Branded content in Italy must be always explicit, especially in TV shows.

It is common, but poorly developed as well. Most of times, it’s all about basic product placement. Many brands consider these kind of activities as an alternative and less expensive way to display products and brand names. A conservative approach that frequently reveals a weak creative angle.

The same happens quite often also with sponsorships and brand events (extremely frequent during festivals, concerts and city events like the Design Week in Milan). In these circumstances brands generally represent a simple signatures roughly linked to the core of the production. In other cases, the whole operation consists in a predictable experience that deliberately stages the product, with no real added value for users in terms of entertainment.

To this end, the usage of movies and series is generally more sophisticated, even though sometimes there is a blurry brand link.

Web platforms, social networks and games offer more opportunities in terms of creative solutions. But also in these cases, like anywhere else in the world, the risk is the same: create a “taylor made” mechanism, a contrived kind of entertainment, merely designed to satisfy commercial needs.

“Is your line that fast?”

We literally brought the idea of a “faster line” to life, using a physical media to let people getting a tangible proof of an intangible benefit.

We took an “everyday line”, an underground line, and we turned it into a “Fastweb line”, bringing thousands of people to the other side of the Earth in one stop time interval.

Overnight we completely transformed a Milan underground station into a Tokyo one, using adhesives and dimensional structures, screens, speakers and more than 100 actors.

Everything has been designed in order to encourage and facilitate sharing.

Real check in on Facebook at Tokyo. An entire billboard domination in japanese with QR code for instant translation and sharing.

Moreover, whole event was mirrored on web and social platforms in real time, with photos, videos, infographics, available also on mobile for all the attendants.

A huge success in terms of media generated and consumer engagement:

1.900.000 impressions on Facebook

1.500.000 impressions on Twitter

50.000 unique visits on immaginapuoi.it (website hub)

400.000 views on Youtube

Almost 3.500 check-in @ Tokyo in 12 hours.

#fastline and #moscova local Twitter trending topics

2.000 Photos shared on Instagram and Facebook during the event

18.400 event attendants (+8% vs normal daily traffic through underground station)

And Business:

Traffic in the Milan Flagship store increased 1500% on the day of the event (+ 200% sales) and was up 10% in all Fastweb stores during the week.