Honda’s EXCITING H DESIGN!!! Language Explained

Back in 2013, Honda released its highly-anticipated third generation of the Honda Jazz–what we know in America as the Fit. What you may not realize is that at the same time, Honda used that opportunity to unveil its EXCITING H DESIGN!!! language, which was employed in the updated design of the subcompact city car. Since then, this design philosophy has affected all of the brand’s automobiles around the globe.

Intended to build a stronger global presence and unique character in its models, Honda’s EXCITING H DESIGN!!! may merely sound like overly-excited Japanese advertising, but it actually has deliberate thought behind it.

What Is Honda’s EXCITING H DESIGN!!! All About?

Those new Honda models at your local dealership and on display at national auto shows have all been influenced by the automaker’s EXCITING H DESIGN!!! approach, which was launched back in 2013. The philosophy, affecting both the interior and exterior of Honda’s vehicles, strives to make the company’s products more…well, exciting.

Those three exclamation points aren’t just arbitrary enthusiasm, either. Each one has a special meaning: High Tech, the brand’s innovative spirit; High Tension, the brand’s pursuit of beauty in its designs; and High Touch, the brand’s mastery of surfacing and textures.

This affects the exterior model designs by employing the “Solid Wing Face” design identity, framing the “H” badge in a single swooping front grille. The “Athlete Form” proportions and “Dramatic Surfacing” form also guide the exterior’s creation. Inside, “Advanced Interface” adopts the latest technology, “Personal Cockpit” ensures the driver is the focus behind the wheel, and “Craftsmanship” strives to use precise textures in cabin construction.

Now that you know the approach behind how Honda styles its vehicles, perhaps the conservative Japanese automaker won’t seem so conservative anymore.

Source;
https://thenewswheel.com/hondas-exciting-h-design-language-explained/

All-New Honda Ridgeline 2016 Superbowl Commercial – A New Truck to Love

New Computer-Animated 2016 Honda Civic Commercial Gets Creative [VIDEO]

The all-new, tenth-generation 2016 Honda Civic is one of the Japanese automaker’s more ambitious redesigns—sportier, stronger, and more high-tech than the outgoing model it replaces. In the latest commercial for the new compact car, Honda portrays the vehicle’s conception in a rather imaginative way:

The ad opens on a young Honda designer working on some sketches. Then his head opens up to reveal a brand new Civic, which makes its way down a track before being equipped with a 174-horsepower turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine, the first turbo to be offered in an American Civic.

From there, the new Civic makes it’s way into a computer-animated dream world that looks a little bit like Pandora from the movie Avatar, but with more hot air balloons and compact sedans. The commercial ends with a close-up of the 2016 Honda Civic, and the tagline “Direct From Our Imagination” written in the clouds above.

The song featured in the ad is, appropriately enough, “Walking on a Dream,” performed by the Australian-German electronic music duo Empire of the Sun.

Entitled “The Dreamer,” this commercial is something of a companion piece to the earlier Honda ad “Dreams,” which showed a man’s imagination being ignited by a 2016 Accord. Both tie in to Honda’s tagline, “The Power of Dreams.”

Source;
http://thenewswheel.com/new-computer-animated-2016-honda-civic-commercial-gets-creative-video-2/

This Interactive Honda Ad Lets You Send a Couple on Increasingly Extravagant Dates RPA's three-tiered Civic spot

by David Gianatasio of www.adweek.com

Great. Greater. Greatest. Those are your viewing choices in RPA's new interactive video for the Honda Civic, which lets you toggle between a couple's three date scenarios and check out vehicle features along the way. 

You have to watch it here on the Honda website.

The story in all three versions is essentially the same: A dude driving a 2016 Honda Civic sedan picks up his gal for a night on the town. They travel the same route, visit the same places and have similar experiences in each clip. The details, however, are markedly different, and the contrasts between the three dates are sometimes extremely amusing. 

Some differences are subtle. For example, the sunlight goes from bright, to brighter, to brightest depending on how "great" the date is (sadly, this is not the case in real life). Other variations are more obvious. The spot recalls Honda U.K.'s famous The Other Side interactive film, though the RPA work is more cartoony. 

