An internet pre-order campaign for the Mazda RX-8 has won the New Media Age Effectiveness Award for Retail 2004. The campaign was praised for its innovative use of the internet to sell motorcars.

The campaign, whose web elements were designed and implemented by internet agency Syzygy UK, gave prospective Mazda RX-8 buyers the opportunity to pay a £1,000 deposit to secure a car online even before vehicles were available at Mazda dealerships. Judges of the award described the website as “a very clever, superbly effective”.

Jeremy Thomson, Mazda Motors UK marketing director, says: “We wanted a pre-order solution to match the innovation and originality of the Mazda RX-8. Together with Syzygy, we developed an online ordering microsite that benefited all prospective Mazda RX-8 buyers.”

The Mazda RX-8 has been awarded a total of 23 international honours.