• July 23, 2013

Hyundai's "Walking Dead Chop Shop,” involves cars modified to be zombie-proof, the first of which was at Comic-Con International recently. The effort, following the 2012 ‘Hyundai Undead’ marketing campaign for the Elantra Coupe, involves an interactive app for iPhone and iPad, and web site, walkingdeadchopshop.com. Site visitors can create a dead-mobile versions of Elantra, Veloster Turbo or Santa Fe, and vie for the winning design, which will become a real car unveiled in October this year at another Comic Con event.

“Based on the success of the 2012 ‘Hyundai Undead’ campaign, we wanted to further implant Hyundai within the world of "The Walking Dead"and into the hearts of its largely millennial fan base,” said Steve Shannon, VP marketing, Hyundai Motor America. “We wanted to push the limits of branded content integration even further and create an initiative that is authentic to the phenomenal The Walking Dead legacy.”

Agency of record Innocean is driving the effort with “The Walking Dead Chop Shop” through a multi-pronged advertising campaign this summer, per the company. In addition to an on-site activation at Comic-Con International: San Diego 2013, the campaign includes radio buys in key markets, high- impact media and digital video across pop-culture sites, and engagement of the The Walking Dead fan base through social media. 

Custom illustrations created in collaboration with Skybound comic artists are running in The Walking Dead comic books. A suite of complementary advertising will launch this fall to coincide with the premiere of the fourth season of The Walking Dead, as well as some more surprises for fans everywhere.