- Friday, Jun. 18, 2021
How does Zadara, a recognized leader in global edge cloud services, reach the Managed Service Providers (MSPs) and hosting providers they seek to enable and empower? By zigging where other more conservative startups would zag, as evidenced by a unique marketing endeavor aptly handled by creative advertising agency Battery.
Tasked with bringing awareness to Zadara’s new Federated Edge cloud services program, Battery crafted an innovative B2B and DtoC hybrid campaign aimed at reaching a hyper-targeted list of hosting provider MSPs – 100 to be exact – which Zadara believed would be most interested to learn of the offering. These potential MSP partners needed to provide cloud services to take advantage of the first-ever public edge cloud network composed of hundreds of global MSPs and designed to support modern workloads.
Utilizing Cameo’s business offering in a unique way, Battery figured out the Cameo celebrity each of the 100 MSPs admired most, and in turn, asked for that celeb to candidly spread the word about Zadara’s Federated Edge program in a very personalized video in hopes that they will become a member. Tapping into various fandoms, Zadara and Battery commissioned Cameos from notable names across the worlds of professional sports, music, film and television, including Veep, Seinfeld, The Office, Entourage, The Little Mermaid, and The Walking Dead.
As to how Battery got these personalized commercials made, they succeeded in this endeavor through intricate research, and yes, quite a bit of social media deep-diving to figure out exactly who and what would appeal to the prospective Zadara partner. Battery then worked with Cameo’s team to connect with and co-produce an engaging scripted prompt for Cameo talent, which highlighted how Zadara’s Federated Edge Program gives MSPs the global footprint, flexibility, and competitive margins they need to compete and win business.
By enlisting their heroes to inform MSPs about the Federated Edge program in a legendary way, Zadara is thinking differently – and more creatively – than other players in the edge cloud space. Speaking to the overall concept, Mike Parseghian, Head of Brand at Battery, commented: “If you’re part of the team at an MSP, odds are you’re spending most of your day thinking about other people’s needs. Our approach was to flip the narrative and let the prospective MSP partner know that this time, the spotlight is on them. That’s because, as Zadara’s current partners have said, their customers love them because they think of ways to improve their service that don’t occur to the competition.”
Zadara CMO Tim DaRosa commented, “2021 presented us with the ideal time to bring humor and creativity into the marketing initiatives for Zadara. We’ve all felt a bit disconnected at some point over the past year. Our goal was to embrace a more personalized and engaging way to catch the eye of our target audiences. Forming a partnership with Battery and building a marketing campaign using Cameo was a slam dunk and a natural extension of our corporate culture and business model. Our promise to customers is a personalized, tailored, high-touch relationship and this is exactly what we delivered with the Cameo program.”
Zadara’s official Federated Edge press release here.
About Battery
Battery’s mission is to create impactful advertising with a philosophy that merges classic marketing principles with Hollywood storytelling and a Silicon Valley work model. The agency has been recognized as one of the Top 50 Fastest Growing Private Companies in L.A. three years in a row and celebrated by Ad Age as an Agency of the Year in 2018, 2016 and 2015. Battery creates global advertising campaigns for forward-thinking clients including Epic Games, Netflix, and the Royal Bank of Canada. A lead creative agency of the Paris-based Havas Group, Battery has offices in Hollywood, Toronto and Shanghai.
For more information, visit www.batteryagency.com
Zadara
CMO Tim DaRosa
VP Marketing Lauren Koszarek
Sr Director, Product & Solution Marketing Steve Bohac
Battery
Chief Creative Officer Phil Khosid
Creative Director Joe Sgro
Creative Director Andy Lam
Producer Tyler Divine
Head of Production Danielle Tarris
Partner/ Head of Brand Management Mike Parseghian
Cameo List of Talent
John O’Hurley: aka J. Peterman from Seinfeld
Ross Marquand: aka Aaron from The Walking Dead
Brian Baumgartner: aka Kevin from The Office
Steve Wozniak: Co-Founder of Apple
Cheryl Strayed: Author of the #1 New York Times bestselling memoir Wild
Kevin Dillon: aka Johnny Drama from Entourage
Jonathan Goldsmith: Former Most Interesting Man
Randy Travis: Country Music Legend (*did Cameo with his wife, Mary Travis)
Rob Maschio: aka “The Todd” from Scrubs
Princess Ariel: Disney Princess
Scott Hamilton: Former Figure Skater and Olympic Gold Medalist
Brian Bosworth: Former Seattle Seahawks Linebacker, OSU Star and National Champion
Danny Seraphine: Original Drummer for Chicago, & member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
Mark Messier: Former NY Ranger, 5-time Stanley Cup Champion and Hall of Famer
Chris Mullin: Former Golden State Warrior, 2x Olympic Champion & Hall of Famer
Steve Garvey: Former Dodgers’ First Baseman and 10x All Star
John Godwin: Reality Star from Duck Dynasty
Brooks Laich: Former Washington Capitals Star
Helio Castroneves: 3x Indianapolis 500 Champion and Dancing with the Stars Champion
Adam Wainwright: Current St. Louis Cardinals Pitcher, World Series Champion & 3x All Star
Andre Dawson: Former Chicago Cubs Outfielder and Hall of Famer
Brian Scalabrine: Former Boston Celtics Forward and NBA Champion
George Hincapie: Former Cyclist and 5x Olympian
Joe Thomas: Former Cleveland Brown and 10x Pro Bowler
Chris Rankin: aka Percy Weasley from the Harry Potter films
Jack Armstrong: Voice of The Toronto Raptors
Kevin Millar: Former Boston Red Sox First Baseman and World Series Champion
Merril Hoge: Former Pittsburgh Steelers Full Back and ESPN Analyst
Tom Lehman: Golfing Champion and Former #1 Ranked Player
Wendel Clark: Former Captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs and 2-time NHL All Star
Lance Moore: Former New Orleans Saints Wide Receiver and Super Bowl Champion
John Kuhn: Former Green Bay Packer, 2x Super Bowl Champion and 3x Pro Bowler
Martin St. Louis: Tampa Bay Lightning Stanley Cup Champion and Hall of Famer
Arthur Moats: Former NFL Star and Captain of JMU Dukes Football team
Zack Kassian: Current Winger for the Edmonton Oilers and Fan-Favorite
Kris Versteeg: Former Calgary Flames Winger, 2x Stanley Cup Champ with Blackhawks
Harrison Butker: Kansas City Chiefs Kicker
Taylor Twellman: Former US Soccer and MLS star
Geoff Blum: Former Houston Astros Infielder
Chris Sabo: Former Cincinnati Reds Third Baseman
Jaccob Slavin: Current Carolina Hurricanes Assistant Captain and NHL All Star
Piff The Magic Dragon: Magician & Comedian and Reality Star from America’s Got Talent
Michael Buffer: World Famous Boxing / Wrestling Announcer