Car commercials are like a good action movie, and it's in cinema that they look their best, because they are spectacular. From the sound, to the image, to the right context. All of this is why we are seeing more and more prominent presence of automotive brands on the big screen.

Since the reopening of cinemas in pandemic, automotive brands have been among the first to start filling advertising blocks. In 2021, cars brands as BMW, Land Rover, Audi, Volkswagen and Škoda were driving around Cinema City screens. This year, they are joined by Kia and Volvo. This may come as a surprise to some, especially considering what problems the automotive industry is currently facing, but the marketing of "four wheels" is specific. Buying a car is a big decision that you don't make overnight. Sometimes it's a process that takes years, or the decision itself is made quickly, but more time is needed to make it. That's why building a long-term brand-consumer relationship is so important. And the cinema is the most appropriate place and medium for that. Why?

First of all, cinema offers the best conditions for the reception of advertising

A huge screen, intense colors, strong sound and a dark room that sharpens all senses even more... These are the main attributes of cinema, which no other medium has and which emphasize both the content of the spot itself and the advantages of the advertised car model. But apart from the main attributes, there are also special proposals. One of them, which is ScreenX - the world's first multi-projection technology that provides cinemagoers with a widescreen experience by extending the screen to the side walls of the cinema room, up to 270 degrees - was used by the Volkswagen brand in its electric car campaign. The campaign ran in 2019 and was the first in Poland to use ScreenX technology.

In another cinema - Cinema City Poznań Plaza - on the occasion of the same campaign, the Volkswagen brand decided to make a distinction in the advertising block by presenting the spot also on the side walls, i.e. so called spatial projection with the total area of 240 m². Mapping during the advertising block is a strong distinction and significantly influences the attention of the viewers and emotions accompanying the watching of the commercial.

Secondly, cinema offers a prestigious context

During the recent conference "I love tv & video", organised by SprawnyMarketing.pl in Warsaw, one of the speakers, James Behr, drew attention to the importance of the context in which a brand appears and gave a model example of product placement in film. Automotive companies also know this, as evidenced by the James Bond film series. Agent 007 is absolutely associated with cars - in addition, fast, reliable, stylish and for special tasks. In the latest part - "No Time To Die" we could see the placement of 30 (!) brands, including Land Rover, Toyota and of course the luxury brand Aston Martin. James Bond films have been known and loved by audiences around the world for years. And besides, who wouldn't want to drive what Her Majesty's most famous agent drives? The Land Rover brand has gone one step further and released a commercial for the new Defender using behind the scenes footage from the set and the famous soundtrack.

And thirdly, cinema is not just a screen

The creations for spots promoting new car models are tailored directly to the big screen, and marketers seem to perfectly understand its potential. Increasingly, however, they also decide to go beyond the big screen, like Škoda, which became a partner of this year's edition of the lottery organised by the Cinema City multiplex chain - Summer Promo and funded the main prize, a Škoda Karoq car, of course in orange colour 😊. Cinema is not only on-screen. It's much, much more!