• by Karl Greenberg , March 14, 2011

General Motors' OnStar division is launching a sweepstakes called Push On, wherein 10 people will win a new OnStar-equipped Chevrolet, Buick, GMC or Cadillac vehicle of their choice.

The automaker says anyone with a digital OnStar-equipped vehicle -- regardless of whether they are a current OnStar subscriber -- can enter to win by pressing the blue OnStar button in their vehicle's rear-view mirror now through May 31.

The 10 winners can choose any vehicle from among GM's four brands, with any combination of factory-installed options. The only vehicle that isn't part of the program is Chevrolet's Volt.

Vijay Iyer, OnStar's director of communications, says the program is supported by a TV ad push starting March 14 on prime time, as well as radio, print and a grassroots effort in 10 major markets. He says the ad campaign runs through April and that the local market events include street teams, OnStar's road show, GM-vehicle test drives and activation around local events.

The street teams will be around "advisor stories" and OnStar facts tied to those markets, such OnStar's most-requested breakfast location in New York, or favorite shopping places. "These are fun facts around a specific area we can pull up and talk about," says Iyer, who adds that in some markets OnStar will be associated with GM's "Main Street in Motion" consumer outreach test-drive program.

"The idea is to get people who have OnStar subscriptions to learn more about the service, and those who don't -- but have the OnStar button -- to engage," says Iyer, who explains that when a non-subscriber pushes the button, an advisor responds first to explain that the driver has entered the sweepstakes and then to make promotional subscription offers.

Iyer explains that the bedrock of OnStar's business -- safety -- isn't something the company promotes nearly as much as it used to as new navigation, connection and entertainment features associated with the new MyLink platform are getting more of the spotlight. He explains that one reason for that is that the emergency response functionality of OnStar is essentially free.

The company also has offered free calling via the service during regional emergencies such as Hurricane Katrina and, most recently the U.S. West Coast after the earthquake off the coast of Japan raised fears that devastating waves would reach it.