The economy offered little to smile about in 2009. Despite new technologies, people were feeling less connected, as Kodak research discovered; people longed to share laughs, feelings and, yes, photos. So Kodak created 'It’s Time to Smile', a campaign to foster face-to-face connections and demonstrate that personal relationships are as central to Kodak as natural beauty is to Dove.The big idea emerged with the discovery of a little-known movement called 'Brightsiding' - people engaging in random acts of kindness. The team found two 'Brightsiders' at Purdue University, locally dubbed the 'Compliment Guys'- often seen on street corners, doling out compliments for hours to fellow students. Seeing a strategic fit between sharing compliments and smiles, and sharing photos, the team sent the duo on a 'Brightside Tour' to produce compliments and smiles on a national scale, amplified by a blog, a Twitter feed and YouTube.National media - including the Today Show and Fox and Friends- ate up the compliments. Nearly overnight, the tour brought personal connections and smiles to thousands, including fans at a Washington Nationals game, where the Guys broadcast compliments from the dugout. By year-end, Kodak had reason to smile, with a 6% jump in Q4 sales.

The team avoided many conventional PR approaches, instead rethinking how to preserve the authenticity of the Compliment Guys as spokespeople.- Pre-tour message-training became about listening to their authentic voice, rather than drilling and indoctrinating them in Kodak’s marketing messages.- In contrast with a previous mobile Kodak product tour, brand visibility for the Brightside Tour was limited to a few strategic spots on the RV, the Guys’ blog, and 'It’s Time to Smile' stickers.- We carefully vetted marketing partnerships, seeking only events befitting of the Guys’ true personality - including a high profile Washington Nationals game. - We built a custom blog(BrightSideTour.com) and created a Twitter feed, tour videos and YouTube posts – all matching the Guys’ quirky, no-glitz approach, and strategically underplaying Kodak sponsorship.- Every Kodak social media channel was used to amplify the Guys’ voices ('1,000 Words' blog, Twitter feed and Facebook fan page).

Drive visibility, favorable Kodak impressions: - Secured 143 million media impressions, beating objective by 377%.- Achieved coverage on the Today Show and Fox & Friends, top newspapers such as The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.- The Cassandra Report, a trend tracker, declare 'human warming' trend, citing Brightside Tour.Drive consumer engagement: - Engaged 250,000+ consumers in 10 markets, double objective• Inspired consumers, journalists, and even copycat programs. - Kathy Kemp (Birmingham News) declared, “This campaign could turn into a revolution”.- AdMavericks named it 'favorite 2009 campaign':"Word to Kodak for their subtlety. They make it not about them."- Attracted 12,000+ visitors to BrightSideTour.com, 700+ Twitter followers in two weeks, and many comment, like Lisa’s: “I am going to take your lead and try to dish out compliments daily when I return to work.”But, the biggest compliment to the team of all: Kodak’s 6% Q4 jump in sales.