March 1, 2018
Munich. Listicles, infographics and “swipeable” navigation, covering a wide range of fresh new topics: The relaunch of BMW’s international brand homepage, BMW.com, goes far beyond mere design optimisation. BMW is one of the first automotive brand worldwide to adopt an editorial approach using Google AMP technology to give the brand a modern, attractive media offering that is seamlessly integrated into the media usage of fans and prospective customers around the world.
New content, new formats
The new BMW.com is designed to address a broad audience and serves as the central access point for a wide range of different topics from the world of BMW and beyond. The subjects mainly revolve around mobility and lifestyle, ranging from brand-related content to design, innovation and performance, to areas beyond the car, such as lifestyle, culture and travel.
There is plenty to explore: articles on electro-mobility, car-sharing and autonomous driving alternate with interesting and entertaining content about urban architecture, crazy traffic rules from around the world or tips for long road trips with pets – always in a brief, easy-to-digest format with extensive multimedia content. In addition to traditional content, such as articles, videos and photo galleries, easy-to-consume “snackable” formats, like listicles and infographics, maximise the appeal to readers.
“The new BMW.com is much more than a classic relaunch. The website has been rebuilt from scratch and illustrates how we are systematically rethinking and rejuvenating BMW brand communications,” explains Jörg Poggenpohl, Head of Digital Marketing BMW. “We want to offer an informative, entertaining platform with relevant content for all BMW fans and people who have not yet come into contact with our brand – all in an appealing format that fits perfectly with modern communication behaviour.”
Optimised for mobile devices with AMP and PWA technology
Page navigation is geared towards mobile devices, using PWA (Progressive Web Apps) technology. On the new BMW.com, one swipe is enough to get an idea of the new brand alignment. The user navigates between animated articles in the way they are familiar with from many smartphone apps. With full-screen videos and entertaining content, the site has more in common with formats like Snapchat Discover and social media timelines than classic mobile websites with a more static feel.
BMW is one of the first automotive brands to use Google’s “Accelerated Mobile Pages” (AMP) for mobile loading in less than two seconds. This feature with its fast access times was previously almost exclusively available for articles from classic news providers. As a result, BMW.com slots perfectly into the media behaviour of modern social media users looking to kill time while waiting at the gate or during their lunchbreak, and who prefer to consume media spontaneously on the go.
“For search terms like ‘autonomous driving’, our editorial coverage during the Consumer Electronic Show (CES), came out on top in Google’s unpaid search listings, even ahead of pages like Wikipedia,” explains Poggenpohl. “To achieve this, you need the perfect balance between strong content, modern technology and classic search engine optimization.”
Editorial coverage with data power
The new BMW.com is more than just another brand platform with interchangeable corporate publishing material. BMW is creating real added value for readers by offering highly relevant content. Static campaign orchestration, which centres more on market launches, new models and product cycles, takes a backseat. Instead, BMW marketing experts adopt an editorial focus, geared towards the individual needs of fans and prospective customers.
BMW has also reorganised its marketing team. A specially-formed content studio is pivotal to all content-related decisions. It constantly receives input from real-time data analysis to identify relevant content for the target group, as well as trending topics on social media. Appropriate content can be produced and published within a very short space of time and rolled out through all BMW digital channels. This ensures that the BMW brand and its international online presence are always on top of new developments and set the tone for communications.