On the "Great" date, the couple wear T-shirts and jeans, and they high-five as the woman slides into the car. "Greater" finds them more dressed up; the guy hands her flowers before they drive off. In "Greatest," they're attired like the king and queen of a sitcom prom, as our hero presents his lady-love with a fluffy pooch as a date-night present.

The greater the date, the more self-consciously zany the action becomes. 

"The typical online demo video is a valuable tool for someone who is getting close to buying a vehicle and wants to get a closer look at the specifics," Jason Sperling, executive creative director at RPA, tells AdFreak. "And up to now, it's all followed a similar formula. By creating a unique piece of entertaining content that invites deeper levels of interaction, it makes it more than just a utilitarian tool for a select few. It makes it memorable, sharable and a worthwhile piece of content."

The Civic's features are well integrated into the story line, and it's a hoot to toggle between date variants during product demos. For instance, when the dude cranks up some tunes via Apple CarPlay on the "Great" date, he and his companion share a quick smile; on the "Greater" date, they righteously bop their heads to the beat. And in the "Greatest" version, a groovy '70s-style sax player appears in the back seat for a live performance.

Still, we never do make it to the date that tops them all. The "Greatest" scenario still features a Civic rather than, say, a Ferrari. (Hey, they could have at least upgraded to an Accord!) 

Separately, RPA has also released this year's Happy Honda Days TV campaign. Five lovely spots were each melded from three layers—live action, miniature sets and matte paintings. Check out that work below.


Source;
http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/interactive-honda-ad-lets-you-send-couple-increasingly-extravagant-dates-168255

The 2016 Honda Accord Commercial - "Dreams" :60 (VIDEO)

Entitled “Dreams,” the ad begins as an ode to childhood creativity, with a young boy playing with Hot Wheels, go-karts, and remote control cars, but dreaming of burnouts, Formula One races, and high-speed chases.

Then we smash-cut to the present day: the young dreamer is a middle-aged drone now, stuck in traffic (and a life he hates, one presumes) as he commutes to his job (which is not racecar driving or being a hero cop, one presumes).

But what’s this? It’s a 2016 Honda Accord—a vehicle with such sporty styling that he actually gets out of his car for a better look, and then giddily hallucinates that it’s being cleaned by a Honda pit crew.

“Keep the dream alive,” says Honda voiceover guy Fred Savage, former child star of the nostalgic television show The Wonder Years, subtly reinforcing the notion of reclaimed youth.

Source;
https://thenewswheel.com/2016-honda-accord-commercial-dreams-celebrates-childhood-and-imagination/

Honda Ignition Commercial

Ignition, our new out-of-this-world film, is inspired by Honda's daring spirit.

The film pays homage to one of the boldest expressions of human curiosity and engineering endeavor: space flight.

No other company has the heritage of engineering across as many categories: cars, motorbikes, robotics, aviation and racing.

Dare to do the things others only dream of. Discover the stories of Honda daring at www.honda.co.uk.

Honda starts advertising campaign related to airbag recalls

(Reuters) - Honda Motor Co Ltd's U.S. arm said it launched an advertising campaign urging owners of Honda and Acura vehicles to immediately check for open recalls and take the affected automobiles to authorized dealers for free repair.

The company has set aside hundreds of millions of dollars to cover mass recalls to replace air-bag inflators made by Takata Corp that have been linked to six deaths, all in Honda cars.

"These ads are a strong call to action from our company designed to break through the clutter, grab the attention of customers driving affected vehicles, and urge that they get required repairs as soon as possible," said John Mendel, who leads American Honda Motor's automobile unit.

The consumer information campaign includes a multi-million dollar advertising push that will begin on March 16, Honda said.

(Reporting by Sagarika Jaisinghani in Bengaluru)

Source;
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/12/honda-recall-advertising-idUSL4N0WD5TQ20150312

Can you keep up with Honda's new TV advert?

Honda will launch their latest TV campaign tonight, challenging viewers to echo the brand's thirst for relentless improvement by pushing themselves to new limits. 

