Client BMW Group Italia SpA
Location Fondazione Arnaldo Pomodoro (Milan)
Typology of the project and activity Automotive - New product launch - Coordination and organisation - Organisational secretary - Partnership e comarketing - Direction and production performance and turning the reveal into a show
Objectives
- Maximise brand awareness: communicate the BMW personality, style and values applied to the BMW 5 Series
- Make current and potential clients live a strong product experience
- Go beyond the usual format of an 'automotive launch event'
- Be functional to the marketing/commercial objectives
- Activate new contacts and foster the customer loyalty of existing clients
- Develop new business relations in co-marketing
Strategy
As general contractor to the event, the MAC Group elaborated the strategic project (strategic planning) to make guests curious, involve and amaze them with a brand experience of an exclusive and strongly emotional nature: it has been coordinated its realisation, planned the service needs, supervised relations with suppliers (production) and the BMW clients (customer relations management), directly organised all the operative, administrative and logistical phases (project management).
The MAC Group elaborated a BTL integrated communications programme coherent with the positioning chosen by BMW: the concept - an event (heart - engine of the project, strongly associated with ATL communications, together with the symbolic element represented by SFERA) that was set in a communications and marketing plan rationale, ensuring powerful coherence to all its components. The MAC Group involved the Utet Scienze Mediche as a functional partner to meet the requirements of the BMW Group Italia, in search of new targeted relations with professionals and businessmen/women. As well as the MAC Group database, that of the prestigious publisher was also activated, characterised by medical specialists of various disciplines and representatives of the category.
ERM® - EVENT RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT was applied: once the reference target was defined with precision by BMW, the values and passions were analysed, therefore creating content of an 'aspiratory' type. The guests were involved personally as active protagonists and not as 'commercial targets' of the new product launch.
Concept
The MAC Group declined Exploration of Beauty, the communications message of the Nuova BMW Serie 5 adopted internationally, with Explorers of Beauty: clients and beneficiaries of the event were involved as true protagonists who were able to live a product and brand oriented experience perceived as unique, exclusive and unrepeatable. This Exploration of Beauty was set in four + one + four journeys, interpreting the aspiratory content for the public (exploration of the word, earth, art and body) which synthesises the new BMW 5 Series and associates with its four identifying dimensions: design, technology, efficient dynamics, driving experience.
The preparation of food and beverages for the event was assigned to the prestigious chef Marco Sacco (Ristorante Piccolo Lago of Verbania) with two Michelin stars to his credit. He applied to the event his own 'food philosophy', which is attentive to eco-sustainability, as well as an aesthetic attention to the symbol of the sphere.
Actions
Andrea Castronovo, president of the BMW Group Italia, said after the revealing of the Nuova BMW 5 Series saloon: "Not even at the recent International Motor Show at Geneva did this sixth generation instant classic have a presentation so rich in anticipation and emotions".
The first call to the sphere took place in the welcoming stage, where two contact juggling artists interacted with the public on their arrival and performers from the Animanera theatrical company interpreted guides to the future which, moving through the four thematic spaces, invited and conducted the guests to the Exploration of Beauty:
- art - the display of five works of kinetic art chosen from the Kinetica Art Fair (KAF) of London by the artists Ivan Black, Tom Wilkinson, Tim Lewis, Angelos Papadakis and Dave M. Rust with coordination by Tony Langford: the emblem of the meeting between art and technology.
- body - a performance of contemporary dance by the artists of Magà Global Arts Around the World, the movements of which were reinterpreted by a television camera that projected warmth and colour on the screen: the example of an efficient engine, dynamism and perfection of shape.
- word - reading of selected literary excerpts on the subject of beauty published by the writer Paola Calvetti, interpreted by two actors of the Piccolo Teatro of Milan, who interacted with a video installation: an immersion in the form of more direct communication as an example of the complexity of style.
- earth - multi-projection of images shot by the master of photography Steve McCurry at the four corners of the earth, reproduced at 360 degrees on the exposition surface: an immersion into the beauty of our planet, destinations and theatre of journeys in the Nuova BMW 5 Series
The exploration of beauty was, therefore, synthesised with the revealing of the new BMW 5 Series, which was also remarkable: from a box located at a height of eight metres which, until then, had been the screen for the projection of Steve McCurry's images, the car appeared progressively to the public in a suggestive descent amid music and projection of the international advertising campaign.
The Nuova BMW 5 Series became an object to investigate: following the reveal, the clients' first contact with the car took place with the one-on-one theatrical performance by Animanera in which the actors took the guests in groups of three to explore the interior of the car: four different performances were staged in each of them, one of the four distinct aspects of the new model were shown. A unique and remarkable means of recounting empathically and interactively the technical characteristics of the car.
The location selected for the event was the Fondazione Arnaldo Pomodoro, a prestigious exposition centre of contemporary art established by the famous sculptor which, in about 40,000 square metres in the centre of Milan, hosts multi-disciplinary exhibitions and shows. The particular concept-event conceived at the MAC Group permitted the harmonisation of staging of the event for BMW with works of artist Christina Iglesias on display, which became an exceptional integral part of the evening, a unique factor in the history of the Foundation.
The numbers
- 600 selected guests
- 180 people devoted to the production
- 40,000 square metres set up in 48 hours
- 20 artists involved in the various moments of the evening
- 1 director and 1 creative director
- 10 security staff
- 10 people devoted exclusively to accreditation
- 70 people for the catering
- 5 cars displayed
