Suzuki's ad push for its mid-sized car, Kizashi, positions the vehicle as a sports sedan, on the road or on snow. The effort, via El Segundo, Calif.-based Siltanen & Partners, has one set of creative elements pitching the all-wheel version as the perfect snow-state vehicle and another set touting the Kizashi as sports sedan for the rest of us. Gene Brown, VP marketing at Fountain Valley, Calif.-based American Suzuki Automotive Operations, tells Marketing Daily that the effort, comprising TV, print, online, outdoor, radio and social media elements, is Suzuki's most integrated to date. He says the company will succeed in grabbing share of voice for the vehicle through both the depth of integration and through the creative look and feel of the ads. "The big reason we changed to Siltanen & Partners two years ago was, we knew this launch was coming, and we knew we would have to push this forward in the best possible way," he says, adding that the company will also get on shopping lists with "a really integrated multi-media presence that is not just a one-trick-pony campaign. If you have gobs of money, you can have the launch pivot on big TV buys at the expense of other media, but that's not our formula here," he says. The campaign also involves a new Facebook application, Suzuki's first, called the Kizashi "Wicked Weather" game, where consumers become virtual Kizashi drivers behind the wheel of the car, avoiding vicious snow people and other obstacles. Brown says TV spots will run on sports programming in 21 market "clusters," with print focused on enthusiast publications and, potentially, sports books. Online and print elements center on endorsements from automotive reviewers who have given the car kudos. "Press reviews have been great, and we are using lots of accolades in creative in print, and online," says Brown. "And we may do additional creative for dealers that highlight accolades." A headline in one of the endorsement print ads says, "Words don't do it justice, but they're giving it their best shot." One TV spot shows the car in front of a glowing back drop of lava-like plasma. Voiceover says, "Remember when sleek, finely created performance sedans were just for rich guys with money to burn? Well, those days are officially over." The ad then cuts to the car racing across a desert with a guy and girl in the front seats. Brown says the target consumer wants a "zestier sedan than is typical for the category. In that context, our target is as likely as not to be cross-shopping a certified pre-owned BMW. It's a sports sedan-minded buyer," he says. Rob Siltanen, CEO of Siltanen & Partners, says the decision to pit the car as an alternative to higher-end sports sedans came from early blind testing of the vehicle. "In the early stages, we tested Kizashi with consumers by covering the badge and putting it amongst competitors including Audi, and asked people what car they thought it was. A lot of people, a pretty large number actually, thought it was an Audi. We were eliciting that naturally from the car. So we wanted to make sure the imagery was in keeping with premium cars, letting the car be the star." Brown says the two campaign elements -- the sports sedan message and the push for the AWD version in snow markets -- are expressions of the same idea. "It's about premium performance characteristics. And that story is clearly enhanced by all-wheel drive." He says the take rate for the AWD version of Kizashi is likely to be around 20%, though obviously much higher in snow markets.
Now that its 4G coverage is approaching a nationwide footprint, Sprint is beginning its efforts to tell the world about it. "We're getting to the point where the efficiencies gained through a national message are better than those gained through spot advertising," Chris Schaper, senior advertising manager, tells Marketing Daily. "We also really want to stake our claim as the leading 4G carrier in the space." In a new national marketing campaign, the Overland Park, Kan. company demonstrates how many of the tasks people like to use the Internet for -- downloading music, streaming movies or playing online games -- can be accomplished on the go via its 4G connection. The campaign asks and answers the question: "What can you do with 4G?" The new marketing campaign, which will include television, online, print and experiential executions, will showcase the company's Overdrive 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot, which allows up to five devices to connect via a wireless mobile broadband signal. Television, print and online banner ads will feature the device, as will a revamped microsite dedicated to the 4G coverage. "The effort is to bring another dimension to what 4G is all about," Schaper says. "[The Overdrive] brings a whole other set of benefits to the table that allow you to connect more devices than you've been able to do in the past." The television commercial shows a man streaming movies via the Overdrive to his wireless phone while waiting in line at the airport. He later streams a videoconference on his laptop while at a restaurant, and then plays online games with his friends while sitting around a campfire. The spot ends with Sprint's "widget wall" that has become a Hallmark of Sprint's Now Network positioning. Each box in the wall shows a different person using the Overdrive device for a different task. "It's really the culmination of a campaign that's been building toward the launch of 4G," Schaper says. "We've been alluding to it, but now we're at the tipping point of its promise." On the site, videos depict a man who takes his Overdrive "everywhere I go." As he notes that the device allows five people to connect at once, four other people follow him around in his apartment, at work and on the tennis courts. "With the Overdrive, I'm my own mobile hotspot," he says, "which is the way it should be. Pretty soon it will be that way for everyone." Sprint's 4G coverage is available in 27 markets, and covers a population of more than 30 million. The company will continue to expand coverage throughout 2010, covering a population of 120 million in markets such as Boston, Houston, New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. by the end of the year.
