Don't Be Constrained By The Box

Outside the box thinking can be powerful in advertising. While in competition with other car brands, specifically Lexus, from 2001-2002, BMW launched a campaign in which they created a series of short films to differentiate themselves from other car brands. These short films were placed in movie theatres and online; Clive Owen was featured as the mysterious driver-for-hire in this campaign, but BMW also included other celebrities such as Madonna and power directors such as Ang Lee. The big names themselves were enough to bring attention to BMW but these short films were eye-captivating and easily found. DVDs of these short films were given to customers at BMW locations and they could also be found on BMWs website.

The Star

Questionable content such as suicide in The Hostage, driving with no seatbelt in The Star, gun violence/attempted murder in The Ambush, and unsafe driving in every short is demonstrated; however, Advertising Stats Canada did not receive any complaints for these short films. BMW's The Hire series disguised their advertisements as short films. Therefore, most consumers did not view the BMW short films as advertisements, but rather as short movies featuring the BMW car. These shorts brought out relatable emotions to consumers such as love, compassion and rebellion. The audience has a connection to Clive Owen who is speaking to the audience in his voiceovers, so the audience becomes even more invested. 

This campaign brought positive focus to the brand while simultaneously breaking ASC codes (10, 14 b and d) and getting away with it. Since the short films were not always interpreted as advertisements, the audience was more susceptible to the message: BMW is cool. An audience typically has its guard up when viewing advertisements, but their guard goes down when watching movies; therefore, BMW got its message across with less barriers.

This campaign was incredibly successful and a brilliant marketing move. As a result, BMW sales increased by 12%, which put them ahead of their competitor Lexus. Advertising  online is cheap, so BMW saved money in terms of media placement. By relocating cost to production spending, BMW created high-quality advertisements with good music, legendary directors and famous celebrities. This new tactic paid off. The BMW short films were so popular that BMW ran out of DVDs, and the short films online were viewed over one-hundred million times. Without consumers complaining about the questionable content in The Hire short series, BMW never had to pull its advertisements. They can still be viewed online today. Companies are beginning to follow suit by creating short films or in Nike's case, "Nike Originals," similar to the idea of BMW's The Hire short series. These new short films differ from BMW's The Hire by repurposing the focus of these short films towards empowering women; therefore, they lack BMW's masculine driver-for-hire and violent situations. Short films over advertisements appear to be a new trend in the sports world with Nike and Adidas at the forefront to increase their female consumer loyalty. 

However, BMW was unique with its short films to increase awareness and loyalty first.

It is important to think outside the box. BMW took a risk in spending most of their money on production and less money on media placement. There was no guarantee that this tactic would pay off for a car company, yet with this campaign, BMW became more successful than their competitor at the time. Without meaning to, BMW has started a new trend towards short series instead of rigid advertisements.

To check out The Hire BMW short series, click here.

This one is my favourite!
BMW presents The Star featuring Madonna and Guy Ritchie.