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Who says marketing can’t be a free ride?
Author: Michelle Dash
July 6, 2007
Scion doesn’t spend their advertising money on TV commercials and print ads; they send scouts to check out urban markets in their target demographic. When they find a good location, they make a deal with a local business to hand out $15 gift cards (it is part of their business strategy to avoid corporate franchises).
The Scion team then sets up a Scion-branded trailer and a small tent on a busy street and offers a gift card, t-shirt and key chain to anyone who takes a ride around the block in the new Toyota Scion. Scion doesn’t want you to see their car; they want you to experience their car. Riders must fill out a survey about the car in the Scion trailer, which is equipped with computers set to the Scion website. You can hang out in the trailer and customize a car by “building your own Scion” online.
This is a great marketing tactic because it is a win-win situation. Scion has a consumer’s captive attention during a short drive where the passenger likely to ask questions about the car. They also constantly collect feedback about the car and information about their target demographic. Consumers enjoy the free prizes.
Does it work? Toyota’s youth-market division enjoyed a 10.6% sales increase in 2006, despite a virtually unchanged product line. Scion’s unique strategy promotes word-of-mouth marketing. Curiously, while I was reading The Anatomy of Buzz by Emanuel Rosen, my friend called to tell me how he got a $15 dollar gift certificate across the street from my apartment. 10 minutes later, I had a gift certificate, too!
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