Creating a talking point
Buying printers and copiers is definitely a grudge purchase for businesses, they look boring, they are boring but we all need them.
Sin was approached by BBC Digital to devise a new way to pitch the beige boxes to uninterested clients. We knew we needed something fun, engaging and memorable, and we also wanted to avoid images of photocopiers… Nigel was born.
Industry
What we did
Creating the office legend, Nigel.
We wanted to be upfront, and let punters in on the fact that even the people selling printers know they’re boring too. We wanted to play on this, but we also wanted to avoid using images of printers and copiers is the new campaign. This is how Nigel came to be. We’ve all worked with a somewhat nerdy, cliché character like Nigel, a great worker, model employee, but as dull as a dishwater. Nigel was our human printer and a great metaphor to build the campaign around.
First stop, finding the perfect talent and a photo shoot to give us a slew of images to use in an extensive campaign across all mediums.
Crafting a memorable campaign.
Nigel was to be used heavily throughout the collateral, but he couldn’t do it alone. He needed a distinct look to carry him, he’s own brand. By crafting a 70’s brown wallpaper, old picture frames and badges, a desaturated photography styling and a tongue-in-cheek tone of voice, we created a retro-nerd feel that was instantly recognisable and totally Nigel.
The campaign comprised of press ads, direct mail, signage, web promos and email campaigns.
We made selling photocopiers actually fun, and created an iconic character along the way. But the most important thing, it worked.
Success and all the trimmings.
The campaign proved highly successful for BBC Digital, creating a lot of attention and new sales from new and existing clients. As for Nigel, he became somewhat of a local celebrity, attracting job offers and more. He’s currently rumored to be sailing the warm waters of the Caribbean in his beige yacht, Copy Bouy.
Beyond the beige.
After the initial Nigel campaign, BBC Digital were moving the business in new directions, they needed to be seen as more than just photocopier suppliers, and a move into the digital space of document management and workflow was the obvious answer, but delivering this complex message to an unsuspecting audience would be no easy task.
