Communication Analysis

Communication Analysis

1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFkVsiDYI3c

1. Television Commercial

1. 2016 Toyota Prius

1. Toyota has been one of the most popular automobile brands in the automobile industry for decades. Safety and reliability have been most commonly associated with the company, thus causing Toyota to always be considered as a top car brand to purchase from. “Toyota vehicles have always been regarded as family-oriented vehicles, that rarely break down, that are relatively affordable and economical, which obviously appeals to the masses, that want a car that can safely take them from point A to point B at a low cost.” Quality and safety are typically the most important in the eyes of the customer, thus putting Toyota at the top of the list in terms of brand image compared to other direct companies in the industry. Along with the safety and reliability that consumers love, there is a high demand for consumer luxury vehicles and Toyota is perceived as the best company to purchase from for these types of cars. Relative to Toyota’s indirect competitors, much of that depends on preference by the consumer. Based on the perception from the customers, one would expect that they believe Toyota automobiles are much safer than another companies’ motorcycles.
2. Toyota's target market is based upon finding the ‘right’ person and their idea, "Right Car in the Right Place".  “The marketing strategy, market segmentation, market targeting, and market positioning of Toyota cars is based on the care of its users and it can be clearly seen in its variety of offers and product attributes” (Dobni, 2002). Toyota uses demographic and psychographic segmentation for ultimately targeting its markets. To create their markets in various places around the world they have continuously segmented countries for marketing effectiveness. Toyota specifically targets countries like US, China, Australia, Canada, Indonesia, and more. The US has a very large market for Toyota; it consists of 30% of Toyotas market. In the US, Toyota has targeted consumers from economy class to lower class. They have developed both cars for those in the middle class and then those who want a ‘higher class’ luxury vehicle like Lexus. They appeal to all income classes, but with middle class being a large population of the US specifically, that’s a market that they really target. They also emphasize the safety and reliability to target those families who truly appreciate that aspect. Toyota has also developed the Prius for those who are environmentally sensitive. They try to develop and design their cars based off certain customers’ needs and desires. Basing their product off of consumer preference typically is a very effective way to go. In the case of the television commercial given above, Toyota is trying to target another market who typically wouldn’t think to buy a Prius. Along with those who want to buy a ‘green’ car, the commercial is redefining the Prius image to appeal to a larger market. The target market they are trying to appeal to in this commercial seems to be men in general. There are various occasions in their commercial where Toyota hints that the car can be perceived as masculine. Unlike other companies, car companies like Toyota typically have a middle man, or dealership to sell their vehicles. Toyota is able to use the dealerships to view their target markets in a different light. Toyota mainly distributes its products from dealerships. This component of their marketing determines the venues where consumers can access the company’s products. In addition to the importance of performance and look pertaining to the car and what the customer wants, there is also strategy in how they attract the customers to go look and buy the cars. So, the location of the dealership, the customer service, and the overall facility look is extremely important.
3. The Toyota Prius has somewhat of a ‘weak’ representation for a car. Consumers do not think of a fast, durable, masculine car when thinking of a Prius. But, in the television commercial they are trying to change that perceived image. They emphasize the spaciousness, the speed, the technology in the car, and the silence of the engine to portray an improved and elite Prius.
4. Toyota is targeting a new customer base for their Prius in this television commercial. They challenge the perceptions of their Prius and redefine the image to a much more masculine depiction. Toyota has actors in the commercial surprised by the features the Prius provides. Portraying that the average customer doesn’t truly know about what the Prius has to offer. Conveying that the typical reputation of the car isn’t at all true. The commercial has men who robbed a bank in a situation where they need to find a getaway car. They see a red Prius and decide to take that to run from the police, ironically leaving money for the person after taking the car. To emphasize the car in the commercial even more, they have very bland colors all surrounding the shiny bright red Prius. Initially in the commercial, when the men enter the car they’re immediately surprised by the spaciousness the Prius provides. Then, they have the police dispatch worker asking how hard it could actually be to catch a Prius. The cop then says its actually “pretty fast” and the dispatcher acts like it’s a joke. Throughout the commercial Toyota throws in small jabs at the Prius image but then counters the negative perceptions to show that the Prius is improved and should have an improved reputation. They really emphasize the car chase and how the Prius is fast enough, durable enough, and comfortable enough to take part in a long and fast road trip. At one point they have all the men in the car asleep, conveying the comfortability, quietness, and luxury of the car. So quiet and comfortable that the driver stared to fall asleep, and they were able to introduce the automatic brake system that will activate if an object were in front of the car at high speeds. In this case it was the police road block that the automatic brakes assisted in not having a collision with and due to the quietness of the car, they were able to pass the police while they were asleep and not wake them up. So, not only are they emphasizing the sleekness and speed of the car but also the silence and comfort level of the car as well. Along with the hints towards the features of the car, the commercial has various scenes that all show emphasis on the Prius and people gravitating towards the idea of having a Prius.
