Challenge

As new contenders crowded the US compact car market, MINI set out to reimagine its online presence for the first time in over five years. The gist—craft an experience as unmistakably MINI as the cars themselves. The full works challenge—transform the site into a central hub for all things MINI, a place where owners can connect, share, and celebrate the joy of motoring.

Solution

Working closely with Beam’s design and development teams, we set out to capture the spirit of MINI: nimble, playful, and unmistakably bold. Key decisions were shaped by the voices of real owners, resulting in a vertical site structure and streamlined navigation that brings key moments within reach, encouraging owners to share their stories, photos, and videos—fueling a strong owner community.

We updated MINI's entire dealer website network to improve consistency and introduced new price-quoting and test-drive-scheduling features. At the heart of it all: A completely rebuilt model configurator, allowing users to explore over fifty million ways to build their dream MINI before heading over to a dealership. As Mini is the most customizable car on the block, we featured user-submitted photos throughout the site, making owners part of the experience.

We contributed to the design of the John Cooper Works Racing section, MINI models, history, news, model configurator, and mobile experience, and curated site photography. BMW AG provided photography for curation and retouching at Beam.

Results

J.D. Power rated the new website among the best car-building experiences on the market. The new site was featured in Newsweek and The New York Times and won multiple awards, including Webby Awards, Cannes Lions, and One Show. Customers started spending much more time on the website—a typical user's time exploring their future Mini increased from 10 minutes to 30.

Client   Mini USA
Program   Digital Experience
Services   Digital  Brand Strategy  Social
Industry   Automotive  Retail
Agency   Beam
Collaboration   Birch Norton  Josh Deane  January Oliva  Ben Witla  Scott Niejadlik  Jim Rich  Evan Lavidor  Richard Shideler  Matthew Smith  Henry Wu
Photography   MINI USA  BMW AG
Awards   Webby  Cannes Lions  One Show

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