Thanks to iMedia Connection for this post: http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/20863.asp
By David Rossiter
Marketing opportunity can still knock -- even when the economy is taking its lumps. See which automotive companies are spinning "green" into gold with some innovative and relevant campaigns.
The price of fuel continues to climb, hitting record highs along the way. Everyone from airlines to movie studios, banks, bands and, of course, consumers are choosing to go carbon neutral in an effort to reduce their toll on our environment. Everywhere we look someone is touting the benefits of "going green." And nowhere is this more evident than in the automotive industry's marketing campaigns.
Their efforts are spurred by record low U.S. car sales across manufacturers. According to figures from Autodata Corp., July 2008 marked the worst month for sales in 16 years, and although August proved slightly more encouraging, sales were still more than 15 percent lower than the previous year. Research from TNS Media Intelligence, which tracks advertising spending, shows a shift in ad spending among auto manufacturers toward their smaller and more fuel-efficient vehicles and away from trucks and SUVs.Is a green-themed car campaign enough to turn things around? Some are betting it is by investing in clever and elaborate online marketing initiatives designed to educate, entertain and ultimately lure consumers back to the dealership.
MINI creates CarFun
When it launched in August, MINI Cooper's CarFun Footprint microsite became an instant viral hit. It had all the trappings of an impactful campaign: an intuitive interactive tool, humor and a clever play on the trendy term "carbon footprint."
At the site, users are asked to select their make, model and color of car to calculate their "Fun Score," based on survey data from consumer research firm Strategic Vision, and "Green Score," which is sourced from the Environmental Protection Agency's Green Vehicle Guide. Together, the scores represent one's CarFun Footprint, and prompt a post-quiz response this like one: "You're driving a nice, comfortable sedan. Nice. Comfortable. And not particularly exciting. You could be driving a 37 mile per gallon MINI Cooper that takes nice and comfortable and adds the excitement of go-cart handling, starting at just $19,200."
Prior to launching its campaign, MINI had already benefited from the halo effect of consumers' concerns about rising gas prices. (Autodata reports sales rose by more than 30 percent this year through July.) Its CarFun Footprint campaign, which includes print and outdoor advertising, further spotlights the brand's climate- (and wallet)-friendly design. It also puts the brand head-to-head with its competitors in an environment where the original small luxury vehicle is bound to come out ahead. Existing MINI drivers are sure to find validation in this playful initiative, while consumers interested in living greener (and having more fun in the process) can't help but ponder a buy.
Traversing our reliance on the pump
This summer, GM launched a collection of ecologically minded ads for its Chevy brand during the 2008 Beijing Olympics to underscore its more fuel-efficient vehicles. Among them were new ads for the company's existing "Gas Pumps Hate Us" series, where gas pumps were seen vandalizing cars in their frustration over not being needed. Also introduced were spots marking the upcoming launch of the Chevy Traverse, an eight-passenger SUV with impressive (relatively speaking) highway fuel economy.
Online, the campaign manifested itself with homepage takeovers and display ads. A new Traverse microsite makes the company's brand objective clear by featuring a background of silhouetted trees, and a section on the vehicle's fuel efficiency that pits the Traverse against its competitors.
Both campaign themes feed off consumers' common aggravation over the high price of fuel and endeavor to address their concerns, but in different ways. "Gas Pumps Hate Us" uses humor by personifying the pumps and creating an adversarial relationship between them and the driver not unlike that which we've all experienced -- albeit it in less tangibly aggressive way. The Traverse ads serve to address the more serious side of the issue with hard data consumers can really sink their teeth into.
Ford helps schools go green
Families have always been one of Ford's primary target audiences, and this fact is reflected in its recent "Educate to Escape" contest. Launched in March of this year, the effort found Ford partnering with ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" to award one U.S. school with an eco-friendly makeover based on essay submissions outlining why each entrant deserved help in going green.
"Ford maintains a commitment to lessen our overall impact on the planet with our products and our manufacturing plants," said a Ford Motor Company spokesperson of the campaign. By linking itself to an altruistic effort focused on sustainability and environmental conservation, the company was able to create a positive brand association that's made even more powerful through its subdued emphasis on its vehicles.
Should the message have been missed, Ford made sure to lead contest microsite visitors to a section of the Ford brand site that further addresses environmental issues with articles on its environmentally sustainable soy foam seats and fuel cell hybrid electric plug-in car. The move was a smart one; as effective as contest sponsorships can be in relaying a brand message to consumers, it never hurts to carry their interest in the campaign through to one's more sales-focused online destination.
You have to hand it to the automakers. In the face of one of the worst sales slumps in recent years, confronted with a drop in market value of domestic brands and a dramatic shift in consumer demand from large, typically inefficient vehicles to more compact models, they've had to get very creative -- and fast.
While it's far easier for these marketers to modify their messaging than change their product mix, it isn't easy to develop green campaigns that truly resonate with their potential customers. The theme is one that's being manipulated by virtually every type of business in every market segment in one way or another. Kudos to these car manufacturers for getting it so right.
"Ford maintains a commitment to lessen our overall impact on the planet with our products and our manufacturing plants," said a Ford Motor Company spokesperson of the campaign. By linking itself to an altruistic effort focused on sustainability and environmental conservation, the company was able to create a positive brand association that's made even more powerful through its subdued emphasis on its vehicles.
Should the message have been missed, Ford made sure to lead contest microsite visitors to a section of the Ford brand site that further addresses environmental issues with articles on its environmentally sustainable soy foam seats and fuel cell hybrid electric plug-in car. The move was a smart one; as effective as contest sponsorships can be in relaying a brand message to consumers, it never hurts to carry their interest in the campaign through to one's more sales-focused online destination.
You have to hand it to the automakers. In the face of one of the worst sales slumps in recent years, confronted with a drop in market value of domestic brands and a dramatic shift in consumer demand from large, typically inefficient vehicles to more compact models, they've had to get very creative -- and fast.
While it's far easier for these marketers to modify their messaging than change their product mix, it isn't easy to develop green campaigns that truly resonate with their potential customers. The theme is one that's being manipulated by virtually every type of business in every market segment in one way or another. Kudos to these car manufacturers for getting it so right.
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