The Challenge

Can potential customers become engaged with a product that hasn't even launched yet? Audi wanted consumers to become familiar with its new model before it hit the market, but with a high-engagement item like a new car that task was especially tough.


The Plan

Audi partnered with Neue Digitale/Razorfish in Frankfurt, Germany, to develop a mobile campaign that would let consumers become virtual owners and drivers of the Audi Q5. The team first launched a microsite in April and introduced a downloadable mobile application in September. The Audi Q5 MobileCam application let consumers use their handheld devices to customize and develop unique pictures and situations for themselves and the car. For example, a man could take a picture of his own garage and digitally place an Audi Q5 in front of it or create picture collages that could then be set as the phone's wallpaper. He could also get behind the wheel, driving the car anywhere he wants, even over water or up a tower. These virtual experiences created a personal relationship with the car, allowing such consumers to imagine the vehicle as part of his life even before test-driving it. The application had a viral, brand-building effect as people sent the photos, via picture message, to their friends who could then click a link in the picture that led to the Audi Q5 microsite.


The Results

In the first week after the mobile application launched, traffic to the Audi Q5 microsite increased 38 percent over traffic the previous week. Additionally, more than 1,500 MobileCam applications were downloaded in the first week and more than 500 new registrations took place on the site, providing Audi a chance to talk directly with people who opted-in to communications about the car. In the eight weeks following the mobile launch, traffic to the microsite stayed up nearly 14 percent compared to the previous eight weeks.