2015 Winners & Shortlists

The Campaign

Branded entertainment in the UAE, and Middle East in general, is undergoing a forward change as brands react to the vast and growing appetite for something different. BE is allowing brands to become creators, not just sponsors. Increasingly, TV advertising is used as a gateway to drive awareness of the best branded content and has become a springboard to more interactive elements. The world wide convergence of media, technology and brand narratives is beginning to make its mark in the MENA region, allowing for brands to shift towards becoming their own content companies. Restrictions and regulations are put in place by the Media Zone Authority’s content code which aims to balance "freedom of expression with a duty to take account of the social and cultural expectations of society." The guidelines specifically mention the treatment of religion, the ruling families and privacy as cultural expectations that should be respected. This code is designed to make sure media producers respect the unique social and cultural situation in the UAE. As long as content aired does not breach the boundaries set out or cause offence Branded Entertainment is entirely acceptable.

Results

As a first timer in this segment the Chevrolet Trax faced fierce competition from similar vehicles (Nissan Juke, Mitsubishi ASX, Daihatsu Terios & Suzuki SX4). Our business objective was to steal market share from the competitors and sell 750 units by the end of the year. The new nameplate was also designed as a ‘change agent’ to switch current Chevy brand perception as a large truck brand to a brand that excels in the small/medium SUV segment with cars that are contemporary and fun to drive. Our consumer target group is constantly on-the-go and highly social, relying heavily on mobile to share their discoveries. We decided to integrate Trax with these interests by launching the online selfie competition. We partnered with Timeout Dubai & Abu Dhabi (the most successful digital and print guides to what’s on in the city). An advertorial microsite was launched promoting ‘selfies’ to be submitted via Social media and Instagram accounts were set up for #CityontraxDXB #CityontraxAD to manage the competition. We benefitted from user generated content and extended reach through likes and shares. A radio campaign also ran to raise awareness about the competition, and drive traffic to the event day. The on ground phase of the launch was about awareness, product interaction and a platform to generate original content and build a catalog of creative assets which could be used commercially through-out the rest of 2014. The top 4 boys and top 4 girls’ voted photos for each city were invited to participate in our on ground activation. The competition led the participants around the city in a Trax car to race against each other in a series of challenges and experience the car first hand, tweeting and posting as they went. 2 teams, 2 cars, but only 1 winner.

One of the main challenges we faced when launching Chevrolet’s new crossover vehicle, the Trax, was limited creative assets. In order to overcome this, we decided to get the consumers to generate the content! We ran an online competition inviting them to explore the city and document it through ‘selfies.’ The top 10 photos (voted by the public) would be invited to a Trax event day and be in with a chance of winning a holiday worth $10,000. The competition and event day drew in participants and ultimately provided the assets for Trax marketing for the rest of the year.

Our Communication objectives revolved around changing the way the Chevy brand is perceived by getting our TA to recognize it’s small to medium SUV as a challenger to other popular brands in the segment. The digital results demonstrated a great interest in the new nameplate delivering strong results: Drive Awareness of Trax as a new segment entry Over 22M impressions delivered in the UAE Over 3.7M unique users reached across Social Push consideration through Engagement 176K clicks to Trax Microsite 9.5K Unique visits to Trax Microsite 136K actions on Social media Raise interest through site visits, pre-booking and leads Over 500 clicks to Trax register interest form 780 clicks to Chevyarabia site 113 total leads driven to date (Request a Quote, Request a Test Drive) Our campaign succeeded in launching the first ever Chevrolet SUV to the region and by the end of the year we had achieved our sales goal. The results demonstrate that awareness and consideration for the new vehicle are high just a few months after launch. We were able to position Trax as a change agent and alter the divisional brand perception, positioning Chevrolet as innovative with cars that are contemporary and fun to drive.