Why This Mattress Company Encourages Canadians to ‘Rise to Shine’
There’s a lot to be said for a good night’s sleep; that occasion when you hit the sweet spot, wake up feeling totally refreshed, and in spite of the crusty eyes and dry mouth, feel ready to take on whatever the day throws your way. It’s a powerful feeling, and one that, undoubtedly, some experience more than others.
Take Endy mattress owners, for instance. According to the brand’s latest campaign, created in partnership with The Hive, using ‘Canada’s Favourite Mattress’ is the perfect way to gear up and embrace the day in all its glory. Titled ‘Rise to Shine’, the platform is supported by a 30-second launch film that spotlights the amazing and powerful ways people harness the power of today, all narrated by an unexpectedly powerful voice: the day itself.
But, the work didn’t stop there. The campaign also included six-second digital and social ads, programmatic and display ads, out-of-home media, as well as an updated brand look and feel, designed by The Hive’s creative team.
LBB’s Josh Neufeldt sat down with The Hive executive creative director Jung Ahn, associate creative director and art director Ryan Speziale, associate creative director and copywriter Mike Albrecht, and Endy VP of marketing Julia Cooper, to learn how this all came to pass.
LBB> What was the brief for this campaign, and what immediate ideas came to mind?
Julia> We tasked The Hive with helping us develop a 360 brand campaign that drives brand awareness and invigorates the Endy brand for our target demographic in two major markets. The two phases of the campaign are timed to support our always-on digital channels in summer (July-August) and then in the lead up and launch of our biggest moment of the year, Black Friday (October-November).
Jung> We felt that this was our opportunity to play big and position Endy as the future of mattresses. Working closely with strategy, we found that our targets were highly motivated to surpass themselves, which in turn, led to a clear brief: celebrate how Endy enables those who rise to shine. In this way, we were able to differentiate Endy from a typical sleepy mattress brand, instead focusing on how a good sleep enables you to your everyday success.
Ryan> From there, we tossed around a lot of ideas, from music-video-style mood pieces to redefining what a ‘dream day’ means after sleeping on an Endy mattress. But, one idea kept sticking out above the rest - bringing to life the ‘voice of today’. And we wrapped it up with a campaign line that twists a familiar phrase: ‘Rise to Shine’.
LBB> What made now the right time to update your brand look and feel, and why was this creative approach right for you?
Julia> We see our ‘Rise to Shine’ campaign as a natural extension and expression of our brand personality and visual identity. It builds off the foundation that our talented in-house creative team has created, and punched it up for a bold, head-turning campaign moment. To this end, photographer Luis Mora really captured the personality and emotion we were looking to bring, and director Christo Anesti surpassed our expectations with an approach full of dynamism and heart.
In terms of approach, Endy has never been a sleepy brand, despite being in the mattress and sleep category. Instead, it’s always been about the transformative potential of a good night’s sleep – all of the things it unlocks for you and the day ahead. Tapping into the outcome of a good sleep is much more interesting to us, and to consumers, than the oftentimes dull process of winding down. As such, it feels like we are able to fully tell this brand story for the first time with ‘Rise to Shine’.
LBB> The Hive was tasked with updating the brand look and feel, as well as designing multiple assets. Where does one start with this, and how did you integrate the goal of inspiring people to tap into their full potential?
Ryan> This campaign needed to feel different from past Endy work, while still being recognisably Endy. ‘Bold’ was the key word we kept coming back to. After all, to stand out in the sleepy mattress category, we knew we had to develop a look that immediately caught peoples’ attention. So, we took pieces from the existing brand look and amped it up with some new ingredients. The Endy logo and its hero brand colour, rubine red, were the building blocks we started with.
LBB> Essential in this was a refreshed colour pallet, energetic typographic treatment and a candid, of-the-moment photographic style. What went into executing these elements, and why were they the right choices for the final campaign?
Ryan> We wanted to introduce new colours to complement the hero brand colour that also looked impactful when treated in large applications, while still being inviting and comfortable to look at (Endy is a comfortable mattress after all). When it came to typography and layout, we referenced event and concert posters, as those tend to evoke a sense of urgency. And, the flash photography style helped keep everything looking energetic, even when showing something as simple as someone sitting on a bed.
It’s a small thing, but we also decided to place the Endy logo within a rounded rectangle that contains the photography as a nod to the Endy tag that appears on the side of all the brand’s mattresses. Just a little detail I enjoy!
LBB> Let’s talk about the spot itself. What was the writing process like, and how did you work to balance strong visual imagery with encouraging dialogue?
Ryan> We knew the ‘voice of today’ was going to be the guiding force throughout the spot. So, it needed to sound confident, yet approachable. We didn’t want to talk down to people, but instead inspire them.
Visually, we decided to feature relatable scenes from different walks of life to complement our voice. Early in the scripting process, we talked about treating each scene, as simple as they might be, with dynamic camera moves and editing choices that gave a sense of momentum and supported the ‘rise’ in ‘Rise to Shine’.
LBB> What made Common Good’s Christo Anesti the perfect director for the job? And as a whole, what was the shoot like?
Jung> Christo’s understanding of the idea and his expertise in storytelling made him stand out for us. He is a great collaborator, and had a lot of passion for the project with ideas on how to elevate the spot even more.
As for the shoot itself, it was a one day affair with a photoshoot. The production team did a great job organising and maximising the time. We had extra teams to cover the photoshoot, while another team was focusing on the video shoot - and same thing when it came to the clients - which streamlined things on our end.
LBB> The finished product is super stylish, with great camera work, and memorable music. How did you achieve this, and as a whole, what was the post process like?
Jung> The transitions served as the narrative threads, weaving our characters' mornings together. Christo had a lot of great ideas on how to make it come to life, and we had to figure out what made sense with the narrative of ‘today’. There were collective discussions and the trust in our partners which made the process seamless.
Mike> We’re super happy with how the music turned out! We worked with our partners at Oso Audio. They were able to craft a great track that follows the same build and drop that we were looking for. They nailed it!
LBB> The accompanying OOH is also brilliant! How did you approach capturing, creating and writing the declarative proclamations?
Mike> The headlines needed to bring to life the ‘go out and get it’ spirit of ‘Rise to Shine’, while also nodding to the product itself. Some lines lean more one way or the other, but as a collection, we ended up with a good mix that captured the spirit we were going for.
LBB> What challenges have you faced during this project? How did you overcome them?
Jung> Because it was one location shoot, we had to think through every detail and work with our production partners to make sure our vision came through. There were a lot of team efforts and open communication from clients, agency and production, all of which played a pivotal role in navigating potential challenges.
Julia> We found ourselves in a bit of a bind a week before our shoot date, when the location that had been scouted and that we were all excited about fell through at the last moment. The stars aligned for us though, and The Hive found an incredible spot for us to film that looked like five different spaces all in one house - the perfect location for the perfect shoot day!
LBB> Finally, how have people reacted to this campaign?
Jung> It is still in the early stages, but the response has been overwhelmingly positive, resonating both within the industry and among the general public. Personally, what truly warms my heart is the feedback pouring in from individuals beyond our professional circle. This, to me, serves as a powerful validation that our message is reaching the right audience!
Julia> The reaction has been so encouraging. From comments and DMs on social to tags and reshares of our out-of-home billboards and TSAs, to a very proud internal team, it has been incredible! In more quantitative terms, we’re seeing a substantial increase in conversions across our branded search campaigns, and a healthy increase in direct and organic traffic to our website. It’s clear that our ‘Rise to Shine’ message is resonating with Canadians, and we’re just getting started.
