Kia has created a gaming app to promote its brand to a younger audience.
The app allows users to 'build' a 3D GT Ride virtual racetrack, simply by moving their smartphone or tablet through the air. The app then uses the positioning data drawn from the device, via its axis sensor, to create the track on screen.
The visual experience is accessed through HTML5 and YouTube and is aimed primarily at a male and digitally advanced audience. The app allows Android and iOS users to create and share their racetracks across the Global GT Ride community.
As an internet marketing initiative, the concept is aimed at boosting the credibility of an automotive brand that is not, generally, associated with a young driver market, as the South Korean company aims to challenge the 'hot-hatch' market with its pro_CEE'd GT model.
This approach of integrating viral gaming, smartphone technology and brand development, offers interesting learning for marketers of products perceived as less 'glamorous', where attracting a younger market can prove challenging.