Zenzi Introduces a New Technology to Youth Market Using Viral Interactive Online Campaign

Challenge: fix8 tasked Zenzi with the product launch of a little-known technology that allows IM users to create customized avatars and animated video using webcams. Its main objective was to introduce the product to consumers and drive its free download offering online. Their initial target market was heavy Internet users age 25 and under who use Instant Messenger, AIM, Skype etc. to communicate to colleagues or friends. The primary obstacle was that no one would be looking for this technology online so education about the technology and leveraging ways to demonstrate the functionality and utility of the software was crucial.

Solution: Zenzi planned a viral and interactive online campaign to reach their target audience and accomplish their download goals. The plan incorporated key data from research based on how to penetrate tech savvy, youthful Internet users by studying habits of this demographic. The integrated plan employed the use of social networking sites, tech blogs, creative demonstrations at tradeshows, traditional media outreach and analyst relations to blitz the market and drive traffic to the website.

Zenzi provided detailed recommendations for the improvement of the fix8 site, software and download process as wel as web developer referrals to expedite the remodel so that it was ready to publicize. Zenzi used our connections to outreach to syndicated bloggers, consumer review sites, free download sites, video sharing sites and social networking page development and cross-promotions.
We leveraged top properties including MySpace, Facebook, Technorati, Bebo, BlackPlanet, Classmates, Cyworld, eCrush, Friendster, LavaLife, MSN, Tagged, Twitter, Xanga, Yahoo!, YouTube, 606Tech, Blogburst Network, BlogoWogo, BusinessWeek’s Tech Beat, CenterNetworks, Darla Mack, Business 2.0’s Dawn Patrol, GigaOm, Gizmodo, Mashable Social Networking News, ReadWriteWeb, Red Herring’s Internet & Media, Rojo, Techquila Shots, Business 2.0’s ThirdScreen, Wired’s GadgetLab and GameLife, and ZDNet’s Office Automation. Social pages on Myspace Facebook and LinkedIn were used to share the latest news, videos and coverage to validate fix8’s offering, and invite their rapidly-increasing friends’ groups to share the software, participate in top software reviews, and comment on blogs to achieve maximum viral impact.An educational video was developed and pushed to media, bloggers and analysts to introduce and illustrate the technology.

Results: By leveraging relationships with top bloggers, analysts and tech media the Zenzi team achieved “wire like” syndication of fix8 reviews and news stories to reach key target markets and map our efforts directly back to business development. Positive coverage from such respected bloggers has quickly gained attention, acceptance and validation of fix8 among a typically fickle (and difficult to reach) teen/college market.

We built tremendous momentum for fix8 in just a few months and secured 260 news clips. The dollar equivalency is $1,388,258 in ad dollars, 85,215,532 in web traffic and 213,038,830 in total readership. Zenzi grew the number of downloads on the fix8 site from 554 to over 60, 000 in just four months. Our targeted campaigns have also been instrumental in securing key partnerships for fix8. The company now offers Zenzi’s full support in promoting partnership announcements in order to sweeten deals, and secure targeted agreements more quickly.

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