nissan versa note
BIG Amazon package was a Nissan Versa Note! Nissan, Amazon

An enormous Amazon package that sat in the streets of Madison, Wisconsin, has gotten viral on Monday. Redditor Listrophy posted in Imgur of the enormous box with the following caption: "What's the largest item you can have shipped from Amazon? Because I think my neighbor just got it."

Amazon is the largest online retailer in the world and sells nearly everything you can think of. However, people barely had a clue as to what was inside this gigantic box of cardboard. Ladies and gentlemen, it's a brand new Nissan Versa Note delivered on a flatbed.

According to Adweek, the Nissan Versa Note was available for sale on Amazon last fall as part of a marketing campaign. In an interview, Erich Marx, Nissan director of interactive and social-media marketing, explained the idea behind the delivery-gone-viral. According to Marx, the unique idea originated from Nissan agency TBWAChiatDay.

"They mentioned it, and we all kind of laughed and thought, 'Wouldn't that be funny?' " said Marx. "But over the course of a few days, we kept coming back to it and said, 'Why not deliver a car in an Amazon box?' … It's never really been done. I think the visual is pretty hilarious. Everybody knows the Amazon box. We thought it would capture people's imagination. It certainly captured ours."

The first 100 people too order a new Nissan Versa Note would receive a $1,000 gift card. Then, Nissan contacted many of the first 100 customers directly, and ultimately selected the Wisconson customer as the one that would receive his Note in a big Amazon box.

"Quite frankly it was the enthusiasm of this winner—they were so thrilled and thought it was hilarious," said Marx. "We were all voting for someone in Hawaii. We were like, 'Madison, Wisconsin, in January? That's going to be cold.' But this winner was so into it, we knew it was going to be great."

Nissan is keeping the name of the special Versa Note customer a secret for now. The customer will be revealed in a special commercial that is set to air next week. In fact, Nissan did not expect social media to get the best of them so effectively. A Redditor photo that ended up on the front page was not a part of Nissan's plans. "We were filming the video this weekend and a neighbor noticed what we were doing and posted what amounts to a spy photo," said Marx. "The best laid marketing plans, right? We were going to do a press release and a video and this whole thing next week. But the photo got out there, and people started buzzing about it. So we had to scramble."

Nissan is keeping the winner's name private for now. He or she will be revealed in the video, which is still set to be released next week. "We wanted to keep some of our original plan intact," explained Marx.

Nissan's marketing campaign with Amazon got more than the automaker bargained for. Does the Nissan Versa Note delivery mark a possible innovation in how we can buy our cars from now on? No.

"No, I think this a really fun one-time execution," said Marx. "We have a great dealer network, and we want our dealers to be involved in the marketing and delivery of our cars. We certainly don't want to step on their toes."