• by Steve Smith , Staff Writer @popeyesm, April 21, 2008

While other marketers blow an occasional air kiss to mobile marketing with experimental campaigns here and there, Virgin Atlantic fell head over heels for the new platform in February with its groundbreaking use of outdoor ads, mobile media and events to drive brand involvement.

The "Love from Above" campaign targeted the 25-54-year-old demo with a living reminder that Virgin champions the consumer with a uniquely comfortable London travel experience. Various blends of billboards, kiosks and projected media in major U.S. cities prompted people to text "Love" to an SMS short code and get pushed to the lovefromabove.mobi mobile Web site. With creative by McKinney and planning by MEC Interaction and Kinetic Mobile, the campaign relied exclusively on the mobile component to communicate unique live offers to consumers. Outdoor media led to mobile, which in turn notified customers of real-world experiences with the brand: free movie tickets, complimentary London cab rides and finally a Valentine's Day on-street giveaway of chocolates and roses. Did it work? "Our poor street teams were almost mobbed," says Adam Shlachter, senior partner, group media director, MEC Interaction.

The campaign demonstrated to Virgin and MEC Interaction that mobile could provide the focal point of a major branding push. "The WAP site was integral," says Aimee Young, head of brand and advertising, Virgin Atlantic. "It was offered exclusively through the WAP site and we felt very strongly about that. It verified that this is a very fascinating medium because the target is on the go and leads a very busy life; they expect to be connected by mobile."