The Brief
The Swatch-Art line of watches comprised products created by famous artists and designers. When Nam Jun Paik was commissioned to design a watch, the client decided to do the press conference online, and turn the launch into a "cyber" (as they used to say) PR event.
The Subtext
In those early days the web was not quite taken seriously by large companies. Given Swatch's fanatical customer base, ID Media saw a good opportunity to change that perception.
The Deliverables
A campaign launch web site with chatline facilities for the press conference, primitive e-commerce, message boards, and a competition.
The Team
A reasonably large team including 1 video maker, 2 front end developers, 3 designers, 1 back end developer, 3 content creator plus project managers and account handlers.
My Involvment
The team had been developing CD-ROMS and traditional ATL advertising; I brought in the web expertise. I trained the creative team, worked on the technical architecture, developed the interface, and worked on the message boards and forms.
The Outcome
There was a glitch at launch, when we totally underestimated the number of users hitting the server, but despite that the site was extremely successful. In those years Swatch had such fanatical following that several people bought themselves a modem and an internet connection just so they could buy the watch!
