Challenge:
The automotive market in Singapore is a unique one. With such high costs in licenses and taxes, only those with a big income can afford buying a car. And once they decide to own one, most of the consumers tend to prefer very premium cars like Mercedes, BMW or Audio, while Korean brands like KIA were not an option, based on the perception that they are not as good as those continental alternatives.
Strategy:
Soon I realized that it was pointless trying to tap on rational reasons to persuade the consumers. We had to go all emotional and focus the campaign on the surprise drivers' experience once trying a KIA for the first time, a brand consumers looked at with lower expectations. And so we launched the campaign and made lots of recorded test drives with potential consumers. Their faces of surprise and joy were later one, used in social media to spread the word, turning this initiative viral.
Results:
The campaign "Go Beyond Expectations" was launched in quite a wide range of media. The consumers were shocked because, for the first time in Singapore, a car campaign was launched without cars, but instead focusing on people's faces. KIA, a brand that felt pretty much unseen until that moment, finally made a big impression and the sales increased exponentially.
The automotive market in Singapore is a unique one. With such high costs in licenses and taxes, only those with a big income can afford buying a car. And once they decide to own one, most of the consumers tend to prefer very premium cars like Mercedes, BMW or Audio, while Korean brands like KIA were not an option, based on the perception that they are not as good as those continental alternatives.
Strategy:
Soon I realized that it was pointless trying to tap on rational reasons to persuade the consumers. We had to go all emotional and focus the campaign on the surprise drivers' experience once trying a KIA for the first time, a brand consumers looked at with lower expectations. And so we launched the campaign and made lots of recorded test drives with potential consumers. Their faces of surprise and joy were later one, used in social media to spread the word, turning this initiative viral.
Results:
The campaign "Go Beyond Expectations" was launched in quite a wide range of media. The consumers were shocked because, for the first time in Singapore, a car campaign was launched without cars, but instead focusing on people's faces. KIA, a brand that felt pretty much unseen until that moment, finally made a big impression and the sales increased exponentially.
