Branded Entertainment in Canada is a relatively new and underused medium. Most Branded Entertainment efforts are more akin to product placement or sponsorships. There is very little original content created with the goals of branded entertainment in mind. Outside of the specific regulations pertaining to certain categories and products (liquor, tobacco, etc) there are not a lot of regulations limiting the production of branded content. The biggest challenge in Canada, as it is elsewhere in the world—in every category—is getting people to pay attention.

The campaign was intended to be a part of the 60th anniversary of Volkswagen in Canada. The more we discovered about this story, the more we realized that it wasn’t a story that celebrated the age of the company, it was a story that celebrated the spirit of the company, and how that transfers into the products that they make. The Beetle that is the subject of the film is certainly a car with spirit. Our intent was to capture the spirit of the car on film, as well as expose the incredible life of Beetle 903847. The challenge was to tell a story that is nearly 6 decades long, uncovering the details that make people care, and giving them a warm feeling about the brand. The film launched on TV, supported by online and media partnerships. The fully immersive site, then followed the launch allowing people to not just watch the video, but explore a vast archive of journal entries, photographs and other artifacts. Ultimately, the strategy was to continue to position of Volkswagen as an authentic brand that builds automobiles that people just love.

The audience were first drawn to the airing of the film on television by station promos, banner ads and pre-roll trailers, reminding them to tune into the program. The film was replayed consistently over the following month, with the partnership promotions continuing to push the airings of the film on TV. While the film was still playing on TV, digital and online media supported the launch of the fully immersive website. On the website, people of any age can explore the artifacts, and journal entries, and share the film, or their favourite artifacts, with their social networks.

The premiere of Once More aired on the Discovery Channel and Bravo, and was the #2 specialty television program during its timeslot, drawing a 19% larger year-over-year audience on Bravo alone. Cumulatively, all broadcasts of Once More reached 1,579,000 Canadians. Online, the trailer for the film, and the film itself, have 245,695 total views, to date. The site at oncemore.ca currently has 13,660 unique visits. Our Facebook efforts for Once More yielded a 3% daily page engagement, and drove 606,000 impressions.