The Abarth 500 is the Fiat 500’s ultra-fast sibling. With 0 Euro investment in media spend available, and the objective to build buzz around the car, we needed to make a statement that would tell a young and digitally savvy group of male drivers that nobody can follow the Abarth 500.

To do this, we translated this communication idea directly into the digital space – rooted not only in the DNA of the brand, but also in the knowledge of how people use social media. On the world's fastest online channel Twitter we opened the world’s first Twitter account that no one can follow, and so completely broke with the convention of the channel in which brands and people alike try to amass followers. Using a few hacks of the Twitter API we ensured that anyone who tried, was mercilessly "left in the dust", then received an instant message where he or she was invited to take a test drive on a on a well-known race track.

To get this point across we led well-chosen journalists, opinion makers and gatekeepers to Twitter. Main vehicle to tell our story was a teasing press release where we told our unique story. We used a bit of reverse psychology to get journalists to spread awareness.

Initially planned for the German market, our story was first picked up in local media. But the idea fast went viral globally with millions of #ZeroFollowers, trying to be the first who would ''get in'' and follow.

The brand DNA is racing. By choosing the fastest online channel – twitter – and proving there that the car is too fast too follow the audience experienced the brand DNA first hand. It's a communication idea directly translated into a digital human experience and directly rooted in the brand. A unique idea. It also shows engineering capabilities that are needed to modify twitter in a way that the campaign worked. And a bold cheeky tonality that speaks for this fast, little car.

Originally planned for the German market, our Twitter stunt went viral around the world. Thousands of people clicked the ‘Follow’ button and tweeted about their experience. Innumerable blogs and media reports also commented on the idea as one of the most extraordinary Twitter campaigns ever.

In figures:

9 million Twitter impressions

60 million web impressions

800% more traffic on Abarth websites

30% more test drive bookings

€0 media spending