Cadillac Under 5

Marketing Situation General Motors is the number one car manufacturer in the world with 14.5% share of the global vehicle market. In North America, General Motors markets the Cadillac, Chevrolet, Pontiac, Buick, GMC, Saab, Hummer and Saturn brands. The group has a 24.9% share of the U.S. car market and 29% share of the truck market. Cadillac is the premier luxury division of General Motors. Since the introduction of the redesigned Escalade in 2001, the Cadillac brand has experienced a renaissance. The entire vehicle line has been dramatically updated with new, impressive models featuring standout design, world class performance capability and premium luxury. The goal of the reinvigorated models was to attract a younger buyer, and Cadillac has succeeded. Before 2001, the average age buyer of a new Cadillac was 67 years old. It is now 48. To serve as a halo to the entire product line, Cadillac has introduced the V-Series, three cars that offer extreme performance and styling. The V-Series, comprised of two sedans and one roadster, was introduced as part of Cadillac's new positioning. In developing the line, Cadillac engineers met a unique automotive challenge in crafting these vehicles: each goes from 0-60 miles per hour in less than 5 seconds, a unique claim that set Cadillac up to compete in a new market. After all, while Cadillac has long been known for premium luxury, until recently high performance has not been associated with the brand.  Promotion Objectives Capture the power of the Cadillac V-Series and its bold new claim, while casting a halo over the entire brand. Specific objectives were established: Make "Under 5" synonymous with Cadillac. With such a unique claim, it was important to create an automatic link between Cadillac and "Under 5" in the minds of consumers. Engage consumers in a relevant activity that resonates with the "Under 5" claim. Leverage Cadillac's existing partnerships with the NFL, MGM, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the Grammy Awards. Promotion Description Playing off the performance cars’ acceleration rate of 0-60 in under five seconds, the Cadillac Under 5 contest challenged consumers to create a 5-second movie. The promotion echoed the 5-second challenge overcome by Cadillac engineers. After all, Cadillac can build 3 cars that go from 0-60 in under 5. What can you do in under 5? Cadillac is out to prove that amazing things can happen in 5 seconds and strives to dramatize this point through the creation of 5-second films. MGM Partnership Cadillac partnered with the cast of MGM Pictures’ Be Cool, starring John Travolta as Chili Palmer, a Cadillac-loving gangster turned movie producer turned music manager.  Through this movie tie-in promotion, consumers were offered the chance to get a quick taste of Hollywood. Teaser Website Launched January 20th, the “Coming Soon” website teased the promotion. Hosted by Chili Palmer, the site delivered V-Series information and became a place for consumers to request updates. Contest Launch F. Gary Gray, as director of Be Cool, spoke of the contest in press sessions prior to its launch, and the promotion was announced at the heavily attended Sundance Film Festival. Promotion officially opened for submissions on February 6, Super Bowl Sunday. Super Bowl At the Super Bowl, Cadillac Under 5 was everywhere. 60-second and 30-second TV spots ran during and after the game with a "CadillacUnder5.com" tag on each commercial. V-Series imagery was brought into the Paul McCartney half-time show, and the Cadillac-sponsored post-game show included a "CadillacUnder5.com" bug on screen. On a typical Super Bowl Sunday, Cadillac sees a 100% increase in traffic to its website. The next day, when people are back at work, it is normal to see a 100% jump again. But on Super Bowl Sunday 2005, Cadillac experienced a 260% increase in Web traffic, followed by a 358% increase the next day. On Thursday, February 10, traffic continued to be high – up 378% over the same day last year. Contest and Promotion Site The contest and promotion site officially opened on Super Bowl Sunday.  Lasting only 12 days, entrants had to scramble to submit their 5-second films online by February 18. Finalists were chosen and posted to the phased site on February 25, with winners announced March 4, the day of the Be Cool Hollywood premiere. The characters from Be Cool hosted the site experience, shedding the light of movie authenticity on the contest and providing great entertainment. The actors were incorporated in an entertaining and unexpected way, in line with the introduction of the V-Series. Be Cool content was posted on the site, including exclusive images, behind-the-scenes videos and special 5-second clips from the film. Innovative TV Spots In an effort to capture the feel of 5-second acceleration, Cadillac created 5-second commercials. The ground breaking media format premiered during the Super Bowl, the Grammys and the Academy Awards. These commercials showcased the performance and captured the sheer speed of Cadillac’s line-up in a way consumers can actually experience in real time. These spots drove consumers to the CadillacUnder5.com website where they were met by Be Cool’s Chili Palmer who challenged them to make a 5-second film. Grassroots Marketing We employed grassroots tactics on film school campuses and in targeted neighborhoods of New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Detroit. Unique hero cards were distributed, and posters donned the campuses, generating awareness among the relevant audience. Billboards teased the promotion. In addition, we posted sample 5-second films to the website, providing examples for curious and interested consumers. Contest Prizes Be Cool Director F. Gary Gray along with cast members Travolta, Christina Milian and Cedric the Entertainer judged the movie finalists based on creativity, technical ability and popular appeal. Grand Prize: The film awarded best overall won a 2005 Cadillac CTS-V, and the movie was shown as part of a Cadillac commercial on national television. 5 Category Winners: Five lucky entrants won a trip for two to attend the London premiere of Be Cool. 4 Finalists in each of 5 categories, along with 15 runner-ups: These 35 winners received a trip to Los Angeles to attend a private Director’s Cut screening of Be Cool with director F. Gary Gray. Promotion Length As you might expect, everything was fast about this promotion, including the submission period. In fact, consumers had less than two weeks to participate. This makes the results even more remarkable. Campaign Performance Results Over 2.5 million Unique Page Views on CadillacUnder5.com Over 1 million additional unique visitors to Cadillac.com, a 358% increase in traffic from the previous year 43,000 additional requests for the location of a Cadillac dealer (versus the previous year) 2,648 five-second film entries received in less than two weeks Created a new art form, the 5-second film, or "film haiku," that is eminently enjoyable to experience so lots of deep and repeat browsing of the site Be Cool is now John Travolta's most successful movie opening ever, which he and the director attribute in large part to Cadillac Under 5 Summary Cadillac Under 5 offered an enticing challenge to consumers everywhere - both film gurus and ordinary folk alike. And while they were busily preparing some of the shortest films ever, entrants were exposed to Cadillac and the V-Series brand. With the prevalence of cell phones and other technologies that allow people to capture video footage, and with an easy online submission process, it was hard not to resist the offer – especially when the prizes included a Cadillac and tickets to the Be Cool movie premiere in London and Los Angeles with director F. Gary Gray. For those that submitted 5-second films, the fun didn't end there. They needed to revisit the website to view the finalists, anxiously anticipating a win, then again to check out the winners. For those who chose not to submit films, visiting CadillacUnder5.com to watch the films and view the various stages of the contest was entertainment enough. All were hit with Cadillac branding and exposed to the unique new V-Series. The campaign became entertainment, begging involvement and interaction from the consumer. The short promotion window forced consumers to act fast in submitting films, and the nature of the contest kept Cadillac in their minds and prompted street talk as well, further spreading awareness of Cadillac's V-Series unique "Under 5" claim.