MINI USA’s Motorby Program Cancelled
Due to technical issues and the overall cost, MINI USA has decided to not roll-out the much heralded Motorby electronic billboards we reported on last January.
MINI USA had sent out a survey recently to hear participants thoughts but the writing had been on the wall for months now that the program would not be continued. All Billboards should be turned off and taken down around January 1st.
In an email that went out to participants today, MINI USA ends on this note:
>Unfortunately, due to these outside influences, MINI USA has decided not to roll out the Motorby program to all MINI Owners. So this makes you extra special. In the meantime, hang on to your key fobs, they make good key chains.
Related:
[ MINI USA’s Motorboards ] MotoringFile
Even after the publicity they garnered with the guy that proposed through the Motorby board they are shutting it down? Bummer!
awh bummer
. . . probably just not enough bang for the buck.
Kinda glad to see this one gone, in order to roll this out nationwide would have been a significant financial drain on Mini. Was a creative idea though
The Motorby program and also the secret black box campaign left me completely uninterested. They attracted a lot of attention in the ad industry for being creative and innovative (even winning awards) but I have the feeling that they just don’t resonate with the public and aren’t effective at all.
Did the black box campaign die an early death? It’s been a while since I’ve heard anything about it.
As for motorby, it doesn’t make one bit of difference. I’d rather have a local dealer if they want to put some money somewhere.
Black box was cool to start, but I really didn’t feel like buying magazines that I never read for the info. If I really was receiving ‘secret info’, just tell me, and then taunt the non-mini owners. Don’t make me have to find out what magazines that I would need to hunt down. On the positive side, two of the decoders make great bookmarks, and the fake book is nice to place in with all of your real books.
I never even recieved my keyfob and they sent me numerous emails when it was time to sign up for it.
Anyway, I think these ads they ran targeted toward existing owners … well … I know I have a great car I don’t exactly need reinforcements by way of ads targeted to me. Just give me a better one when its time to buy another one in a few years.
I was one of the original recipients of the RFID keychains for the MINI Motor By program. It seems to me the whole idea was dead even before it was born. Here in Miami, there was only one electronic billboard and ever since I received the keychain I might have driven by it 2 or 3 times since Jan ’07. The billboard, at least for me, was in a part of town I rarely frequent.
The entire concept, from a purely marketing point of view, was pretty cool but the execution left much to be desired. I can’t even begin to imagine the huge costs that MINIUSA incurred in pushing this project, just to pull the plug on it less than 12 months after it was launched.
It seems to me the current MINIUSA ad agency (BSSP) does not have the strong grasp of the brand and the product like the fine Miami based folks at Crispin, Porter & Bogusky used to have. CP+B is the original ad agency that handled the initial ad campaign for MINIUSA back in 2002 and they dumped the MINI account in favor of the $400 million account for Volkswagen of America.
CP+B was simply brilliant. Easily, the best car ads in the past 30-40 years. BSSP? Not so sure. Their work has not been nearly as impressive as the stuff CP+B pulled back in the day. The Sausalito folks are struggling to appear too cool and too innovative and they are falling flat on their faces.
Let’s review BSSP’s work:
1) Hammer & Coop, R56 launch ad campaign… A total disaster.
2) MINI Motor By billboard program….. Disaster #2
I am sure within BSSP’s walls they are very fine folks, passionate about the brand and the work they do. But collectively speaking, they haven’t been able to deliver, not even close to CP+B’s ad work.
Interestingly, CP+B’s handling of the Volkswagen account has been very criticized. It seems to me CP+B is more a home with MINI and BSSP is a better fit for Volkswagen.
I totally agree. The early Mini brand work was awesome.
And now I’m looking at the banner ad on this page and it says “Even your rational side’s pulse will quicken.”
The heart of that thing Crispin tapped into — the thing that made fiercely independent people want to join a club — is gone.