Changing young Swedes’ image of Finland

The Embassy of Finland in Stockholm wanted to refresh young Swedes’ image of Finland based on the country’s recognized leadership in subjects such as AI, source criticism, and emotional intelligence (EQ). But how do you make a young target group on TikTok and YouTube stop to view a video about that?

To make anyone care, we knew it would be better that someone else than the Embassy of Finland talk about Finland’s expertise in these subjects. Based on the insight that AI, source criticism, and EQ actually are subjects that young Fins learn about in school, we created the campaign "Finnish standards" – going for the “show, don't tell" model.

We gave a young Finland-Swedish girl the task of walking around Stockholm, showing how much she knew compared to Swedes. We managed to create recognition among the target group, while the videos became both entertaining and educational. To make the videos eye-catching and to add a playful tone, we also used hand-drawn graphics that moved the film forward and made the content easier to absorb.

Aiming to create awareness, the campaign strategy was to expose the target group to the content sequentially – first with a short teaser and then with increasingly extensive content. On average, the campaign had a completion rate of 21 percent – proof that the target group found the content both engaging and interesting.