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JC Decaux creates a face-reading billboard for Yoplait’s latest product launch

JC Decaux, AJF Partnership and Starcom have developed an out-of-home campaign that uses facial recognition technology to determine whether passers-by are happy or ‘hangry’ in order to dispense product vouchers.

The campaign has been created to launch Yoplait’s Yogurt Smoothies. When a person’s face is detected as they are walking by, the screen will prompt them to come closer and ‘Smile or frown for a free smoothie’.

The panel is located on Sydney’s George Street, with the vouchers attached to a nearby partner store.

The billboard forms an element of a wider campaign called ‘Fix your hanger’.

JC Decaux head of creative solutions, Ashley Taylor, explained the mechanics behind the campaign.

“We are incredibly excited to launch this out-of-home first experience where facial tracking technology is incorporated into a special-build panel to trigger a dispensed item,” Taylor said.

“The panel feeds image data from a camera to a machine-learning algorithm that is trained to detect face orientation and estimate the user’s emotion. A custom-made vending machine is then triggered to dispense the appropriate voucher depending on whether the consumer is deemed to be happy or ‘hangry’. It’s a fantastic way to engage with busy CBD consumers.”

Lion Dairy and Drinks marketing and innovation director, Darryn Wallace, said: “Yoplait has always been a great innovator in new yoghurt offerings and is about joyful interactions. It’s exciting that we will be engaging our consumers with such a fun and interactive new platform – we know the Yoplait Yoghurt Smoothies will satisfy even our most happy or hangry consumers.”

Starcom client service director, Anna Camuglia, added: “We were looking for a way to launch the joy of Yoplait Yoghurt Smoothie to ultimately ensure it’s a memorable experience which aids recall at the fridge. This out-of-home idea will literally stop people in the street and create a value exchange anchored in whether they are happy or hangry, two very real category need states. Their attention will then be rewarded with a voucher to redeem for their Yoplait Yoghurt Smoothie of choice nearby. The interactions so far have evoked a few giggles.”

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