To win over youngsters in Argentina, mobile network Movistar created a social media sitcom. This case study looks at how the brand made smart use of the Facebook platform to get 6.5 million views- and demand for a second season.
• Movistar created the first sitcom broadcast only in Facebook, turning page into an innovative original content broadcast.
• Every week at 8.30, fans Young people could watch a new episode on Facebook, and also comment, share or participate in quizzes.
• Mobile network gained almost 415,000 new fans during the three-month period, a 40% increase compared to the historical fans of the brand, and 58% of the new fans were young people.
The challenge
Movistar is Telefónica Group's mobile network operator in Argentina. It holds an industry-leading position in the country and is considered an unrivaled pioneer in mobile products and services. In Argentina, it services 20.3 million mobile phone lines, 1.8 million broadband access networks and 4.8 million fixed lines.
Movistar was launching a new chip called "Fingers", which was created and developed for young people aged 17-24 who no longer use the phone to talk. The new chip only works for texting and browsing. The brand had to get their attention with a different product launch. They also had to create awareness, moving the brand into a new and innovative space, and turning the Movistar Facebook Page in a really interesting place.
But just as youth have stopped talking on the phone, they're also failing to watch TV. Or, we could say, they do watch TV—but on the internet. So Movistar created the first Facebook sitcom: a TV show broadcast only in Facebook, turning our Facebook Page into an innovative original content broadcast.
The solution
Working with agencies Mindshare and DDB, the brand recreated a TV sitcom in every detail, with a very high quality execution, perfect visuals and funny writing.
The campaign was launched Monday, September 2, 2013 at 8:30pm sharp. Young people could watch a new episode on the Facebook Page every Monday at 8:30pm. They could comment on it, share it or participate in many different quizzes.
Results
Young people loved the show. They asked for more and longer episodes, and clamored for a second season in Facebook. Movistar gained almost 415,000 new fans during the three-month period that we broadcasted the 12 episodes. That was a 40% increase compared to the historical fans of the brand, and 58% of the new fans were young people.
They had almost 2 million views on the Facebook Page alone, and more than 6.5 million total and completed views. That was a lot of viewing minutes people spent on our Facebook Page and on our other platforms.
