May 18 2012

The answer is actually quite simple. According to the “Le jeu sérieux en Belgique francophone” annual conference (French for “the serious game in French-speaking Belgium”), the development of games has become more and more common in “serious” contexts, such as public-awareness campaigns, marketing a new product or service, or even for educational purposes. Every year, during the “Serious Game” event (which took place last week), prizes and awards are granted for outstanding so-called “serious” games.

The new game developed by Emakina for Electrabel has just been recognised as such, winning the Bell.Now award for the best “adver-game”. Participants of the “Serious Game” conference were asked to rank the best examples of the past year.   The Electrabel “Switch Off/ Smart Energy Game” was thus voted as the best case for marketing purposes. As suggested by the category name, the purpose of the game, developed entirely in-house by Emakina, was to promote the new Electrabel application which is part of the company’s wide-scale campaign.

The organisers might think it’s very “serious”. We still think it’s fun…!

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May 7 2012

How do you take an abstract and complex topic, such as the contribution of the eco-industries to the European economy, and turn it into a viral clip? This was the challenge, posed by the European Commission to Emakina.EU, member of the Emakina Group, specialising in communicating the European institutions. The goal was to promote “Eco-innovation”, a programme run by the Executive Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation (EACI), supporting private initiatives which have a positive impact on both the environment and the European economy.

The great level of trust we gained from the client allowed our creative directors to explore new concepts, off the beaten-track of the typical “institutional” clips. Their idea was to “personify” the themes of environmentalism and economic activity in the form of two dancers.  The artistic interplay between the dancers metaphorically expresses the synergic potential of the two fields.  It was meant to rebut the misconception that environmentalism stands in the way of economic growth and show that the two can in fact enrich one another.

The clip was produced entirely in-house by Emakina.EU, including its original soundtrack music. In order to develop the concept and properly illustrate the relationship between the dancers, it was decided to produce a clip which lasts over two minutes, long in today’s standards of viral clips. The video will now be disseminated on the most popular social media,  targeting potential entrepreneurs who may be eligible for an EU grant.

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May 4 2012

Football fans in Belgium and around the world can now enjoy the new website of the Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA). BelgianFootball.be was created by The Reference, a Ghent-based full-service digital agency, and part of the Emakina Group.

A site to experience today’s football

The Royal Belgian Football Association exists since 1895 and represents all football clubs in Belgium. Each football season, the Association organises no less than 300,000 football matches for 2000 teams. Its ambassadors, the Red Devils, represent it internationally, attracting a lot of web attention. The Belgian Football Association has been active on the web for many years with the site footbel.com (included in the CIM Metriweb reports). Players, from the highest to the lowest leagues, and their supporters, use this site extensively. But they’re not alone. The site is also commonly used by referees, trainers, clubs, board members, stewards and volunteers, sponsors etc. A match is a lot more than 22 players on a field running behind a ball… As a full-service digital agency, The Reference convinced the Association of their web approach in synchronicity with the further professional development of the sport in Belgium.

Caught the football bug? Build your own website!

The project posed some interesting challenges. The new RBFA website had to accommodate large traffic volumes, while delivering massive amounts of information to the entire football community.  Thanks to the smooth integration with the RBFA’s databases and its existing backend, you are a click away from all information on teams, upcoming matches, and more!

To make the web experience fun and user friendly, the site features a dashboard, where visitors can create their own pages. Each of them can pick her or his favourite team, be alerted of cancelled matches, view filtered news items, and enjoy many other personalisation features.

The new site was built using Drupal 6, with an extensive system of dynamic blocks. Content editors can thus create and adapt information efficiently and with high flexibility, significantly reducing the time laps needed for information to be published.

Anja Cappelle, managing director van The Reference concludes: ‘We are very proud to have created this very lively information channel for the Belgian football fans and their Association’.

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Apr 17 2012

Emakina.NL has won the pitch for the development and creation of the brand platform websites for Blue Bland (Netherlands) and Planta (Belgium). The digital agency was chosen over two other agencies in the competition. The decisive elements in the decision were Emakina’s clear consumer insights, combined with their strong and creative strategy for a content-driven platform. Next to this, the translation of the concept to a strong content calendar seamlessly fitted with the always-on communication approach of the Unilever brand. The agency will manage the technical, creative and editorial side of the projects.

