Serta Drives Holiday Traffic and Increases Awareness with Online Ad

Serta, a bedding brand leader and manufacturer of premium mattresses in America, has long captivated audiences with their brand icon, the Counting Sheep. The Sheep have been seen on television trying to sway consumers away from buying a Serta mattress in order to “keep their job.” Yet their likeness has never been used in the online space to capture attention for the brand. 

The Challenge

Serta wanted to build consumer awareness of their Dare to Compare Event, which challenges customers to evaluate their old mattress. The company needed to drive traffic to their promotional microsite during key holiday periods, and convince consumers that it’s time to replace their old mattress with a new one.

The Creative Solution

Serta and Doner Advertising teamed with Microsoft Advertising to implement an Atlas Rich Media floating ad that would promote the Counting Sheep personality, deliver impact, and prompt consumer response. First, the 300x250 ad displayed a message indicating it was the “best time ever” to purchase a mattress. Then, one of the Counting Sheep walked up to the banner and glared at it before being removed from the site page with a long hook. The Sheep side-stepped back into the banner holding a “Count Sheep Instead” sign while the Dare to Compare Event message came up. The call-to-action prompted consumers to “Click Here” to put their old mattress to the test.

The Results

The Serta floating ad increased traffic to the microsite, yielding a high click-through rate of 2.04 percent for the Labor Day period. Additionally, the combined Memorial Day and Labor Day time periods had a click-through rate of 1.68 percent. 

Learn how you can increase brand awareness with Microsoft’s Atlas Rich Media.