The Campaign

The content was intended to run in various countries around the world, and the situation is different in each country. That is why our focus was on a universal appeal, and we looked for a theme that could be used everywhere, while also communicating the two aspects of the product; Japanese high technology and premium feel. The samurai was a perfect choice that satisfied all of these requirements.

Results

Brief: Design a brand campaign that establishes Yokohama Tire as a high-performance Japanese brand in the minds of people all over the world, regardless of their level of knowledge of Japan or the difference in language. Solution: What would make everyone everywhere think, “This is what I call a Japanese tire!” Our challenge was to find the answer to this question through design, and the solution (i.e. design motif) that our creative team came up with was 'samurai'. Furthermore, by using 'Japanimation'—a visual approach that’s very symbolic of Japan — we were successful in realizing a creation that surprised audiences around the world. From 2D to 3D and from black to red & white, the look of the campaign continues to evolve as we incorporate requests from various markets. Result: Through a design that doesn’t rely on language to communicate, we were successful in surprising audiences around the world, and the campaign ran in various regions (South America, the Middle East, Asia, North America, Russia, etc.) with vastly different cultures and languages. An especially marked result was achieved in the emerging market of Russia—a new frontier for Yokohama Tire. It grew to become the No.1 brand in share among all other Japanese tire brands in Russia.

In overseas markets, the samurai—which we used as a metaphor for the brand—stood out as a particularly original and striking theme, and we received feedback that it stirred the imagination. In fact, we heard that there were numerous comments and questions about the commercial and product by shoppers visiting retail stores.

By applying such an iconic character as a armored samurai, the campaign was effective in many countries around the world. Also, we were able to tie in with mass media, thus appealing to consumers the brand image of YOKOHAMA TYRE = Japan, as well as it contributed to the activation of the dealers shops.