Blue Band is a household name in the Netherlands since 1923. The brand is known in the market as a trusted margarine for young families. DraftFBC developed and executed the current above-the-line campaign. Quelle Belle Journée (Paris) is responsible for the creation of the new TV commercial for Planta.

Emakina.NL is part of the Emakina Group, an international online agency network with over 350 employees, active in the Netherlands, Belgium, France and the United Kingdom. Besides Blue Band, the customer portfolio of Emakina includes Bonduelle, Foundation ‘Weet Wat je Besteedt’, Dove, Magnum and Unox .

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Apr 16 2012

A new print campaign, produced by Emakina for Partenamut, the Belgian health services and insurance provider, introduces a striking new visual identity for the brand. After creating an original all-blue environment two years ago, Emakina decided to build on the same logic with an aesthetic approach that is unique in the field of health services. Together with the client, the team steered away from the traditional use of lifestyle photos of ‘shiny happy people’, in need of medical treatment. Instead, the campaign introduces handmade clay statues, designed and created by artist Ghislain Honoré.

Using photo-stop motion, each of the characters is presented in a typical every-day-life situation, where Partenamut plays a positive and dynamic behind-the-scenes role. Both the background and the characters were left in white while the key items, associated with the Partenamut’s positive intervention, were digitally coloured in the brand’s identifiable blue. Some 68 kilos of Italian clay in ‘broken white’ were used to create 50 statuettes, each about 20 cm tall, as well as some glasses, crutches, hospital beds, and other accessories.

Partenamut makes every effort is made to make clients’ lives easier, with less concerns, and with the least possible amount of paperwork.  This campaign thus symbolised Partenamut’s approach of keeping its services as simple as possible for its clients. The original visuals were combined with to-the-point and service-oriented copywriting. All the displayed messages were direct and positive; illustrating the advantages of Partenamut’s various services.

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Mar 28 2012

Commercial Information – In a business move that advances Emakina’s positioning, the company announced today its purchase of Wanabe’s goodwill. Wanabe is a Belgian-based agency which has enjoyed a strong reputation for its competences in brand activation, use of CRM tools, and building brand loyalty. It has been active in various sectors, such as: automotive, tourism, consumer goods, and retail.

Immediately following this acquisition, the Emakina Group, will offer Wanabe’s clients services from its four core fields of activity, namely: strategic brand management, brand activation, web building and digital applications. Emakina’s nine “Competence Centres” will also be put forward to Wanabe’s existing clients, allowing for the two companies to develop new business synergies.

Brice Le Blévennec, Chief Visionary Officer of Emakina: “This acquisition will reinforce our experience in brand activation and in CRM systems. The current trends towards consumer-focused marketing and the use of social media – become more strategic for our clients. Our newly-enriched service offer is thus now even more unique in our market”. Following the acquisition, Wanabe will be managed by Elsa Nejman and Jonathan Cerneels; who will serve as Managing Director and Managing Partner, respectively.

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Mar 26 2012

Clinique, the American cosmetics brand, famous for its allergy-tested products, has decided to engage with its clients differently. Its recent campaign, titled “3 Step coach”, uses a specially designated online platform for this purpose.  Clinique invites users to register as “coaches” on a Facebook Connect application, designed and developed by Emakina. Once registered, the challenge is on. Their goal is to invite as many friends as possible, and then share information on Clinique products as well as their personal experiences with them. Coaches are awarded with “badges” for each successful invitation or item they advertise. They become official “ambassadors”, after having collected a total of seven badges.

During the course of one year, all ambassadors receive Clinique products, corresponding with the experiences they write about. They are also treated with a personal coaching session, offered by an official Clinique expert. This experience will guide them on how to best match their skin types and needs with the most appropriate Clinique products. Friends of the ambassadors, who follow the activity online, get a VIP treatment as well! They each receive a three months products supply and the opportunity to join their ambassador during the one-on-one coaching session.

The “3 Step coach” application is unique in communication on beauty and cosmetics. Clients interact intensely with the brand, and deepen their knowledge of its various products. Furthermore, this campaign, covering 8 different European countries, was adapted to in the various languages of each local market.

