Intel unveils game to show it takes Web security seriously

Intel

Qorvis Communications

DC Represents

October 2010-January 1, 2011

Intel, long known for its microprocessors, wanted to promote how its products contribute to Web security efforts in the nation's capital.

The company sought to launch a campaign around the catchphrase "DC Represents" printed on T-shirts and distributed at IT industry events. But it needed help taking the idea from a T-shirt handout to a technologically sophisticated PR effort.

"It's about time Intel rang the bell that we actually have the solutions for security needs," asserts Nigel Ballard, director of federal marketing, Intel Americas.

DC-based Qorvis Communications ran with the slogan and T-shirt idea, but constructed a campaign around it that drove people to a specially built microsite with an augmented reality game, called Security Breakout (pictured), where participants fight off malware, spyware, viruses, and the like. The effort kicked off during National Cyber Security Awareness Month in October.

The goal was to drive cyber-security pros who were given a T-shirt or sticker to the site where they play the game. They could also share thoughts on how DC represents IT security and how Intel fits into the discussion.

"Intel didn't want to have its name all over it," explains Qorvis partner Jason Siegel. "It's a secondary brand strategy."

The game can only be accessed through a code on the T-shirt or sticker. A camera on the player's computer recognizes the code so the game can launch. While wearing the T-shirt or sticker, users play the game. In other words, the T-shirt is the joystick.

Players' scores are published on Twitter, where visitors can also view an Intel white paper on in-formation technology security.

By the end of October, Ballard said Intel had given out more than 75% of the 5,000 T-shirts it printed. By that time, the microsite had 1,128 visitors, 489 of whom played the game, and 188 page views of the white paper.

"I liked that it was a little hokey and tricky to achieve," Ballard says of building the game and driving people to the microsite. "When you put out a fresh site, you have exactly zero visitors.

"I'm a firm believer in sites that already have traffic with people interested in what you talk about," he adds. "A game takes a bit of the seriousness out of security."