The Campaign

How does the oldest watch brand in the world – firmly rooted in western culture as a leader in luxury Swiss watch-making – establish itself among affluent consumers in China? By strategically synchronizing with Chinese values and culture to establish relevance, trust and respect for traditions that are the underpinnings of successful brand marketing. As the highly celebrated Chinese Year of the Dragon approached from January 23, 2012 to February 9, 2013, Blancpain seized the occasion to launch its brand in China through the first watch ever to combine western time keeping with the intricate Chinese calendar. This “grand complication” watch would command strong attention, especially as Chinese consumers practiced in Gregorian time-keeping struggle to hold on to the millennia-old traditions of the Chinese calendar. The challenge for Blancpain was to establish affinity among affluent Chinese consumers often wary of luxury targeting. Through a launch that artfully meshed the watch and brand with revered oriental wisdom knowledge, Blancpain proved that its time had indeed arrived in China.

The Brief

• Help the Blancpain brand bridge east-west cultural divides to earn the respect and trust of Chinese consumers • Focus media, consumer attention on the concept and detailing of the Blancpain watch • Create awareness of and affinity with the Blancpain Chinese Calendar Watch as a highly valued cultural piece versus simply a new watch with innovations • Distinquish Blancpain apart from other luxury watch brands

Results

More than 200 domestic and international media were invited to join a press conference and seminar to introduce Blancpain and its Chinese Calendar Watch. Coverage generated was widespread, with equivalent ad value of 10 million RMB through the end of June, 2012. In addition to strong branding for Blancpain, stories focused on the details of the watch and its cultural intent. Highlights included photo features on the Blancpain Chinese Calendar Watch in fashion and style magazines such as Bazaar, Grazia and Target, along with extensive broadcast coverage that achieved more than 100 million impressions. Coverage included a feature on CCTV2 “Morning News.” A roadshow in Shenzhen, Taiyuan, Shenyang and Hangzhou drew 80 media outlets for a close-up look and briefing on the watch. Through the end of June, 20 Platinum limited-edition watches at US$105,013.00 (RMB 665,000.000) each were sold out globally of which 10 were sold in China. Most importantly, the launch campaign has solidly established the Blancpain brand in China.

Execution

The launch campaign centered around the theme: “Swiss Watching-Making Meets Oriental Wisdom.” To focus attention on the watch’s significance, Blancpain sought out an authority on culture and history to reeducate media on the importance of the Chinese calendar. At the center of the campaign that included print and outdoor advertisements, a PR event and social media communication such as Weibo news update, Blancpain created a seminar featuring Chinese author and television personality Leung Mantao -- an expert on Chinese traditional culture and oriental wisdom knowledge-- along with head of Blancpain China Jack Liao. Through dialogue between these men, journalists and bloggers learned about the details and grand complications of the watch, with Chinese culture and time-keeping as the topical backdrop. The seminar not only helped editors understand the world-class watch technology involved in the grand complication watch; it also provided a backgrounder on oriental wisdom for audiences.

The Situation

Modernization is booming in China, introducing new challenges to traditional culture. Many celebrate Christmas while interest in other traditional occasions has diminished. The Chinese want to embrace western institutions on one hand, without losing important cultural touchstones on the other. Arguably the world’s most complicated but accurate calendar, the Chinese traditional calendar exemplifies these important cultural traditions. As the world’s oldest watch brand, Swiss watchmaker Blancpain was eager to establish a presence in China, introducing the first watch to combine western and Chinese time-keeping, over-laying western time units with those of the Chinese calendar loaded with wisdom symbolism.

The Strategy

Communications’ overarching strategy was to create mystique for the watch and its significance to Chinese culture, timing the launch around the highly anticipated Year of the Dragon starting in January 2012. • Build launch around the oriental wisdom knowledge system at the center of the Chinese calendar to put the watch in a larger context and as a departure point for discussion of the meaning of each sign displayed on the dial, including: 12 animals, 10 heavenly stems, five earthly branches and moon phase • Beyond the unique concept and grand complication science of the watch itself, focus launch communications on renewing interest in the mystery, symbolism and significance of the Chinese calendar and in the Year of the Dragon commemorated through this special watch • Position Blancpain as a state-of-the-art luxury watchmaker dedicated to the traditions and heritage of Chinese culture