Honda believes that by pushing themselves, everyone can surpass their own perceived limits. This philosophy is the foundation behind the brand, and has been fundamental in the development of Honda's new range of products and continuing innovations: Honda is committed to finding out what its products are capable of by continually pushing its vehicles and technology to the limit.

During 2015 Honda will launch several new products, each developed with this very spirit. Featured in the advert alongside ASIMO and Honda Jet are the new Honda Jazz, HR-V, Civic Type R and NSX, offering a glimpse into the exciting range of models set to join the marque's fleet.

Rather than just telling the story of Honda's pioneering spirit and commitment to progress, the campaign challenges viewers' reading speed, allowing them to feel the joy of improvement for themselves. A manifesto is delivered one word at a time, with the pace increasing throughout the film, intercut with glimpses of the new Honda fleet, which are all born from the company's challenging spirit.

A TV spot directed by Man Vs Machine, which will air on Sky Sports on tonight during the UEFA Europa League match between Liverpool vs Beşiktaş, invites viewers to "keep up" with a message on screen, becoming increasingly difficult as the pace of the words increases to a crescendo. At approximately 500 words per minute, the fast-paced message proves that everyone is capable of achieving more than they initially thought. The energetic soundtrack, composed by Wah Wah with sound design by Factory, was created to further encourage the viewer to keep up.

Viewers are challenged to push themselves even further online through shorter - and even faster - executions of the film, and in cinemas, custom film-themed ads will run in partnership with Pearl & Dean.

Martin Moll, Honda Motor Europe Head of Marketing said "Since day one, Honda has been fuelled by a relentless desire for improvement and constant drive for innovation. This year is a special one, with the launch of several key new products. With this campaign, we wanted to bring this to life in a way that our consumers could really engage with, by experiencing the feeling for themselves."

Olivia Dunn, Honda UK, Head of Marketing commented "Normal speech is on average 120 words per minute, viewers will need to read at speeds up to 1000 words per minute in our faster shorter online films, which is definitely going to be a challenge whilst at the same time being fun. These films echo the Honda ethos in all areas of business: challenging and pushing boundaries whilst being fun - the elements required to design and build the exciting new Honda product line-up for 2015."

Scott Dungate, Creative Director at W+K London says "When you push and push yourself and reach a new level, it feels good. We wanted to give people that same feeling when they read our manifesto about Honda's relentless improvement. So we challenged them to 'keep up.' "

Source;
http://www.westernmorningnews.co.uk/Honda-s-new-TV-advert/story-26052172-detail/story.html

Check out Honda's new Interactive ad for the Euro Civic/Civic Type R

This is a unique ad, where you can switch between two stories by simply pressing the R key on your keyboard.  I won't spoil it for you, see for yourself.
 
Press the R....

Check it out;
https://www.youtube.com/user/HondaVideo

Autonews.com: Honda's Advertising Police

by Neal E. Boudette of www.autonews.com

August 11, 2014 - 12:01 am ET

Honda dealers face no shortage of challenges this year: soft U.S. sales, a dearth of vehicle launches and an aging truck lineup.

Add to that what some dealers call the "advertising police."

Officially, it's known as the Honda Compliance Headquarters, an extension of the automaker's marketing department in St. Louis, and run by an outside marketing firm.

It keeps a close watch on the marketing activities of dealers who participate in the brand's dealer marketing allowance program and cracks down on any who violate strict rules on what dealers can and can't say in their advertising, whether print, online or broadcast.

One major no-no: advertising a vehicle below the invoice price. That's classified as a Category 1-Type A offense, the worst kind; get three of those in one year and you lose your marketing assistance, which can be $400 per vehicle for many dealers.

Running an ad that shows a car or truck with the wrong trim level also brings a stern warning. Other offenses include a range of actions or word choices that may suggest Honda vehicles are "distressed goods" that are subject to extreme discounting. These include terms such as "blow out," "liquidation," "inventory reduction" and "close out."

While all automakers set marketing guidelines for their dealers, Honda's are among the most restrictive. For example, Ford, Hyundai, Kia, Chevrolet and many other volume brands don't specifically prohibit dealers from advertising below-invoice prices.

