#ChallengeXccepted

2018

Campaign

Once Upon a Spartan Race
Changing what it means to be extreme.

The Challenge

In September 2018, we were struck by a challenging brief. A Canadian TV channel in Singapore, BlueAnt Extreme, approached us for help in increasing viewership for their high-velocity, action-packed channel

Similar to a campaign we previously managed – #StandOrange– the domain for this would be  mainly digital, focusing on strengthening their social media presence and footprint. But before we dived into the finer details, we had to first ask ourselves what BlueAnt Extreme was all about.

To this we asked, what does it actually mean to be extreme? Is it taking your dog out for a walk but for-going the leash? Or would it be something like ordering spicy takeout food on the day of an important meeting? Or perhaps even a combination of the two?

The answer was clearly obvious within the many questions we asked ourselves. ‘Extreme’ is as it suggests – bringing two polar opposites together; going from zero to a hundred quickly; and expecting the wildly unexpected.

It’s about going out of your comfort zone and challenging yourself to your absolute limits. This is when it became clear that the story we wanted to tell would be one about ordinary people with extraordinary goals.

The Proposition

Now, imagine the absolutely gorgeous influencers you see everyday on Instagram, elegantly styling themselves in the hottest fashion statements in their latest post. Then in the next second, a sudden announcement of their participation in a Spartan Race.

“Wait... what?” seems appropriate for a response and was in fact, the exact reaction we excited among their fans.

Keep in mind, these influencers were not fitness enthusiasts. These were your models – men and women with perfect proportions and personas so harmless that they probably couldn’t even hurt a fly – taking on one of the world’s toughest and most cut-throat obstacle races.

This was the big idea – extreme yet entertaining.

The Challengers

So began the search for potential candidates for this seemingly impossible mission. Fortune favors the bold and it was in turn, favorable for us – within the span of only two weeks – we were able to lock down 5 influencers from all across South East Asia.

Novita (@novitalam) and Xin Lin (@xinlinnn) from Singapore; Nana (@nanabwincess) and Karen Kho (@karenkh0) from Malaysia; and last but not least, the male lead – Teejay Marquez (@teejaymarquez) from the Philippines.

These influencers would be the main drivers of the campaign, endorsed under a partnership with BlueAnt Extreme to produce content about their arduous training journey (i.e. their intense workout routines and their rigorous diets) that would take place from just a month before the Spartan Race in Johor until the big day itself.

Throughout the content-creation process, we made sure we were always in the managing the content buckets – curating videos from all 5 influencers and ensuring they remained consistent in terms of their messaging and direction. An influencer’s kit was even dispatched to guide them along the month-long quest.

The Storm Before the Calm

On the day of the Spartan Race, we flew our entire production crew to Johor to cover the influencers’ run and even provided live coverage for the viewers that had been closely following their journey at home. Blood, sweat and tears coursed through the fields of Johor as the only way to get close-up shots of the influencers was to actually run beside them DURING the race. We had to embrace a little bit of the Spartan spirit ourselves.

It all paid off immensely in the end. The response was phenomenal. Within a course of two months (including post-production) and a minimum media spend, we managed to raise awareness of BlueAnt Extreme’s channel to over 4 million users across Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines with an engagement rate of 3% – beating the world average of 1 - 2% in the sports category.

All of the original content produced by the influencers and published by BlueAnt Extreme were also later reused and aired on TV in between programmes – effectively adding more content to BlueAnt Extreme’s library for their perusal.

But the most amazing aspect of the campaign will always be the influencers who went out of their way to complete the race. Who would’ve thought? Models a year ago. Warriors today. The mental fortitude and physical resilience they developed in order to stretch over the finish line were definitely both extreme and inspiring.

Proving the naysayers wrong and being the heroes of a generation dictated by stereotypes, the campaign helped us realize just how much influencers can do to change conversations and affect opinions in our society. And until today, it remains one of the most memorable campaigns to us because of how they moved us inside.