GAMES

Zenman: Galactic Conspiracy

Online game contest

Challenge

After the launch of their ZenFone 2 smartphone generation, ASUS decided to focus on youth marketing to appeal to their target audience.

ZenFone 2’s main distinguishing feature is it’s high-resolution camera - perfect for capturing day to day moments and making selfies. ASUS was looking to attract the attention of their target audience of teenagers and young people with an effective marketing campaign. This had to publicize the product’s KSPs (key selling points) in an entertaining way.

solution

At the time of the campaign, online gaming had been booming in the social media world.

Riding the wave of these trends, we suggested creating an online game in which players had to use ZenFone KSPs to complete certain tasks. Inspired by the product’s innovative features, we came up with a superhero character, Zenman, who would save the world by using his state-of-the-art smartphone from ASUS. In the game, Zenman had to chase and expose an alien villain. He used his ZenFone camera features to decipher a flying saucer’s licence plate on the move, take a photo of a band of villains in their dark lair, and remove an undercover agent from the photo. He used ZenFone’s dual SIM cards to make a call. Each stage of the game included hints to explain how the ASUS ZenFone 2 could help Zenman achieve his tasks. Thus, the product benefits were clearly stated.

As an extra incentive for user engagement, we added a prize giveaway at the end of the game. Players who spent the least amount of time playing the game, and collected the most points, could win real prizes. To improve their scores, users could share the game with friends via social networks, thereby spreading the word about the product and making it viral. A digital marketing campaign was launched to promote the game and attract new fans to the brand. The campaign delighted both consumers and the industry. It exceeded our key aims, and made Zenman the new face of ZenFone smartphones in selected EMEA countries. The campaign generated a great social buzz and attracted 350 000 players, garnered 100 000 posts in social media and gained ASUS 80 000 loyal subscribers. Now Zenman is strongly associated with the ASUS brand and was used in sequels of the game, as well as a whole range of marketing activities.