Sprint is set to debut the first 4G phone in the US on Friday – the HTC EVO – and is unsurprisingly making speed (4G can be up to 10x faster than 3G) the focal point of its marketing campaign. The first TV commercials hit the airwaves last night, but this afternoon Mashable got an early look at the rest of Sprint’s promotion plans, which include a major social media push.
The theme of the social media campaign – which goes live tonight at midnight ET at sprint.com/firsts — echoes that of the TV commercials, encouraging users to perform a number of activities at 4G speeds and then let their friends know about it.
Playing on a recent trend we’ve seen in other campaigns, Sprint’s offering up virtual badges when users perform EVO “firsts” including tweet, upload an EVO unboxing video, check-in on Foursquare or take the “first photo of an eight-person 4G hotspot” (a unique feature of the EVO) using their device. Those badges – which prominently feature “4G” images — can then be shared on Twitter and Facebook. Users who are “first” get featured on the EVO homepage too.
We like how the campaign, which was created by Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, connects the device’s key selling points – like its 4G speed and hotspot capabilities – to social media activities. There’s also a clear tie-in to the traditional marketing Sprint is using, which also emphasize the “firsts” enabled by the phone.
As for the device itself, it’s yet another major Android debut, with 4G speeds enabling a number of notable features including a video chat service from Qik. Check out our hands-on demo in the video below to check it out:
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Tags: advertising, htc evo, MARKETING, social media, social media marketing, sprint