Rivian has launched its inaugural national advertising campaign, titled “Real Rivian Adventures,” marking a significant milestone in the company's marketing efforts. This campaign aims to enhance brand awareness and connect with a broader audience by showcasing authentic stories from Rivian owners.

Rivian’s campaign focuses on real-life experiences of its customers. The first advertisement, “Last Lemonade Standing,” portrays the Carter family, where a child uses the Rivian R1T’s features to power a lemonade stand. This narrative highlights the vehicle’s versatility and the innovative spirit of its users, says Rivian.

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Denise Cherry, Rivian’s vice president-marketing, emphasizes the company’s commitment to storytelling. “This campaign is about celebrating the people who define what Rivian truly is. Our vehicles are made to empower exploration and adventure, but it’s the stories our owners create that give them real soul.”  The campaign was created with ad agency Mojo Supermarket.

Rivian executives are not pointing to Tesla’s current woes as timing for its effort, but it’s not difficult to miss the contrast. Tesla founder Elon Musk has made himself a lightning rod for swift and severe changes in the federal government with President Donald Trump. That political activity has seen Tesla’s sales, share price and general popularity plummeting in the U.S., as well as abroad.

Tesla, in contrast to Rivian, as well as other automakers, has never staged a large-scale brand advertising campaign, although it has dabbled in the past 12 months with various efforts, such as Google ads and product attribute ads. Long before Musk bought Twitter and re-branded it “X,” Musk had amassed millions of followers, and he used the platform to spread his messages about Tesla. The iconoclastic CEO also does not maintain a public relations apparatus as every other car and tech company does, preferring to be his own and the company’s spokesperson.

Expanding the Campaign

The “Real Rivian Adventures” campaign is set to roll out additional stories throughout the year, including titles like “Saving Summer,” “Bayou Country” and “The Milk Run.” These narratives aim to further illustrate the diverse and adventurous lifestyles of Rivian owners and highlight how the vehicles enhance their customers’ lives, the upstart BEV maker says. The strategy seems to be counter to the narrative in many circles that a BEV is burdensome to own because of the time needed to charge vehicles and public fast-charging infrastructure not being as plentiful as gas stations.

Rivian is also encouraging its community to participate by sharing their own experiences. Owners can submit stories via email or social media using the hashtag #RealRivianAdventures, with the possibility of being featured in future advertisements.

This campaign coincides with Rivian’s preparations for the launch of its more affordable R2 model in 2026. By highlighting genuine customer experiences, and eschewing actors, Rivian aims to build a strong emotional connection with potential buyers and distinguish itself in the competitive U.S. BEV market, which Wards Intelligence data estimates grew to 395,000 units in January-April, a 12% jump vs. the same period year-ago  – and stronger growth than the 1.6% increase in internal-combustion-engine vehicle sales but far off the 50% hike in hybrid vehicle deliveries.

The campaign is being disseminated across various platforms, including digital media, streaming services, social media and in-person events at Rivian stores nationwide. This multi-channel approach is designed to reach a wide audience and reinforce the brand’s image as an enabler of adventure and innovation.