The Campaign

Henry Rollins, a man who has lived through his own evolution of tough came to Australia to discover how toughness has evolved. Driving across Australia in the new X-Class he talks to people from all walks of life, including professional sports stars, musicians, politicians, as well as everyday Aussies. His interviews and observations were used to create ‘Tough Conversations’ - an integrated, content-driven campaign that includes a podcast series, a radio partnership, PR, DM, social and online content. Plus, a one-hour documentary. Not an obvious choice for Mercedes-Benz but Henry’s popularity in Australia, his interview prowess, endless curiosity and contradictory nature (rugged exterior/deep thinker) made him the perfect spokesperson to reveal a new way of thinking and new type of toughness, driving through the harsh terrains of Australia also gave the X-Class centrestage throughout the campaign.

Creative Execution

'Tough Conversations’ is an integrated, content-driven campaign, led by a one-hour documentary and a podcast series. Australians followed Henry’s journey via daily updates on social media, a dedicated microsite and eDMs leading up to the broadcast of the documentary and podcasts. Through a radio partnership with national station, Triple M, Henry was interviewed before his road trip. Radio spots promoted the campaign during the journey and the partnership culminated in a one-hour radio special dedicated to the promotion of Tough Conversations. PR initiatives saw the likes of local and national networks and publications attend the interviews along the journey. Henry attended 2 days of press interviews post the journey to promote the campaign. A heavy digital pre-roll and radio plan then amplified the podcasts and documentary trailers to Australia, inviting them to tune in to Tough Conversations. The campaign ran for 8 weeks between 19 Feb to 18 April 2018.

The documentary was picked-up by Network Ten and aired during primetime on ONE and streamed on catch-up TV. Total of $821k additional media value was generated. 4.5 million people were reached through PR coverage alone. The campaign gained 85 pieces of positive PR across national TV, radio print and online media. The Tough Conversations podcast was number 1 on the Apple podcast chart within 48 hours of launch. Virgin Australia Airlines picked-up the podcast series for their in-flight entertainment. Our Instagram following grew 54% and engagement on Facebook increased 300%. Almost 70,000 people visited the campaign microsite, with ? spending an average of 4 minutes exploring the X-Class page. Brand health measures showed our audience now see the X-Class as a tough and credible contender in the category. By the end of the pre-launch campaign, over 9,800 people registered their interest for the X-Class.

Tough Conversations started a discussion around what it means to be ‘tough’, something that is at the heart of Australia’s cultural identity, but not often questioned. Punk-rock icon-cum-social commentator Henry Rollins hosts a documentary and podcast series that follows his journey to challenge the out-of-date stereotypes that are often used to represent toughness. Speaking to Australians from all walks of life, including; world champion surfer Mick Fanning, APRA Songwriter of the Year (2018) Adam Briggs and Lord Mayor of Sydney Clover Moore, Henry’s journey explores the true nature of Australian toughness, creating engaging, culturally relevant and entertaining content.

The ute category has been built on a history of 'toughness' defined by traditional masculine stereotypes of strength, ruggedness and towing capacity. But Australia is changing and toughness can no longer be defined by muscles and macho. It’s more complex than that, but ute advertising keeps hammering home the same lazy stereotypes and talking down to Aussie blokes. Our opportunity was to ‘redefine toughness’ and start a cultural conversation that seemed lacking from a male perspective in particular. Challenging the cultural conventions around what makes someone or something tough and taking a more progressive view on Australian toughness allowed Mercedes-Benz to break down barriers and enter the ute market for the very first time. We chose to give all Aussies a tough vehicle they could relate to and broaden the appeal beyond tradies and weekend warriors.