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Lincoln's "American Dreams" campaign from Caddi?


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Cadillac, Lincoln. Then there was the one about the campaign strategy overheard on a Northwest Airlines flight... It happens all the time, executives from the same company seated in First Class, talking about business, conveniently forgetting where they are and who might be listening. Only this time, a high-ranking, high-visibility Ford executive was sitting there, with his laptop opened, minding his own business, when the creative brain trust from Modernista - the Boston ad agency flush with a new Cadillac assignment - began going over their new strategic plans for Cadillac. As the Ford executive realized what was happening, he started taking notes on his laptop. Copious, detailed notes. He then dutifully passed them along to his compatriots at Lincoln for their perusal. Is it any coincidence then that Lincoln launched its new marketing initiative entitled "Advancing the American Dream" last Friday, in which they suggest that "owning a Lincoln is for people pursuing the American Dream?" Which just happened to be eerily similar to the premise that Cadillac's new marketing strategy was to be based on? For the record, Al Giombetti, president of Ford and Lincoln Mercury marketing and sales had this to say, "The 'Dreams' marketing platform is about the vision that motivates successful people and the rewards for achieving success. It's an idea that fits perfectly with our brand because we are turning Lincoln into a new American success story on the strength of innovative products. In fact, eighty percent of our showroom is all-new for 2007." No mention was made of the Northwest incident, for obvious reasons, but the word is all over the street about what really happened. Ah, Dee-troit, there ain't nothin like it.

 

From this weeks ON THE TABLE of www.autorextremist.com

 

Interesting.. and good for Lincoln.. that Ford Exec needs a raise ;)

 

Igor

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The "American Dreams" campaign was not stolen from Cadillac. The launch was pulled forward, but the campaign had been in the works for some time. Mark Fields' comments from the Way Forward presentation:

 

"Finally, there’s Lincoln – a brand that has meant different things to a lot of people. I admit we lost focus and created confusion. That’s because, for a time, the qualities that define a Lincoln for our customers took a backseat to individual nameplates. Our vision is to make customers proud to own a Lincoln first and foremost. The goal is to make Lincoln the reward for people living the American dream.

 

Lincoln appeals to different customers from those who need to showcase their success through a brand like Cadillac. Lincoln customers don’t need to shout about success. They are self-made people, with enough confidence to be elegant and understated. And that understanding of the Lincoln customer will drive our brand and product decisions going forward. We will not waver."

Edited by RichardJensen
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You got to love marketing speak, they say exactly the opposite of their intention so that they instil a sense of moral superiority in the customer if they buy their product. In reality, Lincoln is about flashy 'look-at-me' luxury. If you don't believe that, take a look at the new Navigator.

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You got to love marketing speak, they say exactly the opposite of their intention so that they instil a sense of moral superiority in the customer if they buy their product. In reality, Lincoln is about flashy 'look-at-me' luxury. If you don't believe that, take a look at the new Navigator.

Yeah. Because all Cadillacs are the epitome of conservative and understated elegance.

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Yeah. Because all Cadillacs are the epitome of conservative and understated elegance.

 

It's hard to judge Lincoln with so few products, but Lincoln hardly resembles the marketing language. I understand what they are getting at, they want to sell their cars more on their traditional luxury attributes rather than performance and technology which has become synonymous with most modern luxury brands. In that way, they may tap into a market largely exploited by Lexus and Acura. If Lincoln can't catch them in quality and technology, then perhaps they can catch them in bling for the buck ;).

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