Meet Sarha
stc
Issue 60 | September 2021
Agency
Wunderman Thompson Saudi Arabia
Creative Team
Experience Technology Director Shawn Herron Creative Director/ Experience Technology Director Matt Gilmore GM Marcom Consumer Faisal Alsaad Digital Media Director Abdullah Alotaibi Digital Content Development Section Manager Hashem Aldabas Digital Media Specialist Anas A. Aldukair Digital Media MarTech Consultant Hana Ismail Credits Creative Chief Creative Officer, MENA Chafic Haddad Executive Creative Director Rayyan Aoun Creative Director Firas Ghannam Associate Creative Director Ahmad Shanaa Art Director Bashar Dababneh Junior Art Director Rawan Bakri Copywriter Alanoud Al-Assaf
Production Team
Head of TV Production Joe Abou Daher TV Producer Wael Almadani Executive Producer George Ghaya Producer Hayfa Khaled Director of Photography Diego Cabezas Director of Photography Alaaedine Enzawi Photographers Zay Yar, Naypyitaw Cody Cobb, New York Marco Grassi, Rome Ozan Akkaya, Istanbul Ben Jacks, New York Najib Mrad, Beirut Ahmad Almali, Jeddah Anthony Lamb, London Noura Amri, Riyadh Sanne Derks, Spain Jannis Tomtsis, Thessaloniki
Other Credits
Business Director Jad Haddad Associate Business Director Rabie Hassoun Account Director Yasmin Moufti Senior Account Manager Joseph Elhage Chief Data Officer, North America Jason Carmel
Date
June – July 2021
Background
Saudi Telecom Company had the biggest network and the widest coverage across Saudi Arabia but competitors were making false claims against this proven statistic. Saudi Telecom had to re-establish market leadership and gain back the trust and confidence of customers.
Idea
Saudi Arabia has vast deserts and many parts of the country are uninhabited, un-survivable and un-reachable by most, except for the desert camel, the only creature that can easily reach these areas and an icon with a special place in Saudi Arabian culture.
Sarha became the first ever content- creating camel, putting stc’s network to the test to demonstrate the company really did have the widest coverage.
A high-tech solar-powered camera was rigged on her hump (with a hotspot router connected to the internet) allowing photographers including Zay Yar, Cody Cobb, Marco Grassi and Ozan Akkaya to connect remotely to her while she roamed.
Through Sarha, a photographer in New York 6,540 miles away was able to see landscapes that had never been seen before and photograph them.
Films ran on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Snapchat directing people to a dedicated Instagram page (@unveilsaudi). A gallery of all the shots was put up at inveil.laywagif.com
Results
307 million media impressions. 1,602 posts. 1.3 million video views.
Our Thoughts
This may be a convincing demo of stc’s ability to bring internet connectivity to the whole country but it’s also doing a great job for Saudi Arabia tourism, who are hosting many of the stunning photographs taken by the 11 snappers on their Unveil Saudi Instagram page. I love the fact that a species that has been on the earth for over 40 million years was the chosen vehicle to demonstrate 21st century technology. Science and art brought together by a dromedary, what’s not to like?