Activation & Experience in action
What if AI didn’t just make content faster, but helped a brand feel more human?
IMA, the team behind Smollan’s Activation & Experience solution, partnered with Autotrader to develop “It’s Time for Autotrader”, a brand platform designed to shift perception and broaden relevance across the UK automotive market.
Changing perception: moving beyond ‘petrolheads’
Autotrader is the UK’s largest and most trusted car marketplace. But while brand recognition is high, perception was more limited.
The platform was strongly associated with expert buyers, often seen as a destination for “petrolheads” rather than everyday consumers. At the same time, only 34% of people recognised Autotrader as the UK’s number one marketplace.
For a new generation of drivers, particularly 25–34-year-olds in the UK, the brand needed to feel more relevant, more relatable, and more human.
Car buying starts long before the search
The decision to buy a car doesn’t begin with a search. It builds over time.
It’s shaped by everyday moments – frustration on public transport, growing families, new jobs, or simply noticing something better. These are the real points of category entry, often driven by emotion rather than logic.
To make Autotrader the first brand people think of, the team focused on these moments: connecting the platform to real life, not just transactions.
The idea: “It’s Time for Autotrader”
IMA, the Smollan Agency, developed “It’s Time for Autotrader”, a long-term brand platform built around the moments when people realise it’s time for a new car.
The campaign shifts the focus away from vehicles and onto people, capturing relatable, sometimes messy, and often emotional scenarios that reflect how decisions are actually made.
From awkward public transport journeys to envious glances at traffic lights, and from growing families to unexpected breakdowns, the platform positions Autotrader as part of everyday life in the UK.
Scaling creativity through AI-led production
To fully realise the platform, the campaign needed scale, a wide range of scenarios, formats, and executions.
Traditional production would have limited this.
Instead, Smollan’s Activation & Experience team rethought the production model using AI and digital workflows.
Using AI-generated environments, digital casting, and advanced post-production, the team created a flexible system capable of delivering both motion and static content at speed.
This enabled:
- A broader range of relatable, human stories
- Faster turnaround times to respond to cultural moments
- Greater consistency across outputs without limiting creativity
A standout example was a Halloween “zombie breakdown” film, delivered from concept to completion in just two weeks.
The impact: more content, greater efficiency, stronger relevance
The campaign resonated with younger audiences at scale, with Autotrader tracking a 4%+ uplift in consideration among 17–34s.
At the same time, the shift to AI-led production drove measurable operational gains:
- 67% increase in static and video asset production
- 58% cost savings compared to traditional production
- 50% reduction in production time (5 weeks vs. 10 weeks)
More importantly, it allowed Autotrader to show up in more moments, more often, reinforcing its relevance across a broader UK audience.
Changing perception through creativity at scale
The campaign helped reposition Autotrader from a purely functional marketplace to a brand that understands real life.
By focusing on human moments and using AI to scale creative output, the brand became more relatable without losing its authority.
In this case, AI didn’t replace creativity, it enabled the team to deliver creativity at scale.
The role of AI in modern marketing
AI in marketing is often framed around efficiency.
This campaign shows a different perspective.
Used effectively, AI can help brands:
- Scale storytelling across multiple audiences
- Respond more quickly to culture and context
- Maintain consistency while increasing creative variety
And ultimately, build stronger emotional connections.
Explore Smollan’s Activation & Experience solution
Discover how we deliver creative campaigns, through our Activation & Experience solution, that connect with real people and drive brand growth.
Learn how we combine creativity, data, and technology to scale content and improve performance across markets including the UK, Europe, and South Africa.
