The 2010 Jay Chiat Awards for Strategic Excellence Winners

Social Media Strategy—Silver
Saatchi & Saatchi, Los Angeles
"How Mom and Dad Got Their Swagger Back"

"Minivan" and "cool." The two words just don't go together. Any parent who drives a minivan knows they are giving up all semblance of the cool, hip individual they used to be. It's a sacrifice they make for the kids.

Toyota wanted to throw these good people a bone when they redesigned the Sienna minivan. It doesn't compete with snazzy sports cars but, among minivans, new Sienna had styling and features that would allow a deserving mom or dad to hold their head high in the neighborhood. The challenge now was how to make the most maligned and under-appreciated vehicle in the industry more popular than Apple and Twilight.

We listened. First we got a good understanding of what media and technology today's young parents rely upon. That told us to go where they are, and they are deep in social networking. Next we listened to what they were talking about in their networks and picked up a major hint that allowed us to create more content that sent the talking and the sharing into the stratosphere. Finally, "viral" doesn’t just happen; it needs to be planned and we planned to make Sienna "Swagger Wagon" a part of pop culture.

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