Facebook users heist 1 million Facebook Credits
Two months ago, Universal Pictures launched a first-of-its-kind marketing campaign on Facebook to promote the studio's action-comedy movie Tower Heist, starring Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy. The Facebook app, Heist It Back, allowed users to hunt for Heist buttons hidden on Facebook Pages and Facebook Ads. As planned, the movie studio gave away 1 million Facebook Credits ($100,000) in total.
Users received a few Facebook Credits every time they clicked a Heist button, got their friends to join the heist, or shared a story of they did it. The unique promotion idea was conceived by interactive agency The Branding Farm and digital goods incentive technology company Ifeelgoods. These two companies confirmed the following results from the Heist it Back Facebook three-week campaign:
- 52,000 active game players
- 384,391 digital "heists" performed
- 18,617 user stories submitted
- 94,062 Friends invited to participate in the game
- 208,000 replies to shared stories from friends
- More than 4.1 million impressions from Facebook shared and discovered stories
- 157 million impressions from page posts
- 1 million Facebook Credits redeemed
"We are providing entertainment companies and brands with the most cost-effective way to engage fans for a fraction of the cost of traditional marketing initiatives," Ifeelgoods co-founder and CEO Michael Amar said in a statement. "Brands can influence consumer behavior and engage with their customers with for as little as 10 cents. Seventy percent of consumers who engage in these types of Facebook Credits promotions share their rewards on Facebook, leading to additional conversions, clicks and impressions without additional costs to brands."
"Facebook was the perfect vehicle to give users a chance to feel like they're part of the story," Hill Salomon, The Branding Farm, said in a statement. "We saw some players Liking every page and some were even banding together to create their own groups to help each other locate Heist buttons. It was amazing to see players truly immerse themselves in the experience."
If you're wondering, the movie's plot is simple: a group of hard-working individuals find out they've fallen victim to a wealthy business man's Ponzi scheme, so they conspire to rob his high-rise residence. Tower Heist arrived in theaters on November 4, 2011. It did not do so well in the box office, though it's not clear how this Facebook campaign affected the results.
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