While perusing The Wall Street Journal I came upon a full page ad that posed an interesting question: Does the world need another luxury car?
2.5 inches below it, in a smaller font, appear the words “Not really.”
They got me. I had to stop and read. The first thing I looked for was a logo. Who was asking such a question?
The Lincoln Motor Company?
Humm…
The ad copy starts with “Edsel Ford knew something about what makes a fine automobile — that you don’t create a great luxury car by beginning with that intention. He simply build the car that he would want to drive.”
Wow! Why am I hearing Don Draper’s voice? It’s like his carousel pitch…Nostalgia… it’s delicate but potent.
See the clip below if you want a refresher.
The print ad continues with some bold (bolded) declarations:
This is how Lincoln started.
This is how we will become great again.
I found the copy to be quite compelling.
About half way down in the second column, it reads:
But words are nothing without the actions that prove them.
True!
It continues to explain how Lincoln has developed a brand-new design studio with the “all-new” MKZ being the first of four “disarmingly free models” to come out of it.
I’m not in the market for a Lincoln, but I am curious.
Source: Lincoln Photo Library
Other Notables:
> Lincoln was originally called the Lincoln Motor Company in 1922, when Edsel Ford signed the agreement purchasing the company from its founder Henry Leland.
> During its early years, Edsel worked with numerous custom-body suppliers to make Lincoln one of the most distinctive luxury brands in the industry, with motorcars that were urbane, sleek and elegant – the epitome of understated luxury.
> The new campaign features the all-new MKZ premium midsize sedan and MKZ Hybrid, the first transformational vehicles for the new Lincoln brand. They will be arriving in dealerships by the end of the month.
> According to a write-up appearing in Crain’s Detroit, this campaign was created by Hudson Rouge, Lincoln’s New York agency. The name refers to the Hudson and Rouge rivers. Ford’s famous Rouge plant takes its name from the river.
The game plan is for the print ads in newspapers to arrive as a 1-2 punch:
> The first begins with the provocation, “Does the World Need Another Luxury Car?†debuting on Dec. 3,
> On Dec 10. the second one, “Hello. Again,†makes its debut
Both emphasize the values that once made Lincoln the leader in luxury automobiles and how these same values will be the key to its future development. These ads feature no images. A white, minimalist page with black typeface emphasizes simplicity in design.
You can read more about it in this announcement.
To me, it is a nice change of pace. Kudos for Lincoln to provide is with something fresh this December. The bows on cars (usually red ones) pushing the ultimate holiday gift, are getting old.
Call it luxury. Call it engineered humanity. We’re calling it the Lincoln Motor Company. A completely reinvented wheel with you at its center.
###
Speak Your Mind