MERCEDES-BENZ A-CLASS CASE STUDY

Cross-platform campaign drives impact for Mercedes-Benz

Mercedes-Benz partnered with Fairfax Media to launch the new A-Class model through an advertising campaign across online, mobile and print publications including Sunday Life and Good Weekend magazines. It proved to be incredibly successful, with significant lifts in awareness levels, brand consideration and purchase intention evident after exposure to the campaign.

Campaign Objectives:

  • To drive awareness of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class
  • To increase consideration of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class amongst new car buyers (those intending on buying a small sized car valued above $30k)
  • To increase purchase intention of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class amongst new car buyers

Campaign Period:

March 2 – 27, 2013

Target Audience:

People aged 25 – 39 years

Research Methodology:

A simultaneous capture of control/ exposed sample was employed, with both control and exposed groups receiving an email invitation to complete the survey after exposure to the online advertising. (n=1,698)

Creative Execution:

The Mercedes-Benz A-Class campaign was executed as a cross-platform campaign amongst Fairfax Metro digital properties (as masthead homepage buyouts); OTP’s on the Fairfax Metro mastheads m-site homepages; and as print full page ads in the Good Weekend, Sunday Life, The Melbourne Magazine and The Sydney Magazines.

The Results – Overall Campaign Impact

  • The campaign did exceptionally well across the total exposed sample with significant lifts across all brand metrics, and performed equally well in reaching its target audience of people aged 25 – 39 years, showcasing upward movements across all brand metrics
  • The campaign also performed very strongly amongst people in the market to purchase a small sized car valued above $30,000, with significant lifts in both brand consideration and purchase intention
  • The creative execution was perceived very positively by the exposed audience, with brand linkage toMercedes-Benz very high among the entire sample, and significantly increasing by a further +11% amongst people in the market to purchase a small sized car

The Results – Cross Platform Effect

  • Exposure to multiple media drove higher results for most brand metrics. For example, for the total sample exposure to one media drove a 4% point increase in purchase intention while cross-platform exposure tripled that lift by a further 8% points (up to 12% points in total)
  • The same cross-platform effect across purchase intention is evident amongst the target audience where purchase intention more than doubled from 6% points to 16% points when exposed to multiple media
  • Campaign recall levels were twice as high when exposed to multiple media compared to a singular media
Source: Nielsen Advertising Effectiveness Research May 2013