Toyota launches Collaborator with Google Plus

Looking to drive broad engagement and appeal to young first-time buyers, Toyota has launched a campaign which allows users to customize their 2014 Toyota Corolla car while chatting with their friends in a Google+ Hangout. Users can also take virtual test drives using Street View in Google Maps. Launched as part of a collaboration by Toyota USA and its agency Saatchi & Saatchi LA, the campaign’s launch video drew almost 100,000 views on the company’s website, with people taking virtual tours of their cars and going on virtual test drives.

According to Toyota, the average time spent designing a car has doubled, and people are engaging heavily with the tool. Apart from experiencing the car virtually, participants can connect with their local dealer to find answers to product questions, check inventory or schedule real test drives.

Google also collaborated with Toyota USA, which was one of the first global brands to pilot +Post ads to extend the reach of the collaborator campaign. The +Post ads take a video, image or Hangout session from Google Plus, and use Google AdWords to turn it into an interactive display ad across the web. People can then follow the brand, give a +1, leave a comment, or join a Hangout On Air directly from an ad.

“It’s pretty cool that we can let our consumers talk to us directly through the advertising,” says Dylan Schwartz, creative director, Saatchi & Saatchi LA. Elaborating on how +Post ads allowed Toyota to engage more actively with Corolla’s target audience, Monica Peterson, director of social media, Toyota USA said, “Rather than talk at them, we wanted to talk with them. +Post ads increased the level of conversations online and reached those consumers wherever they are.”

A pioneer in the field of virtual driving experiences and marketing, Toyota is experimenting with the future of car-buying with the Collaborator, which is an innovative campaign from the company, to achieve a higher engagement rate with prospective buyers, when compared to direct sales negotiations at dealerships, although that still might be the prevailing trend ten years out. Through the Collaborator, Toyota is embarking on a mission to match its social content to the right people, in the right place, including demographics and much more.

“We focused on developing content that was relevant to our audience to drive engagement, and +Post ads made sure that content got noticed,” Schwartz said. “It doesn’t just change what we say; it changes how we think about it, and how we craft the messaging. And it makes the entire web our social platform.”

Toyota produces more than 10 million vehicles annually. Corolla, which was launched in 1966, has become one of the most popular cars in the world, with more than 30 million of the newer models sold. To continue this trend and grow as a brand, the company has launched the 2014 Corolla version with the Collaborator, reinventing the car-buying experience.

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