Snack-sized food guide to Helsinki / Grand One
Starting point
Helsinki food scene was gaining significant recognition in 2024, when the prestigious MICHELIN ceremony for Northern Countries was held in the city for the first time ever. Helsinki Partners, the marketing and talent attraction company of the city of Helsinki, sought to seize this opportunity to highlight Helsinki as an outstanding culinary destination for international audiences. Their goal was to collaborate with the city's many food professionals and enthusiasts to showcase its wild, unconventional culinary landscape to visitors from the UK, USA, Germany, and the Nordics.
Strategy & Insight
It is often difficult for us Helsinki locals and even to Finns in general to view Helsinki and its unique food culture from an outsider's perspective. That’s why we chose to involve a newcomer from abroad to our campaign, someone eager to learn everything about their new hometown and its vibrant food scene. By showcasing Helsinki through the eyes of an outsider, we wanted to provide fresh and intriguing perspectives on the city and its culinary offerings.
Creative solution
The Helsinki Playground is a passion project led by Adam Tickle, an Englishman, designer, and food enthusiast who had just recently settled in Helsinki. The Helsinki Playground is a concept and an idea that ventures into the physical world through products, collaborations, events, and temporary physical locations connecting the people surrounding the creative capital of Finland. We teamed up with Adam and his team to create a three-episode social media video series that explores the vibrant food scene in Helsinki. By choosing a person who represents the target audience, we wanted to create a more relatable perspective for them.
Execution
We chose a social media friendly format for the series to reach our target audience on a large scale and with shareable content. Fast cuts and rhythm were chosen to keep the audience highly engaged. Each episode features Adam delving into one unique aspect of Helsinki's culinary landscape, meeting local food experts and innovators along the way. At the end of each episode, we shared themed tips and recommendations for the visitors to try in Helsinki. Adam’s perspective on the Helsinki food scene made it more appealing to the target audience, as his approach avoided the usual stereotypes about Helsinki and its food.
EPISODE 1:
Helsinki Classics
Adam dives into Helsinki's rich tradition of timeless dishes and iconic restaurants. He spends the day sampling Helsinki classics, from morning porridge to an evening feast.
EPISODE 2:
Helsinki in the Wild
Adam discovers the city's wild, unexpected, and authentic flavours. He savours grilled perch outdoors, picks up fresh herbs and veggies, and cooks a delicious dinner at home.
EPISODE 3:
Up and coming in Helsinki
Adam connects with the next wave of culinary talent in Helsinki. He mingles with some of the most exciting newcomers on the city's food scene, sharing great food and wine along the way.
Results
Timeline:
Meta: 15.7. – 15.8.2024
Youtube: 10.6.– 31.7.2024
The international campaign with unique approach highlighted the vibrant and growing Helsinki food scene in a way that really interested the audience. The campaign's reach spanned from social media platforms to airport DOOH's maximizing visibility across diverse channels. The campaign gained 165 000 views on Youtube, and 32% watched the full episode even though their length was over one minute. In Instagram the paid ads generated 1686 page visits and the average CTR of the teaser videos was 1,37%. One of the episodes was saved 221 making it the third best performing organic video for Helsinki Partners during 2024.
166,885
total views on YouTube
221
times saved in one of the episodes
32%
watched of the full episode
1686
page visits from Instagram paid ads
“The campaign captures the identity of our city – Helsinki is real, not perfect – in a great way. It puts the classic, diverse, and wild culinary scene of Helsinki on the map.”
— Rick Stender, Manager, Visitor Brand and Marketing, Helsinki Partners