Dunlop readies first-ever pan-European campaign
Dunlop is to launch a pan European digital campaign that will attempt to build an emotional connection with drivers and set the tyre brand apart from rivals focused on promoting technological innovations.
Social media, online and in-store activity will point consumers to a site that will invite users to plan their “ultimate road trip” by selecting between several cars and bikes and four locations to experience the journey online.
Additionally, Dunlop is looking to position its Facebook page as a hub for driving enthusiasts to visit and share branded content as well as host exclusive promotions in a bid to attract new online fans.
Guillaume Carli, Dunlop marketing manager for the EMEA regions, says The Marketing Store created campaign will help differentiate it from rivals Michelin and Continental who use TV and sport sponsorship as their main advertising channels.
Carli adds: “We expect around 30,000 new followers off the back of the campaign. The next stage is to run bespoke promotions and produce more viral content for fans to share so that we can attract more people to the brand and ensure they keep coming back. We’re a B2B2C business so by offering fans something different it will also reinforce our standing with our dealers which is a big part of our business.”
The campaign, launched to mark the brand’s 125-year birthday is the first Dunlop campaign to run across the region.
Carli says it has been difficult to adopt this approach in the past because of “complex” EU regulations about how tyres can be linked to the performance of cars in different countries. The strategy’s focus on leveraging online channels around “the emotional aspects” of driving is a way around this, according to the business.
The brand is also developing a database to store data on its online fans as it prepares to launch more targeted promotions in the coming months.
It is hoped the marketing blitz will help stimulate Goodyear”s volume sales across EMEA after it reported a 16 per cent drop in revenues across the region to $338m (£224.7m) in its fourth quarter.