2018 Brand Experience & Activation

MERCEDES-BENZ G-CLASS – THE AMBER CUBE

Short List
TitleMERCEDES-BENZ G-CLASS – THE AMBER CUBE
BrandMERCEDES-BENZ
Product/ServiceMERCEDES-BENZ G-CLASS
Category B02. Use of Ambient Media: Large Scale
Entrant ANTONI Berlin, GERMANY
Idea Creation ANTONI Berlin, GERMANY
Production MARKENFILM SPACE Hamburg, GERMANY
Credits
Name Company Position
Martin Pross antoni garage Chief creative officer
Tilman Gossner antoni Garage Executive Creative Director
Alexander Holtz antoni Garage Creative Director
Matthias Bauer antoni Garage Art Director
Matti Lietsch antoni Garage Copywriter
Marcel Krempin antoni Garage Creative Director Art
Sebastian Henning antoni Garage Designer

Why is this work relevant for Brand Experience & Activation ?

The G-Class from Mercedes has a highly engaged community. They are particularly interested in separating themselves from the average car communities. They feel different - like the G-Class itself. So, being different is exactly what they expect from the G-Class communication as well.

Background

o Situation In January 2018, a new generation of the G-Class was launched. The target group's biggest fear: Will the new G-Class still be the G-Class or will it lose its iconic design? o Brief The G-Class from Mercedes-Benz has been nearly unchanged since its very first model from 1979. For the launch of the new G-Class in January 2018 at the Detroit Auto Show, our client asked us to celebrate the off-roader's unique DNA. o Objectives The campaign should celebrate the off-roader's DNA and make the G-Class the talk of the Detroit Auto Show. Furthermore, Mercedes aimed to increase the sales of the G-Class by 45% in 2018.

Describe the creative idea

Following the example of nature, an imposing installation for the off-roader's strong genes was raised. Therefore, one original G-Class from 1979 was encased in resin. The Amber Cube: 90 days of production, 45 tons of resin - and just one try. The Cube welcomed the visitors of the Detroit Auto Show and became the trade fair's most photographed image.

Describe the strategy

Our target group consists of four different groups: The off-roaders, who value the G-Class for its unsurpassed off-road capability; the aesthetes, who love the G-Class as a design icon; the extroverts, who take the car as a status symbol of an extraordinary luxury; and the mainstream, because for Mercedes, the G-Class always serves as a brand shaper. We created an iconic eye-catcher: A monument that symbolically preserves the off-roader's strong DNA and at the same time celebrates the heritage, design and technology of the G-Class.

Describe the execution

o Implementation We created a monument for eternity: 45 tons of resin, 90 days of production, one original G-Class from 1979 - and just one try. o Timeline The Amber Cube was built over a period of one year. 90 days alone of nonstop casting were necessary to erect this artwork. Its first public show was during the Detroit Auto Show in early January 2018. Other locations such as St. Petersburg, Berlin, and Dubai will follow. o Placement The Amber Cube was placed in front of the main entrance of Cobo Center. Therefore, every visitor of the Detroit Auto Show had to pass it. o Scale The measures of the Amber Cube: Height: 3.10 m; width: 2.55 m; length: 5.50 m; volume: 43.48 m3; weight: 52 t; durability: for eternity

List the results

o Response rate The campaign generated more than 50.000 comments and more than 500.000 interactions on social media in the first 4 weeks. o Impressions The pictures of the Amber Cube spread around the globe, gaining about 258 million media impressions and a media equivalent of more than 10.5 million €. o Change in behavior Prior to the launch, the G-Class fans around the world were pretty unsecure. Their biggest fear: Will the new G-Class still be the G-Class or will it lose its iconic design? The campaign then raised a noticeable euphoria among the community. o Consumer awareness The public was relieved: The G-Class will still be the G-Class. Only six weeks after campaign start the entire G-Class production of 2018 was sold out.