Ford Finds ‛Tough Love’ Engaging

In this week’s Most Engaging Auto Ads, powered for WardsAuto by iSpot.tv, Ford’s new “Tough Love” spot supporting its redesigned Explorer SUV debuted atop the list at No.1.

The ad generated over 42,000 earned online views and more than 1,700 social actions to take the top spot among the five most-engaging ads (based on combined online views, social media actions and online search).

But close behind again was Mazda’s “A Driver’s Life: Driving Matters,” which can’t seem to find its way off the list. Mazda also owned the No. 4 spot with “Summer Driving,” while the Lexus “It’s Here” hoverboard ad made the list for the third week in a row. Toyota’s “Piggy Bank” clearance event ad was the only other newcomer on the list.

Automakers spent an estimated $84 million on TV ads last week, just slightly less than the previous week, airing 213 spots over 13,000 times nationally. Ford led the way with 10.7% of that total, followed by Nissan at 8.8% and Chevy close behind at 7.5%.

College football was the most popular target, drawing more than $22 million in automotive advertising, while NFL Preseason Football and College Football Countdown both also made the top five in automotive ad spending.

iSpot.tv tracks TV ads in real-time and allows customers to monitor social actions, search activity and online video views associated with TV spots across Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google, Bing and Yahoo!.

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1. 2016 Ford Explorer TV Commercial, 'Tough Love'

15.6% Digital Share of Voice, 42k Earned Online Views

2. 2016 Mazda MX-5 Miata TV Spot, 'A Driver's Life: Driving Matters'

14.5% Digital Share of Voice, 230k Earned Online Views

3. Lexus Hoverboard TV Commercial, 'It's Here'

9.9% Digital Share of Voice, 126k Earned Online Views

4. Mazda Summer Drive Event TV Commercial, 'Summer Driving'

8.1% Digital Share of Voice, 113k Earned Online Views

5. Toyota Annual Clearance Event TV Commercial, 'Piggy Bank'

5.3% Digital Share of Voice, 71k Earned Online Views