oco Chanel once said that ’simplicity is the keynote of true elegance’, and it is that idea which underpins the
groundbreaking advertising campaign for the Optima. Lawrence Hamilton, Kia’s General Manager - Marketing Communications, explains the idea behind the campaign: “The ‘park the clichés’ concept behind the promotional activity starts from the position that the Optima is a great looking car. As a result, the message we are conveying is that the car doesn’t need all the usual car advertising
clichés to sell it. So essentially viewers see a white studio and an Optima revolving, with a lone voiceover, the message of which is essentially this: park the clichés, and just drive this car.” Rob Porteous, Creative Director at the London-based advertising agency David and Goliath, which came up with the advertising concept, expands on the thinking behind the campaign: “Essential to the pitch was to illustrate to potential customers how beautiful the Optima looks. Of course, you just couldn’t do such a simple ad if the product wasn’t gorgeous: it has to be able to sell itself.
“So viewers get a full 360° view of the car in a plain studio setting. But on top of that, we wanted to be braver still. We wanted to bring out the playfully provocative side of Kia, so the voiceover has a rather tongue-in-cheek dig at what other manufacturers do in their TV advertising with futuristic empty cityscapes, perfect roads along beaches or through mountains, selling lifestyles that are idealised.” It’s a bold approach, but what triggered the idea? “There are basically two types of advertising: brand and product, and in the case of the park the clichés campaign, it’s almost as though we are treating a product