Kia Moves to Change its Image, Hamsters and All - Watch New TV Commercials

Washington DC September 3, 2010; The AIADA newsletter reported that to most Americans, at least to those who are aware of the brand, Kia is often associated with the cheap-and-cheerful products that long dominated its lineup after it introduced its U.S. dealer network in 1994.

Now MSNBC reports that’s an image the maker is out to transform. For example, unveiled at the New York International Auto Show earlier this year, the Kia Optima immediately earned kudos for its elegant and timeless design.

For the calendar-year-to-date, Kia is at 16.3 percent, a 0.2 point gain from 2009. More significantly, that’s up from just 2.1 percent in 2008. And Kia is gaining ground in regions of the country where it was never a particular powerhouse. Credit goes to a wide range of factors, including the maker’s latest-generation compact crossover, the Sorento, which Kia is building at its first North American assembly plant, a sprawling facility in West Point, Georgia.

But perhaps nothing has done more to put the brand on the map than its out-of-the-box Soul crossover and the hip-hopping hamsters that serve as its spokesrodents. The ad campaign, which contrasts the decidedly different Soul to what it portrays as the hamster cages most folks drive, has won a variety of awards, including AC Neilsen’s Automotive Ad of the Year.

To read more on Kia’s brand transformation, click here.