Toyota to push RAV4 in Super Bowl

LOS ANGELES — Toyota's RAV4, already the best-selling nonpickup in the nation, will get a big marketing push with a Super Bowl ad.

The compact crossover, redesigned for 2019, comes in three distinct trim levels, including a sporty hybrid and a rugged Adventure model. That gives Toyota some leeway to reach out in a more targeted way to specific customer segments, such as through nontraditional experiential marketing initiatives, Ed Laukes, head of marketing for the Toyota Division, told Automotive News on the sidelines of the Los Angeles Auto Show.

"But we're not by any means abandoning the traditional market," Laukes said. The RAV4's massive volumes, and the marketing budget that comes with it, mean Toyota can still leverage large, mainstream platforms such as big-time network sports, he said. And they don't get much larger than the Super Bowl.

"It's the biggest set of eyeballs on the planet," said Laukes.

As in the NFL, though, Super Bowl marketing wins don't come easily.

"It's expensive, and it's difficult," he said, "and what has happened over time is that it's really evolved. It started off with people just focused on just a commercial. Now, it's become an entire campaign just around Super Bowl, and there's so many different strategies," with teasers or entire ads released days before the game.

The game will be played Feb. 3 in Atlanta.