Disneyland Paris Takes Top Prize At Eleventh Annual Creative Business Idea Awards

NEW YORK, May 21, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- How do you increase traffic at a theme park when unemployment rates hover around 10 percent and the national economy has flat-lined? That was the challenge facing communications company BETC Euro RSCG last year in its work for Disneyland Paris. The solution: create a crowdsourced social media campaign that reminds families of what Disneyland actually represents. Parents across Europe were asked to film the moment they told their children they would be going to Disneyland, with the footage then turned into a series of television spots on the theme, "The Magic Begins the Moment You Tell Them."

Results: a new attendance record for the park in 2011—and the gold medal at Euro RSCG Worldwide's 11th annual Creative Business Idea® Awards, a program that in years past has awarded such iconic advertising as Air France's "Making the Sky the Best Place on Earth," Charles Schwab's "Talk to Chuck," Evian's "Live Young," and Dos Equis' "The Most Interesting Man in the World."

"With BETC's campaign, 'The Magic Begins the Moment You Tell Them,' we found a very true and powerful insight," said Federico Gonzalez, SVP, marketing and sales, Euro Disney and Disney Destinations EMEA. "It goes beyond marketing—nothing is made up; it is the genuine response of children."

"We tapped into families' very personal experiences," added Francois Banon, vice president, communication, Euro Disney. "Parents filmed their kids' reactions to the announcement, and the reality was more amazing than anything we could have planned. The strategy proved to be effective on every communication channel."

Stephanie Pitet, cofounder, Pitchville, and one of 20 international search consultants who made up the judging panel at this year's CBI Awards, said: "The Disneyland Paris work is part of the growing trend of user-generated content, and it's done here to perfection. The Disney brand embodies the values of family happiness and magical moments together—especially, for parents, those irrecoverable years when their children are young. By sharing the genuine and joyful reactions of real children upon learning of the family adventure to come, these spots are refreshingly real and honest—and create a sentimental association with the brand."

Bringing in the silver at this year's CBI Awards is Euro RSCG Dusseldorf's "The Best Screenplays Are Written by Reality," for n-tv. The campaign presents the current-events coverage of n-tv, Germany's first 24-hour news channel, as action, romance, or fairy tale, with the tagline, "The best screenplays are written by reality." Whether spotlighting the "political love affairs" of Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy or labeling Vladimir Putin the "better Rambo," the ads underscore the drama and excitement inherent in current events and in the real-life characters that populate them.

"Television news broadcasts face extreme competition today, thanks to the explosion of entertainment options," said panelist Oliver Klein, founder, Cherrypicker. "With this campaign, n-tv skewers the notion that real people and events are somehow dull or dry, using actual news moments to remind viewers that real life produces moments of action and romance and intrigue that Hollywood could never hope to best."

This year, two campaigns were jointly awarded bronze: the LVMH event "Journees Particulieres," by Euro RSCG C&O and Havas Event, and "What a Person Can Miss a Machine Will Find," created by Euro RSCG Warsaw for the Polish Federation of Cancer Survivors.

To further deepen the general public's bond with French premium luxury company LVMH, Euro RSCG C&O orchestrated with Havas Event a series of special events, inviting the public into more than two dozen houses of LVMH in France, Italy, Spain, Scotland, and Poland. Participants were ushered through normally closed doors to get a firsthand glimpse of the brands at work, learning about their heritage, interacting with the highly skilled craftspeople, and taking part in workshops and demonstrations. Houses opening their ateliers, workshops, and cellars to the public included Belvedere, Berluti, Bulgari, Chaumet, Christian Dior, Dom Perignon, Emilio Pucci, Fendi, Givenchy, Glenmorangie, Guerlain, Hennessy, Krug, Le Bon Marche, Loewe, Louis Vuitton, Moët & Chandon, Ruinart, and Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin.

"LVMH understands that the very mystique that elevates brands such as Louis Vuitton, Moet & Chandon, and Hennessy can also represent a barrier for people," said Peter Cowie, managing partner, Oystercatchers. "By inviting people inside to discover the secrets of these magnificent brand heritages—and by extending the experience to tens of thousands of others online—the company was able to bring the public much closer to its brands, creating a stronger and richer connection."

