Creative i Campaign Helps Boost Revenues For Palo Alto Concours d’Elegance A Record 24 Percent

An annual classic car show is rolling in dough, thanks in part to an integrated advertising campaign from Creative i Advertising & Interactive Media.

Creative i’s multimedia campaign for the 41st annual Palo Alto Concours d’Elegance took the Bay Area by storm – helping to boost revenues from Concours ticket sales by over 24%.

This marks the seventh campaign Creative i has produced for the annual classic car show, which benefits over 25 local charities. And while other campaigns have boosted ticket revenues upward of 20%, this is by far the biggest year-over-year jump in revenues ever, and marks a new record for the event.

The ambitious campaign highlighted the Concours and its marque vehicle this year, the legendary Ferrari, and spanned print, radio, online, outdoor and, for the first time in Concours history, television.

“It never fails to amaze me how effective Creative i can be,” says Gil Gilfix, executive director for the Palo Alto Concours d’Elegance. “The television spot in particular seemed to really resonate with people and get them excited about the event. The feedback we got from people who’d seen the spot was tremendous.”

The spot, featuring still photography Ferraris from legendary automobile photographer Ron Kimball, and set to the music of the Puccini aria “O mio babbino caro,” set the stage for a one-of-a-kind showcase of some of the all-time classic Ferrari automobiles.

Meanwhile, a viral campaign run in parallel included a radio spot and Web site featuring Antonio Speedifasti, a fictional character who translates English phrases into “Ferrari,” the “native tongue of Ferrari lovers everywhere.” At the Web site (www.speedifasti.com), users could enter a phrase in English, and Speedifasti would translate the phrase into Ferrari, which, go figure, always seemed to include some kind of pitch for the Palo Alto Concours.

“Everything about this year’s campaign just synced, from what we did in official channels, to all the viral elements online,” says Rick Mathieson, vice president and creative director for Creative i. “There’s the old expression about ‘doing well by doing good’ – and the fact that we’ve seen such creative and business success helping an event like the Concours help people in our community, it’s a feeling that can’t be beat.”

“We’ve also been blessed to work with a client that’s not afraid to take risks and push the creative envelope,” adds agency founder and president Tom Antal. “To stand out, you’ve got to push the edge – and Gil truly understands that.”