CREATIVE SHOWCASE

We decided the most interesting way to show control was through a character many people identify with that concept-- a dominatrix. After extensive research on the subject, we developed a microsite that uses voice-over, music and full motion video of a PVC-clad dominatrix who whips, paddles, flogs, buffs, spanks and teases a MINI Cooper. Users are invited to "whip around the site" to see a series of short animations demonstrating the practical benefits of each winter feature.

The site has been live since Jan. 16, 2006. In the first three weeks, the overall traffic to MINI.ca increased by over 100 percent, with a significant portion of international visitors.

This campaign strikes the right balance between a creative idea and concrete information. We tell a detailed product story in a MINI voice that keeps visitors both entertained and informed. Plus, with a dominatrix as hostess, it's a safe bet everyone remembers our core message-- MINI dominates winter.

The site has also been a huge hit with MINI enthusiasts. A few blogs have even mentioned it, including Motoringfile, Obstinate.org and Economy Autoblog.
-- Jason McCann, associate creative director, design & interactive, TAXI Canada Inc.

So after reading all the "Oh, my!" comments, I expected way racier than what TAXI did, which is much tamer than, say, Paris Hilton washing a car. TAXI took CPB and Burger King's "subservient chicken" model and made it the "subservient dominatrix with a huge MINI belt buckle," and they didn't really cross any cultural taboo lines, even by this American's puritan standards. They are merely doing what good advertisers do-- reflecting the culture to reach a demo.

So, big morality issues out of the way, does the ad work? Yeah, it does. Will it sell MINIs in Canada? Maybe. The concept is funny, and the interactive portions do highlight exactly what the agency intended to show: dominance of the bitter Canadian winter. The writers obviously stayed up late, drinking Molson or Labatts or Moosehead, coming up with some good, if corny, suggestive lines. The only flaw I can find is the snowflakes you click on always stay in front, even when the model walks in front of the car.

Leave it to the Canadians, or the French, or the French Canadians, to execute cutting edge creative that draws attention, just like SCTV, Rush and Alexander Graham Bell. (No, America, he was not from here; Canadian by way of Scotland.) It had to take guts to present this idea to MINI of Canada, and even more for MINI Canada to say, "Why not, eh?"
-- Dave Wilkie, creative director, Kinetic Results, LLC

Safety, almost by definition, is not cool-- danger is. The Consumers Union isn't cool-- a dominatrix is. With dry wit and sophistication, Taxi has managed to enumerate the MINI's many winter-condition safety features while never letting you forget why a MINI isn't a Volvo. Almost every element of this piece helps convey the message that MINI's are fun, quirky and cosmopolitan. The panoramic 903x256 frame, the clean layout and information design, the hypnotic soundtrack-- all are working in concert to reinforce the MINI brand. The black and blue (very nice) vector safety feature animations were outstanding. They were informative in a style and tone that said "we are safe, but we are MINI."

Also noteworthy was the video. It's so clean and crisp that it wasn't until about 10 minutes in that I realized how extensively it was being used. Overall very well done, the message that a MINI is safe for winter is effectively delivered without diminishing the coolness of the brand.  It's hard to believe this piece survived all the approvals required to land on the corporate website. I guess someone who really understands and appreciates the brand fought hard for this. Good for them.
-- Patrick V. Barrett, managing partner, gamut industries