Although the rules have been in place for years, they've been a special burden this year as Honda struggles with a sales slump that's defying gains in the overall auto market.

'Take the handcuffs off'

Honda acknowledges the guidelines are strict but says they are in place to protect its brand. Most dealers agree, noting Honda's residual values are consistently among the industry's strongest.

Still, some dealers say the restrictions, particularly those on advertising prices below invoice, limit their ability to compete.

"I'd like to see Honda take the handcuffs off of us and let us be aggressive," said Doug Waikem, owner of Waikem Honda in Massillon, Ohio. The Waikem family also owns Ford, Hyundai, Kia, Mitsubishi, Nissan and Subaru dealerships in Massillon.

This year, he got a letter from the Honda Compliance Headquarters after his store advertised a Civic on TrueCar.com for about $100 below the invoice price. "You have to price below invoice to get noticed on TrueCar," Waikem said, adding that his Hyundai and Kia stores pull in significant traffic by offering certain models below invoice.

In Raynham, Mass., Adam Silverleib, vice president of Silko Honda, said he has seen what happens when lowball pricing becomes the focus of dealer marketing efforts. A few years ago, a large competitor, Boch Honda, opted to forgo Honda's marketing assistance and so was free to advertise vehicles below invoice. "It destroyed the market for all of us," Silverleib said.

However, he understands Waik-em's viewpoint. Honda has $3,000 in what Honda calls flex cash on the Crosstour, making it possible for dealers to offer the slow-selling vehicle below invoice. Honda also is offering $500 in dealer cash on the Civic, which could enable a dealer to sell the LX automatic model below its invoice price of $18,632.

"We can do a deal below invoice, but we can't advertise that," Silverleib said. "We should be able to tell the customer the price they can expect when they come in to look at the car. But we have to advertise the invoice price, which obviously isn't working in the case of the Crosstour."

Boch Honda officials didn't respond to requests for comment.

Jeff Conrad, Honda Division general manager, acknowledged in an interview that Honda is having a "challenging year." Through the first seven months of 2014, Honda brand's U.S. sales are down 1 percent to 784,913, while the overall U.S. market is up 5 percent.

Accord and Civic sales are up slightly, and CR-V sales are up 6 percent. But sales have dropped for the aging Pilot (down 19 percent) and Odyssey (down 7 percent). Crosstour sales are down 28 percent.

Conrad said he "totally gets" dealers' desire to advertise more aggressive prices, but added that the marketing guidelines are designed to manage long-term brand value.

He said Honda is aiming for steady sales growth through the rest of the year but declined to elaborate on specific marketing plans. The company expects dealers to get a lift late in the year when the updated CR-V begins rolling into showrooms.

The prices Honda dealers advertise in print, online, on TV or on radio are monitored constantly by the Honda Compliance Headquarters, which is operated for Honda by Ansira Partners, a marketing communications company. To ensure compliance with Honda's guidelines, dealers or their advertising agencies can submit ads to headquarters for review. Dealers can expect approval within 24 hours, Conrad said.

The operation also checks ads to catch typographical errors, banned phrases, incorrect photos and improper use of the Honda "H" badge and the logo type prescribed for the Honda name.

To err is easy

John Kudner, general manager of Art Moehn Honda in Jackson, Mich., said nearly every dealer gets called out by the compliance headquarters at some point. Given the volume of ads that run each month, "it's real easy to make a mistake," he said. Yet he adds that it is worth heeding the guidelines to support strong resale values. "I can't argue with Honda's philosophy," he said.

This year, Waikem in Ohio was charged with a Category 1-Type A violation because an ad included a photo of an Accord that had wheels that were different from those described in the text.

Waikem said the mistake was inadvertent. He's worried, however, because he now has two strikes against him this year, including the TrueCar pricing incident. A third will cause him to lose his marketing allowance from Honda.

Waikem said: "We're being very cautious with our Honda advertising for the rest of the year."

