- Product/Brand - Fiat 500L
- Spot - The Motherhood
- Song Title - The Motherhood
- Composition - Parsons
- Publisher - N/A
- Artist - Casey Parsons & Rachel Donovan
- Master rights owner - Krow Communications
- Ad Agency - Krow Communications
- Creative(s) - Krow Communications
- Film Company - Rubber Republic
- Film Director - Matt Golding
- Post Product - Rubber Republic / The Look
- Air Date - Dec 18 2012
A new genre of rap has been going viral over the last few weeks. But this internet sensation has nothing to do with Compton or Brooklyn. This is momsy rap keepin’ it real; it’s (suburban) street and it’ll be hood forever. Or should that be car bonnet?
The Krow Communications-produced online film for the new Fiat 500L features a sleep deprived, but still sassy housewife, played by Rachel Donovan, rapping about nappy rash, breast feeding and baby sick.
The ad agency’s team and production company Rubber Republic came up with the bespoke music track - and the inspired lyrics - for the mumz ‘n da hood film after feedback gleaned at Fiat research groups.
Krow Communications senior account manager Toni Symons said the results showed moms want to continue wearing Gucci and McQueen outfits, but sometimes found that trying to retain their style conflicted with the day-to-day challenges of running a home and looking after a couple of kids.
This cleverly plays out in the rap, which includes the line “I swapped my sexy handbag for a snot-stained sack.”
Symons added, “They got quite animated during this part of the session and when we looked back at the footage we realised every mum in the room had their own story to tell of the challenges they've faced balancing their lives following the arrival of children.”
Thus, instead of appealing to the man of the house with the Fiat 500‘s impressive 0-60mph acceleration figures or great value mpg in an urban driving environment, the strategy was to bypass the male of the family and go straight to the decision maker. The mom.
Fiat UK marketing director, Elena Bernardelli, said they realised the mother is the “lynch-pin” in any young family. She added, “Creating an engaging piece of content through a mother’s eyes felt like a good way of connecting with the whole family.”
And the way to do that was to write a killa (in a nice way) rap song with lyrics culled from those research sessions and everyday life as a mom dealing with messy toddlers: “This is my crib and these are my babes/my life and body have somewhat changed/I’m livin’ it large and by large I mean bigger/least now I know the difference between a tractor and a digger...”
Symons said, “It appears that everyone has a story to tell on this topic whether it's from first-hand experience or just from listening to friends and family members with kids”.
Bernardelli added, “We wanted to connect with our target audience, starting with dynamic young mums, in a way that demonstrated our understanding of the challenges they face balancing motherhood with their desire to keep hold of their pre-children identity. We hope we will raise a knowing smile from mums everywhere.”
Krow Communications founder, Nick Hastings, said the ad also played to the strengths of the car brand, which is seen as fun and cheeky. “We wanted to turn up the volume a couple of notches on this one, so the film could become a true, funny and shareable piece of content with our audience and beyond. That's why it was so important we didn't hold back from the more explicit realities of motherhood.”
The Fiat 500L doesn't arrive in the UK until Spring, which is partly why the car manufacturer and agency opted for a - relatively - cheaper online film which would stir up some pre-launch awareness.
Symons also said moms are heavy online users and connected to all sorts of social media, which helped them decide the best way to engage them was through content they could share with their friends at the gym or over a skinny latte. She added, “The world of marketing has moved on. Never before has social media been such a strong communication tool.”
This has meant the message has spread well beyond the usual dull product websites where new car models are usually launched. In fact, the move to go online has paid massive dividends with the commercial attracting millions of YouTube views and a massive online buzz alongside headlines in the mainstream press.
The film was seeded on to the internet by media agency Maxus and its digital account director Pierre Paoli said The Motherhood has already delivered over 3m views on Youtube since it was uploaded at the end of December.
