Background
The Chevrolet Malibu, introduced in the 60’s, is the epitome of the Californian dream. Attention grabbing, stylish, anything-but-ordinary. But when launching the all-new 2016 Malibu, Chevrolet faced a challenge. A flood of competitors in the mid-sized market meant that Malibu’s message was being lost in the crowd. We needed to win the mid-sized category, win in key markets, and win in sales.

Objective
The team knew that its target audience (Stylish Influential: 35-44) sees up to 5,000 ads every single day. So, the campaign needed to help Chevrolet Malibu stand up and get noticed. Stealing a few share points from its competitors in key markets would effectively hit the sales volume goals.

The team’s research showed that the Malibu audience has a 3x higher recall when shown personalized content. So the campaign maximized its media by designing a digital, dynamic, real-time content approach using a historically unpersonalized medium, out of home billboards. The team broke the rules of what out of home is and isn’t. Its strategy utilized first-to-market technology. A new approach to OOH media. It installed cameras in prime locations on highways in New Jersey, Dallas and Chicago. An algorithm was developed that utilized machine learning to identify the front grilles of the 4 competitors: the Toyota Camry, Nissan Altima, Ford Fusion and Hyundai Sonata. At a precise moment, timed for the car’s speed, a personalized dynamic ad was displayed to the competitor-car driver on a billboard 1000 ft. along the highway. A message appeared that might compare the competitors’ car’s safety record to the Malibu’s impeccable 5 star rating, or a message comparing the Malibu’s superior fuel efficiency to their own car.

The personalized strategy was a success. Drivers found them “surprising,” “innovative,” “relevant,” “interactive.” Viewers were 50% more likely to recall their personalized ad, and more likely to go online to look for info on the all-new Chevrolet Malibu. Brand studies proved that OOH exposure resulted in 27% lift in foot traffic to dealerships (equating to an additional 367k visits). This ground breaking personalized approach to out of home was discussed far and wide, and helped the all-new Chevrolet Malibu become one of the best-selling mid-sized sedans in the country.

Markets: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, Dallas, Washington, D.C.
Flight Dates: January 2016 - June 2016
OOH Formats Used: Digital Bulletins
Target Audiences: Stylish Influential: 35-44, 50M/ 50F, Married, 2 kids, college educated, full time workers
Budget: Chevy Malibu wanted to make a big impact in OOH. The team worked closely with Carat to identify and carve out a budget that would create high visibility across the key markets. The total OOH budget for this effort was $10M.