlisted for a Broadcast Digital Award.