Positioning GfK as an AI-innovator

AI technology is revolutionising the way GfK does its business. One of GfK’s key products, gfknewron - a single access point that combines market, consumer and brand intelligence - uses AI technology and as such they wanted to be seen as more innovative within the wider AI space.

They sought to create top-of-funnel content that would demonstrate GfK is firmly in touch with the use of AI and demonstrate their understanding of this important area of tech, positioning GfK in the AI space as innovative, lighthearted, and fun as opposed to heady and academic.

As such, a key challenge was to showcase another aspect of the brand personality.

Additionally, ChatGPT had just been released and was trending, but no competitors were talking about it or its formal integration within business. 

Therefore the objective was to establish GfK as a thought leader and expert in integrating AI within its business using the mechanism of a video-driven campaign to drive brand awareness.

GfK's goals: Brand Awareness

• A corporate brand awareness campaign to grab attention in the marketplace on the super-hot topic of AI/ChatGPT.
• To build on the perception of GfK as an innovator, tech leader, and to trigger new conversations and acquire new contacts within T&D, FMCG, and other industries
• To be seen as bold and innovative – GfK will be the first business, and Gonzalo the first CMO, to have a debate with AI.
• To create internal positive buzz across the entire organisation - to create something fun to be part of.

Pitting GfK's CMO against ChatGPT

To achieve this, the team at Huble worked in collaboration with GfK's internal marketing team. The initiative was spearheaded by Huble's VP of Strategic Marketing Services, Margaret Ady, and GfK's Global Head of Solution & Audience Marketing, Ben Murphy.

Together, they developed a video campaign centred around a debate between GfK’s CMO, Gonzalo Garcia Villanueva, and the latest craze in AI, ChatGPT.

The focus of the debate was on the latest trends and how marketing leaders should pivot based on them, with the aim of answering the question: “Can robots really take over our jobs?”

The debate covered five key marketing questions with the moderator, Margaret Ady, giving a point to the winning answer.

Apart from the video debate, the campaign and paid media plan included various deliverables such as teaser videos for ads/social, landing page copy and mock-up, social media posts and copy, paid search/social posts and copy, collateral content (banners, emailers, newsletters), programmatic advertising, online publications, and B2B influencers. 

These elements worked together to create a comprehensive and impactful campaign that aimed to generate awareness, engage the audience, establish GfK as a leading authority in AI integration, and demonstrate a clear understanding of the marketing persona.

The campaign rollout involved a well-coordinated process. Once the idea was approved, the overall campaign strategy and creative direction were determined. 

This included briefing ChatGPT, leveraging its AI capabilities to enhance the campaign's messaging. 

To bring the robot to life, the AI-powered video tool Studio D-ID created the animated avatar of Ruby the Robot.

For its voice, 11Labs were utilised, enabling the robot to communicate effectively after the briefing process. 

Additionally, a company called Beatoven was engaged to incorporate AI-generated intro and outro music, ensuring that the campaign fully embraced AI throughout. 

New Leaf was responsible for filming the video, collaborating closely on location, visualising the robot, and coordinating all aspects of production. 

This seamless collaboration resulted in a captivating and cohesive campaign that effectively showcased GfK's innovative approach.

Watch the full debate in the video below.

Award recognition

Thanks to the innovative work that went into the Human vs AI campaign, it not only made an impact among GfK's audience and across social media, but also received recognition from several awards.

This includes winning silver at the B2B Marketing Awards in the "Best use of AI" category, alongside numerous accomplished agencies and innovative campaigns, as well as being shortlisted for the UK Agency Awards in the "Best Marketing Campaign (large)" category.

A deeper dive into the campaign

Want to dive into the nitty gritty of the campaign?

Over the course of two episodes of the ANA Marketing Futures Podcast, Gonzalo Villanueva and Margaret Ady go into all the details that made the campaign happen.

In the first episode, the two share the inspiration behind the idea, dive into the various forms of AI that were used to make Ruby a reality, and how they managed to get ChatGPT to think like a CMO.

The second episode sees Ruby making an appearance, with the team sharing their thoughts on the composite AI’s ability to debate with a real, live CMO.