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Feb 16 2012

The combined positive energy of Electrabel, Group GDF SUEZ and Emakina truly starts to create communication sparks. Electrabel launched its new consumer website, introduced a new version of the Electrabel Energy Manager and produced a practical new mobile application for this Energy Manager service.  All ‘signed’ Emakina.

Electrabel, the first energy provider in Belgium, is a long-standing client of Emakina. About one year ago, a new pitch was launched and Emakina came out of this contest as the winner: the agency was named preferred supplier of Electrabel. New in this relationship was that the mission would include social and mobile media, besides web activities.

• Energy Manager

Electrabel helps its customers to reduce their energy consumption and environmental impact. So it wanted to offer its customers a new service that could make them true partners in this valuable effort. The Energy Manager allows them to fine-tune their energy actions and reduce gas and electricity consumption.

In the application, customers fill in their gas and electricity consumption. They then receive a clear analysis, with state-of-the-art bar charts and graphs indicating their energy history. They can also opt for data in a list format, of course. This information is the starting point for improved energy management, with a coaching support, offering practical tips and insights.

The Electrabel Energy Manager is also available on iPhone and Android. It targets both residential and small office/home office clients. For users on the move, the Energy Manager app is the perfect addition to the Energy Manager website.

• Spreading the word

Emakina is also the partner for Electrabel’s web activation campaigns, including promotion and bannering actions. The campaign now starting will highlight the launch of the new online application for residential customers. It will also introduce the other mobile applications, Electrabel Mobile and Electrabel Energy Manager for Professionals. Banners in different formats are placed on key Belgian portals and news websites. Objective is to generate traffic to the different Electrabel websites and apps. The tools are really handy and valuable, so this promotion really is worth the energy!

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Feb 10 2012

Clinique, the leading American brand of dermatologist-developed cosmetics and its digital agency Emakina once more offer a nice surprise to beauty lovers. Clinique introduces its new tool for women, that helps them select the best suited foundation for their skin type. Each beautifully crafted Clinique skin care and makeup product is allergy tested and 100% fragrance free.

The website allows users to connect via their Facebook account. Once the visitors provide access to their pictures, the Clinique ‘advisor’ asks two quick questions about their skin type and possible makeup problem. The answers help to define the perfect foundation, matching the different characteristics of each beauty. The tool now proposes the ideal foundation solution, together with a beautifully adapted picture, adjusting contrast and light, and nicely framing the result in a real star lodge setting. The ‘star photo’ offers a glimpse of the beauty effect the correct foundation will create.

This original campaign already proves to be a great success, with over 3000 registered participants. Clinique’s pages on Facebook for the Netherlands and Belgium have already attracted more than 18.000 members, making it a real beauty forum. Clinique believes that every skin can be great skin. The new tool is once more a new step towards that goal!

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Dec 19 2011

We have kept it quiet for a while, but now it can be unveiled: Bonduelle has chosen Emakina for developing their complete online brand strategy! After a pitch which involved several contestants, Emakina was ultimately preferred over its competitors for its strong strategy and extensive experience in fast-moving consumer goods.

Emakina will implement Bonduelle’s online presence for both the Netherlands and Belgium in the same way as for the international brand. Emakina will develop an entirely new brand platform, different online activation campaigns and will especially focus on improving the company’s social presence. Our copywriters’ unit has already written dozens of recipes with a fresh tone-of-voice, and the other texts on the website are now in line with Bonduelle’s new guidelines. The completely revamped website (for Belgium and for Netherlands) is online and new functionalities will be rolled out in steps.

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Dec 16 2011

Emakina defines a new positioning for the famous watch brand Rodania. It puts forward the brand’s family values, its spontaneity and proximity. Rodania is a Swiss brand that has been on the Belgian market for several decades. It is well known with the Belgian public, thanks to its involvement in the cycling world.

It is a brand that is part of everyday life. An accessory one wouldn’t want to miss. A watch that experiences all the good and bad moments together with its owner. A positioning that evokes the simple pleasure of living each moment intensely, of stopping time in order to take some time. To do the things that truly matter. The visuals of the campaign clearly illustrate these pleasures: they show instant moments of complicity between a mum and her daughter or the joy after winning a friendly match with some mates for instance. There are 5 visuals, to be discovered in the coming weeks.

