Marketing communication: principles and practice

3 Launch communications
: Communications were designed to work in three phases, as
represented by Figure 13.5.
Phase one: introducing the Yaris
The objectives were to ensure people got the pronunciation right, while alerting them to
the fact that Toyota had a new small car.
In the two days before the launch of the Yaris, a 10-second teaser advert ran on ITV and
Channel 4 which purely communicated the launch of ‘the new Toyota Yaris’. 
To maximize the effectiveness the top-ten programmes watched by the target audience
on those two evenings were chosen to carry the advertising, ensuring the message reached
the right people.
At the same time, the Yaris was incorporated into the main Toyota website.
Phase two: full-scale TV launch – 8 April 1999
The main TV launch for the Yaris started on 8 April 1999. This was a high-visibility campaign
starting with a 40-second commercial for the first four weeks and then using a 30-second
version for the following four weeks.
This heavyweight launch targeted ABC1 adults, with 86 per cent having the opportunity
to see the campaign eight times during these two months.
The following three months used an ‘event TV’ strategy. This was a lower-weight campaign
of selected high-profile programmes specifically watched by the target markets. By choosing
high-profile programmes as opposed to a high volume of programmes, Toyota was able to

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increase the impact and memorability of the campaign and still ensure that 60 per cent of
the audience had an average of five opportunities to see the ad.
Figure 13.6 summarizes how the TV medium was used.
Figure 13.4
The two streams of pre-launch activity of the Yaris launch
Prospects generated from the 1998
Motorshow were segmented into two
groups depending on the information that
was captured
All prospects who had an intended
replacement date within twelve months or
less were placed on the regular-contact
scheme, those who had a date of greater
than twelve months were given a reduced-
fulfilment pack and were contacted
separately nearer their replacement date
The contact strategy for the immediate
prospects was based on a number of
books that were building blocks to
providing information on the development
of the Yaris:
• Book of Character/Book of Facts:
mailed November 1998. An introduction
to the Yaris
• Book of Space: mailed December 1998.
This covered interior space and storage
• Book of Beauty: mailed
January–February 1999, covering styling
and design features
• Book of Reason: mailed February–
March 1999, covering safety, fuel
economy
90,000 conquest prospects were mailed in
the first two weeks of February 1999
By engaging prospects at this point in time,
Toyota aimed to start a relationship, and
provide relevant information at the right
time
The mailing was aimed at the two distinct
target groups:
1 Women aged 25–50
2 Men and women aged 55+