By now most people are entrenched. It’s either Android or iOS (Apple). Samsung has made a bold move. It’s asking Apple fans to experience Samsung (Android). On their iPhones. The idea and the test, iTest, are the creations of DDB Group digital experience agency, Tribal Aotearoa. The campaign began when Tribal Aotearoa was briefed to motivate consumers to consider switching from their iPhones to Samsung devices – on paper, a simple proposition but a near impossible task in practice.
The iTest was soft-launched to a small, New Zealand-only audience due to a relatively small budget and being to launch iTest through the app store. It was meant to generate organic engagement and test the waters of public opinion.
But iTest gained global momentum at a remarkable rate. More than 5.5 million Apple users from 234 countries and territories have downloaded iTest, which appears to transform an iPhone into a Samsung. The web application mimics the operating system of an Android device, allowing users to experience navigation, app interaction, settings, texting/calling, and even the camera features.
Haydn Kerr, creative partner at Tribal Aotearoa, explained, “We soft launched it to a tiny audience in New Zealand via a social ad with minimal paid support, and from there it got picked up by MacRumours and every major tech news site around the world. We had 2 million users in the first weekend alone – that’s the power of a good idea.”
After the initial launch, Tribal Aoteoroa has been running campaigns in-store and on social to get even more iPhone fans to download iTest.
The idea for iTest began with research and online sentiment which revealed to the Tribal Aotearoa team that there was one driving factor preventing consumers from changing to Samsung: fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of the overly complicated, and fear of the unfamiliar would all be difficult misconceptions to dispel without allowing consumers to interact with the Samsung interface themselves, which is exactly what iTest allows. So iTest was designed to replicate Samsung’s intuitive OneUI user experience for Android convincingly. This was a significant development challenge.
According to Samsung New Zealand’s mobile marketing manager, John Alexander, the success of the iTest campaign shows the power of great creative to cut through even the most hard-wired consumer behaviours. “iTest essentially gives Apple users the chance to test-drive a Samsung from the comfort of their iPhones. It’s also a commitment-free proposition, which we believe makes consumers more open to genuine comparison between the two operating systems.”
If you’re an Apple user, give iTest a go here.
