Kia Stepping Up Their Game For Soul Car Commercial

I think that it is getting hard for brands to create advertisements that stand out among the hundreds that are put out each day. Sure there are plenty of unique commercials, but one brand that has recently stepped up their game in television commercials is Kia. About a year ago, in 2010, Kia introduced the Soul model. This model is a compact car that is a "box"-like shape. Soon after the Soul was released in the U.S., Kia launched a series of commercials as part of their "A new way to roll" campaign. These ads were created by the ad agency David&Goliath. (To learn more about this ad agency, visit their website: http://www.dng.com/)
One version of the commercial features hamsters on stationary hamster wheels on city streets, that are then passed up by "cooler" hamsters riding in the Kia Soul. Another version of the commercial features the "cooler" hamsters dancing and driving around in the Soul, passing by other hamsters who are riding around in toasters and washing machines. The tag line in this commercial is that you can either get with this (the cool Kia Soul) or you can get with that (the lame toasters or washing machines). The commercials ended up being awarded "Automotive Ad of the Year" at the Nielsen Automotive Advertising Awards in 2010. 

Below are examples of the first Kia Soul commercials:

This or That Kia Soul hamster commercial

Black Sheep Kia Soul hamster commercial

After about two model years, 2010 and 2011, of the Kia Soul have been out on the market, the brand decided to step up their game for the promotion of the 2012 year model of the Soul. On August 28th, during the MTV Video Music Awards, which is a highly tuned into television event, Kia premiered a new version of the Soul hamster commercial. This version featured the "cool" hamsters driving the Soul, interrupting a battle scene in a alien/robot video game. The hamsters step out of the Soul and being dancing to a current popular hip-hop song; Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO. The hamsters' cool style quickly spreads to all of the robots, as they too begin dancing to the song.

Below is the newest Kia Soul commercial

Kia Soul- Hamsters: LMFAO Party Rock Anthem commercial

I believe that Kia has definitely done a great job with being unique and connecting with their target audience. By using catchy music/current popular music, and different yet recognizable characters: the hamsters, the commercials are very memorable, which really become the mascots for the Soul brand. The idea behind the commercials is that the Kia Soul is different, trendy, and cool, which I think is a good fit for the car because it isn't like other traditional compact cars. I also think that it is great that Kia came out with a different spin on television commercials, because they aren't a brand that typically comes out with unique commercials.