Ford Advertising; is it still as good?

Cashie · 09-10-2010, 06:31 PM

I was rewatching the BA "can't get enough of this" advert on youtube (along with a few others from this period) and it got me thinking, is the current advertising as good as it was around the release of the BA?
I still can't get the jingle "can't get enough of this" out of my head...

MAGPIE · 09-10-2010, 07:40 PM

Nope...

the BA advert was one out of the box, imo one of the best car ads ever

edit: the scenery helped though

jpd80 · 09-10-2010, 07:55 PM

who's most likely to let buyers forget about the best locally designed car?

Who's most likely?

Ford, of course.....

Joe5619 · 09-10-2010, 08:15 PM

You guys are wrong, wrong,wrong.. Well aacording to this report Ford adds are the BEST in the industry!!!

http://news.drive.com.au/drive/motor...007-168sb.html

Windsor220 · 09-10-2010, 08:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joe5619

You guys are wrong, wrong,wrong.. Well aacording to this report Ford adds are the BEST in the industry!!!

http://news.drive.com.au/drive/motor...007-168sb.html

Survey was probably done in Geelong.

DanielXR8 · 09-10-2010, 08:58 PM

The BA ad was unquestionably the best car ad that Ford have done in this country. The fact it was showing the then new sporty lines of the BA, when we were surrounded on the road everyday with AU's didn't hurt either. ;)

Dan

Smoke Pursuit · 09-10-2010, 08:59 PM

have you driven a ford lately??

time they brought that slogan back and milked it.

Jason[98.EL] · 09-10-2010, 09:01 PM

yeh right Windsor220 if you want to know that most of the ford people I know hate the adds that ford au are putting out

Cashie · 09-10-2010, 09:04 PM

For those who need to see it again:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNOY1mAo40U

dannyhilton · 09-10-2010, 09:56 PM

Ford cop a lot of criticism over their advertising, and I believe a fair share of that is undeserved. Ford do have good adverts, they are simple, clear and not overly personalised. But their problem is they are not emotive, wether you are a car fan or not, a car purchase should be an emotive one, most get very excited about buying a new car. Ford advertising is bland in this regard. They are trying not to personalise their adverts with people smiling and happy snaps of families like Holden do, but love them or hate them, Holden are onto a winning formula I think (as bull crap as the messages might be sometimes). Being the emotive purchase a car is, their ads are clear, emotive, smart and well put together, but most of all they excite you. The BA advert is a perfect example how to tastefully excite, educate and not to over personalise an advert. IMHO Ford need to take a leaf out of Holdens book in going forward. Some of the Ford US adverts are sensational I think, so some inspiration can be drawn from them too. But Audi does advertising best I think.

DanielXR8 · 10-10-2010, 10:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dannyhilton

Ford cop a lot of criticism over their advertising, and I believe a fair share of that is undeserved. Ford do have good adverts, they are simple, clear and not overly personalised. But their problem is they are not emotive, wether you are a car fan or not, a car purchase should be an emotive one, most get very excited about buying a new car. Ford advertising is bland in this regard. They are trying not to personalise their adverts with people smiling and happy snaps of families like Holden do, but love them or hate them, Holden are onto a winning formula I think (as bull crap as the messages might be sometimes). Being the emotive purchase a car is, their ads are clear, emotive, smart and well put together, but most of all they excite you. The BA advert is a perfect example how to tastefully excite, educate and not to over personalise an advert. IMHO Ford need to take a leaf out of Holdens book in going forward. Some of the Ford US adverts are sensational I think, so some inspiration can be drawn from them too. But Audi does advertising best I think.

You nailed it.
Dan

jpd80 · 10-10-2010, 02:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dannyhilton

Ford cop a lot of criticism over their advertising, and I believe a fair share of that is undeserved. Ford do have good adverts, they are simple, clear and not overly personalised. But their problem is they are not emotive, wether you are a car fan or not, a car purchase should be an emotive one, most get very excited about buying a new car. Ford advertising is bland in this regard. They are trying not to personalise their adverts with people smiling and happy snaps of families like Holden do, but love them or hate them, Holden are onto a winning formula I think (as bull crap as the messages might be sometimes). Being the emotive purchase a car is, their ads are clear, emotive, smart and well put together, but most of all they excite you. The BA advert is a perfect example how to tastefully excite, educate and not to over personalise an advert. IMHO Ford need to take a leaf out of Holdens book in going forward. Some of the Ford US adverts are sensational I think, so some inspiration can be drawn from them too. But Audi does advertising best I think.

Good post Dan, you defend Ford and then describe exactly what's wrong with their advertising.
One of the biggest concerns Ford had three years ago was that their ads were not
connecting personally with buyers, unless people invest their emotions in buying a car
and feel like Ford builds car specifically for them and their needs, the purchase
remains just transport and we all might as well go buy Firdges like Toyota.

It's marketing that's letting Ford down, advertising is just one tool.

blownv8au · 10-10-2010, 03:04 PM

fords adds could be a bit better and more inspiring but the biggest problem i have is when the fg was released the only way i even knew about it was from wheels and street fords. I think i saw maybe one add on tv and a small write up in the local paper over 3 months after it was released. Pretty crap for a new car i think.

