The #FutureStarters holistic brand awareness campaign by ZF combines artificial intelligence (AI) and authentic stories about the people who are shaping the future of mobility at the global technology group ZF. We convey this optimism in a social-media-focused storytelling approach across all relevant channels. This allows the campaign to reach target groups in Germany and around the world.
Society faces major challenges when it comes to mobility in particular, as it must be safe, sustainable and comfortable for everyone. The fact that ZF is taking on this mission with optimism and technological innovation has long been part of the technology group’s DNA, but few people are aware of it.
The #FutureStarters brand awareness campaign is changing that. With powerful stories, it puts the company’s employees, the “ZF #FutureStarters,” at the center of attention and makes their contribution to the future of mobility tangible. Customers, the media in Germany and other focus markets worldwide and existing and potential new employees in particular are addressed as target groups.
The holistic storytelling approach of the campaign encompasses online and offline touchpoints and combines internal and external communications. The focus is on social media channels and a campaign landing page. In order to reach all strategic target groups and provide them with a compelling user journey, the campaign ecosystem links the website as a content hub with social media channels, ad campaigns and other ZF content relevant to the target groups. The user journey is supplemented by the integration of campaign visuals and messaging at live events in the form of trade fairs and participation in conferences linked to the digital content.
The selection of ZF #Futurestarters are deliberately not just about the Board of Management or the divisional management level, but also about tinkerers and masterminds in labs, at test benches and in front of monitors. Their stories tell of very different paths within the Group – of individual motivations and passion for their work as well as their interests and experiences outside of work – but above all about their projects. The pride in the Group’s innovative strength and their own contributions to the technology presented can be felt in every line.
Just as in the innovative ZF products, artificial intelligence is also used in the campaign implementation: original images of ZF employees are morphed into #FutureStarter portraits using AI tools. The use of AI was ideal for creating an optimistic vision of the mobility of the future in the desired visual language. Influencer activation was used on the digital channels in addition to a variety of social media formats with a high engagement potential.
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