Broadly aimed at positioning Ford as a solution for those seeking “everyday excitement”, the integrated push seeks to strengthen Ford’s ‘Make Every Day Exciting’ brand platform, revolving around a 21-day behaviour-changing programme for 18 consumers, running in conjunction with a communications strategy which places a strong emphasis on CRM and online activation.
The ‘Excitement 21’ roadtrip will involve Ford taking two groups of nine participants across China and engaging them in new activities, then measuring - subjectively and scientifically - changes in their excitement levels. The process will be filmed daily and posted on the CEC website, where consumers can vote for China’s most exciting participant among the group.
“We learned that 75 per cent of Chinese consumers think excitement is one of the most important lifestyle factors – that’s the good news. But the bad news is that only 26.4 per cent of them get it in real life,” said a Changan Ford Mazda Automobile spokesperson.
“The ‘Excitement 21’ challenge was really inspired by the belief among scientists and psychologists globally that it takes 21 days to change a habit, so we wanted to show consumers how they can do the same thing.”
JWT Shanghai developed the ATL component of the campaign, with Wunderman handling CRM, MindShare on media planning and buying and Cohn & Wolfe overseeing public relations, events and the roadshow.
The online part of the campaign includes the roadshow, a Ford Excitement Quotient test, a database of 101 activities (‘Excitement 101’), a calendar of events updated each month, an excitement coach who provides tips of improving consumers’ lives and dealer promotions.
The brand initiative coincides with new research published by TNS China and KPMG, which reveals that online and auto shows, along with family and friends, are the most effective communications channels when it comes to promoting automobile brands.
The study found that 40 per cent turned to family and friends for ‘credible’ and ‘quality’ information. when purchasing a vehicle, with more than 30 per cent ranking the internet highly.
