Child in pink sweater holds phone-shaped book "Sam appt" on shaggy rug beside green headphones and purple bottle
Submitted by EssenceMediacom

Odido Telefoonboekje Smartphone-Style Reading Book

Influencer Marketing

EssenceMediacom presents a smartphone-shaped chat-story book for Odido, promoted through influencers, PR and podcasts, which the agency reports delivered more than 55.000 booklets to Dutch families.

55.000Booklets Delivered
+12%Brand Image Uplift

Case in 60 seconds

Parents struggle with their children's screen time and worry that they are not reading enough, while children receive smartphones ever younger, so a phone brand addressing the problem risked reading as part of it rather than its answer.

The campaign turns on meeting children inside the chat format they already know rather than asking them to abandon it, because a book that looks like a smartphone makes the step from scrolling to reading smaller, as the page frames it.

Odido and CPNB created 'het Telefoonboekje', a physical book in smartphone form with a chat-style story by Marjon Hoffman, presented as the first booklet that sometimes wins out over the phone and tied to the 'Sometimes Just Not' brand promise.

Odido combined influencer marketing with PR, social media and branded content to reach children in the upper years of primary school, with familiar faces such as Meester Jesper promoting the book and influencers and podcasts that resonate with parents carrying it further.

EssenceMediacom reports that the first print run of 5.000 free booklets sold out within 24 hours, that more than 55.000 booklets were delivered and that brand image grew +12%, alongside wide press coverage and praise from parents and teachers.

Strategy Breakdown

Children in the upper years of primary school, which the page names as basisschool groep 6/7/8, and their parents, who the page says worry about screen time and reading.
Parents worry about rising screen time and declining reading among children, a concern the page says gained renewed attention when primary schools introduced a phone ban, so the campaign entered a live public debate rather than inventing one.
A telecom and technology brand profits from smartphone use, so speaking about children's screen time required an action that credibly looked beyond the phone rather than a statement about it.
Odido acted as the maker of a reading product in partnership with CPNB, which the page links to the 'Sometimes Just Not' brand promise and to a brand that sees more in life than the mobile phone.
Children engage with chat conversations on their phones, so a story told through app messages in a phone-shaped book lowers the threshold to reading rather than competing with the screen head on.

Creative & Execution System

Partners

  • EssenceMediacom

Participation mechanic

  • Families claimed free copies of the smartphone-shaped book, with the first print run sold out and further booklets delivered afterwards.

Creator role

  • Meester Jesper
  • Marjon Hoffman

Results & Evidence

MetricValue
Booklets Delivered55.000
Brand Image Uplift+12%

Why EssenceMediacom's strategy worked

  1. 1

    A technology brand can address a harm associated with its own category when the product it offers borrows the familiar format of the device, because the audience recognises the form rather than being asked to reject it.

  2. 2

    Splitting talent by audience lets one product reach two decision makers, so a familiar teacher figure speaks to children while influencers and podcasts speak to the parents who decide whether the book enters the house.

  3. 3

    A physical, lasting object gives a social-issue campaign a second life in the press, which the page shows when coverage revived around the phone ban in primary schools rather than fading after launch.

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