Hyster is a designer and manufacturer of lift trucks. Hyster knows exactly what they are doing. The organization has been around for more than 90 years and that provides a much-needed experience. Hyster originated from the parent company Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc.. It all started for Hyster in Portland (Oregon), where we can find their roots. By now, Hyster has grown into a company that operates around the whole world. Did you know that we owe our name, Gobsmacked®, to a former Hyster employee? One of his first words after seeing our video was 'I was Gobsmacked'. He was "overwhelmed with wonder" from the video. That word stuck and, through rebranding, eventually became our name. As a Creative Agency, we are proud to collaborate with a great party such as the Hyster-Yale group since 2015. We can humbly claim to have made a major contribution, to make the Hyster brand a 'video first' powerhouse. If you're curious about the Hyster US - Electric Container Handlers case, read on to follow every step of the process.
Hyster is a company, just like us, that never stops innovating. Renewing and developing big trucks is Hyster’s day-to-day business. The production of these powerhouses can be found in Nijmegen. Electrification is a very topical theme in this regard. Creating awareness for the Hyster Electric Container Handlers, was Hyster’s main goal for this campaign.
Since Hyster is a US brand and this campaign would be aimed purely at the US market, we partnered with Mighty 8th Media our ‘counterpart’ based in Georgia (US). They had already developed a concept for a cinematic teaser video, which served as the ‘focal point’ of the campaign, on which we then applied our own interpretation. Because the prototype electric big truck was being developed in Europe, we also took care of the whole production process.
This case was different from the rest because the concept had already been made by the American agency. Still, it is a great experience to ‘team up’ with another creative agency. You can learn from each other and reinforce each other. Moreover, there was potential in the concept, so we quickly got started with the treatment and the script. We brainstormed about the visual style and how we could cleverly incorporate elements of the brand into the story. After the customer’s approval, we were able to sink our teeth into production.
The time of pre-production had arrived. During the pre-production phase, we ensure that everything has been worked out from A to Z. We scout the location, tinker with the script, make a shot list, start with the casting and set dressing, and look at the lighting. For example, think about the protagonist, we knew what we wanted him to look like, but you won’t easily just find someone… But we did! Duncan Meijering, was exactly the man we had in mind. Luckily Hyster agreed with us. With his broad shoulders, epic beard, and sometimes downright hilarious facial expressions, he turned out to be perfect for the role of an American oil-stained mechanic, whose nighttime key session is rudely disrupted…
Ready for take-off!
It was a cold Wednesday evening in October, at an old army airport in Germany. Capturing what we had in our heads for weeks, was going to happen here and now. This was the only place where the prototype of the big truck could be found…
To simulate the effect of a container terminal, a small container corridor has been created using four containers. We also added the ominous lightning bolts with VFX, which, in addition to the ‘horror vibe’, also refers to the ‘electrification’ theme that is so current for the Hyster brand. The ominous location, a great crew, and the entertaining script made it a wonderful shoot that went perfectly.
For the second shoot, we went a little closer to home, to the city where our office is centered, Nijmegen. The container terminal of a Hyster customer in Nijmegen was the location of our second and final shoot. The container terminal is modest in size, but we have made it look huge by using different film techniques. “It’s a wrap!” echoed through the container walls. Finally, there was time to squeeze some nice deliverables out of the images. After all, campaign funnels do not fill themselves.
The number of deliverables we have ever made for Hyster is almost uncountable. For example, the Hyster website is mostly made out of the content that we made.
But looking at this case, a number of interesting deliverables have certainly emerged. The most important deliverable is, of course, the teaser video. This video was created to raise awareness for the big truck, which is really a big deal for Hyster. Various deliverables have been created out of the teaser video, such as a 6-second bumper and a 15-second ad, which can be used on LinkedIn and Youtube as a paid advertisement. During the shoot, there was a photographer, handpicked from our creative alliance called the #NeonSquad, to shoot content. The content is perfectly captured in the same style as the teaser video. These photos have been used for the campaign landing pages, and for creating various social media visuals. In the mockup below, you can see an overview of all campaign content:
It is primarily about the reach and conversion for the customer, but as a team, we are always thrilled with positive feedback on our creations. After submitting the first version of the teaser video, we received great responses from both Hyster and Mighty8th. A quote from our colleague agency: “We are thrilled with what you guys produced, it is so well shot and everyone was big smiles this morning” Those kinds of compliments put a big smile on our faces!
Do you have a story to tell about your brand, your new product or service and are you struggling to translate it into a compelling piece of content? We can help you out! Let’s brainstorm, have some fun and create something memorable.
