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There’s a certain nostalgia many people feel when it comes to couples carving their initials in objects, and Toyota’s latest ad taps into those emotions, leaving viewers teary-eyed and thinking about love and family as the car company kicks off its month-long sales event during the holiday season.
Created by automaker and agency Saatchi & Saatchi, the spot, titled “R+S,” focuses on strong storytelling to promote Toyotathon with a 100-second spot on NBC that diverges from the traditional 15-, 30- and 60-second ads. The longer format speaks to a growing level of experimentation, which also includes shorter spots, such as 6-second ads, to appeal to digital audiences.
The promo focuses on an elderly husband and wife dealing with the removal of a tree that has played an important part in their lives since they were young, which leads to a thoughtful gift from their relatives.
“We identified a way we could break through the clutter with an emotional message and resonate with consumers,” Ed Laukes, group vice president, Toyota Division Marketing, Toyota Motor North America, told Variety.
Saatchi & Saatchi featured a real family of actors in the ad, including grandparents, their daughter and her husband, and their children. It was filmed in central California, where they live.
“The story comes to life because it represents real families,” director Lance Acord of Park Pictures told Adweek. “The central point of the narrative, the tree, is also a metaphor for life and the underlying theme of matriarch passing on the torch from one generation to the next.”
The commercial aired after NBC’s The Voice, and was the only promo shown before programming led into This Is Us. Toyota’s spot was specifically shot in the style of that series.
“Because the ad looks similar to the show people will be tuning in for, we believe the relevance will increase the impact of the spot,” Laukes said.
The 100-second spot was initially created to run in movie theaters, where it will appear on more than 20,600 screens between December 1 - 28 through a deal with National CineMedia. It will also run on television in 60-second and 30-second cutdowns between December 10 - 24.
Linda Yaccarino, chairman of advertising sales and client partnerships at NBCUniversal, told Adweek that engaging, emotional creative combined with a TV platform is the ultimate way to reach a mass audience.
“The natural connection with Toyota’s new creative and such a powerful night of family viewing illustrates the power of contextual messaging, which still reigns king,” Yaccarino said.
While the spot uses a style of cinematography meant to appeal to NBC’s many This Is Us viewers, it also sends a message meant to resonate on a larger scale.
“The winter holiday season seems to get longer every year with retail advertising starting earlier than the year before,” Laukes said. “Yes, we have retail as just like our competitors, but we believe it’s also important to remind customers of the true meaning of the holiday season.”
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