General Electric has taken the wraps off its latest "Healthymagination" effort: A project it calls a "digital ecosystem" involving a content-rich Web site, a mobile app, and plenty of social networking. While it might seem like a strange move for a company like GE, which markets its high-tech imaging equipment to doctors and hospital administrators and not to consumers, "it wasn't a hard decision to make," Linda Boff, global director of marketing communications, tells Marketing Daily. "From a digital perspective, the difference between business-to-business and business-to-consumer is starting to vanish, and this supports the broader goals of the 'Healthymagination' effort, which we launched last May: Bringing better health to more people." The Fairfield, Conn.-based company is dubbing the initiative an "ecosystem," as opposed to a plain old Web site, because "we've really been trying to think of our Web presence not with a campaign mentality, with a start date and an end date, but as an ongoing content strategy. Rather than launch a site with an 'If we build it, they will come' attitude, we wanted to create a digital presence that let us see where the consumer conversations are happening, and follow them there -- whether that happens on Twitter or YouTube. We're looking at this as Mile One of a marathon and hoping to build traction." The healthymagination.com effort is separate from the heavy wave of GE TV spots, which kicked off during the Winter Olympics, she says. Part of the challenge, says Ivan Askwith, director of strategy for Big Spaceship, the New York-based agency that developed the site, is the enormous popularity of health-related sites. "There is just so much information out there, and trying to make lifestyle changes can be so overwhelming, that we wanted to find new ways to break it down into small bites. That's why we named the iPhone app -- which offers an easy-to-do tip every day -- Morsel, for example." A "Visualizing Data" tool allows users to create charts as broad or obscure as they like. A few clicks will let you find out how many female ex-smokers between 35 and 44 are also overweight, for example. And rather than just compete with established content providers, "we wanted to partner with them," he tells Marketing Daily. For instance, the site's "Better Health Conversations," is a partnership with WebMD. The instant messaging-like feature generates health guidelines, as well as a list of questions to ask your doctor at the next visit. "While many health tools and sites are intended to help 'replace' the need for a doctor and reduce doctors to prescription-writing machines, the 'Better Health Conversation' is designed to help patients appreciate the value of having a doctor, and to prepare them with suggestions that make office visits more productive and positive. We think GE can be a valuable partner to doctors, and help them -- and their patients -- get better results," Askwith says. "We don't expect consumers to buy MRI machines from GE, but when you take the broader view, helping consumers get healthier helps doctors and hospitals -- GE's core audience."
