Elf Yourself
OfficeMax2006
Elf Yourself is a 2006 interactive website for OfficeMax, created by Toy New York and EVB (Evolution Bureau).
Why it works
Upload a photo of your face, and watch yourself, your boss or your grandmother dance as a holiday elf. OfficeMax launched ElfYourself.com for the 2006 holidays as one of a set of seasonal web sites, and it became one of the first truly mass branded viral experiences: in the five weeks from 1 December 2006 to 7 January 2007, MediaPost reported more than 36 million visits and more than 11 million elves created. The New York Times saw it as evidence that a cheap, smart piece of web production could lift an old-economy retailer. The idea is studied for its mechanics: personalisation that turns every user into the star, a result built to be emailed onward, and a brand that stays almost out of frame. The 2007 return drew over 193 million visits and won a One Show Merit.
Techniques
- Participation Visitors upload a photo of a face and watch themselves, their boss or their grandmother dance as an elf, ready to email onward.
- Humour Seeing familiar faces bob about on dancing holiday elves makes a silly, personalised joke people want to pass on.
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