Adobe targets young creatives

Warc, 16 July 2014

NEW YORK: Adobe, the software and technology firm, has enjoyed considerable success on behalf of its Creative Cloud suite of products by tapping into young consumers' desire to share online and succeed offline.

AnnMarie Baba, Adobe's senior manager/marketing, told delegates at OMMA Social that students who were specialising in creative pursuits at college are a key target for Creative Cloud. (For more, including further insights into young consumers, read Warc's exclusive report: How Adobe reached the creatives of tomorrow.)

This subscription-based service offers access to packages – such as Illustrator and Photoshop – that are fundamental to photography, publishing, automotive design and a diverse range of other disciplines.

Research by Adobe found that members of this talented, youthful audience frequently shared their work on social media. "They are really about getting peer validation as well as professional validation," said Baba.

Having grown up during a period of prolonged economic stress and at a time when the job market has become increasingly competitive, this demographic is also very ambitious when it comes to building a career.

"So our strategy really encompassed that: Adobe provides the tools to not only inspire and advise students, but also support them to literally make it with Creative Cloud," said Baba.

More specifically, the firm turned to Behance – its platform for aspiring and actual creative professionals to share their output and supply feedback on the work of others – to identify promising students.

It then put their stories at the centre of its "Make it with Creative Cloud" campaign, which ran across a wide variety of digital and traditional channels, all of which were highly-targeted at the college audience.

"There's kind of a dual connotation to this tagline," said Baba. "It's not only tying into the cool maker movement – literally, you can make things that you never before imagined with Creative Cloud."

Participating students and their peers were given numerous ways – from competitions to Google Hangouts – to gain exposure for their work, ask questions of experts and progress their aims.

"By providing students with a global stage to showcase their work, we help them not only achieve their personal goals but also their professional ambitions."

As a result of these efforts, Adobe reported increased numbers for Creative Cloud on several metrics – including awareness, earned impressions and sales.

Data sourced from Warc