Kia Sponsors LPGA Kia Classic At LaCosta Mar. 25 & Signs Michelle Wie

Kia has jumped into a pro golf tournament sponsorship when many car companies have pulled out. On February 10th, just a month ago, Kia announced that it's sponsoring an LPGA tournament which tees off for the pros on March 25th at the famed LaCosta Resort & Spa in North County San Diego where the Tournament of Champions was held for 30 years, including an Infiniti sponsorship for a few years, and more recently LaCosta hosted the World Golf Championship men's match play events until 2006. At the same time, Kia announced it has signed LPGA golfer Michelle Wie to promote the brand.

Until the announcement by Kia, Honda and BMW were the only only car companies with lead sponsorship of a U.S. pro golf tournament with the PGA Honda Classic, played last week in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, the Honda PTT LPGA Thailand and BMW's Charity Pro-Am on the Nationwide Tour. BMW sponsors three tournaments and Volvo one on the European PGA tour.

Over the years golf has been an important marketing venue for car companies. Buick  was lead sponsor on four annual PGA tournaments until last year's General Motors' bankruptcy. Both Infiniti and Mercedes sponsored the event that hosted the previous year's PGA winners and in Los Angeles, Nissan sponsored the PGA event at Riviera Country Club for 21 years, until 2007. In the1980's, even Isuzu, a now-defunct U.S. brand, sponsored the San Diego Open.

The Kia sponsorship comes at a perfect time after their best February sales month ever with new products doing well and it's a good fit. Kia, headquartered in Korea, is sponsoring an event on the LPGA Tour, dominated by Korean players. Globally, Kia's sports sponsorships cover soccer, tennis, basketball and now golf at the highest professional levels.

Michael Sprague, Vice President, Marketing for Kia Motors America says the Kia Classic "is an ideal platform to showcase the all-new 2011 Sorento CUV, Forte compact sedan and Soul urban passenger vehicle."

UCLA alums will be happy to hear that recent grad and four-year Bruin Varsity team golfer, Tiffany Joh, received a sponsor's exemption to play in the Kia Classic which has a total purse of $1.7 million. This will be Tiffany's third LPGA event, first as a pro after graduating last June. She's a great golfer with a wonderful personality and lots of fun to play with - I enjoyed every minute of my 18 holes with her on Tuesday. Go Tiffany!

Kia Officially Opens West Point, Georgia, Plant Producing Sorento CUVs

Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia, the first manufacturing site in North America for Kia Motors Corporation based in Seoul, Korea, had the official grand opening of its facility in West Point, Georgia on Friday. The plant, capable of producing 300,000 cars annually, has been making the all-new 2011 Kia Sorento CUV since Nov. 16, 2009. The 2011 Kia Sorento which went on sale in the U.S. in January selling 7,398 units in its first month was Kia's best-selling vehicle in January.

The ceremony was attended by approximately 500 VIPs from Korea and the U.S., including Chairman of the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group Mong-Koo Chung; Group President and CEO of KMMG and Kia Motors America (KMA) Byung-Mo Ahn; Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue; and a number of other high-ranking Korean government and State of Georgia officials.

Representing a $1 billion investment by Kia Motors Corporation, the new 2.2 million-square-foot automobile manufacturing plant is situated on more than 2,200 acres of land consisting of four main shops: stamping, welding, paint and assembly. The site also includes a transmission shop, module shop and a two-mile test track where every vehicle produced by KMMG will be thoroughly tested. KMMG's general assembly area is outfitted with more than a half mile of height-adjustable conveyors to achieve the most favorable installation position for each team member and reduce physical fatigue. It is outfitted with wood flooring, which provides a more comfortable and forgiving work environment for team members. KMMG currently employs more than 1,200 team members and is expected to nearly double that number by the end of the year, while onsite and nearby suppliers will create up to 7,500 additional jobs in the region. 

Kia Sorento Super Bowl Ad - A Departure From The Expected

Kia's first-ever Super Bowl ad titled "Joyride Dream" is scheduled to air during the third quarter on Sunday so let's hope the Saints and Colts keep it close because this is worth watching. The 60-second spot follows a colorful cast of life-size children's characters – including Muno (from YO GABBA GABBA!, the award-winning series and live tour, produced by W!LDBRAIN and The Magic Store), Sock Monkey (Fox River Mills, Inc.), MR. X (BLABLA KIDS collection), Robot and Teddy Bear – who take the all-new 2011 Sorento CUV for a spin through a series of dream-like adventures and encounter exploding bowling pins, jumping jet skis, snow angels and a mechanical bull along the way. The rockin' soundtrack for the characters' epic adventure is "How Do You Like Me Now" by indie rock band The Heavy.

This ad makes me wonder what I've been doing with my life - a lot jammed into a 60 second spot. The tag line on the commercial is: Sorento, A Departure From The Expected. It certainly is!