Clever Marketing Stunt Goes Viral, It's Not What Everyone Imagines

Presented as “Hum,” a commercial that featured the “product” was portraying an SUV that could raise its ground clearance in a couple of seconds, and then just drive above the cars in front of it.

Somehow, every other driver in the video was not upset that someone in a lifted SUV was driving over their vehicle and getting in front of the line.

If this were real and possible, that kind of trick would probably work a couple of times, but people would catch on to it and stop letting people cutting in line. Fortunately, nobody wants to build a straddling car, and this was all a clever advertising exercise to promote a service.

The product that was advertised is called Hum, and it is an aftermarket gadget to make a car “connected.” It is a service that works with an app and a “dongle,” which is a term for a device that gets plugged into the OBD II port of a vehicle.

The app linked to the instrument lets parents keep tabs on the cars they let their teens drive, but can also be used for fleet management. Users can also monitor the location of the vehicles, along with geofencing functions and speed alerts.

In other words, the device can be employed to observe a car’s functions and activity from a distance, complete with a data plan from Verizon. Users can also unlock the vehicle using their smartphones, request emergency assistance, and also get turn-by-turn directions.

Each monitored car gets a “Safety Score,” and users get tips on how to improve their driving. Drivers will learn how to brake in a more gentle manner, and the same goes for cornering and accelerating. The service costs $10 per month, and the device costs an extra $29,99. There’s also a one-time activation fee of $20.