Even the most innovative, out-of-the-box (man I hate that phrase) ads aren’t pushing sales anymore. Let me back up….
I’m sure that by now you’ve seen those different Volkswagen ads where the people are just driving along talking about random things and suddenly get in an accident? The first time I saw one I was blown away. And when one comes on now, I’m still captivated. Great stuff by arguably one of the most creative agencies around: Crispin Porter & Bogusky.
Check it out from a recent AdAge sidebar:
Despite all the buzz surrounding envelope-pushing work from Crispin Porter & Bogusky, Miami, over the past year, VW is still falling far short of its stated goal of moving 500,000 vehicles per year. The automaker has parted ways with Director-Brand Innovation Kerri Martin, and Adrian Hallmark, exec VP of the VW brand, said that while the ads under her watch drove foot traffic, there was no “red line through the middle of all our products with a unifying theory about VW.”
These are the guys who were also behind perhaps the very definition and the original viral video …. the Subservient Chicken for Burger King, which also drove huge awareness, but not sales for Burger King’s chicken sandwiches.
My point? Even the greatest ads aren’t effective anymore. It must have something to do with the 5,000-plus advertising messages we’re bombarded with every single day.
Remember that as this whole “Superbowl Ads” hoopla begins to crank up again.
Maybe VW misses the mark because it’s disconnected from the VW story. Notice the new Cadillac ads return to the company’s roots with story-telling, showing the history of the classic luxury car through vintage shots. Good ads tell stories.
Spike,
Thoughtful post. I especially like Lewis’s comment to it. My thoughts exactly. It was no accident when GM decided to pull Elisabeth Vanzura from its Hummer division, and dub her Global Marketing Director of its Cadillac division.
BTW: Ms. Vanzura will be making a great presentation at an upcoming IIR marketing conference. http://www.iirusa.com/marketing/2709.xml.
Her address: “Reigniting America’s Love Affair with Cadillac” will no doubt center on her new ad campaign. “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit” is as unabashedly American as, well, apple pie. Ms. Vanzura: “(this campaign is all about capturing)an American spirit we have in our heritage, and the brand, but without flagwaving.”
The new Cadillac campaign is the brainchild of Modernista, a hot Boston-based advertising agency. So maybe advertising isn’t quite dead yet. It just needs a major infusion of new creativity. Seems, to Lewis’s point, that Cadillac may have gotten it.
Thanks for the comments, guys. It wil lbe interesting to see what happens to Cadillac this year. According to a recent Forbes article: “Cadillac sales declined 3% in 2006, and the company expects flat sales this year.”
Can traditional ads change that? I’m not counting on it.
Spike,
The past advertising strategy with Cadillac’s showcasing of its edgy urban Escalade set to Led Zep and the new strategy telling Cadillac’s storied history, are two very different animals. So is the company’s outreach to the new generation of young “made its” and young affluent suburban moms who want to trade up from the soccer vans. Stay tuned, as I always say. . .
Spike,
We will have to wait to see on sales, but Ted is correct: these news ads are extremely compelling. If you haven’t seen them, they are posted on my blog: http://lgbusinesssolutions.typepad.com/solutions_to_grow_your_bu/
Also note that the advertising campaign is getting lots of buzz online, from blogs like mine to YouTube. And the campaign seems to be based on solid consumer research. I think it’s a winner from refreshing a tired brand to getting Cadillac in the minds of consumers again, who want an American luxury car with a storied past. Baby boomers like me will connect with these ads.
Hi Spike,
I quite concur with Ted and Lewis and their points about Cadillac. I’ve been following this campaign with interest, myself. To Ted’s point: Cadillac thinks it can open up a new market with the “young made its” as he puts it. To Lewis’s point: by telling its story, Cadillac has a chance to connect its heritage with the baby boomer generation. Namely: people like me. They just might make some inroads. I’m rooting for them because the road has been a rough one for U.S. car brands the past few years. No pun intended.
So are the three of you really going to buy a Cadillac because of those ads?
