In March, Samsung partnered with specialist portrait photographer, Ben Weller, to shine a light on night-shift workers through an intimate portrait series shot exclusively on the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra.
The campaign hoped to shine a light on the inspiring stories of everyday people who keep the country ticking while the rest of the nation sleeps.
Each of the portraits – featuring an astronomer, a florist, a milkman, a farmer, a confectioner and Samsung ambassador Fearne Cotton – showcased the way the new Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra ‘revolutionises’ the way photos can be captured, even in the lowest of light.
According to Samsung, night shifts are on the rise, with nearly half (44%) of UK night workers now preferring to work alternative hours in comparison to a traditional 9-5. The research commissioned by the brand also revealed that 18–34-year-old night workers feel the hours suit their lifestyle (49%) more.
Why did the tech giant opt to use the topic of night shifts to promote its newest phone release?
Marketing Beat sits down for a Q&A with Samsung UK and Ireland marketing and omnichannel director Annika Bizon to find out.
What was the main inspiration behind the campaign?
“As a marketer, bringing joy to consumers as they embark on their purchasing journey is one of my primary rationales. We know that simply listing off specs and features isn’t enough to communicate the true innovation that lies at the core of each of our devices and our ecosystem. On top of that, we know that users expect the highest standards from Samsung, which is why off the back of the Galaxy S23 Series launch we created the ‘Light Shift’ campaign.
“The ‘Light Shift’ campaign was put together to help celebrate night workers and to highlight the hidden progress and creativity that happens overnight, while showcasing the incredible nightography capabilities of the latest devices. Through a series of intimate portraits we were able to highlight the revolutionary 200MP camera on the S23 Ultra. In addition to the series of portraits, we also launched an immersive 3D gallery space to display our Light Shift images for people to explore.”
How were the night-shift workers sourced?
“We knew we wanted to shed light on the hard work and magic that happens overnight. We wanted a campaign that would appeal to everyone but we also wanted to reach customers who might be considering upgrading their device. Therefore, we utilised existing data to determine areas with an increased percentage of legacy users and searched for relevant case studies within those areas.
“This is how we ended up with five amazing nightshifts workers; the florist that works through the night creating floral displays using bright colours and textures inspired by her Jamaican heritage; the farmer working to improve the sustainability of the farm and the wider industry to help change public perceptions; the milkman who founded his business to help tackle plastic pollution in our oceans; the creative confectioner, who wakes up pre sunrise to whip up her award winning fudge; and the astrologer who is showcasing the fastest growing astronomical community in the country
“They were so inspiring to work with– each of them has such a niche and interesting background, we felt privileged to be able to capture and bring these epic moments to life for our audience.”
What was it like to work with Fearne Cotton?
“Fearne was first announced as part of the 12-month ambassador campaign we launched last year. She is an incredibly authentic storyteller with a passion for photography so it was great to be able to work with her on this campaign.
“In terms of our influencers, our aim is to work with them as collaboratively as possible. They are all amazing content creators, and we must work in partnership to develop a post or reel that really adds value to our mutual audiences.
“Influencer marketing connects our brand with consumers on social media, so to resonate in an authentic way, we work with a broad range of influencers, with a balance across all tiers and genders to ensure they are representative of our customer base. It’s a passion point of mine and I’m excited to see this programme continue to grow and develop.”
What was the main audience you were targeting?
“This campaign was designed to drive mass awareness across a wide range of audiences.
“We selected a diverse group of night shift workers from various regions across the UK, allowing the campaign to resonate with different demographics and create genuine emotional connection.
“We told each of these fascinating character’s story as part of the national campaign, but also put a focus on highlighting these workers with their own local media, giving us fantastic reach up and down the country. The campaign had many different touchpoints, including an immersive 3D gallery which was created with our Gen MZ audience in mind. We know this group gravitate towards authentic human lead campaigns and value the camera capabilities of our devices, so creating this immersive experience which told our Light Shift workers stories with these beautiful set of images felt like the perfect approach.”
When creating campaigns do you aim to produce better quality content than your competitors?
“Our priority is to connect with people on a more personal level. And our Galaxy S23 Series launch, was our most personalised omnichannel marketing campaign to date. This included an immersive experience at the Galaxy Unpacked space in London, where consumers were able to get their hands on the latest devices with their friends and families.
“In this challenging economic environment we know that brands like ours will need to work harder than ever before to connect with our customers. When creating campaigns, we look at the wider circumstances faced by consumers, supported by our data insights to help us understand our audience’s wants and needs. This is something we believe will help create more personalised experiences for consumers – all the way through from awareness to demand capture and conversion, and what sets us apart from our competitors.”
