• by Aaron Baar , July 6, 2009

Having introduced the first laptop to the world nearly a quarter century ago, Toshiba looks to recapture some of that leadership cachet with a new marketing campaign designed to show consumers how versatile and revolutionary its laptops are.

Toshiba has a well-known brand name, but we want to broaden the reach of our laptops," Ron Smith, vice president of marketing for Toshiba's Digital Products Division, tells Marketing Daily. "We've been letting our products do the work. Now, we're stepping up our advertising to do that more."

The multimedia campaign began over the weekend with a 60-second television commercial. In it, a man carrying a Toshiba laptop joins a crowd of people running while carrying their laptops. As others fall behind (as if yanked by an invisible tether) or hit an unseen barrier, the man with the Toshiba laptop breaks through and continues on. The ad carries Toshiba's overall tagline, "Leading Innovation," although the laptop specific work has its own theme: "Set You Free." That spot will also air in a 30-second version, and Toshiba has created several 15-second spots that highlight product attributes, Smith says.

"Everyone knows what laptops and wireless are doing to revolutionize people's lives," Smith says. "['Set You Free'] serves to remind you that Toshiba laptops take you to another level."

The television commercials will run in spot markets on broadcast and cable networks such as ABC, CBS, NBC, Bravo, Comedy Central, MTV, Discovery Channel and others. A print ad, running in general-market lifestyle magazines, alludes to Toshiba's history with the line: "In 1985, Toshiba brought you the laptop. 6,927 patents later, we're bringing you its future."

Toshiba is also crafting a digital campaign, "Normal vs. Boring," in which the company gives laptop computers to residents of two towns -- Normal, Ill. and Boring, Ore. -- and documents how they use these computers to increase community activism. The winning town, chosen via an online contest in late July, will get $15,000 worth of laptops for its schools, Smith says.

In addition, Toshiba has signed on as a sponsor of MTV's VMA Awards. As part of the sponsorship, Toshiba will have a roadblock on MTV's home page in mid-September and advertising during the awards' broadcast. Toshiba has struck a similar deal with Comedy Central to sponsor episodes of "The Daily Show," "The Colbert Report" and "South Park," as well as its site, Jokes.com.

The broad range of media reflects the importance of technology to all different demographics, Smith says. While the overall target is consumers between the ages of 25 and 54, different demographics use different media as their primary sources of information, he says.

"This is a carefully crafted set of advertising initiatives," Smith says. "Each part is meant to address different demographics."