Although the actual events took place over two days, Euro RSCG C&O created a digital ecosystem leading up to it that included a dedicated website, which saw half a million visitors over six months, six teaser videos, a heavily trafficked Facebook fan page, e-newsletters to keep people connected to the happenings, and an online registration process. The event presentations were live-streamed over the Internet, and participants took home a commemorative print magazine to extend the experience further.

Euro RSCG Warsaw's campaign for The Polish Federation of Cancer Survivors had a simple yet essential goal: increase the number of women getting mammograms each year. The social good campaign used the element of surprise to highlight the benefits of regular mammograms over self-examination alone: Women were ambushed with the "Get a mammogram" message while shopping for bras. As they made their way out the door with their new purchases, a hidden security tag would sound an alarm—a tag that the salesperson missed, but the machine detected. The impact of the experience led 15 percent of these women to schedule an appointment for a mammogram scan.

"Just over a decade ago when we put Creative Business Ideas® at the heart of everything we do, creativity and business effectiveness were seen as being at opposite ends of the spectrum," said David Jones, global CEO of Havas and Euro RSCG Worldwide. "Now creativity is a boardroom topic, and, in a world in which you can no longer buy attention but instead have to earn it, those brilliant ideas that engage, entertain, cut through, and drive profitable growth have never been more sought after. The Creative Business Idea Awards celebrate those very ideas, and it's great to see how digital and social are at the core of this year's winners."

"Brilliant ideas executed well—and, critically, that have led to profitable growth for the client. That's the brief we were given when asked to judge the dozens of entries to this year's CBI Awards," said Herve de Clerck, founder, AdForum. "We sifted through some amazing work from around the world, and these four campaigns stood out for all of the elements I've just listed. It was invigorating to be part of the entire process—to be reminded of the incredible power of what may seem at first a simple idea. This is what the communications industry is all about."

Visit the "Creative Business Ideas" board on Euro RSCG Worldwide's Pinterest page, http://pinterest.com/eurorscgww/ to view video case studies of the winners.

About Creative Business Ideas® and the CBI Awards

For over a decade, Creative Business Ideas have been the mantra, mission, and mark of distinction for Euro RSCG Worldwide. They are our obsession—and the promise we make to clients across the globe. What exactly are Creative Business Ideas? They are brilliant ideas that transform brands, transcend media, and drive profitable growth for our clients. They are ideas that very often do not change simply how consumers view a company but how a company views itself, removing internal constraints and offering the business new spaces in which to explore and grow.

In 2000, Euro RSCG Worldwide launched an agencywide contest to foster and reward exemplary high-level creative thinking: the Creative Business Idea Awards. Each year, the jury is composed of top strategic, media, and creative thinkers from within and beyond the agency network. Past outside jurors have included Andrew Jaffe, executive director of the Clio Awards; Bill Taylor, co-founder of Fast Company magazine; Professor Douglas Holt of the Harvard Business School; and Tom Kelley, general manager of IDEO. The contest is open to all 233 Euro RSCG agencies in 75 countries, and the winning teams walk away with substantial cash prizes.

About Euro RSCG Worldwide

Euro RSCG Worldwide is a leading integrated marketing communications agency and was the first agency to be named Global Agency of the Year by both Advertising Age and Campaign in the same year. Euro RSCG is made up of 233 offices in 75 countries and provides advertising, marketing, corporate communications, and digital and social media solutions to clients, including Air France, BNP Paribas, Charles Schwab, Citigroup, Danone Group, IBM, Kraft Foods, Lacoste, Merck, Pernod Ricard, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Reckitt Benckiser, Sanofi, and Volvo. Headquartered in New York, Euro RSCG Worldwide is the largest unit of Havas, a world leader in communications (Euronext Paris SA: HAV.PA).

Contact:
Lisa Gruber
Global Communications Manager
Euro RSCG Worldwide
T +1 212.886.2018
[email protected]

SOURCE Euro RSCG Worldwide