Ford Looks to Spice Up Live Commercials
One-third of the way through the much-hyped live television ad campaign for the Focus car, Ford Motor Co. is modifying the ads to blunt criticism that they are not live enough.
The No. 2 auto maker made a splash two months ago when it announced an ad blitz for the new Focus that included 60 live commercials, the first time in decades that has been tried.
Featuring Annabelle Gurwitch, host of the TBS show “Dinner & a Movie,” the ads follow the street-side adventures of the chattering comedienne, such as going on a date, or trying to find her lost dog. Twenty ads have run so far.
Jan Klug, head of marketing communications for the Ford division, said the reviews so far have been mixed--a sentiment echoed by industry analysts and competitors.
“Some people think they’re not quite live enough,” she said at a Detroit news briefing. “I’ve taken a lot of heat for it.”
However, management remains committed to the idea, she said. Ford and its ad agency, J. Walter Thompson, are looking at ways to make more unexpected things happen. Most of the changes will not be seen until after the first of the year. She would not be specific.
“We’re trying to figure out how to bring more of the live piece into it,” she said.
Restrictions by network television stations are part of the problem. The stations require 24-hour script approval and signed releases from bystanders who may appear in the ads. There are also union and other rules that confine the format, officials said.
Others in the ad industry also have said the ads need help, noting that although they are live, they are too scripted and lack spontaneity. But competitors applaud Ford for trying something different.
“They have to be given credit for trying to break the pattern,” said Gerry Rubin, president and chief executive of Rubin Postaer & Associates, which handles Honda and Acura ads.
In addition to the Focus, Ford plans a twist this fall on the 27-year-old “Built Ford Tough” slogan for its pickup trucks. Instead of having an ad agency direct slick print ads for its “Ford Country” campaign, the company hired three professional photojournalists to take their own photos of Ford truck owners captured in real-world settings.
The campaign, which starts next month, shows a roofer in North Carolina’s Outer Banks using his Ford truck to help a family rebuild its home damaged by Hurricane Dennis. The idea is to bring an element of humanity into the ads, Klug said.
“It’s not just about the trucks; it’s about the people who drive the trucks,” she said.
The Ford division spent $621.4 million in advertising on cars and trucks in 1998, according to Competitive Media Reporting. Figures for 1999 were not available, but Klug said the 2000 level will be about the same as this year.
