Strategy
2021
Ford: Upgrade your Tomorrow
When the pandemic cancelled the Brussels Motor Show, a virtual one took its place and sold more cars than a normal year. Bronze, Euro Effie Awards 2021.
Client
Ford Belgium & Luxembourg
Role
Lead strategic planner, Ogilvy Social.Lab
The brief
In Belgium and Luxembourg, the first quarter delivers close to 40% of annual car sales, driven by the motor shows and their discounts. In October 2020 the Brussels show was cancelled. The target was to match 2019 sales, with a stretch goal of +2%.
The insight
Belgians did not go to motor shows for the stands. They went to be entertained, to validate a long and emotional purchase, and to get the deal. The cancellation left a void, not a lack of interest.
The idea
Upgrade your Tomorrow: a four-day virtual motor show in the usual January slot, with eight live broadcasts in French and Dutch and a €250 voucher at the end of every session.
The role
Led the strategy and built the content and media ecosystem around the event in three phases. Inform built attendance across TV, radio, print, social and email. Entertain delivered the live programme. Convert retargeted viewers towards a hub where a live assistant booked dealership test drives.
What happened
Sales grew 8.05% in a market that fell 17.7%, four times the stretch goal. 1.13 million people watched live, more than double the target, and 8,705 vouchers were claimed against a goal of 2,500.