Nissan Leaf: Polar Bear Commercial

During the Thursday night National Football League opener in 2010, Nissan debuted their Nissan Leaf: Polar Bear commercial. The advertisement was part of a major marketing campaign that also presented the company’s new tag line, “Innovation for all”.  A lone polar bear that has seen his home melt away embarks on a long journey through forests, past busy highways, through the city and finally reaches the suburbs, all to embrace a man who has a Nissan Leaf parked in his driveway. At that moment the only words in the entire commercial are spoken: “The one hundred percent electric Nissan Leaf: Innovation for the planet, innovation for all.” The message that Nissan is trying to convey to the audience is that they have a tremendous impact on the planet, and by driving a Nissan Leaf, they are helping to reduce their negative impact planet and mankind.  

Nissan uses strong appeals to pathos to present their argument. Emotion is used as an appeal as the viewer follows the polar bear along his journey. Beautiful, soft, and sad music plays in the background as the polar bear travels from his home. As he travels through the highways, train tracks, and big cities, sixteen-wheelers and garbage trucks drive past him, and the viewer cannot help but feel sad for the polar bear. After all, it is because of humans that the polar bear has lost his home. The audience feels a sense of responsibility for the polar bear’s dire situation. When the polar bear hugs the man, the viewer is happy because there is someone out there who cares. The owner of the car is doing his part to help the environment by driving a Nissan Leaf. The viewer believes that they too should drive a Nissan Leaf if they want to help save the planet. 

Nissan also uses appeals to logos to make their point on a global scale. Humans continue to be threatened by global warming and the rising cost of fuel. However, humans still have a need for automobiles. The message presented by Nissan is that you can have your cake and eat it too. The consumer does not need to give up the luxury of having an automobile. Instead they can switch to the one hundred percent electric Nissan Leaf which has little impact on the environment as well as the consumer’s wallet.

The commercial is arranged in such a way that at first, the audience does not know that they are watching a Nissan commercial. It is only after following the polar bear on his seemingly endless voyage and feeling his plight that the viewer is presented with the image of a Nissan Leaf parked in the man’s driveway during the last seconds of the commercial. That is when Robert Downey Jr. delivers Nissan’s “Innovation for all” tagline.  

The use of a soft and beautiful melody throughout the commercial also evokes feelings of compassion for the polar bear. The owner of the car is an average looking American man who seems to be on his way to work. Nissan has used this image of an average American, because it is one that most people can relate to. The audience to whom this commercial has been presented to is: Americans who drive their cars to work every day. Therefore the viewer connects with the man, and strives to be like him, because he is doing the right thing by driving an electric car.

                Overall, the argument presented by Nissan, which is that the Nissan Leaf provides innovation for the planet and innovation for all, is successfully delivered through the imagery of this commercial. The real point of this ad is to sell the car. In reality, Nissan has manipulated the viewer by grasping their emotions by using an iconic creature such as the polar bear, and then introducing their product and tag line in at the very end.