Challenge

Bechtle is a major provider of IT products and services. It’s the market leader in Germany, with over 40 years of experience. Bechtle delivers high quality, is well regarded, and has a professional and reliable image among those who know the brand. However, awareness and brand recognition within the target audience are far too low compared to its competitors. In addition, the brand perception is limited and outdated. People see Bechtle as an IT reseller rather than as an advisor and provider of IT solutions. Lastly, the industry suffers from a major “sea of sameness.”
 
How can we position Bechtle in a distinctive way? And how can we create emotional relevance in an otherwise rational environment?

Idea

Together with Bechtle, we explored what truly sets them apart, their ‘Essentiality’. This lies less in what they do, and more in why and how they do it. Bechtle believes in the power of timing. As a market leader, they have the experience and expertise to determine when innovation is actually ready for implementation. To indicate  the moment their customers can benefit from it and genuinely move forward.
 
Bechtle wants innovation to work in practice. That’s why they never blindly follow trends, but chart their own course, with grounded pragmatism. This allows their customers to take every step forward with confidence, supported by IT solutions they can rely on. Progressive when possible, practical when necessary.

Bechtle. Not hip. But happening.

Result

We brought this mindset and promise to life in radio commercials, positioning Bechtle as an IT partner with a literal line to the future. In the spots, the future has to pitch its ideas, while Bechtle -as the gatekeeper- decides whether the future is ready for them, rather than the other way around. Because customers don’t want experiments; they want solutions that actually work.
 
The concept was extended to social media, print, and highway billboards, and even integrated into the company’s own office environment. Finally, the same mindset is reflected in the employer branding campaign we developed for Bechtle, where unrealistic tech hype is tempered by Bechtle’s pragmatic realism.