A new 10-second television commercial, which began flighting on 25 March, sees Toyota SA’s popular spokes-dog, Buddy the Boxer with attitude, pay tribute to the Toyota Hilux. The commercial introduces the Legend40, which marks the vehicle’s 40 years of existence.
The Draftfcb South Africa team behind the commercial was group chief creative officer Brett Morris, Draftfcb Johannesburg executive creative director James Cloete and art director Ivor Forrester. Dean Bloomberg directed the ad for Bouffant Productions, with Sinister Studio responsible for the extensive post-production. Comedian Chris Forest is the voice of Buddy.
Broadcasting on selected television channels, the ad is being supported by a print campaign and a cut-down of the original Hilux “Sheep’ TV commercial.
In the new ad, Buddy sits on the dealer floor, admiring the Legend40’s good looks and praising Hilux’s legendary status. He asks for a test drive – for him and the sheep from the first commercial he did for the Hilux.
Last month, two of Buddy’s commercials made the Millward Brown Adtrack™ Top 10 Most Liked list for 2009. Adtrack™ is an effective advertising research system that tracks the liking and noting performance of all television commercials flighted annually. These scores are collated into a comprehensive report highlighting the top performers, that is, the country’s best ads according to the most important critics, the consumers.
For the 2009 year, the Top 10 Most Liked list featured two of Toyota’s ads. Buddy and Draftfcb Johannesburg provided the country’s second most liked ad, as well as its 10th. These were Toyota Corolla “Buddy’ and Toyota Hilux “Buddy – Sheep’. The ad that ranked top of the list was a global ad produced in Holland.
Said Draftfcb Johannesburg’s Executive Creative Director, James Cloete: “For every critic of Buddy’s acting style, there are hundreds of supporters, as evidenced by the giggles of delight his appearances on both the big and the small screen are provoking.
“We’re immensely gratified by the positive response of ordinary South Africans to the smart-talking canine with attitude’s debut on television in the last quarter of 2009, because we know that best liked ads really do build brands.’
Added Toyota SA’s Senior Manager: Marketing Communications Planning & Advertising, Pieter Klerck: “Buddy is now a familiar Toyota property, yet has allowed us to maintain all the individual product personalities of Corolla, Hilux et al. He’s helped us maintain share of voice in the media, regain our position among the top 3 automotive manufacturers, and protect – as well as increase in some sectors – our market share in tough times. And, using Buddy, we have managed to communicate all our messages with literally half the budget. He’s a powerful force!’
