US:Ford truck campaign spars with competition - Ford Forums

Stacy94PGT · 05-31-2005, 20:44

Ford truck campaign spars with competition; F-150's benefits touted over other full-sized entries

JAMIE LAREAU | Automotive News

Ford Motor Co. is taking direct aim at its full-sized pickup competition with a marketing campaign called "The Truth About Trucks."

Ford marketing officials say it's the first time Ford has done direct-comparison advertising for a new or redesigned product.

Ford Division is running national print ads, has created a Web site and local TV spots and has interactive displays at dealerships comparing its F-150 full-sized pickup to Nissan, Toyota, Chevrolet and Dodge trucks, says Brian Rathsburg, truck communications manager for Ford Division.

For instance, the campaign compares the frame of the F-150's closed-in boxed front structure to the Chevrolet Silverado's open-frame design. Ford claims the F-150's frame is more sound structurally.

"The campaign is designed to give the consumer a more-detailed look at the real elements of the product without the sales pitch," Rathsburg says. "The biggest testament to its effectiveness is the response of our dealer body. They've been tickled over this."

Going national

Ford started the campaign regionally in the fourth quarter last year. It was so popular among dealers, who said it drew people to showrooms, that Ford went national with it in January, he says.

The campaign is helping improve sales, Rathsburg says. F-series sales declined in the first four months of the year from the year-ago period. But they were up in April, when Ford sold 71,367 F-series, a 1.7 percent jump over April 2004.

In showrooms, customers can watch a video and touch elements of the truck's structure and engine at interactive displays, Rathsburg says.

'Soft sell'

Ford dealerships were given DVDs that compare the F-150 to the competition. At Don Reid Ford in Orlando, Fla., salespeople distribute the DVDs to customers, says Matt Strout, the dealership's new-vehicle manager.

"It's a very soft sell," Strout says. "It's 'here's the information before you buy something; here's the DVD, and you'll find it to be very informative.' It's an amazing video."

Ford also has developed a Web site, thetruthabouttrucks.com , and is running a national print campaign in magazines such as Time and Sports Illustrated and newspapers such as USA Today, Rathsburg says.

The headline on the ads is, "All trucks are not created equal." The ads show the guts of the F-150 frame, claiming that it is a stronger overall structure than that of competitors' trucks, he says.

Ford also made two regional 30-second TV spots for dealers. In one spot, when country singer Toby Keith enters a diner, a Chevy man and Dodge man snicker at him because he's driving a Ford truck, Rathsburg says.

Then Keith pulls part of the Ford's frame out of a bag and compares it to the frames on the Chevrolet and Dodge trucks and "puts these guys in their place," Rathsburg says.

The other TV spot is a takeoff on the ABC show "Desperate Housewives." In it, two women are chatting over a cup of coffee. One has a Ford truck and the other a Chevrolet. Suddenly, one woman flips on a mask, grabs a blow-torch and gets under each vehicle. She emerges with a section of the frame of each to demonstrate how the F-150 frame is better, Rathsburg says.

"We launched today's version of the F-150 in 2004," Rathsburg says. "Through the whole development phase, the engineers were trying to convince us that the superiority of the product was a good story, and we ought to take advantage of that from a marketing standpoint."

Strout, who has been in the car business for 25 years, says he has never seen a manufacturer be "that bold" to tear down a truck and show how it is built compared directly to the competition.

The F-150 starts at $21,295, the Silverado at $21,295 and the Ram at $21,355. Prices include shipping.