ASICS asked whether exercise might be a simple solution to improve mental performance through an experimental global campaign linked to a documentary launched in mid-January and titled ‘Mind Games – The Experiment’.
The initiative set out to demonstrate the sportswear company’s umbrella ‘Sound Mind, Sound Body’ brand purpose whilst simultaneously motivating more people to move by demonstrating that exercise sharpens the mind.
The concept was created by Neil A Dawson & Company, the campaign was developed by Golin London, produced by Bangers and Nash with media handled by Le Pub, while the documentary was produced by Beyond Productions.
The initiative actually began back in early 2022 with an experiment that saw the brand invite inactive mid gamers to start exercising and then a January 2023 promotional campaign introduced the project to the public and revealed that the details of the objectives, methodology and results will be revealed in a documentary streaming globally on Prime Video from 19 January 2023.
The international test group of mind gamers ranged from chess to mahjong players, to memory experts and Esports players – people whose favourite sporting passions focused primarily on brainpower – and all were ‘largely inactive, exercising for less than 30 minutes a week.
The resulting experiment set out to prove whether boosting their physical exercise levels over a 16-week programme designed by coach Andrew Kastor could boost their brainpower? The impact of the exercises on each participant’s mental performance was measured by Professor Brendon Stubbs (a well-established researcher in movement and the mind).
A camera crew followed the test subjects – including four competitive gamers seeking to improve their international rankings – to create the Amazon Prime ‘Mind Games – The Experiment’ documentary narrated by Stephen Fry.
The cross-channel, digital-first promotional campaign was spearheaded by a hero spot which dropped on 18 January and outlined the initiative, encouraged viewers to stream it on Prime Video and to read more about it on the project’s online hub at www.asics.com/mindgames #MindGamesTheExperiment
Four mind gamers embark on a ground-breaking experiment to see if exercise can boost their brain power and take their game to the next level.
“Mind Games – The Experiment” coming to @PrimeVideo on 19 January.#SoundMindSoundBody #MindGames pic.twitter.com/hRz7fxV0fh
— ASICS Europe (@ASICSeurope) January 18, 2023
Four mind gamers embark on a ground-breaking experiment to see if exercise can boost their brain power and take their game to the next level. Can they move their way to the top?
‘Mind Games – The Experiment’ coming to Prime Video on January 19, 2023. https://t.co/IVoaUZ5ZkN pic.twitter.com/nyoBLTjmvR
— ASICS America (@ASICSamerica) January 13, 2023
For those who can’t wait to watch the documentary – the results were quite striking. Participants’ international gaming rankings improved by an incredible 75% and cognitive function was boosted on average by 10%. Group confidence levels increased by 44%, concentration improved by 33% and anxiety levels plummeted by 43%.
“Our founding purpose is literally in our name, Anima Sana In Corpore Sano or a Sound Mind, Sound Body. And our purpose has never been more relevant than right now. In our always-on, turbo-charged world, our brains are feeling the strain,” commented ASICS EMEA EVP Gary Raucher. “But could exercise be the simple solution to give our minds a much-needed boost? We wanted to test that theory on the people that rely on their brainpower the most, namely competitive mind gamers. Through Mind Games -The Experiment, we want to inspire more people to move. Because if exercise can sharpen even the brightest minds, imagine what it can do for the rest of us.”
Neil Dawson, Creative Director of Neil A Dawson & Company, added: “As an advertising man I’m always looking for compelling brand stories to tell. It has been a real privilege to work on this one. ASICS’ founding philosophy completely sets it apart from all other sports brands. Our challenge was to come up with an idea that did their story justice. A unique idea the viewer had not seen before that would bring this brand story to life in a truthful and unexpected way. I believe Mind Games – The Experiment is such an idea.”
Golin & Virgo London MD Ondine Whittington continued: “Working with ASICS on Mind Games – The Experiment gave us the opportunity to develop an incredible global experiment that lay at the heart of the documentary. Using the power of the Golin consumer team working closely with Virgo Health’s consumer health specialists, we orchestrated this mind-blowing experiment with Professor Stubbs and 77 gamers across 21 markets, leading to an unequivocal demonstration of ASICS’ belief in the power of exercise to sharpen even the brightest of minds.”
“Our challenge was to deliver a media strategy that ensures this compelling feature length documentary reaches and inspires more people to move,” commented Publicis Groupe NL Business Unit Lead Francesca Wallis. “By partnering with Prime Video we have tapped into their passionate and engaged community to achieve that. Through our long-term relationship with ASICS, we look forward to continuing to communicate their founding purpose and it feels more relevant now than ever to bring Mind Games – The Experiment to the public through our integrated media plan.”
Comment
As well as its more traditional apparel partnerships and product focused campaigns, this is one of several recent, inventive ASICS brand initiatives linking mental wellness and physical exercise: other notable examples include March 2022’s ‘https://www.activative.co.uk/2022/03/30/asics-mind-race-asks-athletes-not-to-exercise-for-a-week-to-assess-mental-health/’ and ‘https://www.activative.co.uk/2022/03/21/asics-champions-constant-evolution-forward-movement-relentless-energy-in-always-in-motion-campaign/’, plus September 2021’s ‘Nottingham Mood Uplift Experiment’ and August 2021’s ‘Feel The Uplift’.
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