5. As discussed above, Toyota is trying to change the image of the Prius. They produced the ad to not only encourage repurchase by current Prius owners, but also potential consumers who possibly had a poor depiction of what the Prius has to offer. Those people who think the Prius is a ‘earthy car’ with less concentration on the look, the speed, and the spaciousness are those who Toyota hopes to convince that purchasing a Prius is the best thing for them. Not only is the advertisement promoting the Prius but it is endorsing the diversity of Toyota and its vehicles. Toyota assumingly knew that the Prius had a reputation that caused a certain consumer base to be unattracted to the car. Obviously the people who want good fuel economy and want a car that is environmentally friendly are very supportive of the car. But those who want a fast, tough, masculine car are not going to be attracted to a Prius, thus not purchasing that type of car. So, they came up with a way to advertise that the Prius isn’t just and environmentally friendly car but it is a car that is of high quality in many aspects. Surely many people wouldn’t even think to test the car to see if they like it just because of the image it has. All they needed was to change the perception people have about the car so they at least test the car out and then hopefully like the car and then purchase it. In the end they are trying to control and evolve the image of the Prius while gaining new customers and keeping the old ones.
6. This commercial is quite specific towards the Prius. It obviously promotes Toyotas brand, but the focus on the Prius specially keeps it a bit limited. The communication that Toyota promotes definitely fits in with their image. Specifically showing off the safety features that the Prius has. Toyota is well known for their safety peacefully and that makes consumer comfortable and keep coming back. Some info on Toyotas campaign describes their focus on the consumer and going above and beyond. “Toyota today launched a new corporate advertising campaign, highlighting the company’s commitment to the environment, the economy and local communities.  Built around the theme “Beyond Cars,” the campaign will include print and online ads, as well as a new television commercial. “A founding principle of Toyota is ‘To contribute to society through the manufacturing of automobiles’,” said Steve Sturm, group vice president of Toyota Motor North America.  “This campaign draws upon that core belief and gives concrete examples of how we’re putting this into action today and in the future.”
7. Communication is accessed on various network channels. But, it was introduced during the 2016 Super Bowl on CBS during halftime.
8. If the ad is based off its primary purpose of playing during the super bowl there is a direct correlation between the consumers, they wanted to target with this commercial. More men tend to watch the super bowl and focus on every aspect of the commercials as well. Super bowl commercial slots are extremely expensive for that reason. As discussed above, Toyota tries to change the image to where speed, comfortability, and masculinity are involved when thinking of a Prius. Typically, ‘manly’ men are not going to buy a Prius. But, Toyota obviously hoped with their commercial that they could turn some of there potential customers watching the super bowl to realizing that the Prius has a lot to offer and is not just an environmentalist type of car. Then it also targets those who want to be ‘green’ just because of the image and reputation the Prius has in general.
9. The commercial was definitely effective in portraying that the Prius has speed and comfortability. Due to the fact that Prius’ do have the perception as a car that isn’t as fast and masculine, they do a great job emphasizing the strengths of the car that people may not realize. It definitely is appropriate the way that they did the commercial when trying to re-portray the image of the Prius, but I know that the fact that they used a bank robbery and running from the police to do that isn’t maybe the best idea. People reacted with mixed emotions due to the fact that they used robbers to promote the car. The intentions of the ad were to obviously promote the brand, but the case with this is that since they used somewhat of a negative act for promoting it may have been unattractive to customers. Overall I really liked the ad due to the fact they had effective but somewhat subtle promotions for the car and its image. It was definitely a plus for the Prius based on many consumer’s poor perceptions of the car when thinking of what is ‘cool’ and masculine. They definitely hit their target ausdienve and placement venue by placing this commercial trying to attract mainly those who want a faster and ‘strong’ car by putting it during the Super bowl. I believe that to be very effective and it surely helped the Prius’ image.

Works Cited

http://panmore.com/toyota-marketing-mix-4ps-analysis

http://www.autoinsuresavings.org/toyota-car-brand-best-public-image/

http://pressroom.toyota.com/article_print.cfm?article_id=1773