Renault wanted to launch its new generation of electric cars like a cultural product – meaning it aimed at partnering closely with artists and content creators. However, it also wanted to promote that new line of cars on TV, although French regulations regarding branded content on traditional media make it a bit tricky for a brand to closely partner with artists and cultural content on TV. As a result, it rapidly appeared that if Renault really wanted to blur the lines between advertising, content and entertainment, it would have to find ways to compensate for such limitations through 360 activation.That was why, in order to bridge that gap, we started looking for artists who would be willing to be closely associated with the cars’ launch through PR & Digital media (on top of what could be done on TV & Print), as those remain grey areas where brands have much more freedom to partner with artists in various ways. Among the persons we approached, David Guetta appeared to be the most enthusiastic, as the ‘positive energy’ positioning of the product definitely echoed what he aims to achieve with his DJ sets and electronic music.

Renault partnered with David Guetta more closely than it could have ever hoped for. Indeed, not only did David agree to be associated very closely with the product on digital, through PR (he showed up in Switzerland during the Renault’s press conference for the Twizy’s official launch) and every other media, where regulations were softer. However, he also pushed the pieces of branded content / news etc., that were produced by Renault, himself through his Twitter account, Facebook fan page etc. As a matter of fact, the Guettas’ own communication channels (Cathy was also involved) became the main (earned) media support for the campaign, instead of having Renault pushing it through its own (paid) media. The result was both a more engaging /credible campaign, appearing to David’s fans as a true partnership he really endorsed and supported – as well as substantial savings in media buying.

(Early results – campaign still ongoing) More than 3m views during the first week for the final video clip. 1.5m views during the first week for the behind-the-scenes teaser of the video clip. 700 blog posts. 4,300 retweets (14.9m impressions on Twitter): around 8,000 ‘likes’, 700 shares and 500 comments through Renault Z.E’s & David Guetta’s Facebook fan pages.