The gift of hearing
Case Study
Stuff and Triton Hearing
A heartfelt and effective campaign that went above and beyond standard marketing campaigns, and made a positive and long-lasting impact on the lives of New Zealanders with hearing loss and their families.
The challenge
New Zealand hearing loss: a background
One in six New Zealanders have a hearing loss of some degree - usually developing gradually with age.
But there are several barriers for Kiwis around life-changing hearing devices including pricing, misconceptions about how they look and feel, confusion about what hearing loss entails, and social stigma.
In order to gain cut-through and resonate with multi-generational New Zealanders, a fresh and creative storytelling perspective was needed.
Championing better hearing
Triton Hearing - a leading hearing device provider in New Zealand - wanted to reframe the conversation about hearing loss, and help Kiwis reconnect with their world and their loved ones through providing gift vouchers for hearing tests. Stuff’s task was to use creatively compelling content to:
- Drive category growth
- Generate sales by encouraging the audio-impaired to book a test
Stuff's innovative solution
Stuff - New Zealand’s largest news publisher - proposed and delivered an innovative and engaging integrated content experience across our digital and print properties to:
- Bring to life what hearing loss is like in unique and disruptive way
- Put Triton Hearing at the heart of meaningful intergenerational connection
In order to gain cut-through and resonate with multi-generational New Zealanders, a fresh and creative storytelling perspective was needed.
Disruptive dissonance
At the heart of the campaign was a disruptive innovative audio experience.
The ‘Kiwi sounds of summer’ quiz illustrated what it’s like to have hearing loss. Embedded in a short digi article, the timed quiz included iconic summer sounds like splashing at the pool, waves lapping on the beach, and new bikes being ridden.
At first listen the gamified content was seemingly easy, and highly engaging to a wide range of readers…
However, sporadically throughout the quiz we disrupted the experience. Some audio was cut out, other sounds were barely audible, others were indistinguishable from similar sounds, and some questions included muffling or high-pitched whines - all early signs of hearing loss.
Deliberately designed to be disorienting, readers thought something was wrong and often got answers incorrect. Once completed, all results outlined hearing loss statistics and provided links to vouchers with Triton Hearing.
The audio quiz - which was also a first for Stuff as a platform - blew all expectations out of the water, overdelivering 540% above guaranteed page views.
Relatable storytelling
Stuff also created two original sponsored articles which reflected relatable stories of people with hearing loss.
The articles which ran in digital and print publications included the misconceptions the customers had and the improvements they experienced after being fitted with a device.
All articles included a clear call to action for readers to sign-up for gift vouchers.
Article one overdelivered by 19%
Article two overdelivered by 22%
Article one overdelivered by 19%
Article one overdelivered by 19%
Article two overdelivered by 22%
Article two overdelivered by 22%
Playful print
A significant drawback to hearing loss can be a reduction in human connection as sufferers’ worlds become smaller.
Through select national, regional daily and weekly newspapers and magazines in the Stuff staple, we ran gamified print content in the form of origami Christmas decorations, enabling friends and families to spend quality time with one another on collaborative activities. Other articles focused on the importance of connection, and how hearing devices can assist.
Effective editorial
A fully-integrated solution, our editorial team came on board and supported the campaign through a mention in our Sunday Magazine gift guide.
To reach the desired audience of those affected by hearing loss and ‘influencers’ (their adult children) we included high-impact takeovers of our most highly-trafficked contextually relevant areas; the news section and the quiz section (which pointed to our own quiz).
Seamless editorial integration in our Christmas special for our newspaper inserted magazine, "Sunday"
Seamless editorial integration in our Christmas special for our newspaper inserted magazine, "Sunday"
A quiz within a quiz? Our editorial quiz section included call-outs to our disruptive native sponsored version.
A quiz within a quiz? Our editorial quiz section included call-outs to our disruptive native sponsored version.
Takeovers in the appropriate editorial sections had contextual impact
Takeovers in the appropriate editorial sections had contextual impact
Display, all the way
In a true omni-channel experience, high-impact desktop and mobile display directing readers to Triton’s site ran across our most engaged sections and platforms for our target audience, including:
- A mobile app takeover
- Homepage prominence
- NZ House and Garden section (our premium monthly publication)
- Neighbourly (our community social platform)
A one-stop shop
We created a hub for all content to sit within, and served drivers to it for a holistic experience.
A creative first
We predicted our quiz would disrupt and resonate, though the results were far more outstanding than anticipated.
As part of our quiz-promotion strategy, we created a stand-out interactive video in our new editorial section - Stuff Shorts. It was the first sponsored ‘Short’ for the group - and also the first ‘Short’ in the Stuff family to include audio; introducing a new approach to the wider publishing group.
Our Stuff video short performed 200% above expectations
One quiz everywhere: Our creative first with Stuff Shorts exceeded expectations by 200%
One quiz everywhere: Our creative first with Stuff Shorts exceeded expectations by 200%
Resounding results
“The Gift of Better Hearing” was a runaway success, exceeding all expectations from Triton Hearing - and Stuff.
The disruptive audio quiz generated a remarkable 540% overdelivery against guaranteed page views, showcasing the effectiveness of the innovative approach.
The two testimonial-based sponsored articles also achieved 19% and 22% over-delivery of page views respectively reflecting the resonance of relatable stories with the audience.
Our brand new-format Stuff video short performed 200% above expectations.
Stuff's editorial integration, high-impact display placements, and the introduction of a unique subscription package further expanded the campaign's reach. Overall, all media delivered nearly 20,000 clicks through to the client’s site.
The campaign ran before Christmas and not only captured the festive spirit, but also left a lasting impact on the lives of New Zealanders with hearing loss and their families.
The client was thrilled with its digital performance, saying “Overall, it was a great traffic driver and has allowed us to build up our retargeting pool for the always-on-social content we have running to help build our brand authority in the market and drive visitors back to the site.”
The campaign’s effect was not only felt in tangible click-throughs.
Triton Hearing said Stuff's community-centric and human-focused approach exceeded the standards of traditional marketing campaigns, fostering a positive shift in perception and paving the way for continued support and understanding of hearing-related challenges in the community.
A heartfelt and effective campaign that went above and beyond standard marketing campaigns, and made a positive and long-lasting impact on the lives of New Zealanders with hearing loss and their families.
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