Humanizing Skype
from tech gadget to
consumer connector

When Skype first came to Kaplow, it was a little-known tech company from overseas. No one had heard of it and using the Internet to make phone and video calls was still a novel concept.

0-14M
Growth in U.S. User Base in the First Year
1B+
Impressions in the First Year
1M+
App Downloads in the First 36 Hours of Launch

STRATEGY

Kaplow had the insight that Skype’s deepest story wasn’t just about technology, but about the emotional connection it creates between people.

We began a series of strategic campaigns — first to generate media excitement and endorsement and then to connect directly with the consumer.

EXECUTION

We introduced the brand to the most influential consumer media and its readers through a high-touch strategic approach, ensuring they could understand first-hand the evocative power this new tool could have.

Seven years later, Skype was a household name; however, people were relying on it more for special occasions as opposed to every day. We pivoted our approach, leveraging the user stories of moms, military officers, artists, those in long-distance relationships, celebrity fitness trainers and others to show how Skype could be integrated into our lives at any touch point. We began incorporating Skype users into our campaigns, showing the impact it has on lives: from witnessing a child’s birth while overseas and virtually coming home for the holidays to attending weddings and upholding the nightly ritual of reading bedtime stories.

We were inspired to launch a campaign
with Skype about connection.”
-OPRAH WINFREY

For Skype’s Just Say Hello campaign that underscored the brand as an enabler of
meaningful connections