Yokohama Tire Corp. is treading new ground with its latest advertising campaign showcasing the tire maker's ultra-high-performance and high-performance tire lines.
The page-and-a-third print ads-that dimension is a first for Yokohama-are targeted at enthusiasts and feature from the road-up beauty shots emphasizing the tires' treads. Phrases like ``Grip like this will numb your extremities'' and ``Because grip is everything'' headline the prints.
The road-up concept was used, according to a Yokohama spokeswoman, ``because it really showcases the tire in its best light. Not only can you see the tread, but how they enhance the look of the vehicle. That is one of the things that Yokohama is known for-our unique tread design.''
Following headlines are blocks of copy touting the individual tires' wares. In the lower-left corner of each ad is a photo of that particular tire's tread pattern, and above each picture is a ``performance equation'' listing the tire's characteristics and features.
By the time the campaign is in full force-it began in April and will run through the end of the year-it will include ``14 to 15 different ads focusing on maybe four or five different products,'' said a spokeswoman for Yokohama's advertising agency, Cleveland-based Arras Group.
She added that there are still a couple of ads in progress and said each focuses on a specific product.
``Each product has the same headline, but the ad has a little different perspective on it,'' she said.
Products include the Parada Spec-2 and AVS Sport, along with the AVS dB decibel and the Geolandar AT+ II.
There also will be an ad for the soon-to-be-available AVS ES100 which, the Yokohama spokeswoman said, will be launched July 1.
``High-performance tires have always been Yokohama's heritage,'' she said. ``We have a lot of new products coming out in that category that we wanted to go ahead and focus on.''
The new ads are running in such enthusiast magazines as Automobile, Bimmer, Car & Driver, Euro Tuner, Excellence, Four Wheeler, Grassroots Motorsports, Popular Hot Rodding, Panorama, Road & Track, Roundel, Sport Compact Car, Super Street and Velocity.
``The ads are running in spring. That leads into our selling season,'' the Yokohama spokeswoman said.