Subaru is in the midst of a new brand campaign that puts a Canadian spin on a global tagline, and helps position the Japanese carmaker as “unique,” “different” and “fun.”
The effort from DDB Canada includes print, radio and social media, as well as a national 60-second television commercial and condensed 30-second version with a new tagline – “Confidence in Motion” – that launched globally last year.
Mike Davidson, a senior vice-president at DDB Canada, said the agency was asked to “Canadianize” the global “Confidence in Motion” platform. Instead of simply adapting a global TV ad for Canadian consumers, the agency wanted to create an original concept that was “fun” and “quirky.”
“We needed to make it an evolution of where we’ve been [in terms of advertising], and not a global campaign,” he said.
Moving forward, Davidson said Subaru’s advertising is likely to focus on models within specific categories like compact cars and SUVs. “Canadians tend to buy categories rather than brands, so we’ll be very category-model-focused in our advertising with an overlay every so often of some brand stuff,” he said.
A dealer-specific spot that focuses on the automaker’s Outback model and lease rates is also part of the campaign that will run until December.
Also at the dealer level, Subaru Canada recently introduced an in-dealership digital signage network called Subaru.TV that it said is aimed at improving its “brand identity and shopping experience.”
Developed in partnership with 10net Managed Solutions, Subaru.TV features 42-inch and 52-inch high-definition screens.
The company spent the past year developing and sourcing high-definition content – including a five-minute sneak peak of the 2012 Subaru Impreza. It is now in discussions to secure additional news and sports content.
