A COVID-19 hiatus didn’t disrupt Chevrolet’s 17-year sponsorship of CMA Fest, which revved back up June 9-12 at the event in Nashville. The automotive brand returned as the fest’s Official Ride of Country Music, offering up free rides throughout the city as well as two sponsored live music stages—the Chevy Vibes Stage at the Walk of Fame Park and the Chevy Riverfront Stage at Riverfront Park, and corresponding experiences.
The brand’s successful program, Catch-A-Chevy, returned providing country music fans with free rides throughout the city. Consumers within a five-mile radius of CMA Fest could literally catch a ride in a Chevy electric vehicle (EV) to different fest locations as the brand strategically engaged riders in the vehicle’s quiet tuning, technology, interior room, and cargo space.
Over at Walk of Fame Park, Chevy displayed a variety of vehicles under sweeping canopies including the Chevy Bolt EUV and EV, Equinox EV and Trailblazer EV, as part of a Find Your Vibes experience that paired consumers with the vehicle that best fit their interests. Each vehicle was assigned a “personality” and a corresponding Spotify playlist with calls to action that invited consumers to interact with the screen and in-vehicle technology and then report back to brand ambassadors on their “vibe.” Chevy incentivized the activity with a retail gift card.
From the CMA Fest Archives:
- Value-adding Experiences, Content, Surprises: Inside Chevy’s CMA Fest Program
- CMA Fest: Four Ways Chevy Connected With Festivalgoers
Adjacent to Walk of Fame Park was a Recharge Lounge space with the all-new Chevy Silverado EV on display up on tall mini branded stages allowing consumers at CMA Fest an exclusive sneak peek of the pre-production model of the all-electric pickup revealed at CES in January.
In addition, there was a TikTok Duet Booth in the space featuring a pre-taped video of Chevy brand ambassador and musical artist Breland dancing to his hit song, “My Truck,” allowing consumers to learn the dance against a branded step-and-repeat. On the third day of the festival, however, Breland himself surprised a group of consumers dancing in the booth in IRL.
In support of CMA Fest’s overarching sustainability campaign for the event and its own all-electric vehicle messaging, Chevy activated a new experience called The Ultimate Pickup, a recycling receptacle where consumers were encouraged to turn in their cans and bottles and, in return, receive a commemorative branded guitar pick made out of recycled materials.
“In Chevrolet’s overall transition to electric vehicles, EVs were very much front and center within our preplanning and on-site activation,” says Emily Weaver, manager-Chevrolet experiential media and brand partnerships at Chevrolet. “And while our Breland activation, in particular, was less vehicle-oriented, it added credibility to our position in country music.”
Chevy also turned its focus to Chevy owners, providing them with “elevated” experiences throughout the fest like special premiums. More than 1,700 owners were engaged on-site at the event. As for other results: Chevy clocked 4,000 hand raisers to recontact post-event, and had more than 2,500 consumers riding in Chevy EVs as part of the Catch-A-Chevy rideshare program.
According to Weaver, CMA Fest provides a “canvas” for consumers to experience its portfolio of vehicles. “Consumers’ love and enthusiasm for country music hasn’t changed—the passion was there and the physical reach was there,” she says. “Our goal as an automotive brand is to build experiences that allow consumers to get into our portfolio of vehicles and programs like ‘Catch-A-Chevy’ have been powerful tools for us.” Agency: Jack Morton Worldwide.
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