Our communication goal was to drive traffic to rbkcustom.com, encouraging users to design and buy custom shoes. The challenge facing us was that these shoes cost more than double the average price of regular Reebok trainers. Rather than focus on the brand’s current target audience, our research attempted to identify a more appropriate group for the custom products.

This revealed that an opportunity existed with groups who value creativity and personal discovery. We set out to build brand time and engage with this audience by meeting their needs and interacting with them at the most appropriate times and places.

Site traffic increased by 300% within the first 20 days and sales went up 200% two days after the launch. In addition, we sold over 9,000 pairs of virtual custom trainers and saw users return on a weekly basis, spending an average of eight minutes a visit.

Our communication idea led the creative process, allowing us to develop an approach that chimed perfectly with consumer needs and reached them in the right environments. This focused approach was vital as the brand could not count on a high profile or high media spend.

We built an RbK custom virtual store within Second Life where users could customise the products – a highly popular activity. We also found consumer-centric ways of adding to the experience.

To keep up with where the latest trends were developing, our placements moved from site to site. These were aligned to the creativity/discovery theme as well as the in-store customisation experience. We also bought ad networks, which adjusted the buys in real time by monitoring traffic and interaction.

The end result was that the brand reached the right audience at the right time and offered appealing opportunities to discover more and engage with it.