New Terrain for ATVs

CraneMorley Helping Honda Teach Safety LOS ANGELES--CraneMorley has created a 10-minute instructional video as part of Honda Motorcycles' new, wide-ranging safety awareness campaign for its FourTrax all-terrain vehicles. The video and supporting materials remind consumers--and especially younger ATV riders--that "Stupid hurts." The video, which is being mailed free of charge to purchasers of all new Honda ATVs, supports a general market print campaign from Dailey & Associates, West Hollywood, Calif. Dailey developed the "Stupid hurts" positioning line, which CraneMorley then picked up for the video. CraneMorley, a Long Beach, Calif.-based specialty agency that focuses on automotive clients, captured the ATV assignment on the strength of its previous work for the motorcycle division's parent company, American Honda Motor Co. in Torrance, Calif. The agency has developed various service and parts marketing projects for Honda over the past 10 years, including its "Let Us Show You How" car dealership program, said Larry Gill, the shop's creative director. For this latest project, the agency created all content and packaging for the video and accompanying response card, which enters consumers into a sweepstakes, with cars and cash offered as prizes. No budget was disclosed for the campaign. "We wanted a video that would contain the safety message, but presented in a way that would make [consumers] want to sit down and watch it," said Mary Barta, senior project coordinator at Honda. "It was just a wonderful experience. They were right on the money with what we wanted them to do." Hosted by well-traveled voice actor Travis Davis, the video uses a lighthearted analogy--football bloopers--to stress that ATV riding is both fun and serious business. The message, playfully reinforced by the goofy NFL montages, is that potentially dangerous activities should be met with the proper attitude and preparation. The bulk of the video was shot on ATV trails in the San Bernadino National Forest, where a mom, dad and two kids demonstrate the benefits of getting the proper ATV training, wearing the right protection and riding sensibly and in approved areas. "I choose to play it smart, because stupid hurts," Davis says at the end. The video, the first of its kind and scope for Honda, is expected to have a shelf life of two years, Barta said. Gill said CraneMorley expects to handle further ATV safety work for Honda, whose expanded efforts in that area follow the expiration earlier this year of a consent decree between the U.S. government and manufacturers that had been inked to regulate operation of the vehicles. "One brilliant thing about Honda is that they're the first out of the gate with this [expanded focus on safety]," Gill said. Boasting about 20 staffers, CraneMorley provides services such as technical training and instructional design for automotive clients including Nissan and Mitsubishi.

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New Terrain for ATVs

Tim Nudd

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Tim Nudd