Online retailer takealot.com has "hired" an expert load shedding solutions buyer to bring some lightness to South Africans amid all the literal darkness.
Image supplied. Takealot.com's load shedding solutions buyer expert, Jenny Ruyter, brings some lightness to South Africans amid all the literal darkness
The “expert”, Jenny Ruyter, played by South African actor Anne Hirsch, is here to help South Africans keep the lights on during power outages with Takealot’s wide range of load shedding products.
As a rather awkward, off-beat character, she can be seen around the Takealot offices, tirelessly working to bring energy and solutions during power outages.
Shopper behaviour data
Takealot’s campaign stems from the data drawn from shopper behaviour, where “UPS” was the third most-searched term in 2022.
Since December 2020, Takealot has seen 3000% GMV growth in the sale of generators, inverters and UPS devices, indicating the need for load shedding mitigation solutions across the country.
Overall, the purpose of the load shedding solutions buyer’s job is to help educate South Africans about which products could match their unique needs during load shedding. This is something Ruyter is deeply passionate about, and she’s always available to lend a helping hand.
Relevant and relatable to SA’s context
To formulate the campaign, Takealot considered key aspects that would resonate deeply with South Africans. This includes crafting a message that’s relevant and relatable to the local context of load shedding, and strategic product placement to tie the idea together
Since the campaign was launched on YouTube and Takealot’s social platforms on 30 March, the first episode has amassed over 3.1 million views across channels, with 1.7 million views on TikTok, 18,800 views on Instagram. 294,000 views on Facebook and 1.1 million views on YouTube.
Toluse Akinlabi, senior retail account manager at Google explains that the campaign performed exceptionally well on Youtube for a number of reasons.
“Following Google's ABCDs of creative guidance, the video started off with compelling creative to attract and hook the audience, with novel branding elements throughout.
“The video also included a product feed of relevant items that complemented the content, ensuring that an interested audience was able to find related products directly from takealot.com.”
But Ruyter’s story is far from over. The next episode launched on 25 April on Takealot’s social media channels.
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