Mercedes Takes to New $30 Million Brand Campaign

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Mercedes Takes to New $30 Million Brand Campaign

Facing ongoing bad press that its quality is sliding, Mercedes-Benz next week kicks off an unusual brand campaign, its first in seven years, featuring snapshots of unknown Mercedes owners, as well as a few celebrities and even a few family pets. The campaign breaks on TV next week and in May magazines. The snapshot gallery, used in both TV and broadcast, is meant to conjure up feelings of love and longing for Mercedes. The accompanying line of copy: "No one ever poses with their toasters." The German automaker will spend about $30 million on the effort this year, out of its $140 million ad budget. "Unlike Any Other" continues as the brand's slogan. The ads are created by Merkely and Partners in New York.

Mercedes has been all over the creative landscape with its advertising the last few years, often looking a little silly and inconsistent. One ad hawking traction control used the music "Stuck on You." Some arguably silly spots, like one featuring a policeman whose ears are sent flapping by a fast-moving Mercedes, have played up Mercedes' performance attributes. Some of those may have paid off, though, say officials, as those associating Mercedes-Benz with high performance has gone up. Also, the company now offers an AMG model for every product. The new brand campaign shows real people, a few family pets, NBA Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul Jabbar; a family that survived a crash in its Benz; a South African veterinarian who uses his G-Wagen to traverse desert visits to sick animals; the Danish Fire and Rescue; Sir Stirling Moss, winner of the Mille Miglia, among others basking in the glow of their Benzes.

Mercedes is trying to infuse its image with a combination of warmth, accessibility and nobility after several years of floundering a bit. Marketing chief Michelle Cervantes says the campaign was born out of a desire to reaffirm Mercedes' "heritage" and "authenticity," something that "no other company has like Mercedes-Benz." Mercedes, though is also battling the reality that its quality reputation, key to its brand credibility, is under fire in the U.S. Mercedes ranked 26th in J.D. Power long-term dependability survey last year, after having been number one in 1990. That decline, due mostly to unreliable electronics, has led the company to tell engineers to be more selective about innovating new technology in future vehicles. Mercedes this year is launching a series of derivatives off existing models like the SL65, CL65, C55, M-Class special edition and a C-Class refresh. The $450,000 SLR arrives this summer. Next year, though, Mercedes launches the CLS, the GST and CST crossovers and a redesigned M-Class. Those are key products for Mercedes growth goals. And especially the CST, at between $20,000 and $25,000 will attract buyers who have never shopped Mercedes before. Still, Mercedes clearly has time to get the bugs out. Its sales were a decent 218,000 last year, up slightly from 2002, but behind gains of BMW, Lexus and Cadillac. And even with quality problems and bad publicity, it topped all luxury brands for loyalty with just under 60 percent of Mercedes buyers trading in their cars last year re-upping with another Mercedes. Mercedes has long been bold in its selection of music, ranging over the years from Janis Joplin singing "Oh Lord, Won't You Buy Me a Mercedes-Benz," and Marlene Dietrich crooning, "Falling In Love Again." This time, one of the TV spots uses a haunting and lilting song, titled "Amazed" by Detroit-based singer-songwriter Mozella, who has a new album about to come out. The photos are also meant to drive home the idea that Mercedes owners truly have a relationship with their vehicles. In mid-April, the company will create a section on its Web site for owners to post their photos. During the summer, Mercedes will take the brand and, through photos, its owners across the country as part of the "LoveMercedes" brand driving tour. - Jim Burt


*Source: The Car Connection