Nissan wants to make driving more enjoyable

Nissan wants to make driving more exciting with a new campaign that aims to break away from the conventional.

The “Whole New Thrill” campaign, created by Juniper Park\TBWA, includes ads that show how Nissan fits into customers’ lives. The videos focus on stresses that drivers face – from a stormy night on an unfamiliar road to a trip with the dog downtown – to show how Nissan technology makes driving less stressful and more enjoyable.

While the campaign creative emphasizes the relatability of these stressors, it shows Nissan’s specific ability to assist drivers in these stressful situations with its Head-Up Display, Rear Door Alert and Google Built-In technology.

Nissan Canada senior manager of marketing Alannah David-Clark tells strategy that in a market where the competition includes an endless list of features in each ad, Nissan opted for the opposite, showing a single feature in each video.

“We strived to build tension and intrigue while communicating that the small technological advances can be thrilling when they solve everyday problems,” David-Clark says. “This campaign demonstrates Nissan’s continued focus on putting the driver and their wants first. Telling a story which underscores the way each vehicle can make everyday moments a little more thrilling.”

The idea for the campaign came from a widely reported industry statistic: the average Canadian car on the road today is more than 10 years old. This means that even Nissan’s older technologies are new to Canadian buyers, David-Clark says. Furthermore, when the team went out to talk to new Nissan buyers, they always mentioned a specific feature that they valued because it solved a certain problem or concern, and the campaign is designed to capture moments where those features came in handy.

The campaign, which is part of Nissan’s ongoing “Thrill” brand platform, also aims to help with one of the biggest challenges the automaker is facing: consumers are aware of Nissan and its vehicle offerings, but when it comes time to purchase, the brand is not always part of the final selection.

“We feel this campaign helps put the consumer into the driver seat of these scenarios, it allows them to see themselves in similar or identical situations they’ve lived through in their life, and how their vehicle could have helped save the day,” David-Clark says.

The campaign launched across Canada on TV, digital, social and OOH. OMD handles media.