Rising gas prices have an affect over many aspects of our lives. Besides increasing the cost of operating automobiles, more expensive fuel leads to an increase in the cost of shipped goods, food and airline tickets. Can gas prices also create changing attitudes amongst home shoppers?
Coldwell Bankers Real Estate recently conducted a survey of real estate professionals, and it found that 75 percent reported clients reevaluating where they search for homes. Home shoppers are looking to reduce commuting distance in order to reduce fuel consumption. The survey found that 77 percent of real estate professionals saw an increase in the number of folks looking for home offices and 68 percent of that pool believe the surge is attributable to rising fuel costs.
The folks at Nielsen have a different take on the matter, however, and believe U.S. consumers have adjusted to a new “spending reality.” Folks are adjusting their spending habits to conserve where possible, but Nielsen doesn’t believe it’s on the level of the 2008 economic freakout.
So now we’re going to turn to you, dear Autoblog reader. If you’re in the market for a house, have rising gas prices shaped your search in any way? Sound off in Comments.
Nissan 370Z races a chicken – Click above to watch video
The team at UK has worked up a new spot for the company’s that features plenty of wing-to-fender action. Set in a seedy underworld where poultry is pitted against sheetmetal in a dire race for bragging rights, the 370Z is seen battling the latest descendant in a long line of racing chickens. The chicken in question supposedly excels in the corners, though predictably enough, he’s no match for the tail-sliding action of the Z.
Does any of this make sense? Of course not, but neither do a bunch of , and we still love those. Considering that Kia just walked away with the winning nod at the for the company’s “This or That” spot, Nissan may be hoping to cash in on the animal craze in its own way, though we have to wonder if the ad might not ruffle a few feathers over at PETA.
Kia Soul Hamsters in “This or That” – Click above to watch video
has taken home the top honors in the Nielsen Automotive Ad of the Year awards for the second year in a row. The company’s troupe of dancing hamsters managed to make the biggest impression on viewers in the “A New Way To Roll” spot in 2009 and the rodents managed to pull off a similar stunt in 2010 with the automaker’s ad.
Nielsen hands out the awards based on response information collected from 2.5 million viewers across 24 networks, and according to Kia, the hamster spots have helped increase sales in a big way. The boxy compact saw its sales figures increase by 50.8 percent last month compared to March 2010.
The Soul wasn’t the only winner, though. took home two awards in different categories, with the netting honors for the best green ad and the company earning best sales event spot with its “Swap Your Ride” commercials. Meanwhile, grabbed the best luxury campaign trophy with its “Triumphant” spot for the and walked away with the Spanish Advertiser of the Year title.
for the press release, as well as a replay of the winning “This or That” ad.
Miss Evelyn’s “Wild Ride” in a Camaro – Click above to
The Nielsen Company has counted the numbers from last weekend’s Super Bowl and determined that General Motors’ “Wild Ride” commercial (its official name is “Miss Evelyn”) has become the most-watched ad of all time with an estimated 119,628,000 viewers. You can rewatch the ad , but as you may recall, it’s about two guys creating their own Camaro commercial on the fly. The new viewership record beat the old one set by a Doritos commercial during last year’s big game that was seen by 116,231,920 viewers.
The crazy thing is that the old record was beaten by every ad that made this year’s top ten most viewed list, which in addition to the Camaro commercial also included ads for the , and Bridgestone tires. Credit not only the quality of this year’s Super Bowl commericals, but also an excellent game of pigskin that got better with each passing quarter. The Camaro commercial, for instance, got a boost from appearing during the fourth quarter when the game was anything but decided.
Nielsen is also reporting that was this year’s ‘best-liked’ commercial during the Super Bowl. The top ten list for most liked Super Bowl commercials was also littered with car-related ad, but curiously, the top ten ‘most-recalled’ ads didn’t feature a single automotive spot.
Kia Soul This or That advertising spot – Click above to watch the video
You could get with this, or you could get with that. ‘This,’ in case you were wondering, would be the , and ‘that’ would be, um, anything else. Especially a toaster, washing machine or cardboard box… and we’ll leave those vehicular associations up to you to decipher.
Before you actually watch the video pasted , please know that our collective heads heads have officially exploded due to the sheer awesomeness of this effort from and its marketing firm. First of all, the clip features the from Kia’s initial marketing launch for the Soul, the first commercial of which managed to .
More importantly, as far as we’re concerned at least, is the use of Black Sheep’s The Choice is Yours as the musical accompaniment to the Alien Green Soul and its urban backdrop. Also note that the character’s so-called Hamstar clothing will soon be available for purchase by fans at . Seriously.
Expect to see this advertisement all over your television set and in movie theaters starting on Friday, May 28. That said, we highly suggest that you get the jump on everyone else and watch the video now. Seriously, what are you waiting for? .
Kia wins Nielsen’s top auto ad award – Click above to watch the video
Those painfully trendy hamsters and their brand-new managed to nab Nielson’s Most Effective Automotive Ad Award. Of all the car ads out there, the 2.5 million TV viewers polled by Nielsen remembered the most about the clever spot from . And why not? The adorable anthropomorphic animals and good tunes featured in the ad manage to make a solid impression. It beat out commercial featuring Kate Walsh and an ad for the starring Howie Long.
Nielsen’s been handing out the awards at the New York Auto Show for four years now. Last year, took top honors with a commercial that featured real-life women test-driving the for the first time. to see winning rodents.
