SWEDISH INSTITUTE AND VISIT SWEDEN | CURATORS OF SWEDEN | 2012
Handing a Country's Twitter Account Over to Its Citizens / SWEDISH INSTITUTE AND VISIT SWEDEN "CURATORS OF SWEDEN"
Handing the country's official Twitter account to a different ordinary citizen every week. No checking what they tweet. That's the bet Sweden made.
The problem
The land of IKEA and meatballs, often mixed up with Switzerland in America. A small country with a tight budget, trying to figure out how to tell its own story. They came to the conclusion that a single official voice couldn't capture Sweden.
The insight
Perfect, surface-level, and a little boring—that was the image they wanted to break. So instead of "ambassador," they chose the word "curator." The idea was to have people speak as ordinary individuals, not as diplomats.
The idea
On December 10 (12/10), 2011, the day of the Nobel Prize ceremony, @Sweden began. A writer, a teacher, a priest, a lesbian truck driver. Every week, a completely different person took over the account and tweeted whatever they wanted. No script, no instructions.
What happened
In 2012, it won the Grand Prix in the Cyber category at Cannes Lions. It was reported on around the world, and other countries, including Ireland and the Netherlands, copied the same approach. By the time it ended in 2018, 356 people had taken turns running the account.
Afterthought
A country giving up control over its words—that in itself became the message. There were weeks that sparked controversy. Even so, they kept handing the account over. 356 people's voices, seven years of trust. The Grand Prix was probably awarded for that kind of resolve.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Grand Prix 2012
