How I spent a week looking for a product to promote
In March, Tunnyl was riding high. A company just approved our proposal to shoot a promo for them in Hong Kong. But things don’t always go according to plan. They didn’t like any of the models we found. So I reached out to four agencies and gave them the whole kitchen sink. They balked shortly after and withdrew from the project.
It felt like a cruel joke. An early April Fool’s. It had to be, but it wasn’t .It was real. So there I was, with a script, a crew, and a production date but no product to promote and no more budget. I sat in bed for a few hours, feeling angry, sorry, and annoyed. Soon, all those emotions coalesced into determination. I broke the bad news to the crew, but I didn’t leave them hanging for long.
Bad news guys, the client decided to drop out last minute. But I’ve got a plan. We will stay on schedule, switch to Katrina, and borrow jewelry from a different local business.
Although the client may not have liked any of our models, we all thought Katrina was perfect for the project from the start. She immediately agreed to join. The next task, finding a product for us to promote, proved almost impossible. I pitched the project to dozens of businesses with a presence in Hong Kong. A common theme was that most had set marketing plans and were not willing (or not able) to diverge from that plan.
Eventually, I pitched the project as a no-risk proposition. Essentially, zero upfront costs with a fee if they liked the final product and wished to distribute and share the scenes online.
One of our first Tunnyl users, Talitha, saved the day. She knew a marketing exec at Plukka, a boutique jewelry firm based out of London with a location in Hong Kong. The Plukka team loved the idea and set aside a great product for us to use in the shoot.
The shoot went through without a hitch and our first full pilot project has been completed. We are now knee-deep on our next project, Farewell Earth, and can’t wait to organize more in the future!
