Creativity in Public Relations

I just read at MediaPost about a campaign Ford recently conducted for a new crossover SUV in the States called the Flex that has a lot of moving parts that all work together to create a very cool experience for trendsetters. The campaign was called “Flex Insider” that was held in five cities targeting lifestyle media, radio DJs, creative people, musicians and other influencers to generate some pre-launch buzz for the vehicle.

The campaign consisted of a kick-off event to tour the new car and then fleets of Flexes hit the road, taking guests to local galleries, restaurants and night clubs, with unique experiences at each stop. The Ford team found an art gallery that wasn’t well known, adding a bit of a surprise to the tour, and had a local artist using the roof of the new Flex to paint a cool mural. Guests were next driven to a restaurant where a chef served Flex-inspired dishes that connected to the attributes and fun of the Flex. And then the tour ended in a nightclub or other cool venue for cocktails, great music and Flex vehicles around for an even closer inspection. This schedule was repeated for three nights in each city so even more people could experience the Flex Insider excitement.

The above activity all sounds cool but sort of expected. But don’t worry, there are a number of creative twists that added to the experience. One was having guests be filmed during the event, and quickly creating short commercials to air in each market, adding a nice local connection for Ford and consumers in each city. Guests also received a digital mix tape put together by a cool music label, which arrived via email in the form of codes to use on iTunes to get some free music. The guests could also send the code to five friends, spreading word of the campaign (and the free music).

For me the campaign works on multiple levels – unique experience, personal touch, tour stops relevant connection to the new car and solid buzz-generation by picking a variety of influencers to spread the word across a number of influencer networks. I would have liked to see the campaign live online a bit more – nothing on Flickr or YouTube and can’t find a campaign site or a link at the Ford Flex website.  The campaign I’m assuming had lots of content that could have been spread around to reach even more people.  In any case, one to take a closer look at for some thoughts for your next campaign.