Matt P · 10-10-2010, 03:16 PM

They have fallen away a bit the F Series pulling out the road train "got a chamois you can use". The XR8 ute adds must be stuck in third. The RTV add racing the motor bike flooded it mate. Ford need to get the guys that made these adds back. The fingers walking were a bit of a let down for how good the FG is.

dannyhilton · 10-10-2010, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jpd80

Good post Dan, you defend Ford and then describe exactly what's wrong with their advertising. It's marketing that's letting Ford down, advertising is just one tool.

Thanks mate. But you summed it up in one sentence, very well put.

Perko · 10-10-2010, 03:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jpd80

It's marketing that's letting Ford down, advertising is just one tool.

You have hit the nail on the head with this. When the BA was released I think that Ford had it right on many fronts. The ads were targeted at the right audiences. The BA ad was slick and the tune did stick in your head. The XR8 and subsequent RTV ute ads are still a favourite of mine and was targetted well. Ford also then utilised their presence in V8 supercars very well with some good buys, good team support and linking them back to advertising.

With the FG we have not seen the same sort of advertising. It is weak, safe and I agree emotion should come into it. Also you do not see it in enough media. Support for motorsport has been wound back and this does have an impact. The classic case is the new motor for the FPV's. Ford should have been going overtime on this, but there has been minimal marketing.

jpd80 · 10-10-2010, 09:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by perko73

You have hit the nail on the head with this. When the BA was released I think that Ford had it right on many fronts. The ads were targeted at the right audiences. The BA ad was slick and the tune did stick in your head. The XR8 and subsequent RTV ute ads are still a favourite of mine and was targetted well. Ford also then utilised their presence in V8 supercars very well with some good buys, good team support and linking them back to advertising.

With the FG we have not seen the same sort of advertising. It is weak, safe and I agree emotion should come into it. Also you do not see it in enough media. Support for motorsport has been wound back and this does have an impact. The classic case is the new motor for the FPV's. Ford should have been going overtime on this, but there has been minimal marketing.

Here's a great insight into how Polites saw and summed up problems at Ford Australia:

Quote:

Obituary: Geoff Polites, ex-Ford boss

He arrived not long after the forgettable AU Falcon went on sale and Ford sales overall were in decline. Of the troubled Falcon of the time, Polites said Ford did 32 research groups on the car "but not one on the customer".

Polites was a man of the people: politicians kiss babies, he hugged factory workers. He made impromptu visits to the production line and instigated a monthly meeting with a dozen staff randomly selected from all levels of the company to find out what problems there were.

Against the advice of his peers, Polites was more open with motoring journalists than his PR advisers would have preferred. But he always blasted back to his minders: "These journos know about cars, but they don't understand the car business."

His thinking was simple: if something's not right, it should be fixed. At the time, the most common question Polites was asked by randomly selected Ford workers at the monthly staff meetings was: "Why isn't the Falcon selling?" His answer was blunt and honest: "Basically, we developed a car the market didn't want. We were happy with it but the public (wasn't)."

I think the last paragraph is compelling and should be
compulsory reading for chiefs at FoA planning Dept.

irlewy86 · 10-10-2010, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dannyhilton

Ford cop a lot of criticism over their advertising, and I believe a fair share of that is undeserved. Ford do have good adverts, they are simple, clear and not overly personalised. But their problem is they are not emotive, wether you are a car fan or not, a car purchase should be an emotive one, most get very excited about buying a new car. Ford advertising is bland in this regard. They are trying not to personalise their adverts with people smiling and happy snaps of families like Holden do, but love them or hate them, Holden are onto a winning formula I think (as bull crap as the messages might be sometimes). Being the emotive purchase a car is, their ads are clear, emotive, smart and well put together, but most of all they excite you. The BA advert is a perfect example how to tastefully excite, educate and not to over personalise an advert. IMHO Ford need to take a leaf out of Holdens book in going forward. Some of the Ford US adverts are sensational I think, so some inspiration can be drawn from them too. But Audi does advertising best I think.

WRONG!!!!!

Remember the Territory ad with the kid covering up his Kluger in Territory drawings. Ford had people ringing up requesting to adopt the child. There cant have been a more emotive ad in history than one that makes reasonable adults do something as nonsense as that. Just because the majority of posters here are males 25-49 and think the only way to make an ad is to display "sportiness" doesn't mean it will be effective. For the last 10 years FoA have been adequately moving the focus of their advertising to the areas of the market which most need address. The fact that Ford advertising is derided here on AFF is testament to that.

You can waste money chasing 100% of one market or shore up 20% of the overall market.

dannyhilton · 11-10-2010, 12:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by irlewy86

WRONG!!!!!

Remember the Territory ad with the kid covering up his Kluger in Territory drawings. Ford had people ringing up requesting to adopt the child. There cant have been a more emotive ad in history than one that makes reasonable adults do something as nonsense as that.

