The Brief: Ben is the automotive industry’s charity. But awareness of what they actually do – and who they’re there for – remained the challenge. The easy play at Automechanika would have been to show up, rattle the tin and call it a day. Instead, we flipped it. Rather than leading with fundraising, we built a guerrilla awareness campaign rooted in one idea: get people talking. Make Ben approachable, make the conversations real, and let the impact follow.
Bringing it to life: OffType designed and delivered the stand end-to-end, built around two zones with one shared ambition: stop people in their tracks, then pull them in.
The creative idea came from an unexpected place, a real road sign spotted in the wild, carrying a statistic instead of directions. It stopped us in our tracks. That tension between a familiar format and an unfamiliar message felt like exactly the right vehicle for Ben. We took that language and reloaded it with Ben’s most powerful data points, turning standard exhibition signage into something people actually stopped to read.
The Outreach Corner anchored the space with the Ben Bus, badge scanning and press interviews, all pointing toward a single CTA: Book your free outreach visit. Turning footfall into pipeline.
The Conversation Lounge did something different. Sofas, bleacher seating, microphones and three live sessions a day with industry leaders created the conditions for something genuine. Filmed and repurposed for months afterwards, what started as an exhibition activation became a content library of 16 long-form podcast recordings, feeding Ben’s broader mission long after the show closed.
Beyond the stand itself, Ben’s messaging ran across the entire show floor. LED screens on partner stands, floor vinyls, directional signage, and a hard-won placement on the central Bosch screen meant there was nowhere at Automechanika you couldn’t find Ben.
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The numbers tell their own story.
people visited the stand over three days.
leads captured.
fireside attendees.
social media impressions on content posted over the three days.
video views.
engagement rate.
“You’re everywhere. So pleased to see you making such an impact.”— Draper Tools
“Important stand to visit, and a crucially important charity for our automotive industry.”— Salmon Michell, Valvoline
“Your activations were brilliant and certainly brought a great energy to the event.”— Joanne Knowles, Sales Director, Messe Frankfurt
