Nissan revs up Nismo brand to fuel brand charge around innovation
Nissan is embarking on a marketing drive to help restablish the racing credentials of its Nismo performance brand in a move that will see it also serve as a test bed for innovative advertising ideas.
Much of the early elements of the strategy will whirl around the car maker’s return to the Le Mans 24 hours race after 16 years with the 1,250bhp hybrid GT-R LM. Sporting somewhat of a radical design in comparison to rival racers, Nissan hopes its creativity will woo new fans as it also competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship all over the world.
A global campaign, which launched during the Super Bowl (2 February), tries to capture the ‘Spirit of Le Mans’, showcasing the car as it hurtles around a race track at breakneck speeds. Nissan’s decision to go down the standard creative route for promoting the model comes back to the need to demonstrate its innovation in a clear way, while also cementing Nismo’s status as a performance brand.
The car marque also plans to convey innovation through its actual marketing and media choices.
Darren Cox, global head of brand, marketing and sales at Nismo, told The Drum that it is the “maverick edge of Nissan”.
“Nismo allows us to explore really innovative ideas, both from the product point of view and with innovation in marketing through programmes like GT Academy where we engage with a new generation via gaming,” he added.
While the 24 Hours of Le Mans is a marquee event, the FIA World Endurance Championship is not on the level of prominence or awareness worldwide. In competing in and marketing both events, Nissan’s activations will reach tens of millions of potential viewers rather than the tens of thousands of hardcore followers.
Cox said: Le Mans is still the biggest race in the world. It is now attracting the biggest brands in the world - brands like Porsche and Rolex have made big commitments - to what will become known as a golden era in sports car racing.
“To bring the Nismo spirit to a wider audience and use the platform of Le Mans to reinvigorate people’s love affair with endurance racing across the globe. In America, the last thing many people remember about Le Mans is the film with Steve McQueen so we want to spread the word about how special this racing still is.”
The push comes as Nissan looks to apply Nismo’s tuning and performance expertise to Nissan road cars. It aims to elevate the status of Nismo among drivers, using the name as a marker of performance and premium sports variants of mainstream Nissan models.
Cox spoke to The Drum about wider plans for the Nismo brand as well as how its return to the Le Mans endurance race will fit with its wider sponsorship strategy.
The Drum: How does Le Mans car align with the Nismo and wider Nissan business objectives? Are you hoping to support sales?
Darren Cox: It’s all about living the brand. [The GT-R LM] is the ultimate expression of innovation that excites. The days of winning on a Sunday and selling on a Monday are gone. Our LM P1 Le Mans programme is there to continue to establish Nismo as one of the leading performance brands with its own unique DNA.
The Drum: How does LM P1 compare to other Nissan sports partnerships ie Uefa Champions League?
Cox: Our new commitments to UCL, The Voice, Africa Nations Cup and now Le Mans show that Nissan is focusing on big properties, big ideas and seeking to activate them in an innovative way. We also work to link our sports partnerships together as we showed by linking our LM P1 launch to the Super Bowl.
The Drum: Why have you chosen to partner with TAG Heuer, Motul and Michelin?
Cox: We already have long-term relationships with Motul and Michelin. Motul has been a technical partner to Nismo for 20 years now. TAG approached us when they heard about our programme and we hope this is just the start of a wider relationship between two brands who want to change the market they are in.
The Drum: Are you looking into other brand partnerships?
Cox: We’re looking at partnerships in the wider sense. In addition to Motul, Michelin and TAG Heuer, we are happy to be working with Go Pro and Top Gear. I’m sure when other brands see the car they will want to be involved in this great adventure.