mokuso /mohk-so/ - Meditation or meeting of the minds.
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Someone needs to supercharge Chrysler's ad campaign because not only is it obnoxious, it's now proven to be ineffectual. Chrysler's sales numbers have plummeted 37% and currently have more 2006 models on hand than ever. Furthermore, "Employee Discount Pricing" is not cutting it.
Dr. Z was an apparent effort to try and associate German engineering to Chrysler products. The agency involved decided to use the CEO of the company, making him act childish and funny to suggest a point. Not only are the ads horrible but also I don't feel they conveyed the point at all. Who would think to equate humor to German engineering? Do you want to laugh when the CEO talks about safety? What about value? They were too busy trying to be catchy and fun while they should be touting the cold, hard facts.
In this effort, I feel Chrysler needed to put down some numbers, avoid the Integrated Marketing Campaign that pummeled all possible channels, and deal with the facts. Sometimes marketing needs to be stoic and serious, hitting the viewer from a different angle. Think about it, I feel a really serious auto ad would break through the clutter, causing the audience to seriously consider the product. Car buying is a serious matter and Chrysler's product should be too. Leave the humor to the market leaders; Toyota could use a funny ad to spice things up.
Moreover, inundating your audience will get you nowhere and I'm nowhere near moved to buy a Chrysler. They've pummeled their target demographics with TV, radio, print, and web, leaving their audience nowhere to breathe. The ads are so frequent; I don't think I'm done shaking my head at the first one before the second one chimes in. Ad Age sums up the Chryslers effort to a tee:
"Chrysler is pushing ahead with its 'Dr. Z' ads, despite widespread criticism and the fact that the campaign has failed to halt the automaker's sales slump."
That one line by Ad Age is more efficient at explaining a point than all of Chrysler's investment in Dr. Z. This was a $225 million advertising debacle, and they need to cut their losses. Chrysler needs to reorg and get back on track - even if that means actually listening to their audience.
