Toyota is throwing its hat in the full-size truck market in a big way with its new Tundra, and they are looking to push their new product at bass-fishing, NASCAR ball cap-wearing consumers with an advertising budget of over $100 million. The actual budget is still being worked on, but the estimated $100 million is a lot of money by Toyota's standards when even the Camry gets by with a modest $60 million. Jim Farley, VP of Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., obviously wants a piece of the ever shrinking, but still huge, U.S. truck market, and he wants to do it by going after die-hard truck buyers. It's going straight for the jugular on this one by targeting customers at NASCAR events, bass-fishing tournaments, country-western concerts and even at 84 Lumber.

Toyota plans to have well-staffed promotions at these stereotypical truck junkie congregations to demonstrate how it has listened to truck consumers and given them what they want. Farley concedes that you can spend a ton of money advertising at every football game or NASCAR race and not improve sales. Instead, he is hoping that by going straight to the consumer and showing what the product has to offer, Toyota may have a shot at winning loyal customers away from the Big 3.

[Source: Automotive News, sub. required]