The Revival of Smart - HBR Campaign

Harvard Business Review launched a new design and website (hbr.org) earlier this year, and to support these efforts, zig recently created a brand awareness campaign to promote the new and improved HBR. Although most business influencers have heard of HBR, we felt there was an opportunity to broaden exposure to the full range of the brand – not only the magazine, but all of its other offerings (website, podcasts, apps, mobile) that many people didn’t know about. There’s a lot that business professionals can take advantage of from HBR, whether they have time to read and reflect or just a few minutes to get a quick download and go. We believed that getting people to try the content through an interactive element in the ads would make this campaign more engaging and memorable while encouraging people to see the new HBR firsthand. “Text Smart” is an SMS component in HBR’s airport installations that encourages people to access a mobile web page where they can read free articles and get a one month trial subscription.

The headlines are a series of smart and witty wordplay (Open for Change, Subscribe to a Better Tomorrow) that will appeal to the curious, intelligent business professional who is likely to get the spin and want to take a closer look. The campaign spans radio, print, out-of-home and mobile, including large displays in key airports full of business travelers.

Client: Harvard Business Review
Agency: zig
Creative Director & Art Director: Stephen Leps
Copywriter: Geoff Berg
Designer: Kelly Davidson
Strategic Planner: Ryan Wilson
Team Leader: Carlie Naftolin
Studio: Cade Chen