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
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Month
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Events
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2006
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March
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Lexus GS 450h debuted; 'Power beyond imagination. Meet the Lexus Hybrid. LEXUS for EARTH' ad campaign conducted
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April
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All-Toyota 'Open the Door' ad campaign conducted
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June
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Estima Hybrid completely redesigned; 'With Earth, wherever you go' ad campaign conducted
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September
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Lexus LS 460 debuted
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October
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Auris debuted; 'The best me ever' ad campaign conducted
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October
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Corolla Axio debuted; 'Car-making by a new measure' ad campaign conducted
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2007
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May
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All-Toyota campaign offers 50,000 yen cash back on all newly purchased minivans with a digital terrestrial TV tuner added
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May
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All-Toyota 'Tomorrow's Harmony' web magazine launched
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May
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Lexus LS 600h and LS 600hL debuted
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June
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Allion completely redesigned; 'Accelerating toward a better you' ad campaign conducted
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June
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Premio completely redesigned; 'A mature quality and style' ad campaign conducted
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June
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Noah completely redesigned; 'Family is true love' ad campaign conducted
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June
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Voxy completely redesigned; 'Be a father' ad campaign conducted
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July
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ist completely redesigned; 'Heavy Beauty' ad campaign conducted
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August
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Vanguard debuted with 'Tough and Gentle 7-Seater' ad campaign
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September
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Mark X ZiO debuted with 'X-Seater' ad campaign
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September
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Land Cruiser completely redesigned; 'The joy of reaching the top' ad campaign conducted
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October
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Corolla Rumion debuted with 'Rumion Slam!' ad campaign
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November
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2008
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February
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Crown completely redesigned; 'The brand that transcends' ad campaign conducted
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May
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All-Toyota 'Ecogae'campaign, an eco-friendly trade-in program, conducted
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May
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Alphard completely redesigned; 'The guest's pleasure, the owner's pride, both right here' ad campaign conducted
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May
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Vellfire debuted; 'The Power Luxury' ad campaign conducted
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October
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December
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Passo Sette debuted; 'We are housewives, we are mothers, we are women' ad campaign conducted
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2009
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January
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Lexus RX 350 debuted; 'New power for Lexus' ad campaign conducted
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March
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Crown Majesta completely redesigned; 'Using all possible technologies' ad campaign conducted
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April
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April
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Wish completely redesigned; 'Realize yourself' ad campaign conducted
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April
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Lexus RX 450h debuted
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May
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Prius completely redesigned; 'Super Hybrid Car Debut' ad campaign conducted
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July
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Lexus HS 250h debuted as Lexus' first hybrid-only model
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September
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Land Cruiser Prado completely redesigned; 'Comfortable and Invigorating' ad campaign conducted
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October
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Mark X completely redesigned; 'Samurai X' ad campaign conducted
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October
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Sai debuted; 'A new YES. Not just a hybrid. A sedan hybrid.' ad campaign conducted
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October
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Toyota Marketing Japan Corporation, a marketing company for operations in Japan, established
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December
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New marketing assistance and coordination company, Toyota Motor Sales & Marketing Co., Ltd., established
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2010
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February
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Major recalls conducted; Apology advertisements placed
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February
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Passo completely redesigned; 'Passo Hana Women's College' ad campaign conducted
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October
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All-Toyota 'Minivan + Navigation System Cashback' campaign conducted
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November
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Ractis completely redesigned; 'Compact, for the families of today.' ad campaign conducted
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December
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FJ Cruiser debuted; 'Fun × Joy' ad campaign conducted
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December
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Vitz completely redesigned; 'Isn't cooler better?' ad campaign conducted
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2011
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January
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Lexus CT 200h debuted
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May
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Prius a debuted; 'Do you think first? Or feel first?' ad campaign conducted
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June
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'Kokoro Hakobu Project', a project to aid the areas affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake, launched
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June
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Avensis debuted; 'Euro Style Wagon: Aesthetic Beauty Forged on European Roads' ad campaign conducted
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September
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Camry redesigned; 'Take a new path: Camry Goes Hybrid' ad campaign conducted
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September
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Pixis Space debuted; 'My Space: Pixis Space' ad campaign conducted
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October
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'Fun to Drive, Again' corporate campaign rolled out
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December
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Pixis Van debuted; 'Pixis Van: For the Working Me' ad campaign conducted
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December
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Pixis Truck debuted; 'Pixis Truck: For the Working Me' ad campaign conducted
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December
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Aqua debuted; 'Making the 'Great' of Tomorrow' ad campaign conducted
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