It’s good to talk to Honda

An online chat facility which lets the public ‘talk’ to Honda employees has proved hugely popular in only its first month of going live.

Honda’s website (honda.co.uk) has undergone a massive transformation in recent weeks and the changes have proved a big hit; Honda's December web traffic totalled 200,000 unique users – more than any other car manufacturer website.

One of the most-popular of the new features was ‘Ask Us Live’, where customers can ask staff from Honda (UK) questions or discuss Honda owning in general.

The entire car website has been totally revamped with lots of rich visual content, fewer words and greater scope for the user to explore and model cars in 3D.

"Ask Us Live has been a startling success," says John Goodbody, New Media Executive at Honda (UK). "Plus, people have had the opportunity to drive a virtual Civic in a free downloadable preview of the new TOCA3 game that’s not out until next year."

As well as the revamped website attracting new users on its own merit, the publicity surrounding the launch of the radical new Civic, coupled with the success of Honda’s new Impossible Dream TV campaign has generated a buzz around the brand.

"It can only get more frenetic," explains Simon Thompson, Honda (UK) Head of Marketing. "Another great TV advert kick-starts 2006 and will demand huge interest in all things Civic."