Escape The Map

Background

Tasked with creating a brand-sharpening campaign to attract younger people to Mercedes-Benz, an integrated campaign was released in November 2011.

Idea

The integrated campaign told the story of Marie, a girl trapped in a parallel world resembling a "real-life" version Google Streetview. Everyone in the world had blurred faces and Marie needed to escape before she too became blurred. Gamers were invited to help her escape by following a series of clues for the chance to win a C-Class Coupé. First contact with her was through an augmented reality wrap in Metro newspaper. A movie-trailer like TV spot and accompanying outdoor led to a surreal interactive online film. Marie also had her own Twitter stream at @girlinmap.

Successful navigation through the short film enabled the player to enter the prize draw for the car. Once you entered your phone number, the girl then called you on your mobile to tell you she was safe. Ultimately, she delivered the car to the game's winner.

Results

• 720,000 unique visitors to escapethemap.com in one month.
• Average website dwell time: 5 minutes.
• 148% increase in Test Drives compared with the same period the previous year. 9% increase in overall MB sales.
• Revenue ROI of 14:1
• C63 AMG Coupe sold out.

Our Thoughts

Mercedes escapes its stodgy facade as a brand with this very cool romp through ravishing Marie’s parallel Streetview world. It’s cleverly presented with giant falling Google pins, frequent map re-scalings, and plenty more sticky bits, making Benz feel a generation younger.