The power of rules

 

Honda holds dealers to some of the strictest marketing guidelines in the industry, with repeat violators at risk of losing their marketing support. Honda classifies offenses by category and type; Category 1-Type A offenses are the most serious. Some examples

Category 1

Type A violations

• Advertising a retail price that is below dealer invoice

• Advertising an incorrect vehicle description

Type B violations

• Using words that suggest Honda vehicles are “distressed goods” subject to big discounts, such as “blow out,” “close out,” “liquidation” or “inventory reduction”

• Using terms that imply a dealer can offer the lowest price of any Honda dealer, such as “guaranteed lowest price” or “we won't be undersold.”

Source: Honda Marketing Allowance Program Guidelines

Source;

http://www.autonews.com/article/20140811/RETAIL03/308119965/0?cciid=internal-anhome-mostright

What Makes a Honda Is Who Makes a Honda: Sandip's Story

Sandip's passion for figuring out how things work led him to a career in engineering. He loves finding workable solutions and seeing his ideas come to life. Sandip is what makes a Honda.

Civic Type-R teaser 2014 - The other side of Honda

The Japanese based automaker Honda has released a new teaser video with the upcoming Civic Type R, which will be officially unveiled later on this year.

The 2015 Honda Civic is ending up in our news once again, after being caught on camera by our spy photographers a couple of weeks ago, this time with the help of a new teaser video, which is showing it revving its engine and coming to life from underneath the body of the regular hatchback. The brand new Honda Civic has some big goals which include becoming the fastest front-wheel drive car to ever lap the Nurburgring, stealing the “crown” from the current Seat Leon Cupra or from the Renault Megane 275 Trophy.

In terms of looks, the 2015 Honda Civic Type R will be very similar to the Civic Type R Concept unveiled three months ago, during the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, but it will be getting some enhanced aerodynamics and a full body kit with a large spoiler, with low side skirts and a front splitter. Rumors are saying that this will be taking its power from the new 2.0 liter turbocharged “Earth Dreams” four-cylinder engine, which could produce approximately 280 HP. Chances are we will see the new Civic Type this October, during the 2014 Paris Motor Show.

Source;
http://www.inautonews.com/video-2015-honda-civic-type-r-gets-teased#.U43Ll3bb6Eo

2014 Honda Pilot "Plans Change" Commercial

Honda Creates Bottled Water Brand in Honor of Vehicle That Emits Only Drinkable H2O

Take a swig from that exhaust pipe

by David Kiefaber of www.adweek.com

The compressed hydrogen-powered Honda FCX runs so clean, its exhaust contains only water—and it's so clean, it's drinkable. To celebrate this, Honda Australia and Leo Burnett Melbourne came up with a memorable stunt—creating a new bottled-water brand, H2O.

As seen in the case study below, the automaker gave the water away in movie theaters around Australia (as free samples, no less) as a way of showing people what they're doing for the environment. There are also plans to make the water available at Honda service stations and dealerships.

Copy on the bottle reads: "Delicious, fresh H2O from a pristine mineral spring, cool mountain glacier or … the exhaust pipe of the Honda FCX. The world's first hydrogen powered car that emits only water. Water so clean and pure, you could put it in a bottle and drink it. Now isn't that refreshing?"

Note the use of "could." It doesn't appear that this water is actually the byproduct of FCX. Still, a neat idea. The product is nicely designed, too, with an effective minimalist aesthetic. I really like how well the Honda logo works as the hydrogen symbol in H20.

Source;
http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/honda-creates-bottled-water-brand-honor-vehicle-emits-only-drinkable-h2o-157619

Honda 'Inner Beauty' -- New Civic Tourer Commercial

Ad of the Day: Real or Illusion? Honda CR-V Spot Keeps You Guessing

by David Gianatasio of www.adweek.com

Hey, advertisers … stop blowing my mind!

Honda follows Ray-Ban's impressively trippy optical-illusion video with this 60-second European TV spot from mcgarrybowen in London. The spot, called "An Impossible Made Possible," shows the CR-V 1.6 i-DTEC Diesel traversing a surreal landscape of complex and cool visual effects. At one point, we get an Ames room type illusion where a woman blows on her coffee, apparently setting a toy Honda CR-V 1.6 atop a table in motion. It turns out the SUV is really a full-size model parked a few yards behind her … but the weird eye-candy in the scene doesn't end there.

