Malaysian Media Awards Winners Showcase

Challenge
Proton wanted to launch Malaysia’s first homegrown MPV – Exora. Exora was a car for young families, with the best of looks & function. However with a slew of unsuccessful launches and unsatisfied customers, Proton faced deep cynicism. For Exora to succeed, we HAD to re-connect to compel them to re-consider.

Solution
Our way of disarming the cynics was to invite them to participate with brand development; start an honest & transparent dialogue with opinion leaders, after admitting past flaws; and bring alive Exora’s advantage on both looks and function in a way that amazes the prospects. TV, Online, Radio and Dailies were used. 3 phases were:

• INVITE TO NAME THE BRAND
• TEASE BY FEATURING THE FEATURES
• REVEAL WITH SHOCKING HONESTY AND ‘AMAZING’ INNOVATIONS

Execution
The MPV was Malaysia’s own baby, so everyone was invited to name the baby.
Teaser didn’t show full car, but only unique features, stoking the suspense. At launch, CEO accepted past issues and guaranteed a new beginning. To gain Alpha advocacy, the launch was tweetcast live. Sun carried an extra-ordinary wrap which, held against Sun, showed both inside and outside in same ad, emphasizing its dual edge. Radio carried ‘Amazing facts’ reads, highlighting its uniquenesses.

Results
Exora forced open people’s hearts. 252,000 entries poured in for naming. Twitcast was called FIRST TWITTER BREAK-THRU in Malaysia by Social media guru Lim Yung-hui. Sun received 2000+ calls post-ad.
4,200 bookings within 4 days of launch and 6,000 by 9th. Exora helped Proton post best results in 5 years.