The Carrie Diaries: 80s Playlist Refresher

As a prequel to the hit HBO series Sex and the City, The Carrie Diaries was launching in a cluttered pilot season and wanted to break out of the pack to attract Carrie Bradshaw fans and gain new ones. Set in 1984 during Bradshaw’s high school years, for this campaign it was important to tap into the mood of the moment. The new CW series teamed up with Spotify to create a musical experience in which users could transform their current listening habits into a playlist from the past. All they had to do was submit their favorite playlist, and while their 80s soundtracks loaded, fans were introduced to a teaser of the new television show. Visitors liked it so much, 66% viewed their new playlist and ended up sharing heavily across social. Those new visitors resulted in 1/3 of overall pageviews to the experience.

Brief
Raise awareness and drive tune-in in a cluttered pilot season amongst old fans of the original series, and gain new Carrie fans.

Solution
A branded app on Spotify, in which:

• Users were asked to submit their favorite playlist to get a new, 80s-themed soundtrack based on their current listening habits
• Listeners were shown a brief Carrie Diaries teaser while they waited for their new tunes
• Upon the video’s completion, Spotify delivered a soundtrack full of some of the best 80s tracks – customized for each user’s musical tastes
• Listeners could then share their playlists with friends via social media

Impact

• 62% of users who visited dragged a playlist into the generator
• 66% of users who had their playlist analyzed viewed their playlist
• Roughly 1/3 of page views came from social amplification
• One of the highest performing campaigns on Spotify to date!