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WTF
WTF porsche fail
Thursday, August 28, 2008 at 11:53PM
Porsche is now running a marketing campaign in the form of online tools to photoshop your favorite model in front of your home. below is a piece of content created from the tool by your friends at Gizmodo. on their site they posted it with the caption: “as you can see, a $100,000 sports car really classes up the joint…”
As a marketing dork, Porsche fan and owner, blogger and proponent of rich and engaging thinking, this idea saddens me deeply.
Postings like the Gizmodo one will do more to detract from the Porsche brand rather than help its cause. the campaign couldn’t be more off target, it couldn’t be more ill-informed (no embed tags guys? really?) and worst of all, it couldn’t do LESS to entice a prospective buyer.
What’s that? “not intended for acquisition,” you say? to that I say, “bullshit - all digital should intend acquisition.” But what’s more, this thing isn’t much of a vehicle to spread the good word of the brand either. That is, unless of course thousands of smarmy bloggers putting a 911 in front of a trailer park is suddenly good branding?
Funny enough, if you talk to the marketing team at Porsche they will tell you “we’ve spent years establishing the Porsche brand - the visuals of our cars and where they show up. We choose very carefully how you experience Porsche and in what context you discover one.”
*insert long awkward pause here*
Oops, guess you’re making exceptions now, boys? just this once? Personally, I could see this being an amazing idea a few steps down the line during the process when you are already at Porsche’s website and you have just finished spec-ing out your favorite car. (Want to see this in your driveway - click here, etc.) that would be awesome. That would be valuable. And that would have a filter built into it preventing abuse like you see above.
Porsche has a special sauce - this just pissed in it. In 1963, Porsche taught the world what a sports car should feel like - both practically and in its marketing. in 2009 with the redesign of the 997, the launch of the Panamera and a slew of new fuel efficient answers the the “sports car” question, now is the time for Porsche to “re-teach” us and remind us of their position, not clutter the airwaves with mixed brand messages.
Sheesh.
References (3)
References allow you to track sources for this article, as well as articles that were written in response to this article.
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Response: I always wanted me a Porsche
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Response: Porsche's picture it campaign
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Related: Picture it
Reader Comments (4)
http://picasaweb.google.com/sean.w.chambers/UntitledAlbum/photo#5241112927202142098
As it relates to Porsche and the brand, the focus of this particular campaign has shifted towards a broader target and audience, which I am sure as a Porsche owner infuriates you. You worked hard to obtain your Porsche and the common man shouldn't be able to taint the brand image or purchase one as their "affordability" campaign suggests. I can understand not wanting to diminish the badge value of a brand by providing site visitors with weapons, or tools of brand destruction. However, removing what little you obviously know about the brand and the marketers who make these kinds of decisions, consider the obvious.
Rising fuel costs + economic uncertainty + declining vehicle sales = dealer incentives, aggressive financing offers, and all the rationale that a marketer's need to broaden their target base with a message for aspirational tire kickers.
The fact that you wrote your post indicates that this particular campaign has been (and continues to be) successful. Engagement not acquisition was the objective here. It's ok, you will get over it. I was heartsick myself when Land Rover introduced the Freelander.
Again, read the bottom of my post. This is a fine tactic - just placed wrong in the consumer process. It could have been integrated much more cohesively with Porsche's award winning car configurator as a much needed value exchange.
Porsche doesn't need "tire kickers" they need "qualified buyers".
As I mentioned on my "tom who?" page here: http://www.madewithcomputers.com/tomwho/ My Subway pitch has been quite a blessing in my career - giving me way more of an insight into what works and what doesn't online. You clearly don't know the story behind it - but I'd be happy to tell you about it. Email me anytime!
/ t