Peugeot Wants You!

Peugeot's RCZ, arguably the most coveted sports coupe on the market, is yours for a song. Literally.

That’s right, just make an ad pitch at It Chooses You, and drive that car home (if you live in the UK, that is).

The campaign is based around the RCZ's Facebook page, microsite and Twitter page, with the goal of building up a gallery of entries that other users can view and comment on.

Fans are responding to Peugeot's invitation to create a car ad (perhaps inspired by the official RCZ spot above) featuring themselves as the stars.

Nathalie Turton of London came up with: “I am no ordinary driver. This is no ordinary car. Together extraordinary things can happen.”

Marius Papara, from Romania, submitted his tagline: “If I die, I don’t want to go to Heaven. I want to become the 'soul' of an RCZ.”

Andy Goodall, Peugeot UK, internet marketing manager, says the multiplatform campaign's goal is to engage users with the luxury brand, not crowdsourcing creative.

Peugeot's digital campaign, Goodall tells Brand Republic, aims at "keeping [the public] interested and excited, using street-casted online ads, viral videos, emails, and then using online ads featuring real entrants among all entries to win the stunning RCZ."

The winner will be revealed in a live draw on June 11th. Second prize: 150 pairs of tickets to the Goodwood Moving Motor Show.

Aspiring entrants may find their mock ads featured in an upcoming online campaign for Peugeot UK. Entrants will be given a second chance to win if they lure friends to participate.

As the Auto Channel observes, “The competition on Facebook flips traditional advertising on its head by running ads that look like classified car ads but actually feature ‘real’ people advertising themselves to the RCZ.”

Since 1894, when Peugeot cars first won the Paris-Rouen "horseless car contest" (dubbed the "24 Heures du Mans") in 1926, and the World Rally Championship, Peugeot has built its brand image around elegance, speed, and performance, true to its tagline of “Motion & Emotion.”

By soliciting user participation and  creative content via social media, for the first time Peugeot is putting the consumer at the heart of its brand. The winner ends up in the driver’s seat, and we see how a luxury brand can expand its reach and build buzz through interactive outreach to potential buyers.

“It Chooses You” brings an elite brand into a more populist space, and marks a tonal shift (from aloof to open) for one of auto's lionized brands.