GOLD

Emerson Electric, "It’s Never Been Done Before," Digitas (Global)

Emerson, a global technology and engineering company, had successfully established its credibility as a global solutions provider. But despite ground-breaking innovations, other companies in its field were seen as the real innovation leaders. Emerson was seen as “reputable” and “reliable”, but not necessarily “innovative” and “forward thinking”—attributes it needed to own in order to win in the highly competitive B2B landscape. Knowing their key audience of high-level execs and procurement officers is always hungry for more information, Emerson wanted to provide them an array of opportunities to easily get more details about their solutions through the “It’s Never Been Done Before” campaign. Another insight driving the strategy was the knowledge that the B2B realm is already inundated with companies talking about “innovation”, making the target audience highly cynical. To overcome this, Emerson strove to not just talk about innovation but to show it in action and allow the audience to experience their remarkable work. Finally, the digital strategy had to reflect Emerson’s global presence. Their audience is not only spread all over the globe, but they also travel globally. Emerson wanted to stay top-of-mind, regardless of where the target was at a given time. With the “It’s Never Been Done Before” microsite serving as the heart of the campaign, all media efforts drove there. They strove to carry the bold, colorful look and feel of the microsite through to all pieces of digital advertising, so the experience was consistent and fluid. The microsite also had a mobile version, which they were able to drive to on both tablet and smart phone devices. A combination of static, flash, rich media and video ad units were used across desktop, tablet and mobile platforms. Emerson chose to partner with international blogs as well, showcasing them as a thought leader across the globe. Some ads profiled a specific “It’s Never Been Done Before” story, whereas others supported an overarching “It’s Never Been Done Before” message. By focusing on positioning ads in places Emerson knew their audience would already be, they ensured their efforts would be eye-catching but not irritating. On the iPad ad units were optimized with adjusted placements and improved audience targeting. Emerson also provided a more robust ad experience placed on the CNN iPad app, knowing that their audience is willing to spend more time with content when on their tablets. Mobile units, in general, were vital in the campaign as they allowed Emerson to reach their busy target while they were traveling and on the go. They created eye-catching animations that utilize two separate but synched ad units. A visual representation of a specific “It’s Never Been Done Before” story was presented and enticed the audience to learn more. Ads were strategically placed on sites relevant to their key audience, and drove traffic back to the corresponding microsite experience. Otherwise complex stories were simplified into a language a broader audience can understand, and then visually told that story with a sophisticated and eye-catching 3D-animated video. These videos were placed on many different channels including YouTube, Emerson.com, Emerson’s “It’s Never Been Done Before” microsite and mobile site, and online ad units. Placing ads among relevant content that the target audience was already consuming ensured users wouldn’t come away with a negative, annoyed impression from the ads. Instead, they were a helpful addition to the information they were already seeking. Also—by serving messaging in a variety of formats and executions, these efforts remained fresh and relevant throughout the extent of the campaign. This bold and strategic campaign proved to be a great success across the many platforms and formats it was executed against. Besting their traditional mobile placements, the full-page ads on CNN far exceeded industry benchmarks of .21% with an average CTR of .93%.