Title	DISCONNECTED
Brand	MAERSK
Product/Service	LOGISTICS
Category	C01. Product / Service Design
Entrant	&CO Copenhagen, DENMARK
Idea Creation	&CO Copenhagen, DENMARK
Production	CIRCUS ALPHAVILLE APS Copenhagen, DENMARK
Additional Company	NOA HEALTH Copenhagen, DENMARK

Name	Company	Position
Claus Collstrup	& Co. / NoA	Creative
Peter Dinesen	& Co. / NoA	Creative
Thomas Hoffmann	& Co. / NoA	Creative
Christoffer Boe	Circus Alphaville	Director
Morten Hoffmann Larsen	Circus Alphaville	Executive Producer
Ken Hermann	Ken Hermann Photographer	Photographer
Pernille Ryder	&Co.	Account
Eva Rabenhøj	&Co. / NoA	Account
Mathias Birkvad	&Co. / NoA	Strategy
Rasmus Philip	&Co. / NoA	Media Strategy
Kenneth Andersen	&Co.	Graphic Designer
Morten Grundsøe	&Co.	Graphic Designer
Anders Martin Jensen	&Co.	Graphic Designer
Ørnulf Johansen	&Co. / NoA	Strategy
Lene Meyer	&Co. Productions / NoA	Agency Producer
Peter Hingebjerg	Circus Alphaville	1st AC
Manuel Claro	Circus Alphaville	Director Of Photography
Franz Bonde	Circus Alphaville	1st AC
Kristoffer Høyer	Circus Alphaville	2nd AC
Sos’Peter Ng’ang’a	Circus Alphaville	DIT
Alex Suhr	Circus Alphaville	Drone Operator
Andreas Kragh-Jacobsen	Circus Alphaville	Gaffer
Christian Brøndum	Circus Alphaville	Grip
Michael Tøt	Kromand	Grip
Thomas Greve	Circus Alphaville	Production Designer
Pernille Holm	Circus Alphaville	Stylist/Wardrobe
Henrik Steen	Circus Alphaville	Hair / Make-up
Lars Gonzalez	Circus Alphaville	Sound Recordist
Anna Stark	Circus Alphaville	Casting
Rie Hedegaard	Circus Alphaville	Casting
Mikkel Schiller	Circus Alphaville	Location
Anders Hynding	Circus Alphaville	Line Producer
Emma Engberg	Circus Alphaville	Post Producer
Olivier Bugge Coutté	Circus Alphaville	Editor
Lasse Marcussen	Circus Alphaville	Colourist
Christian Schandorph	Circus Alphaville	SFX
Jeppe Bingestam	Formtroopers	VFX Supervisor
Bjørn Munch	Circus Alphaville	Flame Artist
Mikkel Maltha	Circus Alphaville	Music Composer
Morten Green	Circus Alphaville	Sound Design Arrangement
Morten Kildegaard	Circus Alphaville	Lighting
Casper Bülow	Circus Alphaville	Lighting
Kasper Morville	Circus Alphaville	Lighting

Why is this work relevant for Creative Business Transformation?

As the complexity of the world’s national borders, customs, political and regulatory matters increase – global trade more than ever needs connected supply chains to accommodate the modern society. This increasing demand is part of the reason why the world’s largest shipping company made the bold strategy to transform itself into an end-to-end logistics company – thereby doing what Bloomberg coined as one of the biggest business transformations ever attempted. Maersk moves 1 in 5 of ALL things in the world. On Sea. They invented the container. Now reinventing their business using creativity as a crucial part of the transformation.

Background

As international trade and supply chains in general becomes more complex and disconnected, which from an import/export POV calls for simplicity and truly connected solutions. Maersk used to be an ocean transporter and was therefore only part of some of this logistics puzzle. Now going ashore and building the world’s most comprehensive asset line of ships, trucks, planes, warehouses, custom clearances and what not all over the world is the number one target. Furthermore, digitalise an industry which haven’t digitalised itself yet. But once this transformation has started how do you convince experienced Senior Logistics Professionals and C-suite in global trade, that what’s perceived by them as an old shipping company, can take on this huge task? Connecting supply chains end-to-end. Transforming the industry while transforming itself without losing existing trust among customers. Replacing previous suppliers and having the nerve to claim they can do it better? And position Maersk as a challenger in the end-to-end logistics category.

Strategy & Process (30%)

This is a case of changing perception among customers while mobilizing astonishing 80.000 employees. Storytelling was the approach and far bigger than previously seen in the B2B environment. B2B communication is normally riddled with stock images and corporate clichés. It’s also dominated by the belief that rational communication works best.  The opposite approach was used based on the studies proving emotional storytelling and eye-popping creative in fact make more of a difference/impact in a B2B environment. Giving an insight into Maersk’s innovative way of thinking and ability to turn customer data into workable solutions that connects their customers’ supply chains in new and needed ways. First, talking to the audience’s hearts then followed with proof for their minds. The campaign offered an enigmatic and cinematic look into the future of logistics. It breaks conventional use of the platforms in play. The engagement strategy was to surprise and stand out by using the platforms in unlike ways. E.g. on LinkedIn, people expect classical corporate updates and job posts, but this campaign was kicked off with a fast-moving thriller edited as Hollywood trailer. All communication needed to surprise the audience in their respective media placement to gain effective awareness around this transformation.

Experience & Implementation (35%)

We sure got the attention from the global audience of Senior Logistics Professionals and C-suite, which prior research showed to be a difficult task due to their media habits spending little time online. The creative formats did overcome that obstacle and delivered the core story about the new position and offering – which amounted to 806.000 social likes and comments supporting the engagement strategy of gaining enough attention to effectively change the perception of Maersk. The enthusiasm among the audience was clear with statements; “Is this on Netflix??”, “Felt like Black Mirrors in Logistics”, “This is what ads should be like” and “Absolutely fucking epic!” proving that not only was the format a surprise, but it also resonated in a positive manner. Besides the novel formats breaking conventional use of platforms it was key to drive traffic to a campaign site full of stories about how Maersk connects the world of logistics, new ways of using data, and showcasing the innovations in the pipeline. 1.4 million customers/visitors entered the site and spent all in all 15.400 hours getting to know the new Maersk offering and position.

Business Results & Impact (35%)

The objective of this campaign was achieved i.e. positioning Maersk as an end-to-end logistics company rather than as the world’s largest shipping company among Senior Logistics Professionals and C-suite. The company’s global reputation tracker shows a significant increase in 4 customer statements specifically related to the logistics category i.e. the new position and offering moves astonishing 4.7 index points up in total. The customer statements for the logistics category; ‘Keeps my business ahead of developments within logistics’(4.9 up), ‘Connect different components of my supply chain through its end-to-end logistic solution’(4.5 up), ‘Works towards simplifying my logistics’(4.9 up), and ‘Capable of offering end-to-end supply chain solutions’(4.2 up) have all considerably increased. A heritage brand like Maersk doesn’t compromise ‘trust’ among customers despite its new position. It was key maintaining equal level of trust. Not only did the campaign move the perception to the space of logistics, but the statement ‘A company I can trust’ also increased by impressive 3.6 index points despite introducing a completely new business offering/position. Finally, there was a 34% uplift among the audience to actively recommend Maersk as a logistics partner.