‘Birthday without the bumps’
by CARS24
Campaign Context…
To mark its 10-year anniversary, CARS24, an auto-tech startup, carried out a civic initiative to repair over 500 potholes and restore more than 7,000 square feet of damaged road across high-traffic zones in multiple cities in India in August 2025.
This initiative, executed quietly, focused on locations identified as high-risk for accidents and vehicle damage, and aimed at improving the daily driving experience for thousands of commuters.
CARS24’s decision stemmed from a simple insight: for the last decade, roads have carried everything that defines the brand — its customers, vehicles, its business, and its journey.
But these very roads, riddled with potholes and disrepair, have also been carrying daily disruption. From late arrivals and broken suspensions to missed school buses and delayed ambulances, potholes may seem minor, but their impact is significant.
Referring to the initiative, one of the co-founders of CARS24 said,
“Potholes are more than just an inconvenience. They’re a daily disruption, affecting how people live, drive, and move. As a brand built on mobility, we’ve always been on the road. This was our way of giving back to it. We’ve always said we’re here to build trust in mobility.
But trust doesn’t come from telling people, it comes from doing the right thing.”
This initiative stands out by delivering tangible, on-ground impact without demanding attention. As part of the effort, the brand also installed witty yet thought-provoking road signs across cities, turning everyday commutes into moments of awareness and engagement.
Across social media, the campaign is being discussed as an example of action over optics. The campaign is being admired as one of the best brand building exercises for its action based approach.
CARS24 has confirmed that this is not a one-time activation. The pothole initiative will continue in other cities as an ongoing project under ‘Crash-free India’, evolving into a broader effort to support better mobility infrastructure across India.
Our analysis of the campaign…
Although the concept seems to be an adaptation of the Domino’s pothole commercial, where Domino’s repairs potholes on roads to prevent takeaway pizzas from getting damaged before being eaten due to the bad road conditions, that doesn’t mean CARS24 can’t take that idea and utilize it.
This campaign is the perfect example of how you should run a trust building campaign to market your brand. The company was celebrating a very special achievement – their 10th anniversary, and what better way to have a bash than doing something that would ease your customers’ life a little bit.
If you observe the statement made by the co-founder above, he says “trust don’t come from telling customers, it comes from doing the right thing”. You would also agree that you only trust when you see a brand take action instead of just preaching.
The brand’s initiative clearly shows their commitment and their action demonstrates that they are not just portraying an imaginary picture, they are doing things on ground, in reality. And they don’t believe in luring you into some funnel through some click-bait, they are playing a bigger game.
Just think for once, people and media are talking about it, and those who hear about the work would surely appreciate it and at least checkout the brand even if they are out-of-market for now.
This is brand story-making in action. The brand has grown from simple story-telling (showcasing brand story about some fictional situation), to a scenario where they have actually got something done that would benefit their customers.
This approach is best to connect with prospects, showing your worldview through your work that nobody can deny. By employing this method of brand marketing, you not only gather goodwill of your customers, but also generate great word of mouth publicity in front of your prospects.
Whatever be your industry, we are sure you can also do something great for the society based on your brand’s core ideology and your vision. That would set you apart from your competitors and you no longer have to compete in terms of product differentiation (which is easy to copy).