• by Larissa Faw , June 13, 2016

Online car selling platform Beepi is introducing its first TV campaign to coincide with peak car-buying season in June and July. 

Developed with agency Kayser & Co, the "Zero To Happy" integrated campaign features TV spots airing in major metro areas, including Los Angeles and San Francisco, as well as radio, digital, social media, and cinema ads.  

This effort represents a new direction for the two-year old startup that has traditionally targeted "the bottom of the funnel with digital and retargeting." 

Now Beepi is launching a brand campaign to raise awareness and separate it from other car sellers, says Joe Kayser, founder, chief creative officer, Kayser&Co. "Many startups today create marketing for VCs [venture capitalists] versus the customers they’re trying to attract," he says. "Beepi not only wants to explain what they are, but also what they do for people.” 

The creative conveys Beepi's “freedom from” and “freedom to," says Robert Cameron, CMO, Beepi. "Freedom from the old, broken way of doing things that tied you to a physical dealership, as well as freedom to buy a car from the comfort from your couch or from anywhere using our app, whenever you want, on your terms."  

"We took a whimsical approach to telling that story though the eyes of the infamous used car lot inflatable gorillas," says Cameron. In other areas of the campaign, the messages speak more directly to the process of buying and selling a car, he says.  

Beepi says its media strategy will help expand its customer base beyond tech-savvy early adopters. "The Beepi audience tends to be aspirational and educated with a high household income. We are targeting men and women alike, as we feel the car buying and selling process is completely broken for both genders," says Cameron.  

Beepi has raised some $149 million from investors to date. The service now operates in 16 cities in nine states. In April, Beepi and its partner Ally Financial announced they will start offering used car leases on qualifying cars.