Japan

Advertising and Publicity

2006-2011

Pioneering a New Generation with a Revolution in Automotive Technologies: The Battle of Next-Generation Vehicle Strategies for a Low-Carbon Society Finally Heats Up!

The Japanese economy, which was on a slow but steady path to recovery, started declining around the end of 2007 and quickly deteriorated following the collapse of Lehman Brothers in autumn 2008. With the Great East Japan Earthquake hitting Japan in spring 2011 and the floods hitting Thailand in 2011, conditions are presently the most challenging yet.

The automotive market rebounded slightly in 2010 thanks to an economic stimulus package that included tax breaks for fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly cars. However, dismally low sales levels continued throughout 2011 as a result of the Great East Japan Earthquake and the floods hitting Thailand in 2011. Toyota also saw a slight turnaround in sales in 2010, posting 1.57 million units for the year, but struggled in 2011 as the market took a significant amount of time to recover after the disaster.

Toyota launched a number of new models starting in 2006, including the Auris (2006), Vanguard (2007), and iQ (2008). Later, in an aim to popularize hybrid vehicles, it launched the Sai (2009) and Lexus CT 200h (2011); the Prius a, which was scheduled to be unveiled in April 2011 but was delayed due to the disaster, was launched in May 2011. The Aqua, a compact hybrid, was introduced in December.

In advertising, Toyota conveyed a 'customer first' attitude. To boost its corporate image, including that of its manufacturing and dealer operations, All-Toyota launched in November 2007 a series of advertisements titled, 'The One and Only Toyota', that ran in major newspapers across Japan. In 2010, it posted an apology for major recalls of its vehicles and efforts it would be making henceforth to regain trust in newspapers ads and on its website. From that time onward, All-Toyota worked in unison to regain consumer trust. Following the earthquake and tsunami in 2011, Toyota refrained from airing commercials, holding press events for new vehicles, and engaging in similar marketing activities. Then in October of 2011, a corporate campaign was rolled out under the slogan, 'Fun to Drive, Again'. Under the tag line 'Re BORN', Toyota aimed to reinvigorate Japan and to convey 'the joy of a new generation of automobiles'.

With the media landscape changing markedly in the area of advertising and marketing, Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) established Toyota Marketing Japan Corporation and Toyota Motor Sales & Marketing Corporation in the latter half of 2009. The new companies were part of a larger effort to advance genchi genbutsu- and consumer-based marketing activities and to reform Toyota's product development and sales operations.

Also, to respond to an ongoing decline in vehicle demand among youth caused by structural factors in Japan's automotive market, and to create new markets over the medium- to long-term, Toyota launched two new plans during this period, GNT Part II in 2007 and GNT NEXT in 2010. Both kept the framework and spirit of the original GNT plan while being more adapted to changes in the market environment and positioning Toyota better for growing in the next-generation.

Year
Month
Events
2006
March
Lexus GS 450h debuted; 'Power beyond imagination. Meet the Lexus Hybrid. LEXUS for EARTH' ad campaign conducted
April
All-Toyota 'Open the Door' ad campaign conducted
June
Estima Hybrid completely redesigned; 'With Earth, wherever you go' ad campaign conducted
September
Lexus LS 460 debuted
October
Auris debuted; 'The best me ever' ad campaign conducted
October
Corolla Axio debuted; 'Car-making by a new measure' ad campaign conducted
2007
May
All-Toyota campaign offers 50,000 yen cash back on all newly purchased minivans with a digital terrestrial TV tuner added
May
All-Toyota 'Tomorrow's Harmony' web magazine launched
May
Lexus LS 600h and LS 600hL debuted
June
Allion completely redesigned; 'Accelerating toward a better you' ad campaign conducted
June
Premio completely redesigned; 'A mature quality and style' ad campaign conducted
June
Noah completely redesigned; 'Family is true love' ad campaign conducted
June
Voxy completely redesigned; 'Be a father' ad campaign conducted
July
ist completely redesigned; 'Heavy Beauty' ad campaign conducted
August
Vanguard debuted with 'Tough and Gentle 7-Seater' ad campaign
September
Mark X ZiO debuted with 'X-Seater' ad campaign
September
Land Cruiser completely redesigned; 'The joy of reaching the top' ad campaign conducted
October
Corolla Rumion debuted with 'Rumion Slam!' ad campaign
November

All-Toyota 'The one and only Toyota for the customer' (declaration version)

All-Toyota 'The one and only Toyota' advertisement series commenced
2008
February
Crown completely redesigned; 'The brand that transcends' ad campaign conducted
May
All-Toyota 'Ecogae'campaign, an eco-friendly trade-in program, conducted
May
Alphard completely redesigned; 'The guest's pleasure, the owner's pride, both right here' ad campaign conducted
May
Vellfire debuted; 'The Power Luxury' ad campaign conducted
October

'iQ Style' product ad

iQ debuted; 'New Way' ad campaign conducted
December
Passo Sette debuted; 'We are housewives, we are mothers, we are women' ad campaign conducted
2009
January
Lexus RX 350 debuted; 'New power for Lexus' ad campaign conducted
March
Crown Majesta completely redesigned; 'Using all possible technologies' ad campaign conducted
April
All-Toyota 'The Little Store Manager: The New Way to Buy a Car'
All-Toyota 'The Little Store Manager' advertisement series commenced
April
Wish completely redesigned; 'Realize yourself' ad campaign conducted
April
Lexus RX 450h debuted
May
Prius completely redesigned; 'Super Hybrid Car Debut' ad campaign conducted
July
Lexus HS 250h debuted as Lexus' first hybrid-only model
September
Land Cruiser Prado completely redesigned; 'Comfortable and Invigorating' ad campaign conducted
October
Mark X completely redesigned; 'Samurai X' ad campaign conducted
October
Sai debuted; 'A new YES. Not just a hybrid. A sedan hybrid.' ad campaign conducted
October
Toyota Marketing Japan Corporation, a marketing company for operations in Japan, established
December
New marketing assistance and coordination company, Toyota Motor Sales & Marketing Co., Ltd., established
2010
February
Major recalls conducted; Apology advertisements placed
February
Passo completely redesigned; 'Passo Hana Women's College' ad campaign conducted
October
All-Toyota 'Minivan + Navigation System Cashback' campaign conducted
November
Ractis completely redesigned; 'Compact, for the families of today.' ad campaign conducted
December
FJ Cruiser debuted; 'Fun × Joy' ad campaign conducted
December
Vitz completely redesigned; 'Isn't cooler better?' ad campaign conducted
2011
January
Lexus CT 200h debuted
May
Prius a debuted; 'Do you think first? Or feel first?' ad campaign conducted
June
'Kokoro Hakobu Project', a project to aid the areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake, launched
June
Avensis debuted; 'Euro Style Wagon: Aesthetic Beauty Forged on European Roads' ad campaign conducted
September
Camry redesigned; 'Take a new path: Camry Goes Hybrid' ad campaign conducted
September
Pixis Space debuted; 'My Space: Pixis Space' ad campaign conducted
October
'Fun to Drive, Again' corporate campaign rolled out
December
Pixis Van debuted; 'Pixis Van: For the Working Me' ad campaign conducted
December
Pixis Truck debuted; 'Pixis Truck: For the Working Me' ad campaign conducted
December
Aqua debuted; 'Making the 'Great' of Tomorrow' ad campaign conducted

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