The archive · Marketing & Growth · Marketing decision · 2022-2023
Flipvertising hides a free Flip4 in an unservable ad - Spikes Asia 2023 Grand Prix x2
Samsung made its own ad almost impossible to get served, so Gen Z raced to trick search algorithms into targeting them with it - and win a free Galaxy Z Flip4.
Samsung Electronics
What it had to solve
Samsung needed to launch the Galaxy Z Flip4 to Gen Z, who see personalized ads as an invasion of privacy and scroll past product claims. CHEP Network had to make the targeting itself the attraction.
How it works
For the Australian launch of the Galaxy Z Flip4, Samsung faced a generation that treats personalized ads as an invasion of privacy and ignores product claims. CHEP Network's response was to stop fighting that distrust and build the campaign around it: 'Flipvertising' flipped the media targeting model on its head.
CHEP produced a YouTube pre-roll that contained a free Flip4 - then made that ad almost impossible to get served. Cryptic videos and influencer content seeded specific search clues; viewers who worked out which searches would trigger the ad found themselves targeted with it, and entered an online scavenger hunt to win the phone. The more they searched, the more their behavior retrained the algorithms to serve unpaid Samsung reviews, unboxings and comparisons.
The campaign turned a skeptical cohort into willing participants in the targeting system they usually reject. Engagement ran 600% above the industry average, sales rose 34%, and Flipvertising took the Grand Prix in both Creative Data and Direct at Spikes Asia 2023.
Why it lands
- Making the ad scarce gave it value: people competed to be targeted instead of installing blockers to avoid it.
- The mechanic made the product's core feature literal - the campaign itself flipped the targeting model.
- Every participant's search retrained algorithms to distribute unpaid organic content, turning curiosity into free media.
- By giving Gen Z control over when and how they were targeted, the campaign reframed algorithms as a game instead of surveillance.
What it did
Engagement ran 600% above the industry average and sales rose 34% during the launch; the campaign took the Grand Prix in both Creative Data and Direct at Spikes Asia 2023.
What you can take
When the audience distrusts targeting, make getting targeted the prize: the mechanic becomes the message and the algorithm becomes a free media channel.
Since then
Flipvertising became a regional reference example for opt-in targeting. Samsung cited it among its accolades when it was named Spikes Asia 2025 Advertiser of the Year, with the official announcement highlighting the campaign's two Grands Prix and describing it as empowering Gen Z to take control of their own search experience.
Sources
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