Silence is golden for experiential AXE concerts

However, AXE’s recent experiential activity aimed for exactly that with a series of concerts in Turkey to support the launch of a new ‘understated’ fragrance.

The campaign for AXE Black had a simple message at its core: bring the quiet. The challenge was conveying this in a memorable way.

To do so, Turkey – dubbed the “the loudest country on earth” – was chosen as the site for a cleverly-orchestrated silent movement. Building a soundproof music studio right in the bustling heart of Istanbul, AXE attracted scores of excited crowds to a series of free concerts performed by some of Turkey’s biggest bands.

To enjoy the experience and listen to the music being performed live, passers-by simply needed to log into the free AXE Black WiFi. But doing so came with a catch. A big one.

Connecting to the WiFi meant that, for the period of time that they were listening to the bands perform, spectators would be denied access to their social media accounts. That’s right, the price that needed to be paid to enjoy the ‘silent window’ concerts was complete social silence.

Of course, true quiet wasn’t the end goal of the exercise. Denying the spectators the ability to do what now comes so naturally – sharing an experience to the world in real-time – only seemed to increase the volumes of social sharing that took place afterwards, immediately raising buzz about the new fragrance. The silent window swiftly trended on Twitter, becoming Turkey’s most tweeted outdoor project.
 

The approach bears strong similarities to Netflix’s mock prison construction in Paris to spread the word about the return of Orange Is The New Black to TV screens. Both made the most of heavy foot traffic in bustling areas to quickly make an impact and boost brand awareness.

Each of AXE’s 17 concerts attracted approximately 1,000 spectators, with the campaign reportedly leading to an increase in sales for AXE Black – showing that sometimes in life, silence really can be golden. 

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Joss Davidge is Director of the Unexpected at BEcause, the award-winning live brand experience agency, dedicated to enhancing Brand Love. Sign up to Joss’ next complimentary brand experience masterclass to learn about the most effective experiential marketing strategies.