You know those Febreze commercials where people are blindfolded, put in a disgusting location that's been sprayed with the product, and told to talk about what they smell? Now it seems like car manufacturers are hopping on that "surprise and delight" advertising bandwagon—except the settings are a lot more sanitary, and actually nice to look at. First came Chevy's internet-famous "Real People" commercials, and now Mazda is getting on board with this campaign strategy to attract the luxury-minded. It wants consumers to know that you don't need to spend big bucks on a car to get refinement and luxury.
Mazda is introducing its Driver's Choice event this summer, which displays Mazda's passion for affordable luxury. Mazda's first advertisement will launch on July 1st and shows a bunch of luxury car buyers testing a group of de-badged premium sedans on a track, giving their views on each of the cars they drove. Only then do they find out that among the Mercedes-Benzes and Audis is a 2017 Mazda6 (this is certainly a lot like the Chevy's campaign, Mazda). Whether you think the ad campaign is weird or not, Mazda's message is pretty clear. It wants to advertise luxury car levels of comfort, technology, and refinement at half the price.
The Driver's Choice segments will appear on major stations such as NBC and ABC and run until early September. Is it enough to get premium-brand buyers to pick up a Mazda this summer?