Why Hyundai’s Ads Suck On Purpose

There’s a Hyundai commercial I see all the time when I’m watching baseball that I hate. It’s so conventional. It tries so hard to be cool, but falls short in a huge way. Like the dad cracking jokes at the cookout, but he’s wearing New Balance 624s and has his Samsung on a belt clip.

Meanwhile, Little Caesars is running a campaign that’s punchy, clever, and effective. They’re pulling interesting inspiration from pop culture, taking a risk with off-beat humor, and making people laugh. 

So why are these Hyundai commercials so boring, when there are so many great examples of eye-catching ads, like Little Caesars? 

Because car companies traffic in trust and respect. In order for Hyundai to sell you a car, they need to have started five years ago. A car purchase is the furthest thing from an impulse buy, and when consumers consider a major car purchase, they’re sifting through years and years of campaign messaging about safety and reliability. If Hyundai all of a sudden rebranded with a hip DTC brand book, they would lose a lot of ground on trust on reliability. Sure, they might catch a few young eyes, but their five-year groundwork in the minds of consumers would be compromised.

Little Caesars, on the other hand, is an impulse buy. It’s for people who are hungry right now, and who don’t want to spend a lot of money. They benefit from consistent rebrands, staying relevant, and speaking in a modern tone. The last pizza ad you laughed is the first pizza company you remember when you’re hungry. 

Maybe you’ve had a marketing project for a friend’s mom’s CPA firm or your grandpa’s real estate company, or another conventional business that really could have used a face lift. Maybe they were resistant to your trendy ideas, and you didn’t know why. It may have been because they traffic in trust and respect, and can’t risk compromising that groundwork. Maybe you would have been better off punting your electric idea, and just making a really solid marketing campaign that stayed on the safe side. 

This isn’t to say that Hyundai and grandpa’s real estate company shouldn’t be making better ads, because they definitely should. But maybe being the coolest kid in school isn’t the best move for them. Maybe increasing trust and respect is the right move for them. 

Good luck out there!