Our objective was to launch the new Nissan Micra, a city car aimed at young urban women, to both existing Nissan customers and new customers.Our trouble was that young women hate car dealerships and salesmen. They avoid them like last season’s fashion. With the ambitious sales targets that had been set – a 40% increase in test drives and sales compared to the previous launch – this presented a massive obstacle. We needed to find a new way to sell the Micra and encourage test drives.

•Young women flocked to Micra Lane. The events were sold out and attracted a mass of PR.

•The amount of young women taking test drives increased by 65%, compared to the previous launch.•The website attracted over 35,000 unique visitors.

It was useless running traditional advertising, driving women to car dealers. So we changed the rules.

We found a quiet lane in the heart of Melbourne’s fashion district and renamed it. Micra Lane became our hip new venue and showroom, where we hosted events aimed at young women and offered test drives.

30 Seconds to Mars opened the Lane – the start of a host of successful events, from movie nights to the Cleo Bachelor of the Year Car Wash.For people who couldn’t make it, we created a virtual Lane that made it feel like you were there.

To sell Micras and increase test drives we needed more than an advertising campaign. We needed to shift the way young women shopped for cars.Micra Lane became our new kind of showroom. But it didn’t feel like one. It became a place women actually wanted to visit and felt comfortable shopping for a car.