In the early days of the pandemic, the world was full of uncertainty. From our perspective, people didn’t want to be hearing brands talk about product features or deals. However, we still wanted to deepen engagement and increase loyalty for Honda, but in a way that was sensitive and honest to the moment. We needed to provide actual value, not just promote our brand and our products.
Our goal for the Virtual Adventures, then, was to help families reclaim summer vacations in a completely new way. As virtual events and livestreams became more commonplace during the pandemic, we wanted to create an experience that transported families from their daily realities in living rooms and kitchens to road-trip locations around the country. That is, we wanted to make families feel like they’re actually on an adventure.
The unique capabilities of Google Earth more than delivered—the partnership created a never-before-seen type of tour, where people flew around the terrain in 3D, historic photos appeared in their modern context, and embedded videos made the world come to life. The tour was led by an actual Niagara Falls park official, which contributed to the immersive feeling of the tour.
As the pandemic carried over into summer, many families decided to forsake vacations to state parks and popular tourist destinations. Honda, maker of family vehicles, wanted to help get them there.
In the first-ever brand partnership with Google Earth, we developed a unique live tour experience that placed families in major tourist destinations and allowed them to take a guided tour, engage with content and even ask questions that were answered in real time. By combining the visually rich, 3D format of Google Earth with actual guides from the regions, historic photos and embedded videos, we created a memorable and educational experience.
Another benefit of the project was bringing attention to national parks during a time when people weren’t able to visit them. The tour helped these parks reclaim their summer spotlight.
Honda Virtual Adventures brought together Google Earth’s ability to help people explore the planet with each destination’s desire to share their unique experiences. The combination allowed us to bring families to state parks, learn something through a rich experience and salvage a small symbol of summer vacation. All from the comfort of home.
The campaign was launched through our social platforms and shared across platforms by our over 5.3M followers. The Niagara Falls tour outperformed objectives and resulted in increased traffic to the shophonda.com website, and increased brand affinity and loyalty among everyone who joined us on the tour.
