American Football legend Tom Brady leans into his comedic and reflective side in a series of ads for Hertz adopting the approach and tone of US daytime television talkshows with Nigerian-American actress/comedian Yvonne Orji playing the role as the programme’s host.
The campaign, which targets existing Hertz customers and new customer prospects, will include more than 30 content pieces with a heavy emphasis on social media platforms (led by Instagram and TikTok) and will also run on premium streaming networks like Hulu, Disney+, Max, Peacock and Warner Bros. Discovery, with supporting audio ads featuring on Pandora.
The creative sees Orji interview the former NFL quarterback in a series of shorts spots for the car rental company titled ‘Hertz Let’s Go! Show’ which premiered on 22 May with the first spot called ‘Let’s Go Moment’.
The premiere episode welcomes viewers to Season One and sees guest Brady – who won a record seven Super Bowls with the New England Patriots and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers – recreating classic talkshow emotional and surprise moments, while revealing ‘his deep affinity for Hertz’ and promoting the car rental outfit’s fleet, loyalty program, electric vehicles and partnership programmes.
This was followed by additional spots and cut downs from the series which is planned to run through Summer 2023.
The marketing burst was conceived and developed with creative agencies Shadow Lion, FKQ and Blue Memo, while Shadow Lion and FKQ also handling production and X2PR ran the PR campaign.
“The ‘Hertz. Let’s Go!’ campaign has effectively shined a spotlight on our fast and seamless service, and innovative vehicle offerings, including our EV rentals,” commented Hertz Chief Marketing Officer Wayne Davis. “Tom Brady has been such an authentic and enthusiastic partner for Hertz and this campaign that we mutually decided to extend our partnership through 2024. We can’t wait for people to engage with the next phase of the campaign as Tom and Yvonne bring their talent and humor to showcase the many elements that make renting from Hertz a great way to travel and create memories. Expect to see a stronger presence on Instagram and TikTok as we continue to expose our brand to new and younger audiences.”
“I appreciate my close collaboration with Hertz because it truly is so natural and authentic to me,” added Brady in the campaign PR statement. “There is such a true connection to ‘Let’s Go’ as it relates to travel and the desire to have a seamless experience which Hertz always provides. Being an EV driver, I also love that more people across the country will have the opportunity to experience Hertz’s EV rental fleet. I’ve been driving one for a long time and seeing Hertz continue to invest in them is amazing.”
Shadow Lion Co-Founder Gilad Haas added that the talk-show concept felt like a winner from the beginning: “We were trying to think of a potential format that would be nostalgic and striking to the viewer while also allowing Hertz, Tom and Yvonne to shine,” Haas said. “Daytime talk shows are a staple across the world and they have produced some of television’s most iconic moments.”
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During his playing career Brady was known for being serious and inscrutable on the field, so the amusing and slightly existential ads create a comic contrast to his on-field persona and are amplified by Orji’s infectious, comic energy.
The talkshow style series of spots followed on from a more mainstream ‘Let’s Go!’ Hertz ahead-of-the-game ad featuring Brady in April 2023, as well as three previous iterations of the brand’s umbrella ‘Let’s Go!’ campaigns fronted by the former NFL QB since he began working as a company endorser including campaigns in 2022 and 2021.
CMO Davis added that the results of the “Hertz. Let’s Go!” campaign to date have far surpassed the company’s goals: “We’ve seen significant lifts across all key business metrics, halo into our lower-funnel advertising and double-digit dot-com user growth,” he said. “The campaign has driven 12 billion-plus impressions and counting, while positively impacting brand health metrics of awareness, consideration and purchase intent across our key audience segments.”
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