BANGKOK, THAILAND — Global brand experience agency, VMLY&R has produced a quirky longform film for Carsome, Southeast Asia’s largest integrated car e-commerce platform, as part of a wider campaign introducing the brand to the Thai market. The agency has a regional remit for Carsome, following its appointment as Agency of Record (AOR) earlier this year.
Showcasing Carsome’s brand promises that offer ‘peace of mind’ services, based on ‘honesty,’ ‘trust’ and ‘transparency’, the film’s values are in line with VMLY&R’s work for Carsome in other Southeast Asia markets – including its successful ‘Setelus Raya Carsome’ Hari Raya campaign for Malaysia and Indonesia.
Entitled ‘Mr. Handsome’, the ad features a married couple in their living room. The husband is eagerly searching for used cars online at carsome.co.th, but his wife does not trust car sales websites. She is worried about false advertising, over-pricing, and other potential pitfalls.
The cars being browsed start dropping dramatically into the room. The ad takes a quirky turn after the appearance of a salesman from Carsome. For every worry the wife voices, the Carsome representative explains how the company has lifted the burden of each concern. The e-tailer’s promises include ensuring all its used cars undergo a 175-point inspection, that the prices are set with no hidden fees, that every car has a 1-year warranty, plus other services.
“At VMLY&R it’s our mission to build connected brands. Carsome is an online used car platform that offers exceptional ease and confidence when buying and selling used cars. The challenge was to differentiate the brand from all existing others in the market, while also highlighting the many selling points it offers,” said Chaval Sindhusingha, Creative Group Head, VMLY&R Thailand.
“So, we created a campaign that exaggerates the ease of buying a used car with Carsome. It’s incredibly easy so you literally only need a single hand to do it. By using a bold, quirky sense of humour plus a touch of Thai insights, along with impactful visuals, we’re creating positive brand association. The aim is to register in customers’ top-of-mind awareness and be the most recalled brand when it comes to used car purchase,” he added.
Watch the film on YouTube and Facebook (Thai), or Vimeo (English subtitles).
The film is part of a wider campaign across online and offline channels including TV, radio, billboards, digital LED screens, and showrooms in Bangkok including location-based ad optimisation for digital.
Commenting, Derek Tan, Chief Brand Officer at Carsome, said: “At Carsome, we understand the pain point of the used car industry which is fragmented and marred by distrust. We leverage on data and technology innovation to streamline the used car transaction process, with the aim of helping our customers move forward with peace of mind – per the film, Aud doesn’t need a head to worry about his purchase, a heart to go through a heart attack over prices or problems, nor even legs to go out and buy a car. Buying a car from Carsome is as easy as counting 1-2-3 – only a single hand is required. We are happy to work with VMLY&R to bring our vision and ideas to life through our brand film in Thailand.”
