Does New Toyota Slogan “Let’s Go Places” Go Anywhere?

A really good slogan sticks in your head long after a commercial ends. A fantastic one sticks long after the whole campaign ends and that’s what Toyota hopes will happen with “Let’s Go Places.” The new Toyota slogan will debut in ads beginning with the 2013 Avalon on December 31st, but will anyone even notice?

The current Toyota slogan, “Moving Forward”, has been in use since 2004 and they intend the change to reflect “…the company’s commitment to more exciting products and the promise that customers are invited to take part in shaping Toyota’s future.” And here I thought is was just a way of telling me to get in a Toyota and drive.

There have been some really memorable slogans in the company’s history like “Oh, what a feeling.” and its follow-up “Who could ask for anything more?” but that was back in the eighties. This new slogan doesn’t seem as inspired.

It’s yet to be seen how the new Toyota slogan will actually work in their ads. Part of the success of “Oh, what a feeling.” was that it was not only catchy, but had Toyota owners jumping in the air with excitement like goofballs. If it ran today it would likely generate its own internet meme.

What the new slogan does is conjure images of Toyota owners happily but calmly going places. This is nothing new and not overtly engaging. I can’t imagine a wave of internet memes popping up in its wake, unless they add cats. Everyone loves a good cat meme.

Nicole Wakelin fell in love with cars as a teenager when she got to go for a ride in a Ferrari. It was red and it was fast and that was all that mattered. Game over. She considers things a bit more carefully now, but still has a weakness for fast, beautiful cars. When not drooling over cars, Nicole writes for Wired’s GeekMom.