Hyundai’s New EV Campaign Aims to Be the Choice for Black Customers

In the “Pick a paper” challenge on TikTok, participants film themselves presenting their unsuspecting loved ones with pieces of paper prompting them in a “choose your own adventure” style to select what happens next. Outcomes vary between being treated to a favorite meal and reluctantly agreeing to fold laundry.  

Thankfully, in Hyundai Motor America’s “Choose Yours” campaign, there is no wrong choice. The spot features a real-life couple playing the game based on whether they take their Ioniq 5 or Ioniq 6 vehicle for the day.

“Date Day,” shot in two versions for each car, finds a husband presenting his wife with cards to choose whether they spend their day shopping, at an art gallery, having a picnic or a private karaoke session in an empty lot overlooking the cityscape. The twist with the latter two options is that whichever car they choose can power an electric grill for their outdoor feast or the speaker for their musical moment.

While the ads—created by HMA’s multicultural agency, Culture Brands, and directed by multi-Cannes Lions winner, Rohan Blair-Mangat—may leave viewers with some perfectly romantic date ideas, their ultimate goal is to woo African American consumers with the lifestyle benefits of the brand’s electric vehicles.

“One thing that is always important to us when ideating and executing campaigns is connectivity,” Eunique Jones Gibson, founder and CCO of Culture Brands, told Adweek. “Electric vehicles still have to be demystified and normalized for consumers. ‘Choose Yours’ is really about highlighting the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6, but in ways that empower the viewer to go electric while showing them that Hyundai is there for their journey.”

For HMA chief marketing officer Angela Zepeda, the campaign further drives home the brand’s commitment to making emotional connections with consumers who may still be unfamiliar with the South Korean-owned automaker and are open to embracing new green tech. In fact, she sees parallels in the ads’ creative and the brand’s overall mission to present consumers with product choices that simultaneously serve their needs and the environment.

“Out of the box thinking is important when considering your next move, whether it’s for choosing the next date night or for choosing to go electric,” Zepeda told Adweek. “With the ‘Choose Yours’ campaign, we were able to showcase the innovation behind the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6 vehicles and illustrate how focusing on even the smallest details can make the biggest difference.”

The campaign is airing in 15-, 30- and 60-second versions across broadcast and digital, as well as social and influencer posts.

Steering the conversation

While the campaign’s overall premise resonates broadly, that it targets African American consumers by referencing a social media trend embraced by the community is explicitly by design.

Citing the Black consumer as “a $300 billion opportunity for businesses,” Culture Brands’ first work for HMA “Okay Hyundai!” launched in fall 2021, using a popular cultural reference in which a person compliments something by putting emphasis on the word “okay” before stating the subject of admiration. (Google Pixel previously used the reference in an NBA campaign.)

The ongoing campaign has since won several awards and increased brand awareness in the market, with Hyundai eager to continue the momentum.  

“While we continue our exploration to innovate and exceed customer expectations in a fast-growing EV market, we want to build a culture where we connect with people on their own terms and in relevant ways,” said Erik Thomas, HMA’s director of experiential marketing, in a statement.  

“In our latest extension of the ‘Okay Hyundai’ theme, our goal is for the viewer to see Hyundai as progressive, sophisticated and streamlined, just like our real-life couple.”