A first of its kind commuter app that will change the way commuters travel has successfully launched in Auckland. Frenzy allows users to plan their journey and, by simply watching content, earn rewards and money which is paid in Frenzy dollars to their account.
Effectively, Frenzy rewards commuters for taking public transport. Auckland is the first market with both Android and iOS now available, Wellington follows this week and plans to roll out to the rest of New Zealand, Sydney and beyond over the next few months are underway. A driving mission this year is “20 cities in 2020.”
Founders Martin McMullan and Kathleen Webber come from transport technology backgrounds and see Frenzy as a way to incentivise users to leave the car at home. With carbon emissions automatically offset at no cost to the user- the potential would be for a carbon-neutral travel system – with significantly reduced costs to the user, if not free public transport.
Frenzy also presents great opportunities for advertisers – significantly its ability to reach real users who have opted in to receive content and provide feedback.
A tight group of forward-thinking advertisers tested the concept over summer with content served to Frenzy users. Foundation partners include Spark Sport, Skinny, McDonalds, Samsung, Torpedo7, University of Auckland, Ford and media agency partners OMD, Starcom, Mindshare and PHD.
Frenzy expects partners will recognise the opportunity to serve content through Frenzy that might be trickier (or cost-prohibitive) to place elsewhere. It is the perfect environment for short-form branded content, behind the scenes, extended trailers and more. The Frenzy Quiz, a twice-daily real-time quiz presents opportunities for sponsorship, product placement and product sampling as prizes for advertisers.
Frenzy is backed by research that reveals 77 percent of commuters view time spent on public transport as “free time” and 90 percent would use this period to engage in personalised content for direct rewards and deals. The model effectively rewards commuters for their time and attention – because as Kathleen Webber Chief Operating Officer says – “Time is valuable. More so than ever today. We are operating in an attention economy – and Frenzy rewards the user for choosing us, and our partners, to spend their discretionary time with. It’s a win-win.”
Importantly, partners are guaranteed that their content is reaching real viewers. Says Chris Monaghan, Frenzy’s Global Sales Director – “thanks to Frenzy’s facial detection feature, advertisers only pay for guaranteed views, therefore eliminating bot farm fraud. Brand partners set their preferred commuter viewing criteria and only pay for guaranteed views. It’s a really exciting proposition.”
It’s not only commuters that Frenzy is attracting. Chris Monaghan, previously founder of Ambient Media, then CEO of QMS Media, was attracted to what the Frenzy team were building because of the interaction between transport and media – what he describes as his “sweet spot,” Says Chris, “People consume content on the go – we know that. Now they can be rewarded for it whilst making a positive contribution to the environment.”
Since the Android BETA launch in December in Auckland, Frenzy has a 3.5x better View Through Rate than industry benchmarks, 88 percent impression to view conversion and is 32 percent more effective for ad completion than any existing digital media channel.
Frenzy is live, established and “working” – for both user and advertiser. “It’s now a matter of scaling” says Webber, “it’s going to be a huge year. We have lots to do”
Skinny is one of Frenzy’s first advertisers. Ally Young, Skinny’s brand manager says “It is great to be a part of the launch of Frenzy, and to be partnered with a product that can help everyday Kiwis do something good for our environment. We are excited that this potentially global technology business is starting right here in New Zealand”.
Find out more about Frenzy and how it could work for your brand – contact [email protected]
