Case Study: Toyota Tundra Endeavor Campaign

Toyota Tundra Endeavor

By: Miriam Friday, Tiffany Jones, Joey Dye, Haley Nelms

Brief Overview• Toyota created the Toyota Tundra Endeavour

campaign because they wanted to create awareness among consumers about the durability, power and strength of their 2012 Toyota Tundra full-size pickup truck.

• Toyota sought to gain coverage by towing the retired Endeavour space shuttle, an American icon, to its final home at the California Science Center on October 13, 2012.

• Campaign is current and showcases modern tactics. • Made contact with public relations team but they

didn’t respond.

Company Background

• Kiichiro Toyoda, the prototype for his first passenger car in 1935.

• In 1937 Toyota was officially established in Japan. • Toyota was established in the United States in 1957.• By 1967 Toyota was the 3rd most popular imported car

brand in the U.S.• The Toyota Tundra is made in San Antonio, Texas.• the founder of the Toyota Motor Corporation, invented

The Problem

• Toyota wanted to show the power and strength of their Toyota Tundra and was trying to think of ways to successfully convey this to the public. They also wanted to showcase the fact that the Tundra is made in the United States and so is not a foreign car.

• The California Science center also had a problem because the original carrier intended to carry the Endeavour from LAX airport to the Science Center was too heavy to cross the Manchester Bridge, which was part of the Endeavour’s intended route.

• Toyota and The California Science Center had an existing partnership so came together to solve their problems.

Research

• The tow was a result of a 20-year partnership between Toyota and the California Science Center to raise awareness of the space program and continue public education through exhibits and events.

• Toyota has contributed between 8 to10 million dollars to the California Science Center since the 1990’s and has worked with them over the years to raise awareness about the space program and exhibitions.

• The Endeavour would travel a total of 12 miles from Los Angeles International Airport on city streets to the Science Center, with the Tundra towing the last quarter mile.

• They ran several tests before the event by making a Tundra pull concrete blocks weighing the same amount as the space shuttle which was about 300,000lbs

• Toyota did extensive testing and worked with The Sarens Group, a heavy lifting and engineered transport company, to develop a dolly specifically for hauling the Endeavour.

• They loaded two heavy haul trailers weighing 55,000 pounds with concrete blocks weighing 90,000 pounds. A dolly weighing 15,000 pounds also supported the trailers; this meant the Tundra towed 307,000 pounds during testing. • The Endeavour and the dolly being towed together

at the real event weighed close to 300,000 pounds.

Goals and Target Audience

• Goal: To increase positive attitudes about Toyota trucks, particularly about the strength and power of the Tundra among consumers

• Target Audience: Males and those who like trucks

Objectives• Toyota sought to create awareness of Toyota trucks

among consumers by garnering media attention about Toyota’s unique role in transporting the Space Shuttle Endeavor.

• They also wanted to increase understanding of the efficient towing capacity and strength of the Toyota Tundra among consumers by showing that Toyota is fully capable of towing the Space Shuttle Endeavor to its new home the California Science Center.

Objectives Cont.• Toyota wanted to make American consumers aware that

the Toyota Tundra is made in the United States and play off of this information by connecting the Toyota brand with the Space Shuttle Endeavor, an American icon.

• Toyota wanted to increase sales of the Toyota Tundra in the U.S and increase awareness of Toyota’s commitment to the space program and public education by joining with consumers to donate over $400,000 to the California Science Center.

Tactics: Online Recources

• They created a site for the campaign that host’s videos, photos and information on the Toyota Endeavor.

• The Challenge-A series of 5 videos • Click • Streamed the event live/ NASA posted pictures /#

Spottheshuttle

Tactics: Representatives of Toyota

• Matt McBride –Professional driver and stuntman• Garret Riesman –Astronaut aboard space shuttle

Endeavor

Tactics: Tweet Drive

• “Share with Twitter”

Tactics: Finish Line Celebration• Created buzz among viewers • Click

Tactics: Activities and Videos for Children• Created a Kid’s Corner on event website

Tactics: Social Responsibility• Toyota also wanted to Increase awareness about space

program through education to ensure campaigns success

Evaluation• The Toyota Tundra Endeavour campaign was successful in

achieving their goal of towing the Endeavour shuttle and custom made dolly safely to the California Science Center on October 12, 2012

• The tow Tundra will replace the existing Tundra and will be on display after the Endeavour exhibit opens on October 30, 2012.

• There was a “finish-line” celebration at Exposition Park when the shuttle arrived at the Science Center, allowing the public to witness the finale of this historic voyage, and creating an opportunity for Toyota to showcase the trucks power.

• They gained coverage from numerous media outlets including, USA Today, The Huffington Post, The LA Times, CBS News, FOX News, and CNN.

• Toyota did the “Tweet Drive Funding Initiative” offer. For every tweet sent using the "Share with Twitter" button on their website, Toyota donated $50 to the California Science Center maximum funding goal of $500,000.• The Tweet drive didn’t end until November 30, 2012

so the information on the actual number is not yet available, but when last checked the estimated amount raised was 402,250 so they had not yet reached the goal of $500,000.

• The campaign only finished in Oct., 2012 so changes in attitudes and awareness have not yet been measured. We also could not find out if sales increased after this campaign.

Strengths• Toyota seized a great opportunity to create brand

awareness by being a part of something that is historical and newsworthy.

• Toyota really utilized social media, You Tube and their event website during this campaign.

• Toyota were smart to partner with a museum such as the California Science Center as it shows the public they care about helping the community and have an interest in technology.

Weaknesses

• Toyota’s press contacts did not respond to our inquires. This shows a flaw in their system and reflects poor relationship management.

• Was research conducted?• What evaluation methods will they use?• Could have done more (free Tundra)

Discussion

• Did you hear about the Toyota Tundra Endeavour campaign?

• Do you pay attention to generic tweets from friends, such as the Toyota prewritten tweet about the event?

• Do you think the fact Toyota donated several million to the California Science Center prior to the event lead to their involvement? Is this ok?

• What did you think about the campaign website?