Hummer's going, going, but definitely not gone -- or forgotten. Not by owners or dealers and probably not by the long tail of the Hummer aftermarket and used-vehicle business. General Motors says service and warranty plans will be honored. Hummer dealerships started closing their doors in 2008, when gasoline prices spiked and GM announced plans to sell the franchise. By the fourth quarter, about 5% of U.S. Hummer dealers had closed, and General Motors was loading the vehicles with incentives as high as $9,000 to get them moving. Since the vehicles -- from the "smallest" H3 to the luxury version of the H2 -- range from $31,000 to $64,000, those high-point incentives averaged out to around 20% of vehicle price, the highest in the auto business. But that still didn't help sales in a time when people were snapping up the most fuel-efficient cars and trucks they could find -- unless they needed a pickup. Hummer sales have dropped more than any other brand in the past two years: In 2008, sales dropped by 50% to 27,485 vehicles, and last year saw sales drop by over 50% to 9,046 vehicles. The firm says sales of Hummers went from 1.2% of GM's total sales in January 2008 to 0.2% last month. In 2008, with sales on the skids and GM heading into trouble, then-CEO Rick Wagoner announced the brand was on the block. Indian automakers showed interest, but last year China-based Tengzhong agreed to buy the brand for a price later disclosed as around $150 million. The deal was supposed to close last month. The deal was extended until the end of February when Tengzhong couldn't get the Chinese government's approval. On Wednesday, GM said the deal is dead. Ray Ciccolo, owner of Village Automotive Group, a dealership group that includes Norwood, Mass.-based Hummer Village, says he's not ready to give up the ghost. "I think they are just posturing," he says. "General Motors is trying to get the Chinese to kind of commit. And there are other people who have expressed interest in the brand, so I think they will be going forward and if they don't, there will be a market for them, because it's very strong, and we sell all of the used Hummers we can get. We can't get enough of them; where else are you going to go to get something like that?" A General Motors spokesperson insists the deal is dead. "Both parties made the joint decision to terminate the definitive agreement as they were unable to complete the deal, hence the announcement," he says -- adding that there are 153 Hummer dealers in the U.S., of which 16 are stand-alone, meaning they sell only Hummer. "All dealers will be handled according to the previously signed Dealer Transition Agreements," he says, referring to GM's plan last year to reduce dealerships. "We have not yet announced a timeline. However, the wind-down of a dealership typically takes several months." One owner -- a Jacksonville, Fla., investment banker who owns an H2 -- says he's worried about parts and service, issues that GM says it will handle. "The first thing that goes through your head is, who's going to support the brand as far as being able to maintain the vehicles?" he says. "If you have issues, are there going to be parts in place? These are expensive vehicles, and if you plan on amortizing the expenses over many years, you wonder about finding someone who can maintain it." He also says he is concerned about the resale value of the vehicle. "If I wanted to trade it in or outright sell it, what is the value?" As for the ownership experience, he says he likes the truck, although his wife is the main user. "The only negative is fuel economy, which is bad but consistent: 12 miles per gallon. But it drives very nicely, it's very quiet, and gives a very smooth ride and it's wide and roomy," he says. Jeremy Anwyl, CEO of Edmunds.com, says Hummer isn't like Oldsmobile, another GM brand that was shuttered, because buyers could easily find similar vehicles. He says that because Hummer is unique, resale value may even grow as production ceases. "The trick with this is that they are distinctive -- the Harley-Davidson of SUVs if you like. "Where are you going to go to get something like it when GM stops making them? You might find that since it can't be substituted easily, the demand maintains value in a way you wouldn't normally assume. When Oldsmobile went, there were other vehicles that matched. Not Hummer." He also says that because under their skin they have GM parts, maintenance won't be a problem. "The H2, for example, is essentially a Chevy Tahoe."
