You’d think that Ford’s marketing department would have seen what the “Pontiac is Car” tagline has done to move the former excitement building brand’s moribund metal (i.e., nothing) and avoided generic genius like a pistonhead plague. But no, Ford is using its largest advertising platform—American Idol—to promote the 2010 Fusion under the banner “We Speak Car.” FoMoCo’s marketing comms maven explains [via The Detroit News] how the $60M to $80M ad campaign will shift expectations (taken). “We’re known as a truck and Mustang company,” said Matt Van Dyke. “This sets us up for our future car launches.” Speaking to Ad Age, Ford’s global group marketing manager for small- and medium-size cars insists that her employer’s “throw it up against the wall and see what sticks” approach is alive and well. Well, alive.
“The ads address mid-size car buyers’ rational reasons to buy—fuel economy, price and value,” asserts Chantel Leonard, “along with the emotional reasons, such as the car’s styling and how it’s fun to drive.” That’s a lot of car talk (taken). Oh, and Ford’s continuing with their weraceyouwin.com promotion. Just in case, NASCAR fans wants a little less conversation, a little more action please (also taken).
I am surprised that Mr Mulally hasn’t overhauled the marketing department at Ford. They really have come out with some shockers (Bold Moves, anyone?).
Meaningless quotes like “We speak car” will not help them. I don’t think people actually like them. I reckon they prefer tagline which says something about the brand (i.e Toyota’s “Moving Forward” or BMW’s “The ultimate driving machine”.
Personally, I’m surprised that they haven’t gone with the most obvious tag line:
“Go Ford, go forward” (Copyright Katie Puckrik).
“Ford: Still Kickin’ “
What does Elvis in a BMW in Germany have to do with this article at all?
As I don’t watch AI, I haven’t seen any of the ‘We speak car’ ads, but I still like the ‘Quality Drive’ ads playing on other channels (and as an added bonus, the girl professing her love for her Focus has the coolest name ever – Cheyennis Doom).
I like Lincoln’s current slogan ‘Reach Higher’, I just wish the ads were a little more substance and a little less techno-crazy.
What happened to “Drive One”? I thought that was the best advertising campaign that they had in years.
I still like the old “No Boundaries” ad theme. Bill Ford thought it was pretty good, too, until he saw the Aston Martin online store that sold Aston Martin handcuffs, whips, leather bikinis, see-through panties, and a bunch of other similar stuff. Then he decided there were, indeed, boundaries, and the ad campaign, and the Aston Martin store, died.
Bob
“We speak car”? I agree with Katie. There is no detectable ethos in this. You speak car? What kind of car?
I’ll add another one that works, “The Power of Dreams”. See? That says something about Honda.
I got one for the mavens that thought this one up, Swing an’ a miss…
Ford – like GM really need to quit selling cars and begin selling the lifestyle their carsdon’t give you access to because – for all but the car obsessed – it isn’t about the car.
How are those Flex sales going?
Where do they get off charging (no pun intended) $3300 more for the Mercury Milan Hybrid versus the Ford Fusion Hybrid? It’s the same car; people aren’t fooled by this type of crap and the Mercury nameplate has less intrinsic value than the Ford nameplate. What marketing wizard honestly thinks they can fool people like this? I’d bet the mortgage the Fusion hybrid outsells the Milan hybrid 9-1 because Jill Wagner ads aside, no one in the buying public knows what the heck a Mercury is. Why the heck would I ‘put Mercury on my list’ if I have to pay $3000 more for the same car?!?!
Ridiculous marketing…simply ridiculous…I think of Saturn and Pontiac as heavily damaged brands and they are, but Mercury is damned near an invisible brand and pricing polices like these ain’t helping…
“Ford. We’re the guys who didn’t take the bailout….yet!”
Ford should be selling the notions that they sell the best American cars and the safest cars you can buy anywhere. Ford doesn’t have to take on Toyonda right now. It’s enough right now to develop the image of being way ahead of GM and Chrysler with Toyonda-like quality. Do that successfully and a legion of patriots will flock to Ford’s doorstep(s).
I’ll never forget how Ford was bitter that GM was discounting so heavily after 9/11 and how GM seemed to take pleasure in Ford’s relatively weak position. Little did GM realize at the time that it was starting a discounting marathon that it was ultimately way too fat to finish.
Corporate karma is a bitch.
I probably am not alone in saying that none of these slogans ever motivated me to buy…or not buy… a particular brand of car….put the $80 million and change where it belongs….in improving your vehicles.
“Build a better mousetrap, and the world will beat a path to your door.”
People didn’t switch from Ford, Chevies and Chryslers to Toyotas, Hondas and Beemers because of words like “Ultimate Driving Machine”, “Power of Dreams” and “Get my hands on a Toyota” were better than “Ford has a better idea”, “Heartbeat of America”, or “Chrysler Corporation Cares.” They did it because the CARS were better, yo!
