AutoTrader has launched a new campaign, the first work to come out of a new agency relationship with Toronto agency Doug&Partners.
The auto classifieds site picked Doug&Partners from around five other agencies in December last year, and got to work on a first campaign that debuted at the end of March.
The campaign includes two spots, “Great Deals” and “Instant Cash Offer,” and promotes AutoTrader as easy to use, while touting its vast selection of new and used vehicles.
“We really want to showcase that we’re Canada’s trusted source for buying and selling cars, and Doug&Partners had the right ideas and the execution strength to really help us showcase that message,” says Lilian Lau, VP of consumer marketing at Trader Corporation.
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“Great Deals” brings forward a broader message about the AutoTrader brand, with Lau saying the goal is to remind viewers that AutoTrade is “an established Canadian brand and that we really help consumers find the best deals and find the best prices when we’re searching for cars.” The “Instant Cash Offer” spot, on the other hand, introduces a new product the company is offering Canadian consumers that allows them to get an immediate offer on their vehicle from a dealership and avoid a long selling process.
She adds that it was Doug&Partners’ “strategic and creative thinking” that earned it the win. “They’re obviously really creative, but what we liked about them is that every decision that they made was really backed with really relevant rationale that would help us really message the way that we wanted to in the consumer’s mind.”
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Meanwhile, AutoTrader continues to work with agency Co-Op, which oversaw a video content series for the brand last year, on other areas of the business, such as content and PR strategy, according to Lau. “They’re still very much involved in supporting our broader marketing needs.”
The media strategy for the new campaign includes broadcast, digital video and social and is expected to serve as the “anchor” of the brand’s 2019 marketing strategy, according to Lau, with media placements appearing throughout the rest of the year.
Through Doug&Partners, AutoTrader (known as AutoHebdo in Quebec) has been working with The French Shop on a local adaption of the campaign for the French market. The general messaging remains the same, but instead features Quebec actor Antoine Vézina.
