Honda has dubbed 2015 “the year of Honda” to mark an “unprecedented number of product launches”.

Every model in Honda’s car line-up is being refreshed this year and 2015 sees its return to Formula 1 and the first commercial flight of its Honda Jet.

“This year is a big celebration in terms of the diversity and breadth of the range and the number of launches,” European marketing boss Jemma Jones (pictured) told Marketing Week. 

“There is lots of optimism and possibility and still a lot to look forward to. The challenging spirit that was our founding principle still lives on and permeates the organisation from the product side but is also echoed in our advertising and marketing,” said Jones.

The biggest ever year of product launches for Honda also means its biggest year for marketing. The brand has launched four campaigns this year and is planning two more before the year ends.

Jones believes there is a lot of goodwill for the Honda brand due to a history of “great emotional advertising”.

Jones said the aim this year is to “widen Honda’s appeal”. Marketing for models such as the HR-V will be aimed at a younger audience and include a big digital element.

“ complements TV in terms of extending the long tail and appeals to a younger audience,” she said. “It pulls people through and sharpens our points in the middle and bottom end of the funnel.

“We want to play to our strengths – the diversity of the brand and the creative opportunity that that opens up. It is all about emotional advertising so we try to go beyond the one-dimensional approach that a lot of competitors adopt.

That means Honda has many touch points beyond products so it’s about a longer term emotional link and relationship with the customer.

“TV is critical for delivering that,” she said.

Honda is not without its challenges.

Yesterday it was criticised by the Advertising Standards Agency which warned it not to make speed a central element of its advertising after the body received two complaints about its ‘Keep Up’ ad.

Also, more damaging is the long-term fall in market share from its high of 4.41% in 2007 to its current 2.01%, with annual UK unit sales falling from 106,018 in 2007 to 53,544 in 2014. More on Honda from AMi below.

But both Honda UK’s managing director Phil Crossman and its dealer council chairman David Cox have told AM they believe the brands fortunes are changing.