Advertising is for awareness – not credibility. I’ve never said that advertising will go away – it won’t. But it has to work in conjunction with something that provides credibility.
Yes, good advertising tells a story – but there are thousands of stories out there. Tens of thousands. But it’s a company telling a story about itself. How credible is that? And that’s just part of the reason traditional ads are not effective any more.
Spike, your post and this discussion made me think of Snakes on a Plane–lots of buzz but not revenue. I too question whether Cadillac ads, no matter how compelling and innovative, can really sway sales figures. Cadillac has to compete with other cars with great advertising campaigns–at the end of the day it will always come down to the merit of the product. I think what you said is key–advertising is for awareness, not credibility.
Spike,
I think we should be careful in asking questions like whether you would purchase a product “because” of advertising. My take on the argument from the other posters is that Cadillac’s story is, for them, an effective reminder how the brand is relevant for a boomer generation that remembers the brand in its heyday. Will this drive them straight to the dealership? Of course not. Will it make them think again about Cadillac if they are in the market for a luxury vehicle in the near future? Probably.
I’d also question the statement that traditional advertising can’t be credible. I understand that placing brand messages in the hands of consumers has proven to be an incredibly compelling strategy when well-executed, but the rise of CGM and UGC does not mean that advertiser driven messaging has lost all credibility. A relevant message that provides a benefit to the consumer wrapped up in a creative treatment that grabs attention will always be effective, in my opinion, regardless of who the source is. Some people may feel these stories are credible, some may not but I would argue this holds true for consumer generated brand messages as well. Some people just need to see/do for themselves before they will believe.
Regarding the VW ads, agreed they have incredible attention-grabbing, breakthrough power. This, however, is only one element of good creative, despite what some agencies would like their clients to believe. Given that this visceral creative treatment does seem a departure for VW, did the spots do a good enough job reinforcing the brand? The safety message seems quite clear to me, but is it ownable and differentiated from Jetta and Passat’s competitors? I’d consider these questions before making a quality judgement on the VW spots than dismissing traditional advertising’s power based on this campaign’s inability to generate sales.
Great discussion! I love the way that Cadillac are focusing on story … but Tim is right — it needs to be the right story told in the best way for the intended audience.
But Spike is right … we are all over brands telling us their stories. If we are going to part with cash (and let’s face it cars are a LOT of cash), then I am going to do some research first. I am going to Google the make and brand of car … I am going to read through blog posts and reviews. And what am I interested in? Finding the stories about others that sound, smell and look like my own story of myself.
I see two issues here:
1. The story the brand wants to tell has to be consistent with the stories its customers are also telling. Does the product perform as expected, or is there another story in the product’s customer satisfaction scores?
2. The story needs a call to action — not just advertising, but sales promotion and DM, online and offline according to the media consumption patterns of the target audience. And it needs a healthy dose of support up the channel, as well, to make sure they’re making the story come true.
Behold the power of social networking infused with brand positioning. While Spike’s original post was related to VW and their lackluster campaign results, the majority of the posts hit the core messaging and brand position of Cadillac. do you reall need to ask yourself which is the more compelling brand dicussion at a cocktail party?
Volkswagen sales being down may have nothing to do with the effectiveness of their advertising, but rather how good the car is. As a former VW owner, I’d never buy another one based on my experience with my last one — too many little annoying (and expensive) things went wrong with it.
Successful ad campaigns are not only interesting to watch and easy to remember, they also clearly identify the product or service that is being advertised AND give the viewer a reason to want the product or service.
A pretty girl will get your attention, but not get you to remember the product.
A dancing chicken might get your attention AND get you to remember the product but not give you a reason to want to BUY the product.
Until clients figure out that their ad agency is supposed to increase their sales, ad agencies will continue to have fun with their client’s money.
I agree with Karen Cummings. The ads did what they were supposed to do — drive traffic to the showrooms. The creative was excellent and unique. But the product has to deliver those ad promises — in VW’s case they don’t. Their cars don’t compare in quality, safety or value.