Ford Hates the Kardashians! (Not REALLY…)
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Really Ford?… Really?!?
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2013/03/27/ford-jim-farley-bondage-berlusconi/2024141/
I believe Ford was genuinely shocked by these ads since they are a true American traditional car company. Clearly these were NEVER meant to see the light of day, and no matter how much I LOATHE all things Kardashian, women bound and gagged in the back of a vehicle is NEVER appropriate.
However, it is no secret that Ford sales are struggling in Europe and bringing down the overall profit so this may be a “trial balloon” for them.
Ford lost $1 billion last year in Europe while kicking ass in North America with truck, SUV and sedan sales; F-150, Escape and Fusion have been great for North American sales. Ford is also focusing more on India than China since they see the growth in that market not being serviced. They are basically break-even in Asia and South America but are spending to grow infrastructure there.
Also of note, Ford is chopping heads right now in their European operations so this campaign was probably a “Hail Mary pass” for an Ad Exec. who is headed to the unemployment line.
Bottom line: Ford knows Europe is a mess for at least 5 years by the actions they’ve taken, but they don’t want to blow their chance in India where disposable income is there and they’ve already done some brand building.
Some thoughts on Tiger and $NKE
http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-tiger-woods-nike-20130326,0,316300.story
Obviously this advert can be taken in various ways and Nike doesn’t shy away from controversy. Personally I think Tiger is saying what everyone else is thinking. America loves a ‘come back’, and no one better embodies that than Tiger Woods.
Nike has “doubled down” on golf with a supposed 10 year/$150 million deal with Rory McIlroy, who has been struggling mightily this year since signing the deal. Tiger’s resurgence has helped divert attention from McIlroy’s slump, but remember that Nike only represents about 7% of the $10 billion golf market and trails Adidas-owned Taylor Made huge on the equipment side.
Taylor Made generated about $1.7 billion in sales (up 20% in 2012) and basically kicked Nike’s ass in 2012. Nike’s new driver hasn’t dented into Taylor Made’s RBZ series yet, but it needs Tiger to win the Masters or U.S. Open to generate enough buzz in order to make the consumer look to Nike equipment. Nike is still #1 in the golf apparel market, but new Nike Golf head Cindy Davis has marching orders to cut into Adidas/Taylor Made’s stranglehold (If you notice, all the Tiger and Rory Nike ads feature equipment, not apparel).
Tiger, Rory and Mickelson are the players that drive TV ratings and now Nike has 2 of them, so I think Tiger is more of the Racer X dark hero to Rory or Mickelson’s Speed Racer good-guy foil.
Bottom line: I believe the advert works because the people who hated Tiger before still hate him, and those who don’t care about his private life enjoy seeing him win.