Toyota Gets a Little Assy (McGee)

Following up on what I’ve got to assume was a fruitful partnership for the Scion with Adult Swim’s Frisky Dingo, the carmaker has signed on to another in-show sponsorship.

This time the Scion brand will be worked into Assy McGee, an animated series featuring a gun-toting ass with legs (see pic above).

According to TVWeek:

“During each “Assy” episode this season, which kicks off April 6, a mock commercial for Scion will appear. The 35-second commercial is a takeoff on those local auto dealer spots with the loud-mouthed pitchman. Only in this spot, the loudmouth is Assy, who makes a gassy pitch, complete with graphics that promise Scion car shoppers, “No Haggle,” “No Hassle,” “No Bullshit.” It ends with the tag “Don’t make me run your ass over.”

You can watch it for yourself here.

I remember seeing the Scion sponsorship in Frisky Dingo and thought it was actually pretty funny and well-don.  The key seems to be transparancy.  We’re all in on the joke and at the same time the brand message is being transmitted.  This is a lot like the Doritos/Colbert Report union.

Whether or not Scion appearing in a show about an animated ass will drive up sales among young drivers remains to be seen.

KateModern Gets a Lift from Toyota

KateModern, a spinoff of LonelyGirl15, has just lined up Toyota for some sponsorship/product placement.

“Bebo’s leading online drama KateModern which averages 1.5 million views per week, will be filming 7 episodes in 3 cities featuring a special brand integration with Aygo Platinum by Toyota.

Next week, fans of the show will be able to come and witness KateModern being filmed as a piece of live street theatre in locations across the UK. These special episodes will be aided by Toyota, who are providing the wheels to take the cast and crew to Manchester on the 19th February, Edinburgh on the 20th, and Leeds on the 21st. The Aygo will also be featured in next week’s story which will air on Bebo from Monday February 25th for seven days.*”

You can read the whole press release here.

This isn’t huge news but it will be interesting to see how this integration is carried out – whether or not it will strike a viable balance between promotion and entertainment.