New Zealanders are well-accustomed to getting whacked over the head with rugby ads and sponsorship activations. And that only increases in the lead up to—and during—the Rugby World Cup. Many of the tournament sponsors like Land Rover, Heineken, Mastercard and Coca-Cola have played their first promotional hands. And, among the All Blacks sponsors, Adidas has embraced the players’ inner animals for Force of Black, Air New Zealand has upped its sponsorship and its efforts around the #crazyaboutrugby platform, Steinlager has teased the return of the white can and NZ Rugby even decided to do its own campaign. Now Ford and JWT have joined in with an online video campaign called The Driven that talks to three All Blacks about their driving habits and their favourite models.
With Sky commentator and Herald columnist Scotty Stevenson in the interview chair, the clip features Liam Messam, Colin Slade and Dane Coles engaging in a bit of car chat (and, in typically awkward content marketing fashion, trying to answer questions related to rugby that might also apply to its cars).
As it says on Facebook: “You probably know Ford is proud to support the All Blacks. What you might not know is that when an All Black gets their cap and jersey they also get a key to their own Ford; a tradition that goes back 21 years. Hear what some of the All Blacks love about their Fords. Ford – The Driving Force behind the All Blacks for 21 years.”
It’s not clear if any of the All Blacks have requested one of Ford’s MoDe: Flex ebikes or if Ford is for or against the rotation policy.
Earlier this year, a few All Blacks appeared in a video congratulating Ford after its Ranger ute beat Toyota’s Hilux in terms of 2014 sales.
Ford is also a sponsor of NZ Cricket and NZ Hockey and it was hard at work promoting itself as the ‘driving force behind the New Zealand sport’ during the Blackcaps’ phenomenal Cricket World Cup run.
It has also launched a website called Ford HQ, with Shannon Ryan brought in to do the spruiking.
