To make a cynical on-line audience take notice of the new Nissan Qashqai (a ‘compact crossover’ that needs to compete with VW Golf in terms of volume and brand perception) we invented an entertaining new sport called Qashqai Car Games. To do this we had to create an entire universe around the sport – everything that would make it seem real and entertaining: the history, the rules, 6 national teams, logos, crazy drivers, psychotic fans, sponsors, specifications, merchandise, as well as a footage of the Qashqai performing fantastic stunts off giant ‘skate’ ramps.

Virals capturing different events - from abandoned shipping yards to super bowl games in Japan - were supported by an official website: www.qashqaicargames.com. To make the QCG universe even bigger, after seeding the viral content on 2000 sites we had to react to and build on consumer-generated reviews, blogs & mock virals. We even created our own stories around the games to fuel ‘real or fake’ debate. As the campaign gained impetus, we took our sport into the real world, with PR from a QCG ‘press office’, team trucks, market stalls, ramp transporters, flyers, magazines and a clothing label.