Sky Ireland is launching its biggest ever advertising campaign in 27 years to promote its new premium Sky Q offering to subscribers.
The creative for the campaign was managed by the London agency Brothers and Sisters while MediaCom Ireland will manage the media and planning.
The campaign will be delivered across multiple media channels including TV, outdoor, cinema and print, as well as detailed use of digital and social channels. The digital execution includes a number of firsts for both Sky and the industry in terms of its innovative use of Facebook Canvas Ads, as well as pioneering display techniques which maximise the impact of the creative on mobile and tablet devices.
According to Ann-Marie MacKay, product marketing director, Sky Ireland: “For our biggest and most innovative technology launch, we wanted our biggest and most innovative ad campaign ever. On screen we have delivered something that is a truly world class in terms of creative and production. As the content explodes from screens, viewers will believe it has actually liquefied and that the drops contain real pieces of a movie or TV show. The fluid ethos of Sky Q will be carried over into how we deliver the campaign across multiple traditional, digital and social media platforms.”
She says that all digital activity is planned in such a way to ensure the messages of the campaign are joined up sequentially to form a “fluid story”. Customers will first be introduced to the product and the concept of Fluid Viewing and then learn over time about specific features across display, mobile and tablet, VOD and social formats. For example, website banners talking to one another and appear as such that the Fluid Viewing droplets cross between the banners on the same webpage.
She adds that the campaign will also involve new social media formats, including Facebook Canvas Ads, the first time Sky has used this format In addition the campaign will use the gyroscope functionality of mobile devices, so that when a tablet or mobile is moved, it will impact how the Fluid Viewing droplets in the ad appear on the screen. It will look as if they’re following the angles of which the device is facing. Another tool being utilised is the brand new Celtra formats, meaning the ad swells initially when it appears on mobile and tablet screens to maximise cut through and ensure standout.
The ads were shot by award-winning director Johnny Green who has worked for major brands around the world including Nike, Under Armor, Cisco and Honda.
“As always Sky wanted to push the limits of creativity. Getting to something truly original has required mind-boggling skill and effort. The whole thing took one year including five months of intensive pre-production prior to any filming. In total the ads involved 52 artists, 105 liquid VFX shots, over 4,000 individual simulations and an incredible 45,000 hours of rendering to get the ads just perfect,” according to Andy Fowler, creative director of Brothers and Sisters.
