Who: ProtoPie with Zerotrillion for creative and media, and Psyop for animation.
What: “Free Your Ideas,” an animated 60-second ad to introduce the ProtoPie brand—a South Korean prototyping tool—to product designers and developers in Canada and the U.S.
When & Where: The ad went live last week and is being pushed through digital channels including Instagram and Facebook, as well as via programmatic networks.
Why: ProtoPie was created to help designers quickly and efficiently turn UI/UX ideas into shareable, interactive prototypes. It’s been used at leading design businesses like Google, HBO and Microsoft. The latter used it to design the foldable Microsoft Duo tablet, said Zertotrillion CEO Alex Paquin. They used it to “connect two normal tablets together to ‘prototype’ how they would work as one.”
Beyond those early innovative adopters, however, ProtoPie remains a “best kept secret.” The ad is intended to raise awareness across North America. “[It’s] the first wave hello from a company many designers in the US and Canada have not yet heard of,” said Paquin.
How: The ad shows how a great idea is a blessing, but can feel like a curse if can’t be brought to life and easily shared with others. The main character is shown with his idea hanging over him and distracting him until he uses ProtoPie to “free the idea” and share it with colleagues.
“A new idea can be all consuming, but if it stays in your head it’s practically worthless,” said Adam Fierman, partner and global creative director of Zerotrillion, which had teams at both its Toronto and Amsterdam office working on the assignment. “This is a human struggle we all face, which is why ‘Free Your Ideas’ feels so personal and familiar. We partnered with Psyop not just because they are world-class storytellers and animators, but because they—as creatives and designers—understand this insight as well as anyone possibly can.”
Media: Since being published July 29, the video has already been viewed more than 2.2 million times. “It was a substantial media budget, but very targeted,” said Paquin. “We wanted to ensure maximum on-target reach, so [there will be] a lot of exposure over the next couple of months to the relevant design audiences, with broad retargeting and high frequency.”
Quote: “One of the most deflating experiences as a designer is leaving an interesting or potentially great idea on the shelf because you feel limited in the process of gaining understanding or support from others,” said ProtoPie founder, Tony Kim. “We want designers to feel that ProtoPie supports their greatest ambitions, by constantly removing barriers to exploring and realizing new ideas.”
