It’s late on a Friday night in Canada. You get a message. It asks, “u up?”
IKEA slid into Canadians’ DMs between 10 pm and 5 am. Those who responded received another surprise – a free mattress from Ikea.
The strikingly different campaign idea came from Rethink (creative, strategy and PR), a response to the increasingly competitive world of selling mattresses, with challenger brands vying for audiences’ attention and offers abounding. IKEA went directly to those who need mattresses most, sleepless Canadians – in the middle of the night.
“We wanted to find a way to engage with people when sleep and mattresses are top of mind – like when they’re literally having trouble sleeping,” stated Robbie Percy, group creative director and partner at Rethink. “So, the age-old ‘u up?’ message is a very relevant, fun and playful way to do that.”
Beyond the midnight delight, IKEA also extended the offer to social media influencers who helped create additional buzz around the wicked interaction.
