American Honda Motor Company works hard to keep up with the competition but hasn’t been quite so successful in the hybrid space. Honda’s Prius equivalent may have been called The Insight, but the company recently pitted all three major holding companies against one another in the search for a bit more of that key noun.
Other campaigns have gone viral (shout out to Michael Bolton) and, according to AdWeek, Honda spends approximately $50 million on digital advertising each year.
Now who’s competing for that money?
“Sources identified the finalists as VML, a unit of WPP Group’s Young & Rubicam Group; Publicis Groupe’s Razorfish; Interpublic Group’s R/GA; and Meredith Xcelerated Marketing, which already handles a large chunk of Honda’s digital marketing.”
Honda’s digital creative review tells us that the reason for all this shopping is consolidation or, as we know it, cost clipping. Before the review went out, American Honda Motor Co.’s digital creative was shared among the aforementioned MXM, Genex, RPA, and Mullen.
“That goal may be difficult to reach, however, given the scope of the search, which includes everything from website development and e-commerce efforts to all types of online ads. The assignment also spans two brands: Honda and its luxury counterpart, Acura. Michael Accavitti, svp [sic] of automobile operations, is spearheading the review.”
Digital media planning and buying duties will stay with MediaVest. Honda aims to complete its latest search by the end of June.