BATTLE OF MACHINES

TitleBATTLE OF MACHINES
BrandMCCULLOCH
Product/ServiceGARDENING TOOLS
Category B07. Media Relations
Entrant KARKALIS COMMUNICATIONS Düsseldorf, GERMANY
Idea Creation KARKALIS COMMUNICATIONS Düsseldorf, GERMANY
PR KARKALIS COMMUNICATIONS Düsseldorf, GERMANY
Credits
Name Company Position
André Karkalis KARKALIS COMMUNICATIONS GM & Project Leader
Guido Zimmermann KARKALIS COMMUNICATIONS Art Director
Sabrina Schreiber KARKALIS COMMUNICATIONS Coordinator & Consultant
Julia Lauber KARKALIS COMMUNICATIONS PR Consultant
Sven Heydkamp KARKALIS COMMUNICATIONS Assitant

The Campaign

MAN vs MACHINE Kick-off is a key influencer co-operation: a McCulloch tractor tuning with JP Kraemer who runs the number one Youtube channel in Germany for Cars. His community loves the videos. But Tim “The Machine” Wiese (Wiese means "Lawn" in Geman) is not amused. He posts a negative comment and has to deal with the fans’ backlash. McCulloch steps in and challenges both men to a charity duel of motor vs. muscle power. They accept. At a news conference McCulloch presents the 3 competitions: tractor mower vs. reel mower, string trimmer vs. scythe, chainsaw vs. hand chainsaw. The more Wiese mows, scythes and saws, the more he earns for his charity partner, a hospice for children.

Execution

1 On 01. April JP posts a youtube video in which he shows his new project: A McCulloch Lawnmower. His Fans start a discussion: Is this an April's fool joke or a real project? 2 JP posts Videos No 2 in which he presents the new Lawnmower. Tim Wiese comments the video and insults JP and has to deal with the fans’ backlash. 3 McCulloch steps in and social buzz on all channels: "Mr. Wiese show us that you have more power than our products!" 4 At a news conference both participants present their weapons. Leading medias report on the BATTLE OF MACHINES 5 The Training: JP with a chainsaw - Tim Wiese with a scythe. Both opponents use social media to prepare for the fight. 6 The charity event is a huge success: Wiese loses, and McCulloch tools prove to have “The Power To Get It Done”.

BATTLE OF MACHINES is a true communication boost for McCulloch: The campaign generates buzz in the target audience, with more than 115 million digital reach in social and online media. Without any media spendings the users interact more than 300,000 times with content relating to the battle. Spiegel, BILD, Handelsblatt, Sport1, Auto Bild, Vice Magazine and many more cover the story online. Within two month we doubled the Facebook-Fans of the McCulloch Fanpage. The campaign videos count 6.5 million views to date, with numbers still growing thanks to the long tail.

The Situation

Because our creative story turned a low interest product into a PR Scoop. The BATTLE OF THE MACHINES hit the front page of europe's biggest newspaper, got covered by all leading German newsmagazins, radio stations and was even part of the TV news - without any media spendings! Why? Because we told a story that everybody was interested in: A story of a man trying to beat the machines instead of recommending them.

The Strategy

Target audience: Men who need gardening products Goal: Brand & product awarness for McCulloch Target media: Maximum reach wihin general interest media. Online and offline! Strategy: HERO vs ANTI-HERO THE HERO - An influencer with a strong community vs THE ANTI-HERO - a celebrity who has high awareness in Germany and the perfect name to fight a lawnmower: Wiese, which means lawn in German. As a wrestler he calls himself THE MACHINE. Our strategy: To gain online coverage with our Hero, the influencer and press coverage with Tim Wiese as a well known celebrity by creating a very special conflict. Timing: First we use the community of our Hero to create awarnes. Then our Anti-Hero joined in. As planned he posts a negative comment and has to deal with the fans’ backlash. Just when things heated up, we used the momentum to launch the story in the traditional media.