The pandemic presented especially challenging times for industries like museums, who were forced to close their doors to visitors during the lockdowns. With business models revolving around visitors physically coming into the building to experience exhibitions, teams had to pivot their strategies to stay alive.
Here’s an example:
The New York Met hadn’t been closed to visitors in over 100 years until Covid hit. Their collaboration with an unlikely partner – Verizon – allowed both the museum and Verizon to flourish, despite the unexpected twist of the pandemic.
How? Verizon partnered with the Met to create mobile-accessible exhibitions, powered by Verizon’s new 5G network campaign.
People had been stuck indoors, craving a connection to culture and the outside world. But, what was the constant that remained accessible to those in lockdown? Wi-fi. This set up the perfect landscape for a successful partnership between the Met and Verizon.
The museum curated 13 brand new galleries and 46 immersive challenges, made possible by augmented reality, 3D rendering, 360 cameras, and of course – Verizon 5G. For the first time ever, museum visitors could take art home from the Met and truly experience the museum like they never had before – getting an even more intimate and immersive experience than visiting the museum in person.
The campaign engaged over 153 different countries around the world, bringing in about 200,000 virtual visitors every day. These numbers far trumped the Met’s average visitor statistics.
Virtual attendees found Verizon to be a leader in 5G, providing the fastest service, with the best coverage. Verizon’s brand affinity was greatly boosted thanks to this campaign.
Utilizing new collaborations and innovative strategies allowed these partners to pave new ground during a challenging time.
What can we learn from this?
- Fresh and unique strategies draw the most attention. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box. Did the idea of converting the entire Metropolitan Museum of Art into a virtual space seem crazy? Probably. But the return was great due to the originality and innovation behind the campaign.
- Unlikely partnerships can provide great return. On first thought, Verizon 5G may not have seemed like a noteworthy partner for a New York City museum. But, this collaboration actually worked in favor of both parties. When considering a brand partnership, don’t settle for the most apparent collaborator.
- Never shy away from tech. Think about all the different ways technology played a role in the success of this campaign – from using 3D rendering, to 360 cameras, to augmented reality. Expand your team to encompass more tech-savvy individuals and you may be surprised at how much you can accomplish when strategizing innovative campaigns.
