Inspired by the “skip culture” on social video platforms, we created the fastest commercial in history — a commercial that’s only 0.03 second long, which is almost impossible to skip!

By collaborating with influencers to embed the shortest commercial in their videos, and challenging consumers to screenshot it, we turned online commercial, something people always avoid and skip, into something people would stop for and share. The use of influencers and the spontaneous reac-tions of viewers helped to spread the message about the e-quattro system in a more organic and engaging way.

In Shanghai Auto Show 2023, Audi wants to draw people’s attention onto Q5 e-tron, an electronic SUV equipped with e-quattro — a fast-response drive system that’s able to complete active torque distribution within 30 milliseconds (0.03 seconds).

However, with the average attention span of viewers decreasing over time, and they used to skip commercials on social video platforms, it’s getting increasingly difficult to grab people’s attention. So we want to create a com-mercial that stands out from other electronic cars, grabbing attention as well as promote the unique selling point of Audi Q5 e-tron.

People always skip commercials on social video platforms, such as Douyin and Bilibili, where content creators embed soft ads in their videos, which re-sulted in a unique "skip culture” in China -- fans will type in a specific time point in the comment, to tell viewers when they can safely skip the ad.

Meanwhile, netizens are eager to take on challenges, or commenting to show-off their abilities. So instead of simply being a viewer, most netizens want to be involved and have a sense of participation.

To stand out from other electronic cars, we focused on Audi Q5 e-tron’s unique selling point — the e-quattro system, which is able to finish active torque distribution within 30 milliseconds (0.03 seconds).

Instead of creating another dull commercial, we decided to let viewers directly feel the unparalleled speed. So we created an unskippable commercial, which is only 0.03 seconds, as fast as the response time of e-quattro.

By collaborating with influencers, the commercial was embedded in their vide-os, and the invitation to the Auto Show was also hidden in our commercial. This turned our commercial into an online challenging, which generated curiosi-ty and buzz.

This innovative approach to advertising not only showcases the unique selling point of Audi Q5 e-tron, but also challenges the traditional norms of online commercials.

The target audience for this campaign is smart and tech-savvy audiences in China who are used to skipping commercials on social video platforms. They are curious, interested in innovative technologies, and willing to take on new challenges.

To showcase e-quattro’s unparalleled fast response, we decided to create a commercial as fast as 0.03 seconds — which is the same length for e-quattro to complete active torque distribution.

We collaborated with influencers on Douyin and Bilibili, then embedded our commercial into their videos, encouraging viewers to screenshot our commercial to win free auto show tickets.

So our commercial actually became a challenge, and changed the typical online commercial perception— from a nuisance that viewers skip and avoid into something worth stopping and sharing.

To create a commercial as short as 0.03 second, this film was created in 120 fps with only 3 frames, each showing Audi Q5 e-iron accelerating and drifting with the powerful e-quattro.

In the end of the commercial, we hid an invitation for attentive consumers to screenshot and redeem free Auto Show tickets. This 0.03-second clip was lat-er embedded into KOL’s content, spreading our message over social platforms not only limited to automotive KOLs, but also KOLs from other categories, which helped to reach the target audience and generate social buzz in an or-ganic and authentic way.

By creating a 0.03-sceond commercial, which matched the quick response time of Audi Q5 e-tron’s "e-quattro" system, this commercial successfully cap-tured the attention of viewers who typically skip or ignore ads.

The conversion rate was 196 times higher than average online commercial. Within only one day, all tickets hid in our commercial were redeemed. Through this commercial, the booth of Audi Q5 e-tron becomes one of the most popular booths in Shanghai Auto Show 2023.

What's particularly impressive is that the success of the campaign was largely driven by consumers who generated user-generated content (UGC) across multiple social platforms, including those that weren't part of the original cam-paign. This organic amplification of the campaign helped to increase its reach and impact, resulting in even greater engagement and awareness of the Audi Q5 e-tron and its innovative features.