CHALLENGE
Regain sales leadership by winning over a segment of urban youth who currently see Honda Civic as a more suited option.
INSIGHT
Young Latinos desire to be free of labels and live life on their own terms. In order to do so, they must buck a few trends along the way. Something interesting happens when you live your life pivoting away from the mainstream – you become a minority. For our target, Label-Free Spirits, that makes them a minority (subculture) within the minority (Hispanic). Like our target, the Corolla Hatchback has been described as “Not trying to be like something else.” If launching a limited run small sedan at a time when the mainstream is shifting to SUVs isn’t going against the grain, we don’t know what is.
SOLUTION
To reach these champions of niche, we centered our campaign around the passion points and subcultures that make them a minority twice over. Minority > Majority (Minority is greater than Majority) is a campaign dedicated to providing a stage for the subcultures and the unexpected within today’s young Hispanic community. To connect with an audience that continually breaks out of any box you put them in, we knew that we had to break out of a few of our own. And Corolla’s introduction of the all new Corolla Hatchback – a fresh alternative to its traditional body style – gave us the perfect opportunity to do just that.
Our launch video cast real-world contributors to various subcultures, giving the brand the opportunity to talk to them in a way Toyota never has before. The campaign went further through partnerships and co-creation. Like partnering with Jarina De Marco, a young Latina who’s making her own story, rather than borrowing it from anyone else. Her music transcends genre and is the embodiment of “label-free.” The Dominican/Brazilian artist created “Única,” an original track for the campaign. Even further, she took our message to the red carpet at the Latin American Music Awards. Or like teaming up with Stephan Pappadakis (the godfather of Drifting and the inspiration behind Vin Diesel’s character in the Fast and the Furious), to produce Battle of the Shops - a reality-TV-like competition on Facebook Live that put our car in the hands of two Latino tuning shops – bringing their craft to the spotlight. We also reached out to gamers – inception style – by creating a game within a game. And we even created a category first web-AR experience to connect with lovers of tech.
RESULT
Bridge Corolla’s perception and sales gap by winning over a segment of urban youth who currently see Honda Civic as a more suited option. All resulting in a 13.3% YoY sales increase in a declining segment, outpacing Civic while on-air. As well as lifts in “fun to drive” (29%), “youthfulness” (18%), “opinion” (17%), and “consideration” (16%).
