Japan
Advertising and Publicity
1991-1995
After the Bubble: Responding to Changes in Consumer Needs with RVs and Compact Cars
The collapse of Japan's asset price bubble that started in 1991 put the entire Japanese economy into a state of turmoil.
The automotive market also lost momentum in the post-bubble economy. The age of consecutive growth came to an official end, with annual sales sinking to well below five million units in 1993.
Sales across the Toyota Group were 2.5 million units in 1990 thanks to the hard work of dealers in all sales channels, but fell short of 2.1 million units in 1993 despite a rebound in market share to 42.3%.
Consumer preferences also started to shift, this time from large, luxury vehicles to compact, economy cars.
Toyota was among the first to pick up on this change, launching the RAV4 (1994) and other models in the RV market, and redesigning numerous models in the compact car market, including the 'three siblings'-the Corolla II, Tercel, and Corsa (1994)-and the Corolla (1995, eighth generation).
RAV4
With the Earth Summit taking place in 1992 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, recycling and global environmental problems that had surfaced during the bubble years were gaining mass media attention during this period in addition to ongoing problems such as traffic accidents, air pollution, and energy. In 1993, Toyota commenced a series of company advertisements titled, 'Let's talk', that asked customers to join Toyota in thinking about the question, 'What makes a great car?' The campaign promoted Toyota as a company that is serious about exploring the proper role of vehicles in future society and one that is facing up to its responsibility and mission as the top manufacturer in the Japanese auto market.
Year
|
Month
|
Events
|
---|---|---|
1991
|
January
|
Dr. Dolittle 'What makes a great car?' campaign conducted
|
January
|
Cynos debuts; 'More than a friend, less than a lover' campaign conducted
|
|
October
|
||
October
|
Crown completely redesigned; 'All is Crown' campaign conducted
|
|
1992
|
February
|
Barcelona Olympics support campaign conducted
|
May
|
||
August
|
Carina completely redesigned; 'Carina on a Hill' campaign conducted
|
|
October
|
Mark II completely redesigned; 'Mark the Mark II' campaign conducted
|
|
1993
|
February
|
Campaign celebrating 80 million Toyota vehicles produced
|
June
|
Company advertising campaign 'Let's talk' commenced
|
|
October
|
Carina ED completely redesigned; 'TYPE: ED, the style for driving' campaign conducted
|
|
October
|
Celica completely redesigned; 'A Celica-kind of guy' campaign conducted
|
|
October
|
Corona Exiv completely redesigned; 'Why did Lupin target an Exiv?' campaign conducted
|
|
1994
|
January
|
Curren debuts; 'That car is a Curren' campaign conducted
|
May
|
RAV4 debuts; 'The sport called RAV4' campaign conducted
|
|
October
|
Celsior completely redesigned; 'Striving for depth, not change' campaign conducted
|
|
1995
|
March
|
'We are the Toyota RVs!' joint RV campaign conducted
|
May
|
Sprinter completely redesigned; 'Drive happiness!' ad campaign conducted
|
|
May
|
Corolla completely redesigned; 'So much better, all the way through' ad campaign conducted
|
|
August
|
New Crown Majesta released; 'This car compliments its owner first' ad campaign conducted
|
|
September
|
All-Toyota 'Big Challenge' campaign conducted
|