Sony Mobile pushes new consumer-led brand positioning with ‘Extraordinary’ campaign

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The company is hoping to inspire consumers to “discover the extraordinary in the everyday” with a campaign that stars real brand advocates and users of its Xperia smartphone and wearable devices.

The campaign rolls out with an Adam & Eve-created video titled “Everyday Extraordinary”, which tells the story of seven of the company’s real advocates by using “I can” statements in an effort to empower consumers to use the company’s smartphone as a tool to do “cool, new things every day”, according to Sony.

As part of what the brand says is a move to “overcommit” in the online space and bought media, the campaign will roll out globally in print, OOH, digital and TV today with an 80-second film and seven separate 20-second pre-roll films as well as on social media through the hash tag #ICan.

Speaking at the launch of the brand’s new platform, Catherine Cherry, marketing director for Sony Mobile said: “Smartphones are at the heart of how we communicate, but products are not enough.”

She added that the brand needed to bring its products to life with consumers by putting the experience at the heart of its positioning and strategy in order to show them what they can do with its technology.

“We needed more expression on how to get the most out of your smartphone,” she said.

The campaign showcases features of the smartphone such as its waterproof design or low-light photography with statements such as “I can see in the dark” and “I can survive underwater”.

It also stars Xperia users who were selected by the company due to their presence as influencers on social media or engagement with the brand.

“They’re actual users, which is important to us,” she said.

“It makes us credible, as they had a desire to talk about what they’re doing with our products.”

While the initial phase of the campaign is about “getting the brand positioning out there” through “broad, targeted and frequent” activity, she adds that a second phase of the campaign, set to roll out on May, will be based on user-generated content to get more people involved and take the campaign beyond 2015.

“It will be an opportunity for consumers to share their ‘I can’ moments and experiences,” Cherry added.

Using real consumers is in line with the company’s new planning approach which involves using consumer insight to drive its marketing planning and focus on its most interested consumers.

The company said investment in the campaign is similar to that of its Xperia Z3 campaign last year, which Sony says is quickly becoming the best-selling smartphone ever for the brand.

“But cut through in the market and capturing attention are more important than spend,” she added. “We’re getting users to spread the word and rewarding them for doing so.”