Real Stories Come to Life in Car Marketplace Motorway Campaign

Motorway, the UK’s fastest-growing used car marketplace, has launched a new campaign featuring true Motorway stories, highlighting the key customer benefit of selling a car for more money. 

Motorway connects car owners directly with their network of more than 5,000 car dealers. These verified dealers compete to buy each car in an online daily sale, allowing the seller to get more money in the process. For sellers, profiling and selling their car is a 100% online process, with their car collected from home for free. As a result, they get more money and a convenient selling process.

To bring this to life, Motorway’s new campaign features true car selling stories, with the first of two new ads featuring Jen’s story. The TV spot opens with Jen working from home, when her husband video calls to speak with Jen and their daughter. We see the daughter run through her tired and tattered bedroom, to speak to her father on screen. Jen’s husband works away from home, so they decide they no longer need two cars. Jen chooses to sell one of the cars on Motorway, which she’s able to do quickly and easily, all from her phone. When the offer comes through, Jen is shocked and delighted, as she received more money than she expected. Once the finance is paid off, Jen uses the remaining money to surprise her daughter with the bedroom of her dreams, resulting in a win for everyone in the family. 

In the second spot, we meet Ian, as he’s called into his manager’s office. After 35 years, he’s been made redundant and finds himself at a crossroads. Whilst considering his next career move, Ian hears a Motorway ad on the radio. After some time, he decides to sell his car on Motorway and is surprised to see the winning bid is far more than he was expecting. Ian uses the money from the sale of his car to buy a van and the tools, to finally take a leap of faith and become his own boss. We see Ian become a sole trader, fulfilling a lifelong goal. 

This new campaign builds on Motorway’s previous ‘Dealers Compete’ campaign, which drove understanding and awareness of Motorway’s unique proposition. With significant brand awareness in market, Motorway is now evolving this platform to focus on the customer benefit of getting more money.

In addition to the TVCs, Motorway’s through-the-line campaign includes radio, social and OOH. The campaign was created by Motorway’s in-house brand marketing team, produced by RSA films, directed by Stuart Rideout, with media planning and buying handled by MG OMD. Simon Morris, formerly the chief creative officer of Amazon, was the executive creative director for the campaign. 

Rachael Halliday, brand marketing director at Motorway, said, “Our research shows that for the majority of car sellers, getting the best price is their number one priority when choosing where and how to sell. Motorway’s nationwide network of dealers compete to give their best price, and as a result car sellers are surprised and delighted by getting more money than they expected. While selling a car can be a very transactional experience, the stories behind the wheel are incredibly relatable and moving – cars are a huge part of our lifestyles and finances. With so many of our sellers sharing their positive experiences with us, we knew we had to give these success stories a platform to help other car owners get more money too. 

“We’re confident this high-reach campaign will drive greater awareness, and connect with an even wider audience at a time when getting more money is more pertinent than ever. We feel this new campaign will really engage with car owners on a personal level, bringing the Motorway way to sell your car, to life in a more emotional and benefit-led way.”