Duolingo
~ Duo’s Sumo Showdown
When it comes to mascots, Japan is the gold standard. Everything from insurance companies to supermarkets to prefectures has its own (ultra-cute) mascot. So for Duo, getting a bit of undivided attention from learners means fighting off a lot of furry, wide-eyed, huggable distractions.
And when we say fight, we mean it literally. Piggybacking on the country’s love of sumo (and considering mascots’ unique body type), Duo organized the world’s first mascot sumo tournament: Duo’s Sumo Showdown.
The campaign kicked off with a month-long lore-building social campaign, climaxing in a full-blown, IRL tournament in Shinjuku featuring some of Japan’s top mascots, including Sonic, Pac-Man, Donpe the penguin, and many more.
Unfortunately, Duo lost in the end. But would you call earning 23+ million organic impressions, making it to Yahoo! News, and becoming a trending topic on Twitter losing? I don’t think so.
Duo: slapping and stamping his way to the top of mind.
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Agency: UltraSuperNew
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Activation recap:
Visuals and event pics:
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The event became a trending topic on Twitter, generating hundreds of pieces of user-generated content
and even some fan art from well-known Japanese illustrators:
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Press:
Visuals and event pics:
The event became a trending topic on Twitter, generating hundreds of pieces of user-generated content
and even some fan art from well-known Japanese illustrators:
Press:
