• by Tanya Gazdik , February 16, 2022

Toyota Motor North America used the Super Bowl to debut its largest U.S. launch to date for the Toyota Tundra pickup truck.

The campaign is largest in both media dollars (displacing Toyota Camry in 2018) and total impressions (displacing the 2019 RAV4), per a spokesperson. 

The automaker’s agency partners – Saatchi & Saatchi, Conill Advertising, Burrell Communications, and Intertrend – collaborated on the integrated campaign that shows how the truck’s capabilities and features can accommodate a range of adventures. ZenithMedia placed TV and outdoor media buys.

With an overarching theme of “Born for This,”  it includes a 60-second spot, “The Joneses,” which debuted at the start of the Toyota Halftime Report during the Super Bowl.  

The ad features a crew of celebrities driving Tundras, racing through the countryside on an off-road expedition. First two and then the third are revealed, all with the last name Jones: Tommy Lee Jones, Leslie Jones and then Rashida Jones. In the last scene, we see Nick Jonas behind the wheel. With the group’s reluctant approval, Nick joins in as the voiceover reads “stay ahead in the all-new Tundra.”

While all brands have the “go big or go home” attitude about the Super Bowl, the spot for the all-new Tundra was especially important to the automaker, says Lisa Materazzo, group vice president, Toyota Marketing, Toyota Motor North America.

“You only get one chance to make a first impression,” she says.

The campaign shows a broad range of applications for the full-size pickup, Materazzo told Marketing Daily during a media event for the new truck last October.  

“When you look at the segment and how it has changed over the years, it’s really interesting,” she says. “There is currently a net positive inflow into full-size pickups from a variety of different SUVs, including mid and full-size. So that’s a little bit of an indication of how people are using trucks increasingly for recreation. There is still the work-use application, but it is more than just that.”

“The Joneses” was the brand’s second Big Game spot,  joining the 60-second “Brothers,” which debuted Feb. 8 during the Olympics. Both spots were created by Toyota’s agency of record, Saatchi & Saatchi. 

Viewers who tuned into the Big Game on Telemundo saw “Born to Lend a Hand” at the start of the Toyota Halftime Report. The 60-second spot both in English and Spanish was created by Conill Advertising.

Other spots for the Tundra include “Born For The Wild” featuring friends and families happily escaping to the outdoors for a fun off-road excursion, mountain drive and beach cruise. In “Born For Bringing It,” the Tundra gives drivers the confidence and independence they need to chase any adventure. 

In “Cappuccino,” the television spot created by Burrell Communications, a stylish group of friends meet for coffee, but one friend pulls up in the all-new Tundra Capstone and out-styles them all. 

Intertrend’s creative will launch April 1. It includes two spots that demonstrate how the all-new Tundra symbolizes a driver’s free spirit and authentic identity. 

The effort will extend across linear TV, digital video, digital content, programmatic, paid social, print, experiential, audio, in-cinema and out-of-home. Partnerships include WWE, NFL Draft, Hypebeast, Bassmaster and MLF.

Social is across Facebook, Instagram, Latin Up, Pinterest, Reddit, Snapchat, TikTok, Twitter, Twitch, Yelp and a YouTube Masthead Takeover.