Describing the spot in detail would give too much away. It's a pretty wild ride, packed with imagery that rewards repeat viewing. I especially like how each illusion is ultimately shattered, letting the audience in on the trickery at hand.

The exceedingly stylized clip, directed by Chris Palmer of Gorgeous, succeeds as a pure content play, and the main advertising element, a somewhat clunky voiceover that talks about "less fuel in for more miles out," seem almost intrusive. Still, the point that things aren't always as they appear—a rule this campaign applies to various qualities of the Honda CR-V 1.6, such as gas mileage—is made in exceptionally eye-opening fashion.

Some commenters have noted similarities to Audi's 7-year-old "Illusions" commercial. They should keep in mind that advertising, like all creative endeavors, often borrows from and reworks what's come before, building on inspiration to create new vision. Yes, the commercials are somewhat alike. Even so, with the Honda spot, you don't get the feeling that you've seen it all before.

CREDITS
Client: Honda
Agency: mcgarrybowen London
Executive Creative Directors: Paul Jordan, Angus MacAdam
Copywriter: Richard Holmes
Art Director: Remco Graham
Planner: Max Kennedy
Agency Producer: Richard Firminger
Production Company: Gorgeous
Director: Chris Palmer
Editor: Paul Watts
Postproduction: The Mill
Colorist: Seamus O'Kane
VFX: Tom Sparks
Audio Post: Parv Thind
Audio Post: Wave
Media Agency: Starcom

Source;

http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/ad-day-real-or-illusion-honda-cr-v-spot-keeps-you-guessing-153307?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_term=AWK_AdBrand&utm_campaign=Adweek%20Newsletter%20Template%20-%20Advertising%20%26%20Branding%20-%

Honda Allocating More Resources to Non-Traditional Marketing Initiatives

by Edward A. Sanchez of www.automobilemag.com

Most of the headlines about social media usually involve celebrities and their inappropriate or bizarre public or private behavior, but the emergent genre of mass communications has caught the eye of major corporations, and is resulting in reallocation of marketing resources. American Honda has shifted its marketing budget to allocate as much as 30 percent of the overall marketing budget to social media and other non-traditional initiatives, according to Automotive News. American Honda senior vice president of marketing Mike Accavitti said the company needs to take more risks with its marketing strategy, and accepting that some will not be successful.

As much as 30 percent of the company’s U.S. marketing budget has been set aside for “risky” initiatives, with a heavy emphasis in social media. Among some of the manifestations of this news strategy is Acura’s sponsorship of the popular “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” web video series featuring Jerry Seinfeld, which has seen a 40 percent increase in viewership in its second season.

The more traditional initiatives, such as television, digital and print advertising, are expected to achieve the same results with 70 percent of the budget as they achieved previously with the lion’s share of resources. In addition to the reallocation of resources to non-traditional marketing initiatives, Honda has also changed agencies for media buying and advertising. Honda also has an in-house social media department to create new content.

The Honda Civic “Best Yourself” campaign featuring musician Nick Cannon, was created by Muse, an agency specifically oriented toward the African-American community, and features a two-minute minifilm of Cannon driving a Civic, and talking about self-improvement. The campaign with Cannnon resulted in 70 million Twitter impressions and 2.5 million views for the video.


Source;
http://rumors.automobilemag.com/honda-allocating-more-resources-to-non-traditional-marketing-initiatives-251381.html#axzz2iMgvq8pZ

Honda Illusions 2013/4 Honda CRV Diesel Commercial

New Honda Campaign Spurs 'Brand Improv'

My favorite new genre of advertising is what I like to call “Brand Improv,” defined as follows: when brands are forced to think on their feet, in realtime, with no brief, no meetings, no committees, no nothing, except a certain talented someone channeling the brand and improvising messages. And there’s no better example than the new Honda campaign supporting the vacuum built into their Odyssey minivans.

