The 65th Internationale Automobil Ausstellung (IAA) has been running in Frankfurt am Main for the past two weeks. So on Saturday I decided to go for the motor show to catch up on the latest cars and also see first hand the much anticipated Nissan Nismo Watch.
Most of the car makers in this year’s show were also present in IAA 2011. In fact they were even located in the same stands as 2011, with the same high tech touch displays to promote their cars. The difference was that their 2013 car models were now more hybrid and or electric only, for example this new four seater Smart.
What changed on the floor
While I walked around and looked for changes vis-à-vis what was shown in IAA 2011, I noticed that apart from the now expected large screens and touch displays, car makers were using all kinds of social media to engage with their visitors.
Engagement snapshots by brand
Here is a quick photo report of my engagement experiences with the various car makers.
Audi
To make sure I did not miss Audi this year due to 200+ people standing in line to get into the Audi stand, I decided to visit very early in the morning. The line was short, but there were already hundreds of people inside. On walking in, I noticed that the concept for the stand was taken straight out of the Hollywood movie “Upside Down”.
Visitor engagement at the stand was driven through a special photo booth. While people waited in line they got an iPad to play a game and answer three questions about Audi. Winners got custom giveaways like keychains, gummy bears, etc. After that, visitors were ushered into the photo booth which superimposed the photos onto custom Audi backgrounds. Visitors could take home a printed copy and later also download soft copies from www.audiphotoautomat.com.
Mercedes
Next stop was the Mercedes stand which was also impossible to get into in 2011. From the below picture you can see why.
Mercedes put up a huge multi-sensory show that went on for over 20 minutes, while thousands of people just stopped and watched. Children visiting the stand were kept busy with car simulators.
Outside the stand one could test drive the Mercedes off-road jeeps with the help of trained drivers.
Hyundai
Hyundai was the first car brand I came across that was using the event to generate Facebook fans. For liking the Hyundai Facebook page, fans at IAA could win a Hyundai i30.
The rear windscreen of the i30 was converted into a touchscreen which people could use to instantly “Like” the brand’s Facebook page or choose to receive the fan page link via email.
At the stand Hyundai also displayed a touchable music seat for hearing impaired drivers which vibrated as per the music being played. This was still in concept phase and the test seats were being developed out of Korea.
Volkswagen
The Volkswagen “Think Blue” initiative was presented via an interactive augmented reality layer that was activated through the provided iPads.
Skoda
Skoda explained their Green Line initiative via a wooden toy car that was supported by the animations in the embedded touch screens.
At the neighbouring table kids were engaged with games around the Green Line initiative.
Michelin
At the Michelin stand, visitors could take pictures with a virtual Michelin mascot and have the pictures emailed to themselves instantly.
Nissan
After having written about the Nissan Nismo Watch last week, I could not wait to see the real watch in action. But to my disappointment the watch was not there as announced. There was only a plastic dummy on display.
But I did take Nissan’s version of real life “Likes” for a spin (first spotted at the Renault stand in the 2011 Amsterdam Motor Show).
The RFID badges allowed visitors to post custom Nissan branded pictures of themselves onto Facebook.
Visitors were also given the option to share the cars they like on Facebook via special Like buttons built into the car info pillars.
Ford
At the Ford stand this year visitors were given head and shoulder massages.
Then to experience the Ford EcoBoost, visitors were put in front of a leaf blower and their reactions captured and uploaded on the Ford Flickr channel.
And for the more social visitors, Ford had a Twitter based contest running.
Kia
At Kia, visitors could superimpose their heads onto a football player and then have the custom postcard sent to their email IDs.
Chevrolet
Visitors at the stand could make small flipbooks of themselves doing funny dances in front of the main character of the Hollywood film “Turbo”.
Or they could write special messages to their loved ones on a piece of paper and the team at Chevrolet would instantly convert them into wearable badges.
Chevrolet was also the only car maker at the IAA who was using Foursquare to offer discounts on their show merchandise.
Mini
Mini this year gave visitors the option to body paint their cars and email the photos to themselves.
Visitors could also slide down a specially created tunnel at record speeds that were also photographed and displayed on a large overhead digital screen.
BMW
BMW, like Mercedes, put up a multi-sensory show at their stand. But compared to Mercedes it was short and not as extravagant. Still pretty impressive.
Kumho Tyres
On the way out I spotted Kumho Tyres giving away various petrol and tyre related coupons. To win the coupons visitors had to catch them while being closed inside a wind cabin.
Why this direction matters
Across the stands, the consistent pattern is not “more screens”. It is more reasons to create something. A photo. A badge. A flipbook. A posted image. A public interaction that becomes proof you were there. The stand stops being a catalogue, and starts behaving like a content studio that rewards participation. The real question is how a stand turns a visitor into a willing participant and publisher. The strongest stands here are the ones that give people something to make, not just something to look at. That works because visitors are more likely to remember, share, and talk about an experience when they leave with something they helped create.
Extractable takeaway: If you are designing for an event, do not start with channels. Start with a social object, meaning a photo, badge, flipbook, or other shareable artifact people can take away, share, or replay. Then build the simplest capture and distribution loop around it.
In large European trade shows, brands increasingly treat the stand as a live media channel where every interaction can become a shareable moment.
And that was a quick overview of what I experienced at the 65th Internationale Automobil Ausstellung. (To read about my experience at the 2011 show, click here.)
Until the next show in 2 years. This is Sunil signing off from IAA 2013.
What to steal from IAA 2013 for your next show
- Queue utility. If people must wait, give them something to do that feeds the experience (Audi’s iPad game and questions).
- Instant takeaways. Printed photos, emailed images, and small artifacts create memory and sharing triggers.
- Low-friction publishing. RFID, built-in Like buttons, and email delivery reduce the “I’ll do it later” drop-off.
- Make participation visible. Leaderboards, overhead screens, or public displays turn individual actions into crowd energy.
- Match the mechanic to the brand truth. Eco themes paired with AR explainers, performance themes paired with physical challenges.
A few fast answers before you act
What is this IAA 2013 “walk of innovations” about?
It is a photo report from the IAA show floor in Frankfurt, focused on how different car brands used interactive touchpoints and social mechanics to engage visitors.
What is the main shift versus earlier shows?
Beyond large screens and touch displays, more stands are designed around capture and sharing, photo booths, RFID check-ins, instant email delivery, and social prompts.
Which engagement mechanics show up repeatedly?
Instant content creation (photos, flipbooks), low-friction sharing (RFID, embedded Like buttons), and public spectacle (multi-sensory shows, overhead displays).
What is the practical lesson for event marketers?
Design one clear participatory moment that produces a social object, then remove friction from capture and delivery so visitors can share immediately.
How do you keep these activations from feeling gimmicky?
Anchor the mechanic to a brand truth, and make the output useful or delightful for the visitor, not only promotional for the brand.