There is evidence that Ford uses emotive adverts, I didn't doubt that, I even pointed to one of their best emotive commercials, but compare these to the amount Holden produce, Ford ads are somewhat stale in comparison. Apart from a few here and there (Mondeo and the dog, Territory and the kid) their advertising isn't all that emotive and rarely involves anything to excite, they seem to prefer clear cut, informative type advertising.

I never said they should just have cars doing burn outs, that would miss a fair chunk of the market, but like it or not, Holden are onto a winning formula. They do everything Ford ads do and more. All without doing burn outs and donuts.

jpd80 · 11-10-2010, 08:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dannyhilton

There is evidence that Ford uses emotive adverts, I didn't doubt that, I even pointed to one of their best emotive commercials, but compare these to the amount Holden produce, Ford ads are somewhat stale in comparison. Apart from a few here and there (Mondeo and the dog, Territory and the kid) their advertising isn't all that emotive and rarely involves anything to excite, they seem to prefer clear cut, informative type advertising.

I never said they should just have cars doing burn outs, that would miss a fair chunk of the market, but like it or not, Holden are onto a winning formula. They do everything Ford ads do and more. All without doing burn outs and donuts.

I remember the yank before Burela saying Ford had to reconnect with buyers,
plenty of people liked Ford products but wouldn't commit buy new ones,

Ford canada had an advertising campaign that made buyers feel like Ford
was building new special products with them in mind, the personal connection.
This is what Ford needs to do here.

**Polyal** · 10-10-2010, 10:26 AM

Problem is Holden have very good campaigns, simple for simple people. My issue with their tactics is that what they say verges on lies at times. But, they push the boundaries, ford don't.

Lol @ the geelong comment

csv8 · 10-10-2010, 10:32 AM

Ford America had..."Ford Built for the Road Ahead"

csv8 · 10-10-2010, 10:35 AM

We would never see an ad like this, here !!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RBZKo3yYoE

Ptbl · 10-10-2010, 11:12 AM

I REMEmBER that ba advert, I was in the living room with parents, I was like PWOA im going to get this ..years later I did

I showed them!

Cashie · 10-10-2010, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ptbl

I REMEmBER that ba advert, I was in the living room with parents, I was like PWOA im going to get this ..years later I did

I showed them!

The ad and the car was so good that in 2003 it got me into my first, of many Fords (a brand new BA XR6).

Jason[98.EL] · 10-10-2010, 11:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by csv8

We would never see an ad like this, here !!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RBZKo3yYoE

Agree big time how good was that

Ptbl · 10-10-2010, 12:18 PM

bloody hell i was 12 when i first had seen this add lol

btw ford makes the best adds.. except for that 1 navara add! the boys eating pies in the back lol/

NudgE^SIKBRO · 10-10-2010, 03:19 PM

I have no problem, I think the Ford marketing dept does a good job on adds however they focus too much on the imports Focus/Fiesta/anything else and they gain far too much airplay

csv8 · 10-10-2010, 05:41 PM

The Blue Oval nudges out its larger local rivals in the chase for a slice of new-car sales.

Football, meat pies, kangaroos and ... Ford cars?

A survey of car brand names in Australia has revealed that thanks to its advertising, the Blue Oval gains more recognition from people planning to buy a new car than its natural rival, Holden.

The Roy Morgan survey, released this week, looks at buyers' perceptions of 11 car brands sold in Australia, ranking them from the one with most advertising recall — that would be Ford, ranked third on the overall sales chart — to the one with the least — that would be Volkswagen, which manages to sell about a third of the number of cars that Ford does.

Surprisingly, Australia's top selling brand by a huge margin — Toyota — only managed to place third behind Holden, the nation's second largest-selling brand and the maker of the Holden Commodore, the nation's most popular car amongst buyers.

Korean car maker Hyundai managed to edge out Mitsubishi in the latest survey and climb to sixth place in the rankings, behind Japanese brands Mazda and Honda, with Nissan, Subaru and BMW — the only luxury car maker to rate a mention in the survey, and according to Roy Morgan still ''well clear of their luxury rivals'' — filling the other places ahead of VW.

The Automotive Currency Report says the survey's results give an indication of the advertising effectiveness of each brand's campaigns.

Advertising recall among intended buyers

Brand Buyer recall %
Ford 74.8
Holden 72.9
Toyota 70.7
Mazda 67.5
Honda 66.2
Hyundai 58.7
Mitsubishi 55.3
Nissan 53.2
Subaru 45.5
BMW 38.4
Volkswagen 38.1
Source: Roy Morgan Research

My comment : SO why aren't they selling !!!!!! dealers letting the side down??????

dannyhilton · 10-10-2010, 09:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by csv8

SO why aren't they selling !!!!!! dealers letting the side down??????

My guess? Ford Dealers letting the team down, knowledge of recent Falcon/Territory issues plus the general publics perception that Ford is trash. I'm thinking a major campaign targeting durability, quality, sustainability and efficiently is needed. An XP Falcon style assault on the media showing Ford cars can sustain what you throw at them, all Ford cars, not just the Falcon.