Top 10 DMAs in which reside adults who entertained guests at home in the last year: 1 Minneapolis/ St. Paul 2 Detroit 3 Denver 4 St. Louis 5 Chicago 6 Madison, Wis. 7 Cleveland/ Akron (Canton), Ohio 8 Rochester/ Mason City/ Austin, Minn. and Iowa 9 Cedar Rapids/ Waterloo/ Iowa City/ Dubuque, Iowa 10 Milwaukee, Wis. Source: MRI's Market-by-Market study, www.mediamark.com
Drew Brees and the Super Bowl-winning Saints one week, and the Olympics the next: great athletes are on every screen. Now more than ever, real marketing athleticism, real talent is driving the explosive growth of social media. This didn't happen overnight (or even over a week, month or year) but it is clearly happening. Just for the record, I'm a runner. By almost any definition, I am a committed one, having run seven New York City Marathons in a row and about 10 races annually. But I don't consider myself an "athlete," and running didn't require me to become one. A decent pair of running shoes, some seasonal gear and my iPod over the past few years was the cost of entry. And there aren't a lot of barriers to running, even in big events like the NYC Marathon. Since its inception, social media has pretty much been in the same situation. Social was easy for businesses and brands to jump into and get some learning, because limiting factors such as production cost or delivery expense were so minimal. And on the other salivating side, great demos couldn't be easier to reach. You could make the argument that if it was harder to test, let alone dive in headfirst, social marketing would be having a dramatically different adoption curve (Pepsi may not have opted out of big-event television like the Super Bowl) than it has experienced to date. Maybe even more to the point, if social media really ate into other integrated marketing programs -- Pepsi is kind of the test case -- it would have been held to an elevated standard like the kind of strategic and ROI measures to which other traditional media have been held. Only within the past 18 to 24 months has the scale of social media become impactful enough for its value to be held to real standards of accountability. Now, everyone wants to quantify every part of the social discussion. For professional digital marketers, this moment couldn't be more exciting, compelling and, of course, challenging. But the challenge from an empirical and measurement POV is only half the story: the bigger underlying challenge is the integration of strategic thinking and big-idea marketing philosophy with tactical elements and cool executions that define the landscape. Like the NYC Marathon, but unlike the very top-of-mind Winter Olympics, social media continues to feature a dual playing field of expanding professionals (from technologists and user experience experts to marketing strategists, creative talent, etc.) and a huge community of "non-pros" users and creators together sharing in the experience. Of course, marketers only jumped in after the eyeballs were in and to this day (and probably for days to come) are shunned for being disruptive. Pepsi, by way of contrast, is nothing if not incredibly astute by driving its social media effort through the framework of social responsibility -- thus being part of a bigger solution and not any snarky problem. So regardless of whether social media is thought of by the user community as better without the professionals messing with it or thought of by other peer marketing professionals as the least-strategic marketing arrow in the quiver, social marketing needs to aggressively build out the marketing side of the discipline. Why? It will enhance the value of the medium and get creative content developers more of the money they deserve. And, for social media to continue growing up as a full-fledged, adult member of the marketing solution team, it must think and act more like a professional Olympian than an amateur marathoner. Regardless of how many gold pieces Lindsay Vonn ends up wearing around her neck, she has 10 major sponsors, including Red Bull and a showcase Sports Illustrated cover. She is a professional athlete. And, while I love the fact the NYC Marathon has pros who can churn out one sub-five-minute mile after another, it doesn't make any difference to the many thousands of runners, friends and family lining the streets. The 2010 Winter Olympics, like social media, are now about big-time money. Any real athlete will tell you competition elevates everything: will to win, training prep and even pain threshold -- any of which provide a good reason to update your status. The Common Rings of Social Media and the Olympics: 1. Measurability matters -- you don't podium if you don't medal. Facebook (Twitter and others -- more all the time) has incredibly compelling numbers to back up even more compelling stories for brands. Numbers can lie, but they don't here. 2. The Olympics are extraordinary because they always bring out the best athletes on a global basis. Social media is now attracting a similar elite talent pool because technology, consumer strategy and creativity all are leveraged for the "greater good"... like the Olympic spirit! 3. Change is what's normal. At the Winter Olympics, look at how snowboarding, ice dancing, etc. looks compared to just the last Games in 2006. Social media is the most dynamic media platform any of us have ever experienced. Technologists can't keep up with brand desires and vice-versa. 4. Three common "linked" words: Stretch body and mind as to what's possible today and in the foreseeable future. Test new approaches and equipment. Finding harmony can be hard, but it's worth finding. Be Nimble to capitalize on both of the above.