http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEcjtqYztdg
A commercial was recently brought to my attention. It is a commercial for the Kia Soul and it consists mainly of hamsters. It's one of those things that makes animal-lovers say, "Awww!!! They're so cute!" I thought it was not only a cute and funny commercial, but very clever. I have never seen a car advertisement with that angle and it really caught my attention and made me wonder how effective it would be in attracting customers.
Beside all of the cute hamsters, the first question that entered my mind as the commercial progressed was, "what is this commercial advertising?" Not until the final three seconds of the advertisement does the viewer know what the purpose of the commercial was: it was advertising the Kia Soul.
The second question that came to my mind as I thought more about the commercial was its effectiveness. It is a clever and creative approach (and new/fresh is always fascinating, right?). But who is the projected audience? Is it just animal lovers? If so, that would be a very limited audience, and would most likely prove ineffective in the long run.
The final thought that I had that's worth commenting on is that before this commercial I viewed Kias as cheap and low quality cars. I don't know where I got that impression (it could be a false impression), but it is the impression that stuck in my mind. After seeing this commercial, though, I have a new perspective. Kias are now associated with cuteness in my mind. Was the purpose of this commercial to replace bad impressions that many people may have of Kia? It's a competitive world out there, especially in the car industry at this point in time. It seems that Kia is stepping out and trying to make an impact on its potential customers.
So, what is the intended impact that Kia wants to make with this commercial, and how effective will it be?
Emily T.
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6 comments:
I admit that the hamsters are used people will see that they are cute, I don't think that it merely concentrates on animal lovers. I think that it's major purpose is to be clever and funny in order to stick in people's head more. They use a play on words in a way that most commercials usually don't.
This reminds me of an activity I did in history class in the eighth grade in Ms. Gillon's class. She gave us a sheet of all these catch phrases and slogans from all these different companies. I found that I could recognize the slogans but were only able to connect some of them to the companies they actually belonged to. So I think that the type of advertising that Kia is doing will actually be effective. When people see those hamsters again or see the phrase 'a new way to roll' they are going to remember Kia because they used their phrase in an odd and unexpected way. It's like those comcast commercials. I can still remember that one commercial where a man suddenly jumps and pushes someone out of the way of a falling piano, screaming 'moolah!' After that, there was a sign that said 'save moolah by...' It was creative and funny, which I think is a key factor in making advertisements effective.
It's pretty interesting that the connotation associated with Kias has changed for you, Emily! But I think that correlated with the commercial, itself. We have all of these hard-working hamsters running on their wheels, and then the truly luxurious Hamster family rides by, with Mr. and Mrs. Hamster looking more suave than ever.
Maybe Kia had been clued in to its falling status. Maybe the company knew that some of us associate its brand with cheap cars. By using (cute) hamsters, instead of (boring, average) humans, the commercial emphasized the idea that status exists everywhere, even among animals. Therefore, since we are a somewhat materialistic people, we should look to upgrade our status through the purchase of a Kia. This could work, right?
(Sam Maliha)
Actually, it's no surprise that Kia originally held a negative connotation in your mind. After all, it's a relatively new Korean car company that many Americans are still unfamiliar with. Naturally, we tend to be a little suspicious of buying a car from a company that we've never even heard of. However, just as Toyota and Honda started as foreign, low-quality brands that eventually became prestigious ones, Kia too is trying to move up the ranks.
Of course, one way it does that is through innovative commercials. Kia probably intentionally made sure that its brand name was not introduced until the end of the commercial, because Kia is aware of its status as a lower-quality budget brand. However, it is actively trying to combat that image. I remember seeing another interesting commercial for Kia a while back, in which they showed a luxurious SUV driving around and listed its numerous features. At the end of the commercial, they revealed that the SUV was a Kia, and asked if the viewer was surprised.
Whatever the tactic, these companies are doing whatever they can to become "sticky" and remain in our heads.
Isn't part of the idea behind some of these types of advertisments to just make an association in your head. I'm pretty sure that Kia wants you to think about their commercial when you see a hamster. Companies like McDonalds and Nike do this all the time and its relatively effective. They don't have to sell the product, they just have to "get in your head". Its only effective advertising for them if you'll remember it again later. Kia could just give facts about why they're cars are so good, but very few people would give it attention. On top of that, kia would only be targeting people who are looking for a car right now, not people who will be looking for a car in a couple of months or even in a year. By making an association, they can make a lasting impression so that in a year, you may conisder they're car.
(Arvind Kalidindi)
This commercial seems like one of those situations where if you were told that the commercial was for Kia from the beginning you would think it was stupid. But since they let you enjoy the commercial first, and then introduce the company name you actually like it. It's like when something is only cool when the popular kid does it. When some other kid comes in trying, you just thing it's weird. Is that a human nature aspect? To judge based on who is sending the message?
Sorry...again, that was posted by Kelley Volosin
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