Companies that rely on diesel engines every day have a lot of options when it comes to the heavy-duty oil they trust to protect their equipment. On top of that, many believe that all engine oils are created equal and are unaware that using the wrong oil causes 90% of their emission control issues–an oversight that costs them big-time in avoidable expenses. Chevron Lubricants needed to persuade a tuned-out audience to reconsider an entrenched mindset and make a new choice.

A multi-touch, multi-channel approach to starting a difficult conversation

Chevron Lubricants wanted to get their audience thinking about this issue, and let them know that there was a proven solution to their problem. So, they partnered with Quarry to develop a targeted ABM campaign, orchestrated with curated assets and strategic martech to effectively share these critical insights with ~220 high-potential accounts. Using a creative theme that featured eyeball—and-attention-grabbing imagery (dreamed up and art directed by humans, brought to life by AI), this program combined ABM best practices with an unconventional creative approach designed to stand out and shift conventional thinking.

Address a serious business challenge with humor?

To effectively reach time-starved decision makers at these companies, we needed to cut through the noise—and appeal to both the emotional and rational sides of the brain. Our creative concept was a bold departure from the usual territory for this industry, leveraging a series of humorous, out-of-context scenarios to command attention and get the audience thinking about something that isn’t normally on their daily agenda: their choice of engine oil.

To bring these unexpected visuals to life, we tapped into the power of generative AI, which gave us greater latitude to think and execute outside of the box. While completely unique, each creative execution drove home the primary message with a consistent theme and voice throughout the campaign:

There are times you shouldn’t compromise. Choosing the heavy-duty engine oil you depend on to protect your fleet is one of them.

A curated journey of discovery

This multi-touch, multi-channel 1:Many ABM campaign began with a rollout of Demandbase-powered display teaser ads that enticed viewers to discover educational content. Later touches featured thought-provoking video clips that further inspired prospects to engage, explore and learn.

The pinnacle of our educational content was a video podcast featuring industry influencer Bryan Furnace and two Chevron SMEs, which lived on a dedicated information hub. A Hubspot-powered chatbot was just part of the engaging UX experience that offered visitors a menu of relevant, informative and educational materials.

A subset of core decision makers received a video direct mailer (DM) featuring a customized preview invitation from the influencer host. With real-time DM interactions tracked using 5G, prospect activity and intent signals were shared with sales teams, enabling timely follow up with tools that included personalized emails, phone calls and InMail.

Big strategic and creative swing, home run payoff

The campaign reached 96.8% of targeted accounts with 80% engaging with 1+ tactic, achieving results that exceeded most KPI benchmarks and delivered on the primary objective of generating awareness and enticing recipients to explore content.

It also proved the role a high-impact direct mail piece can play within an ABM campaign like this, with 59% of contacts opening and viewing the video mailer.

Additionally, Chevron discovered the value of ABM—how channel, content, creative and tech can work seamlessly together. And they now have a solid foundation to be adapted for future campaigns.

The team that combined their talents and uncompromising passion to make this ABM program happen include: Rick Payne, Mark Heine, James Betteridge, Peter Harrington, Nina Tosic, Igor Andrade, Jamie Keith.