• by Karl Greenberg , March 12, 2009

Ford has launched new programs to get the word out about the top-selling pickup truck in the U.S., and best-selling vehicle in the country for 27 years. There is both a new TV spot touting the safety features of the truck and an extension of the Dearborn, Mich. automaker's ongoing promotional relationship with country star Toby Keith.

The new ad is the sixth in a series that launched last year to promote the 2009 F-150. The campaign, using voiceover by actor/comedian Denis Leary, takes a sharp detour from the traditional truck-as-hero mythology to focus on more straightforward illumination of features and benefits.

The automaker is also continuing its F-150 relationship, begun in 2002 with Keith. The new program centers on a promotion, "Build Ford Tough Biggest & Baddest Sweepstakes," offering fans the chance to be a band roadie for a Toby Keith concert.

Through March, fans can enter at www.BiggestAndBaddest.com both to be a roadie and to win an F-150. The winner and three guests will receive an all-expenses-paid trip to join Keith for one weekend on his 2009-10 concert tour--riding in their own private tour bus, which will caravan with Keith's bus from show to show. They also get full-access backstage passes crew passes.

Registrants also get Ford Tough and Toby Keith ringtones, wallpaper and photos from the "Biggest and Baddest Tour."

Country music is a no-brainer for the pickup business--according to Ford, 60% of F-Series customers listen to country music--and the biggest market is the South, particularly Texas and adjacent states. Keith, who was raised and still lives in Oklahoma, has appeared in numerous F-150 ads, including ones in which he recounts his family's history with Ford trucks. Per the company, the sweepstakes have generated more than 40,000 handraisers for the truck.

The new ad touting F-150 safety has Leary doing his trademark stream-of-consciousness-style rant: "All right, so you're driving down the freeway doing about 60 when you notice the guy next to you is steering with his knees, eating a cheeseburger and talking on the phone. And that is exactly why the Ford F-150 is the safest truck in America. It's got a high-strength steel safety cage, side-impact air bags, safety canopy, five-star crash rating, and roll stability control. Because it's not just crazy out there, it's certifiably insane. It's not just a pickup truck. It's the 2009 Motor Trend Truck of the Year."

Through February, Ford has sold 48,451 F-series trucks--47% less than the first two months last year. Competitors have fared little better. General Motors sold 43,775 Chevrolet Silverado pickups in the first two months, down about 45%; and 14,420 GMC Sierra pickups--a 49% drop versus the first two months in 2008. Toyota sold 12,802 Tundra pickups through February, constituting a 51% drop in year-to-date sales.