With this campaign, Rodania returns to an aspirational and emotional approach, close to the people, that illustrates the joys and instant emotions that come with the precious moments of everyday life. The positioning is translated into a brand new baseline: (Re)Take time.

This new positioning is illustrated with different actions, including a billboard campaign (bus shelters and Morris) at the end of the year, an insert, print – magazines and dailies -, and POS material, retailer actions and a video to be shown via in-store displays. A special campaign has been made for the ‘Swiss made’ line. It comes with the same baseline and will be used worldwide.

The visuals have been shot by the Belgian photographer Jasmine Van Hevel. She has the gift of telling a story throughout a particular detail and has put all her romanticism and talent to use in order to bring strong emotions. In order to freeze a moment in time… and to allow us to take back time.

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Sep 14 2011

Estée Lauder, un des leaders mondiaux des produits cosmétiques, a choisi Emakina pour assurer toute la stratégie digitale, sociale et e-commerce de sa marque.

L’accord conclu n’a pas tardé à produire ses premiers effets avec le lancement le 29 août de la page Facebook d’Estée Lauder Belgique doublé d’un concours en partenariat avec le magazine féminin Elle Belgique et Elle Hollande. La marque propose ainsi aux candidates de se « dévoiler » de manière originale sur www.facebook.com/EsteeLauderBelgique

« Rien à cacher »
Pour le lancement de la nouvelle gamme Illuminator, l’agence conçoit une application facebook qui permet aux consommatrices de se dévoiler vraiment ! Les consommatrices n’ont sûrement RIEN A CACHER ?! Avec ce concours Facebook, rien de plus simple : il suffit de se décrire en quelques mots et de choisir les 5 posts ou photos qui dévoilent le mieux sa personnalité, et  montrer que l’on a rien à cacher. Les amis Facebook sont appelés à voter et à juger qui ne cache rien. Une formule qui plait au vu du nombre impressionnant de participantes qui ont déjà remplit leur profil.

Star d’un jour
À l’issue de ce concours, ce n’est pas seulement 50 lots de produits Estée Lauder qui sont offerts, en effet  les 10 meilleurs profils (5 francophones et 5 néerlandophones) feront l’objet d’un reportage sous les flashs d’un paparazzi et auront la chance de voir leur histoire d’un jour publiée dans le magazine Elle (Belgique et Hollande) ainsi que sur la page Facebook d’Estée Lauder Belgique.

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Sep 6 2009

Here is one more proof (as if it was necessary) of the variety of the talent of the Emakinans. This time in the touchscreen application domain.

For the “Electrabel Shops”, Emakina developed a user-friendly application with a touchscreen interface. It’s fun, intelligent, easy to use and, most important, easy to understand.

No need for a manual to find your way into the 4 components of this app :

• The 10 Electrabel commitments for less CO2 emissions.
• The “green production” map, to see where Electrabel produces “green” energy and allow user to filter by production method.
• The CO2 tool, which helps customers to evaluate their CO2 emissions and to reduce the CO2 they produce.
• A funny touch game, which asks you to shut down any electrical appliance (by touching it) in order to lower your electrical consumption.

Everything here is about learning, having fun and… touching.

As this is an experience you should try by yourself, we encourage you to play/navigate with this application on the 32′ touchable screens located in the first Electrabel Shop of Antwerp which has just opened.

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Apr 15 2009

Well, every day comes with another good news for Quitters Arcade. Yesterday evening, we were informed this viral campaign was shortlisted by the Webby Awards, aka the the “Oscars of the Internet”, aka the most prestigious distinction in the Internet world. You can imagine how happy we are to be nominated for the second year in a row after the very first Webby we received for “I Need To Go” twelve months ago.

The public voting is now open and we need your help to win the People Voice’s Award. Go to the dedicated website, register and vote for Quitters Arcade under the “Pharmaceuticals” category. Last but not least: tell it to the world before April 30. Like a famous figure would say: “Yes we can!”

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Apr 14 2009

Our viral campaign Quitters Arcade for Pfizer has won the Outstanding Achievement Award in the ‘Healthcare’ category at the American Interactive Media Awards. After two IAC Awards last month, this is already the third international distinction attributed to this project in 2009.

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