The official slogan for Honda as a company is, perhaps aptly, “The Power of Dreams.” The slogan is not used to sell products, however, but rather as more of a corporate mantra. There was a belief that company founder Soichiro Honda believed that the vehicles would sell themselves because of their pure quality and design. For quite some time, most of Honda’s better marketing campaigns only appeared in smaller markets and larger markets were generally ignored or given less commercials.
Soichiro’s vision for his company certainly fueled the way the company operated and it continues to infuse the car company with its foundation.
One popular Honda advertisement came in 2003 when the company released the famed Cog advertisement in the United Kingdom. The advertisement featured a Rube Goldberg machine constructed entirely out of Honda Accord parts. The commercial depicts a single cog setting off a chain of events that culminate in the image of a moving and operating Accord and the host of A Prairie Home Companion stating “Isn’t it nice when things just work?”
The commercial worked because it was innovative and provide consumers with a look at how much care and detail goes into a single Honda Accord. It also drew attention to the importance of every single cog in the wheel, so to speak. In this sense, Honda was saying more about their company than their products.
For more on Honda’s marketing, drop by your local Honda dealer in Pottstown and have a look around.