How Eric Cantona and a Goat Set off a Social Media Stampede for Ford
What do Eric Cantona, Ernie the goat, and a Ford Capri have in common? They’re all the GOAT. In the case of the Capri, in more ways than one: its name in Latin actually translates to ‘goat’.
This insight binds together global social media agency Born Social’s multi-part reveal for the all-new electric edition of the car, which premiered this past July. Charged with causing mischief, the face of the hype campaign – footballing legend, actor, and overall icon Eric Cantona – had begun mysteriously popping up with fellow GOATs across socials for weeks beforehand. He was seen posing beside Ernie and a vintage Capri on Instagram, caught walking him on TikTok, and was later even captured storming off Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer, and Micah Richards' podcast, 'The Rest is Football'. Bringing beloved classics like the Capri and Eric into a modern moment populated by electric vehicles and influencer culture, Ford and Born Social’s campaign created their own genre which they dubbed ‘newstalgia’.
Bemused and amused, hundreds of millions had borne witness to the madness before the new vehicle was even unveiled. With an overall reach of over a billion, the campaign amounts to one of the most successful reveals in Ford’s history.
Born Social creative director, Simon Cooper, who helmed the weird and wonderful campaign, unpacks the strategy that led to its success in this interview with LBB’s Zara Naseer.
Above: Ford's 'Je Suis Capri' electric Capri reveal
LBB> This was a multifaceted campaign - run us through its different elements.
Simon> We knew two things when we started the campaign: we wanted to create mischief and we wanted to make a car reveal film that stood out. With a new electric car revealed in Europe every ten days, all uttering similar features about overcoming range anxiety, we wanted to shake things up and entertain our audience with Ford’s first-ever social-first car reveal.
Naturally, we started by pairing Eric Cantona up with a goat called Ernie. We knew we needed a shareable image that would capture attention and intrigue, and when we noticed that ‘capri’ in Latin translates as ‘goat’ we had our image. The fact that goat also stands for ‘Greatest Of All Time’ just added to the fun. We then worked with content creators on Instagram and TikTok across various subcultures who featured Cantona and his goat in their content. Crucially, we didn’t reference Cantona or the goat at all. We just put it out there and let the audience do the rest, driving millions of earned social and media reach.
Next, we set up Cantona with ‘The Rest Is Football’ podcast with hosts Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer, and Micah Richards. At the end of the interview, Lineker was prepped to ask the question: ‘What’s the deal with you and all the goats?’ To which Cantona replied in a suitably cryptic way and just walked out of the interview with the words: ‘The Legend Is Back.’ This was our first direct reference to the reveal of the new car. Again, it was viewed millions of times. Alan Shearer and Micah Richards had no idea what was happening. Their reactions to Cantona leaving so abruptly were real, only adding to the hype and absurdity of it all.
Then, we started to make the link between Cantona and the new Capri more explicit. We once again engaged a content creator that chronicles cultural moments in the UK, to catch Cantona filling his vintage Capri with an EV Charger. We then showed this scene from a CCTV angle on Ford’s owned channels and as the car drove away the date of the reveal event was written on the road…
Then came the reveal film which had Cantona leaving his vintage Capri before revealing the new all-electric model.
LBB> Why was Eric Cantona chosen for the face of the campaign, and what did he bring to the table?
Simon> We needed someone who embodied the spirit of the car. Someone known for mischief and for doing things their way. A legend who, like the Capri, has reinvented themselves and has spanned decades. Cantona embodies the soul of the Capri. As he says in our reveal film, “Je suis Capri.”
LBB> What was he like to work with? He has a reputation for being a complex character with strong views and a lot of acting experience too – much more than your regular sportsman.
Simon> Cantona was a joy. To me, he seemed like a man at peace with himself. Up for fun, but also very professional. He’s a great actor and also a great comic actor, which was key to the campaign. It was important that he was on board with the ideas from the beginning and thankfully he just ‘got it’ straight away. Everything we chucked at him, he went with and improvised and self-directed. He cared about getting the best takes. And he worked very hard to get Ernie the goat on his side… After 30 minutes they were best friends.
LBB> Can you explain the concept of ‘newstalgia’ and how it influenced the campaign's creative direction?
Simon> Newstalgia is where the past collides with the present. The nature of bringing back a legend from the ‘70s and ‘80s and pairing it with a legend of the ‘90s means that we were tapping into nostalgia from the very beginning. Nostalgia for a much-loved car and nostalgia for a footballing hero, both coming from a time before social media. With this being a social media campaign, we had no choice but to collide the old with the new. 58 year old Eric Cantona working with content creators in the 20s; Cantona reminiscing about the old days with Gary Lineker on a super-modern video podcast; filling a vintage petrol car with an EV charger… Everything we did was designed to bring the past and the present together, this juxtaposition only added to the intrigue and authenticity of the campaign.
LBB> How did you identify and target specific internet subcultures to build the hype?
Simon> Due to the sheer size of the football fandom, we knew there would be a large crossover between the potential buyers of the car and football. We unashamedly leaned into this, picking content creators with a large following of football fans - @expiredfilmclub, @emanRTM, and @therestisfootball. We also seeded the content into the world of football social media and meme pages. We then set up interviews with sports journalists at mainstream newspapers. Finally, we needed to ensure that our content would resonate across Europe, not just in the UK and France, so we selected creators with European-wide followings to push the content across the continent.
LBB> Why did you opt for mischief and the bizarre in your campaign approach?
Simon> Mischief was the big word from our clients at Ford. They wanted a mischievous campaign from the very beginning. We made it bizarre and absurd so it would stand out and get people talking. There’s a real movement and a desire for entertainment, fun, and nonsense on social at the moment. People want light relief. The funnier something is, the more likely they are to share it. The virality suggests we achieved that.
LBB> How did you balance respecting the Capri’s legacy with bringing it into a new era?
Simon> Everything we did was created through the filter of ‘the soul of the capri’: a mischievous legend rewired. We featured the vintage model throughout the campaign as the original car is integral to the evolution of the name. Cantona leaving his vintage Capri for the new all-electric model was symbolic, but also a mark of respect for the car’s legacy.
LBB> How many people do you expect to have reached through your efforts?
Simon> As I write, our social earned reach of owned assets is in the hundreds of millions worldwide. When you add in our PR and paid strategy, the campaign reach amounts to well over a billion in reach for the new all-electric Capri reveal. Making it one of the most successful reveals in not only Ford’s history but also makes it one of the furthest-reaching EV launches in recent times.
LBB> What were the main challenges you faced in pulling off this campaign?
Simon> The biggest challenge throughout the whole campaign was keeping everything authentic. Because we were doing something bizarre, we had to make sure it didn’t feel hammed up or obvious. People are willing to suspend their disbelief if something unbelievable is sitting in an authentic world. We worked closely with our content creators to ensure that their output was completely authentic to their brand and their usual content. We didn’t signpost anything. We trusted the social media audience that they would do what they do best - comment, share, and like. And they did just that in their hundreds of millions before the new all-electric Capri was even revealed.
No goats were harmed in the making of this content.
