Each automotive vehicle leaves the factory with a chassis number.

This unique identification number sets each vehicle apart.

To honor the people affected by bus-burning attacks, we broke that rule, and instead of numbers, Mercedes-Benz gave the buses names.

The names of people who were victims of those attacks.

Then we put the buses out on the streets, and using the vehicles themselves, we showed people that the most valuable thing about a bus isn’t how much it costs, but the people inside it – transforming society’s vision of what we really lose when buses are set on fire.

Implementation

Our main challenge was the legal aspect of the campaign. After all, the whole project hung on being able to name the buses. Having analyzed the Brazilian transit code, we found nothing specifying that the product had to be identified by a number. Only-then did we start production.

Timeline

When the first chassis was finished, we unveiled it at an event where we invited the press, inspiring articles on the topic. When the media coverage intensified and gained traction, we launched the campaign on TV, OOH, online, and on social media.

Placement

Having been unveiled at an event before the press, the vehicle rolled out onto the streets to play its part in the public transit system.

Scale

At the launch event, we announced that 5 buses would bear the names of victims. After the story had been covered, we publicized the initiative in a campaign with national coverage.

Business impact

Thanks to the 667,000 daily visits during the 45 days that the campaign was live, the topic took on a massive scale, boosting the reach of our message and giving this campaign the best engagement figures in the history of Mercedes-Benz Brazil.

Response rate

The response rate was 73%, considering all the people who were reached by the campaign – from those who followed through on the whole process to those who simply requested a sticker with the campaign logo.

Change in behaviour

The main change was a 67% increase in the volume of comments on the brand’s social media accounts, with messages of support and solidarity with the campaign – showing that supporting victims and behaving compassionately is a much more appropriate approach to the issue than focusing solely on financial damages.