When gamers lag out, the frustration that comes with it often leads to broken controllers. Verizon Fios, the network named best for gamers, wanted to break this cycle of broken controllers and become gamers’ only option when their internet failed them mid-game.

But when it comes to the typical ad sell to gamers to switch their internet, this group of tech savvy consumers isn’t the easiest to convince. Any message we made had to be authentic to gaming culture.

Our primary objective was to get on gamers’ radars and to stir up social conversation about Fios being essential for gaming. But we didn’t do it in a way with a smack of sales or sponcon – the surest way to get canceled in the gamer culture. Ultimately, we needed an authentic voice of credibility within the community, to tee up the message that no gaming system was complete without Fios.

Verizon Fios wanted gamers to know that switching to the 100% fiber-optic network would break the cycle of lag frustration and broken controllers. But in order to break through the clutter so gamers actually stop and pay attention to our message, it had to be authentic and come from a source gamers actually listen to. So, we infiltrated gaming culture by trolling it, with the world’s first Unbreakable Controller – an innovative piece of tech built for gamers with bad internet. The idea was launched by some of the biggest names in gaming culture, Nate Hill and FaZe clan, providing the most native and engaging way to troll gamers with terrible internet and convince them to switch to Fios. Because why game with lag, when they could game on Fios, like Nate Hill himself?

Controllers suffer every day from the frustration that comes with internet lag. But when it comes to the typical pitch for gamers to switch their internet, this group of tech savvy consumers wasn’t buying. So what was Verizon Fios, the best internet for gamers, going to do?

It’s simple. Fios didn’t use an ad. We used an over-the-top troll to infiltrate gaming culture. It started by designing and creating the world’s first Unbreakable Controller to tease gamers with terrible internet and convince them to switch.

This resonated because the messenger wasn’t just one of their gaming heroes, he was also a Fios customer who could speak authentically to why it’s the best internet for gamers.

Within a few weeks, we built the first-of-its-kind Unbreakable Controller, introduced it to the gaming community and had gaming influencers Nate Hill and FaZe Clan (the most tweeted about esports team in the world) test it out on social in the most real and entertaining ways. Content was organically seeded and amplified across their top platforms - Twitter, Instagram and Twitch. We continued momentum by challenging All-Star influencers Lenarr Young and Tiffany Herrera to break the controller, and released an exclusive with gaming publication Kotaku to deliver a behind the scenes look at how Verizon Fios trolled the gaming world.

The campaign wrapped with Nate Hill’s Twitch livestream where he asked his 1.6 million followers to share their lag stories and talk about the Unbreakable Controller. Evidently, laggy internet was a problem for gamers everywhere. But fortunately, switching to Fios is a solution for it.

By creating a fully functioning Unbreakable Controller, gamers found out that we took our humorous troll just as seriously as we take switching to Fios for better internet. There was instant credibility with gamers when the campaign dropped - they felt seen and understood. Through a highly targeted and organic digital/social approach targeting the Fios footprint of 14 US markets, we achieved maximum reach and scale with upwards of 22MM impressions, 86% positive/neutral sentiment and 11K brand mentions on social. Many credited Verizon Fios for the “smart ad” or initiated conversations about needing Fios. “That was a smart ad not gonna lie”, “Just watched a 6 min ad for Verizon bro”, “I need the controller and Verizon internet as well”. For an audience that can sense inauthenticity from miles away, Fios gained respect through this organic content distribution and design approach, dominating the social share of voice among competitors.