The Joy of Problems drives Honda forward

Client: Honda
Agency: Starcom
Lead planner: Joanna Poulton

Strategy: "The Joy of Problems" tagline captured Honda's environmental problem-solving business approach, as well as its target audience's love of overcoming problems and challenges.

We invited consumers to engage when they were at their most receptive, when their environmental consciences peaked, predominantly on the commute to and from work.

Activity: A "Problem Playground" invited them to solve simple puzzles, with digital and outdoor activity starting in early January. Problem-solving online content was sponsored: for example, Yahoo Answers' motoring section was targeted with questions such as: "'How do you think Britain's energy policies could be made more effective in curbing emissions?" A Honda-branded widget enabled users to save time and access news and weather data on their desktops.

Sites displayed ads during working hours, including on MSN, Guardian.co.uk and ITV.com, while "Puzzle Piece" ads were placed in news, science and technology areas of sites including Yahoo and AOL. Offline activity hit commuter routes, including digital screens carrying animated sliding puzzles and 48-sheets with puzzles that were progressively solved during posting. Print and radio, including drive-time promotions using Garrison Keillor's distinctive voice. Finally, TV spots were introduced, belying Honda's typical media approach to use TV at the start of a campaign.

Results: The overall campaign generated 50 million page impressions and an average click-through rate of 0.22%; while PDA activity served 210,000 impressions a day and a CTR of 0.58%.

We more than trebled Honda's sales targets, and all achieved with no below-the-line activity.

Joanna Poulton, account manager, Starcom.

This article was first published on Media Week