Though the interesting part of the campaign is not the ad, it’s important to see that or the rest of this post will make little sense. Here it is in case you somehow, and impossibly, dodged it:

Moderately funny, nice idea, clearly communicates the fact there’s a vacuum in the car. But, as it turns out, this ad was merely setting the stage for much more interesting marketing.

Honda takes on product brands typically found on Odyssey floors
If you go to Honda’s Twitter page (https://twitter.com/Honda), you’ll see Honda humorously jabbing at the brands that are typically found on the floor of a dirty minivan: Burger King fries, Orville Redenbachers popcorn, Doritos, and many more. Tweets that humorously “warn” these brands that they better stay off the floor…or else the new Odyssey vacuum will suck them up.

Here was the first shot across the bow from Honda’s Twitter feed that set the tone:

Little dropped snacks everywhere, your days are numbered. The Odyssey with available vacuum is here. Whoooooooosh.

But then Honda got a little bolder and took on those floor-brands directly:

Hey @BurgerKing, we’ll be #Satisfried when we’ve vacuumed every one of you off our floors. – Odyssey with available HondaVAC
Now showing in the Honda Odyssey Touring Elite Theater: Attack of the Popcorn-Devouring HondaVAC. Watch out @OrvillePopcorn & @PopSecret.
Mmmmmmmm. The rainbow is tasty @Skittles. Sincerely, The Honda Odyssey Touring Elite with built-in HondaVAC.

Like a monster threatening the lives of any snack daring to fall on the Odyssey floor. Suddenly a decent TV spot becomes much more than just an ad. Now we see Honda was launching a real-world mission to clean up the floors, one snack brand at a time. But even these Tweets from Honda aren’t the most interesting part of the campaign.

The brands on the floor fight back
It’s when the brands that are “called out” by Honda start responding that the real magic happens. It’s “Brand Improv” at its best. While I couldn’t find any direct response on Twitter from BurgerKing (missed opportunity), I did see a couple others accept the challenge. Here are two.

Orville Redenbachers took full advantage with this reply-Tweet:

@Honda The popcorn-devouring HondaVAC is in for a treat when it discovers and eats up lost Orville pieces!

Taco Bell minced no words with this Tweet:

@Honda Your vacuum cleaner sucks. No, really.

Ha! What’s especially great about the Taco Bell Tweet is that fans of both brands piled on. One even kept score as to which brand had the more stinging Tweets. Check out that thread here. It’s well worth the read.

When there’s no time to calculate, we see the authentic brand
When Oreo did its now-famous “You can still dunk in the dark” Tweet during the blackout of the Superbowl, we immediately saw Oreo as more than a cookie, but a personality (a personality that apparently watches football and is pretty tapped into culture for a cookie). That’s the intrinsic value of that particular effort: we like Oreo more for doing it.

But because so few brands are doing such realtime creative, the story about that Tweet was everywhere. And that’s the secondary benefit of Brand Improv, PR value.

Is your brand ready for improv?
This new genre of improvisational advertising is exciting to me as a marketer. It’s the opposite of Apple's AAPL -1.27% “1984,” a carefully considered, well produced, epic piece of communication, but is no less powerful. And the improvisational nature of it will require completely different talent. Agencies might consider looking for improv comedians to helm this new “department” – it’s that different. Heck, new agencies are springing up like Relevant24 designed to do nothing but realtime creative.

But, more important than the talent, to act as naturally as Oreo or Honda or Taco Bell have in social media requires a deep understanding of one’s brand (in order to represent that brand live), a culture of experimentation, and a tolerance for failure. No improv comedian hits the mark every time, and neither will brands. You have to be ok with that reality.

I believe it’s a risk worth taking because the fails will wither on the social vine while the successes will be remembered. And who knows where it will go from here? Maybe other brands will coordinate social media verbal challenges to each other to equal effect. I hope so. It’s just plain fun to watch brands “talk” to each other like this.

So, is your brand ready for a little Brand Improv?

Source;
http://www.forbes.com/sites/willburns/2013/10/03/new-honda-campaign-spurs-brand-improv/

Japan Commericial for the 2014 Honda FIT