• by Tanya Gazdik , January 17, 2017

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles aims to reinforce the brand values of leadership, integrity and hard work in a campaign highlighting product features of Ram 1500, 2500 and 3500 pickup trucks.

Two 30-second spots in the new campaign launched Jan. 15 during NFL football playoff game telecasts and will continue to run on broadcast and cable programming throughout 2017. Additional spots will follow in the coming weeks.

The campaign, from Doner, is set to a custom recording and arrangement of Bob Dylan’s “Forever Young” performed by Low Country Sound/Elektra recording artist Anderson East. 

“‘Forever Young’ is a timeless song and, we felt, the right soundtrack for a campaign that lives at the intersection of enduring principles and the truck that lasts the longest time, as Ram trucks have earned the designation: America’s longest-lasting pickups,” says Jeff Summers, head of Ram Advertising.  

The custom recording adds a grittiness and tonality that perfectly fits Ram trucks and the visual images in the spots, he adds.

“‘Long Live’ is not about us, it is about our customers,” Summers tells Marketing Daily. “It is meant to demonstrate the values of our truck owners in a way that no other brand does — with emotion, meaning and integrity."

Creative showcases the resolve of those who depend on Ram trucks every day — from families to farmers to first responders. The spots highlight the strength, power and capabilities of Ram trucks, including their engines.

“Long Live Ram” features a variety of stories that showcase the strength, bravery and resolve of communities that depend on our trucks. In “Skate,” Ram trucks are hard at work clearing the way for a whole town to come together to go ice skating on a lake. 

“Forever Young” perfectly underscores the message: long live those values that people hold dear and long live Ram that enables them to do so. The spots end with “America’s Longest-lasting Pickups” and brand tagline “Guts. Glory. Ram.”

The “Long Live” Ram brand campaign includes online advertising, as well as Ram brand website and Facebook, Twitter and Instagram social media page support. Future lifestyle marketing extensions are also being planned.

Creating a distinct identity for Ram trucks has allowed the brand to concentrate on core customers and the features they find valuable.

“All the Ram ads we do stay true to the core values of our brand: integrity, courage, leadership and hard work,” Summers says. “In addition to working from a brand value perspective, the campaign also works to connect, to communicate how Ram best-in-class features benefit truck owners, whether they are working in their jobs or in their communities.”

Summers declined to discuss the details of the upcoming lifestyle marketing extensions.

“Many ideas are in discussion so it’s too early to provide details,” he says. "Future lifestyle marketing extensions will help bring the messages of the ‘Long Live’ campaign to life in a relevant way.”