Currently, there are relatively few regulations around branded content and entertainment in the United States.

“Cities Energized” explored the evolution of megacities and growing importance of energy efficiency.

Our print component was an eight-page section wrapped around the newspaper, with an eye-grabbing top sheet made of translucent vellum.

People using the Blippar app were able to access video content by holding their phone over the page.

Our story continued online with a multimedia experience featuring parallax scrolling, interactive infographics, custom data visualizations and two four-minute documentary videos, all incorporating Shell’s commitment to the future of energy (without being heavy-handed).

Meanwhile, custom banners, high-impact media, additional print inserts and social drove users to the landing page.

Not only did we inspire the local community – with the refurbished field in Rio still in continuous use – but our impact was felt around the world.

Within the first few weeks of the launch, we saw over 320 pieces of media coverage in over 20 countries, with 16 million impressions generated from social conversation, 35 million people reached through Shell’s owned channels and 30 million more impressions of the Conde Nast custom content.

People were clearly engaged, too. Time spent with our digital ad units doubled Conde Nast benchmarks, while video completion rates were among the highest ever recorded for Shell (80%+) and content engagement rates that were 400-500% ahead of industry benchmarks.

Most importantly, we got people thinking about Shell differently. Our brand study showed significant increases in brand familiarity (+12.8 points) as well as those describing Shell as “working to provide a sustainable energy future” (+8.0), “a leader in providing innovative energy solutions” (+8.1) and “working to provide a future of cleaner fossil fuels” (+7.1).