Pay Per Love
Teatreneu
Issue 36 | September 2015
Agency
The Cyranos McCann
Creative Team
Creative President Leandro Raposo Executive Creative Director Pablo Colonnese Creative Directors David Fernandez Joaquin Espagnol Copywriters Jaume Rufach Matias Lopez Nil Murtra Marcelo Idarraga Silvia Carreno Art Directors Eduard Cubel Fernando Javier Riveros Alejandro Garcia
Production Team
Production Manager Alba Riart Producer Ana Tejada Production Assistant Paulina Ramirez Technology Innovation Lab of Glassworks Xavi’s Lab
Other Credits
Managing Director Federico Duberti Head of Strategic Planning Oriol Bombi Planner Marc Blanco Account Executive Laia Gilibets Project Manager Celeste Ruiz
Date
March 2015
Background
In 2014, when the government of Spain put VAT on theatre tickets up to 21%, audience numbers fell dramatically. Pay Per Laugh bucked the trend and revolutionised the theatre industry by bringing in facial recognition technology built into the auditorium seats. Theatre- goers were invited to pay only if they laughed. The less they laughed, the less they paid. The initiative was a great success and helped Teatreneu compete in economically difficult times. The challenge in 2015 was, what next?
Idea
Pay Per Love invited singles to go to the theatre to find love. The system went one stage further than Pay Per Laugh by using the data about how people smiled, when and how often to match them up in a constantly updated affinity leaderboard. At the end of the show, a selection of those singletons with the greatest affinity to each other, as measured by their laughter, was displayed. They could now choose who to meet and if the other person chose them in return, contact details were provided.
Results
Publicity about the event increased audiences by 20%. Over the course of the singles' season, Teatreneu expected to make 3,000 matches. 31% of people going to a show made a return visit to the theatre.
Our Thoughts
Tech has been the big catalyst for change in the advertising industry giving meaning to brands beyond their products by allowing experiences to be created and shared. This is a classic of the kind. Not so long ago, entertainment brands could only talk about the shows they were running. Now the show itself is only a part of the whole. This, then, isn’t an idea so much about Teatreneu as about people’s lives and how they can be enriched.