• Wall Street Journal, Monday, February 15, 2010 10:17 AM

BMW, which has long promoted the power and performance of its cars with auto-focused ads and its "ultimate driving machine" tagline, is shifting into a new gear with a campaign that highlights the joy of owning its vehicles and the suggestion that the cars are safe for women and children, Alex P. Kellogg reports. The campaign also features photos of actual BMW owners more than product shots.

"We hope to really add some humanity to our brand" and show the diversity of buyers, says Jack Pitney, vp of marketing for BMW North America. The "ultimate driving machine" slogan still appears in small print, but the focus is elsewhere in the automaker's first major ad push in the U.S in four years. In one spot, "Joy is BMW," the text reads: "At BMW we don't make cars. We make joy."

"People now want to lead a richer life, rather than a life of riches," says Madelyn Hochstein, president of DYG, a market-research firm that works with BMW. The campaign will evolve into a value message emphasizing the quality of the engineering, vehicle safety, a four-year or 50,000-mile free service package and the fuel economy of its diesels and hybrids.

Meanwhile, Tim Higgins reports in the Detroit Free Press that Toyota dealers gathered in Orlando are excited about a major marketing push the automaker is launching in March. They're also happy about the fact that headquarters' payments to fix recalled cars and trucks will help offset lost sales.

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