Cranium Pop 5 Campaign Site and UGC Game

The Challenge:
When Cranium introduced their newest board game, POP 5, they wanted to create a digital game representation and a site combo that would allow an online audience to experience the fun-natured party game in ways that would drive purchase intent. Beyond creating an engaging strategy, BLITZ was also faced with a technology challenge to capture the core of the game, which is " it's not what you know, it's how you show it"—stressing that the experience of the board game is much more about expressing your creativity via drawing, sculpting, humming, and acting. It was important that the game be perceived as entertainment for the masses, rather than simply the brainiacs. In short, how do you highlight the fun and excitement of a physical board game online in a way that allows users to experience the thrill of participation and actual game-play?

The Solution:
BLITZ translated the analog board game into an online viral experience called "POP 5 Live", which allowed players throughout the country to challenge each other via video submission. It was like YouTube meets American Idol, with thousands of contestants competing for the chance to win a $50,000 cash prize by uploading videos. Visitors would play this online version just as if they were playing in a living room with friends. Using the platform BLITZ built, players became performers in the game by creating and submitting new video content for other players to compete against. The game experience remained fresh as more content made its way in, so no game was ever the same twice. Performers were motivated to submit high-quality video, as their score was based on how many people guessed their clues correctly, and how well the video was rated. To gain initial traction, BLITZ seeded the game with hundreds of video performances by doing a three-day Hollywood shoot with comedic actors.

The Results:
As the first-ever online game that was fully fuelled by UGC, the campaign launch was a huge success, and became one of the prominent features on MSN Games for several weeks. It drew a huge fan base and had an equally impressive conversion rate—28% drove to purchase from all outgoing linkage. User-generated videos accounted for more than half the videos that were in rotation of the game, and average game play was 9 minutes long. Cranium wished to achieved 500,000 game plays, however the game drew over 1,000,000 plays. Another goal was for the game to get an official sponsor, which Alltel signed up for.

Category:

Gaming

Tags:

• Cranium
• Pop 5
• Cranium Pop 5
• Cranium Pop 5 Campaign Site
• Cranium Pop 5 UGC Game
• Pop 5 Campaign Site
• Pop 5 UGC Game
• Campaign Site
• UGC Game
• Games
• Toys
• Campaigns
• Brand Destinations
• Social Media
• Gaming
• Product Development