Money spent on marketing fluff for cars is the greatest waste of resources on the planet. Someone please ‘splain to me how this will make Ford cars better and more appealling to more customers?
Take the $80 mill, save half. Take the other $40 mill, spend about 133 bucks per car to upgrade the interior materials on the Mustang and the Focus. (Do not scoff….For that money, you CAN do some serious upgrade touches. As an automotive beancounter, I KNOW it….)
An excellent product sells itself. A pile of turd with a fancy ad campaign is still a pile of turd….
“Hablamos el coche”
…doesn’t have the same ring to it….
I don’t watch American Idle. The people I know who do watch it, and do discuss it, drive minivans.
Not cars.
Ford positioning itself as the “reliable” American manufacturer is about the only place it can go. Nobody is going to believe that they’re better than Honda or Toyota, but they can steal customers who value buying American. Unfortunately that means throwing GM and Chrysler under the bus. And the Detroit 3 have been trying to maintain a united front, so Ford won’t do it.
If they really wanted to run with the “USA!” meme, they should look at moving production of all USDM vehicles back to within US borders. I bet they could cajole the government into footing some of the bill for this with the right PR campaign.
Many people here actually read some Deming? Or has their company been six sigmaed by consultants professing to “know” Deming? Not the same thing. The consultants remove the essence so as to appeal to rough, tough, macho “businessmen”, and particularly avoid bringing up one of Deming’s 14 points, to whit: “Drive Fear out of the Workplace”. Which includes not hanging large banners with exhortations all over the wall and ceilings of a plant to “motivate” workers.
Deming was against slogans like “Quality is Job 1” and other meaningless pap. Because the employees know it’s ridiculous. And while Donald Peterson really tried to lever Ford out of its old ways in the 80s and run a modern company, why, he just couldn’t stop those ads showing fake, tanned, athletic Ford workers lovingly assembling cars under a giant banner/slogan.
I think it was the Commies who invented gigantic banner slogans, as pictures of old battles prior to WW1 never show some poor dolt holding up a flag saying something like “France: We fight, We Win! Go Napoleon!”
Now modern marketing insists that companies have a slogan, despite no data whatsoever that it helps sales. Sheer buffoonery. Or as the Brits say, “barking mad”.
Ford. We speak car.
Pontiac. They think they’re Muscle Cars.
GMC. Professional Grade.
Show me one citizen who reads such pap and makes a decision to buy based on it.
dgduris: “How are those Flex sales going?”
Not well, last I heard. Which isn’t surprising, considering that the Flex ads show some sort of mysterious shiny black object moving around in the dark of night. (At least I think it was a Flex ad; it might have been an ad for the next Batman movie.)
When the Infiniti was introduced, Nissan ran “what the heck was that about” ads that didn’t show the car at all. The Madison Avenue genius responsible for that infamous campaign must be working on the Ford account now.
Ads should give customers reasons to buy the product. Here’s an idea for a 60-second commercial: Airplane rolls to a stop at rural airport. Five engineer-type guys get out. A woman in a casual but classy outfit is waiting by a Flex; she tells them she’ll drive them the 30 miles to the “new plant location.” As they get in, the guys are delighted to find the comfy seats, cooler box, ample legroom, nice interior, etc. One exclaims “This Flex is first-class!” The woman replies, “What were you expecting, a minivan?”
But, but, but…
I thought Jimbo Farley was supposed to be Ford’s marketing savior?
Oops…Ford missed again.
Ads should give customers reasons to buy the product. Here’s an idea for a 60-second commercial: Airplane rolls to a stop at rural airport. Five engineer-type guys get out. A woman in a casual but classy outfit is waiting by a Flex; she tells them she’ll drive them the 30 miles to the “new plant location.” As they get in, the guys are delighted to find the comfy seats, cooler box, ample legroom, nice interior, etc. One exclaims “This Flex is first-class!” The woman replies, “What were you expecting, a minivan?”
No sane person is going to buy the overpriced Flex, when the exact same vehicle, the Taurus X, is sitting there…fully loaded…for $20K.
down here in South Florida they had some really tacky “Ride it like a Ford” commercials a few years back. It was basically a bunch of people jumping around with Fords with big wheels. It was almost embarassing. Does anyone remember seeing them in other parts of the country or was it just to appeal to Floridians?
“We Speak Car”
Does that mean they cuss, a lot?
For the record, I think GMC”s slogan – “Professional Grade” – was very good.
Marketing can sell cars, just like it can sell other products.
How else do you explain Apple making money hand over fist? Even if you think they make better products (and in some categories they do), that’s not enough to account for it all. Apple is considered cool, and that’s marketing.
wmba:
Show me one citizen who reads such pap and makes a decision to buy based on it.
I can certainly dig up some studies on the subject.
Meanwhile, suffice it to say, with so many car brands fighting for the consumers’ attention, automakers have to stake out a clearly defined brand mission. These mottos exist because they’re simple, memorable and, above all, effective. When they’re effective.
