Toyota Prius: "GAS PUMP VOICES" Outdoor Advert by Optimedia

Type of entry: Product & Service
Category: Cars & Automotive Services
Advertiser: TOYOTA
Product/Service: PRIUS
Agency: OPTIMEDIA Madrid, SPAIN
Marketing Director: Carlos Casado (Optimedia)
Creative Director: Javier Roldan (Optimedia)
Account Director: Antonio Bermudez de Castro (Optimedia)
Account Executive: Claudia Ramos (Optimedia)
Planning Director: Macarena Melia (Optimedia)
Results and Effectiveness:
Sales increased over 292% versus objective (source: Toyota). Awareness during and after the campaign increased by +441%. (source IMOP).
Creative Execution:
We needed to contact the consumer at the right place and the right time where its positive predisposition would maximise the message acceptance: extolling benefits of having a Hybrid Toyota Prius (less fuel consumption and pollution).
The right place: gas stations; the right time: while filling the cars. We created a new media, but negotiations with gas stations were extremely difficult and technically the implementation was very complex due to the vehicle's lack of flexibility to modify the length of the message.
The idea consisted on substituting the normal gas filling locution ("you've selected un-leaded fuel, thank you for your visit") by an ad-hoc Toyota Prius locution “You’ve selected un-leaded fuel; if you had a Toyota Prius you would not hear this locution so many times, for more information please ask for the Toyota Prius information folder at the gas station or at the closest Toyota dealer”.
Insights, Strategy and the Idea:
The renewed Toyota Prius hybrid car was launched after one of its direct competitors, Honda, had already placed in the market its Hybrid model, the Honda Insight. Although the first Prius was the first hybrid car ever launched in Spain, to communicate “anything” right after the competitors is difficult in terms of awareness; the effort you must do is much bigger.
The challenge consisted in making the Prius become part of the consumer’s shortlist when making the buying act. The communication objective consisted on achieving high levels of awareness in order to provide the Prius with the highest Top of Mind. So, pushing apart “fresh/just obtained Honda’s awareness” took us to the most effective solution: we had to be where the target would pay attention 100% (captive target) in order to enter in the consumer’s “shortlist”.