Hyundai Reveals New Advertising Campaign Challenging Consumers to 'Think About It'

FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., Sept. 7 -- Hyundai Motor America (HMA) announces the launch of a two-part advertising campaign aimed at reframing the brand for U.S. consumers under the theme "Think About It." This new advertising campaign is the first major creative work by Hyundai's national marketing and advertising agency Goodby, Silverstein & Partners which was hired this past spring.

"Our new 'Think About It' advertising campaign is designed to be thought provoking," said Joel Ewanick, Vice President of Marketing, HMA. "Goodby, Silverstein & Partners has developed an unconventional, integrated campaign that challenges perceptions about our brand and the auto industry, resulting in a creative execution that feels authentically Hyundai."

By adopting a tone of disarming honesty, Hyundai is breaking down the barriers that consumers have built to shield themselves from marketing claims. The intent was to pull consumers into a new understanding of the automotive world -- to challenge consumers' thoughts about what is, and should be, "standard" in the automotive industry.

"The Hyundai brand has an opportunity to define itself in the eyes of the consumer," said Jeff Goodby, co-chairman of Goodby, Silverstein & Partners. "We feel that the campaign will close the huge gap between the reality of Hyundai vehicles and the perceptions that consumers have about the brand."

Phase one features three weeks of unbranded advertising from September 10 - 28, 2007. The intention is to increase the receptivity of a consumer audience that is increasingly skeptical of marketing messages, by offering startling proof points deployed across the media landscape (print, broadcast, outdoor and online). During phase one of the campaign, the advertising challenges conventional thinking about the auto industry.

  Examples include:
  *  Shouldn't a car have more airbags than cupholders?
  *  The logo is there to tell you what the car is, not who you
     are.
  *  When a car company charges for roadside assistance aren't
     they really just helping themselves?

Phase two begins September 29th, identifying the brand as Hyundai and presents ideas and thought bombs that challenge conventional thinking. They actively ask the consumer to "think about" unique truths regarding the Hyundai brand. Thoughts like:

  *  New technologies confirm: the best way to avoid an
     accident is to avoid an accident
  *  We built over 2000 Sonatas and then crushed them in the
     name of quality
  *  932 Engineers Agree: Bling Saves Lives

Hyundai Motor America, headquartered in Fountain Valley, Calif., is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Co. of Korea. Hyundai vehicles are distributed throughout the United States by Hyundai Motor America and are sold and serviced through more than 750 dealerships nationwide.

Journalists are invited to visit our news media web site: http://www.hyundainews.com/