Work
Youtubers + Santa = Success
Thinkhouse began working with Hammerson, the international property investment firm that co-owns Dundrum Town Centre, in September 2017.
One of our first projects, as Hammerson’s strategic creative communications partner, was to innovate one of the most cherished moments in Dundrum Town Centre’s calendar – Santa’s Arrival. To grow footfall and awareness with the target audience, Thinkhouse took this much-loved cultural moment and put it under a modern lens.
Kids rule...
We identified parents, via our Love Network, and asked them some key questions about their Christmas shopping behaviours. A common thread became evident – the kids rule the household, especially at Christmas!
Thinkhouse recognised that children have the most influence at this time of year, and by engaging them, we’d encourage attendance and spread some Christmas magic to the whole family.
YouTube Sensations – next generation influencers
Anyone with kids/nieces/nephews/younger siblings is probably aware of the incredible popularity of Minecraft. We tapped into something kids felt truly passionate about and collaborated with two of the most famous Minecraft YouTubers – Little Kelly and Sharky.
These two YouTubers from Dublin have become heroes to children across Ireland and the world for their Minecraft content – they have over 3 million combined followers and over 1.5 BILLION views of their videos.
We enlisted the help of Little Kelly and Sharky as our brand ambassadors and 'Cheer Conductors', helping to spread the word and create talkability around Santa’s Arrival. The two YouTube superstars seamlessly became part of the event, collaborating with Dundrum on social posting, creative shoots, a fan meet-and-greet, interviews with top Irish media and even acting as MCs on the night.
Ho Ho Ho, Merry Footfall
The partnership generated hugely impressive results, amassing a PR reach of 10,145,700. While, in the past, it was Santa that caused a stir, this year, it was our two YouTube sensations that excited and delighted kids. Santa’s Arrival 2017 became one of the most successful in the centre’s history, with footfall up 39% from last year and over 100 meet-and-greet tickets snapped up in under three minutes.