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02 — Back Market

Counter Launch

When new-phone launch day makes phones more expensive, Back Market makes them cheaper.

Reactive CampaignOOHSocialPRBook180 Spec

Copywriter — Nickolas Tsorvas
Art director — Leila Garrison

Spec campaign premise

When Apple launched the iPhone 18 Pro, it jacked up the price of its older iPhones by $100. Here’s how Back Market responded.

The reaction

People weren’t happy to find out that prices had increased.

A collage of overlapping posts from people complaining that Apple raised the price of the iPhone 17 by $100 (view larger)

The counter offer

So Back Market launched something too: lower prices on refurbished iPhone 17s.

A strip of red tape printed with the campaign line: “They raise their prices. We lower ours.” (view larger)

The giveaway

Back Market launches its campaign with more than just a discount. Free phones given away right in the middle of Apple’s keynote.

Post from Back Market: “Apple added $100 to the iPhone 17. We’re giving away 100 of them. The counter launch starts now.” (view larger)

The stunt

Then we took the response to Apple’s doorstep.

A black box truck parked outside a glass Apple store. Its side reads “Hey Apple. The iPhone 17 got a year older. You made it $100 more expensive. People shouldn’t have to pay more for the same phone.” above the Back Market logo (view larger)
Mock news article headlined “Back Market Drops iPhone Prices After Apple Raises Theirs,” above a photo of the truck outside the Apple store (view larger)
Press concept

OOH

Billboard: “$109.4 billion in quarterly revenue. Still need our $100?” over a bitten-apple shape, with the Back Market logo and “They raise their prices. We lower ours.” (view larger)
Billboard above a pizza shop: “Same slice. $100 more. Sounds ridiculous here, too.” with the Back Market logo (view larger)
Posters pasted on a brick wall: “Their RAM shortage isn’t your problem” between two Back Market posters reading “They raise their prices. We lower ours.” (view larger)

Credits

Copywriter
Nickolas Tsorvas
Art director
Leila Garrison

Book180 Spec. This is spec work. The Apple price increase is the campaign’s premise. The posts, press coverage, giveaway and truck stunt shown are mockups of proposed ideas, not things that happened, and the numbers in them are not results.