BMW’s Ultimate Driving Machine may be the ultimate example. A single, focused, endlessly reasserted marketing message that resonates throughout the company’s products, that has established the brand’s unique selling point for decades.
A coherent tagline also helps the company internally. Once you know what you’re supposed to be selling– in this example, driving pleasure– EVERYTHING becomes easier, from designing and building the car to the TV ads promoting it. A great strapline can keep a vast company on the same page– if nothing else.
Ford had a great tagline: Quality is Job One. Why they changed that I have no clue. Corporate ADD no doubt. They should either return to it, or come up with something equally compelling. AND STICK TO IT. STAT.
A great strapline can keep a vast company on the same page– if nothing else.
That’s interesting. I truly hate Mazda’s “Zoom Zoom” theme when uttered aloud, yet I like how the company walks the walk as best it can in each product category. Then again, Mazda’s not exactly vast.
The new Fusion ad brings back old problems.
A brilliant slogan will not sell a car, but a vapid one will reinforce the perception that your company is run by out of touch idiots. Not what Ford needs right now.
The best slogans identify and are identified with your brand. Who doesn’t know what “The Ultimate Driving Machine” is? Not only does it work in ad material, but you can put it on that wall in the engineering office to help people remember the goal of what they are supposed to be doing. That’s why BMW hasn’t had to mess with it for years. It’s a slogan, a mission statement, an engineering and accounting decision-maker… Until Ford get’s something this good they should just stick with “Ford: The Last American Car Company”
(+1 to RF. We were typing the same thing at the same time. His more eloquent, of course.)
“Ford had a great tagline: Quality is Job One. Why they changed that I have no clue. Corporate ADD no doubt. They should either return to it, or come up with something equally compelling. AND STICK TO IT. STAT.”
OK, here’s my 2 cents:
One Ford, One Job – Quality.
“We Speak Car. I Can Has Bailout?”
RF: Ford had a great tagline: Quality is Job One. Why they changed that I have no clue. Corporate ADD no doubt. They should either return to it, or come up with something equally compelling. AND STICK TO IT. STAT.
Considering they are (buying their way into) winning quality awards, that’s not a bad idea. Considering all the new product launches in the next 12 months or so, the catchiest tagline is still “Have you Driven a Ford Lately?”
I’m sure the marketing department hated it, just like they hated the Taurus name back in 2005. No matter, some things are there for a reason: because they work and are at the core of your Mission.
RF is right about the big picture: Ford’s branding sucks.
Ford: “We’re not quite as dead as the other guys.”
I agree with the sentiments expressed here – Ford’s marketing exercises have been very weak.
Did Hyundai turn their brand/image around with the use of a ‘perfect’ marketing slogan?
Did Toyota steal the ‘green halo’ with clever marketing slogans?
No, in both cases – they used PRODUCT to speak for them. Ford (and the other D3) should do the same.
Ford isn’t really equated with quality or safety for the most part. They have years of poor quality (and flaming trucks) to get beyond…and that will take years of great, safe, non spontaneous combusting vehicles to prove they have made the changes needed to build a safe and quality product.
Ford should FIRE (preferably with a firing squad!) it’s entire marketing department. Ford needs to get back to building cars and forget selling “notions” and “tag lines”. I promise, build a good car and a memory inducing phrase will stick to it like glue.
Hire a bunch of kids out of school. Tell them to market cars. The first one that says we need to sell a slogan…BANG!
Ford HAS the product now. Their weakness is marketing. All their vehicles are more than competitive in their class. The marketing is the only thing missing.
FORD, Found On Road (not quite) Dead.
Have you bailed out a Ford lately?
wmba, your remarks about Deming and “Quality is job 1” remind me of the time when my former employer, a large naval shipyard, had a great big “Zero Defects” drive. One of the bright ideas was to make Zero Defects license plates to put on the fronts of all the shipyard’s cars and trucks. It was about a year before the Zero Defects front plates were all beat up.
As for the Flex, the problem is they ordered too many loaded Limited trim models and not enough base models. Also, they should have made the kick ass white roof standard.
I don’t watch American Idle…
How true!
Marketing is mostly aimed at people who aren’t capable of putting up a decent comment on this site. We should all try to remember that.
Still, of it fits the brand and company, if it reinforces and captures the positive aspects of the brand, then a slogan can act affect sales, as well as quality and costs inside the organization.
Do it well, or forget it.
I think Ford should level with people, and point out the complete 180 they are doing with their cars. Admit the mistakes of the past, and show the cars they are coming out with. Maybe do an add with an elderly person in a panther driving into a Ford dealer, and being confused by the cars he finds. Gets in a Taurus SHO, and drives off in a more spirited, younger fashion. They will have to wait a half year or more, so they don’t end up like the Camaro or Volt. (Old news by the time they hit the streets because of their years of over hyping.)