9:28 am, February 27, 2014
MOTORS.co.uk has committed its largest ever monthly marketing spend ahead of the crucial March plate-change.
The company has created a brand new advert and a second-wave of advertising to help dealers sell more cars.
Following the success of its initial ‘Carousel’ commercial, which saw shopper ‘Amy’ saved from a spooky car merry-go-round by the brand’s unique ‘Smart Search’ lifestyle search product, Motors.co.uk has revealed that a giant, two-metre tall headless chicken will now be the star of the screen, as bemused family man ‘Mark’ tries to overcome the ‘Carfuffle’ of choosing his next car.
The ‘Chicken’ creative will run throughout March across popular channels including: ITV1, C4, Sky One, Dave, ITV2, Sky Atlantic, E4, Sky News and live Premier League football on BT Sports.
In April, the highly successful ‘Carousel’ will return to screens, with both ‘Chicken’ and ‘Carousel’ running across the whole marketplace. The high-profile TV activity continues to be supported by radio, outdoor, online media and PR.
Andy Coulthurst, managing director of Motors.co.uk, said: ‘Our dealer customers have seen some very strong results since we launched our TV advertising just five weeks ago. Traffic to the Motors.co.uk network has smashed previous records, with results for February (to date) up by more than +121 per cent.
‘In addition, we have also seen considerable growth in page views and time spent on the site, while some dealers have seen telephone enquiries more than double compared with the same period in 2013.’
He continued: ‘It is clear we made the right decision to stick to our search logic of returning cars by distance and delivering on our aim of connecting motor retailers with local buyers, as dealers have also enjoyed a steady rise in the metrics which generate walk-ins, such as map views and print vehicle details.
‘We look forward to receiving the first full month’s sales data from our dealer customers so that we can fully map the increase in leads and sales as a result of the ‘Carfuffle’ campaign.’
The two-metre tall animatronic headless chicken, which stars in the new ads, was custom-built for Motors.co.uk on set in South Africa using a mix of real and rubber feathers and hydraulics to create life-like chicken movements.
