A much better use of advertising dollars , don't you think ?

1667 Views 13 Replies 8 Participants Last post by Neanderthal, Dec 8, 2014

usayjim2

Discussion Starter · Dec 7, 2014 (Edited)

560 million is spent on soccer team Manchester United advertising and now Cadillac looks to spend the big dollars in Hollywood instead of major sporting events . I'm sure makes sense to GM executives but what lasting benefit does it really do for the company and the public ? The Man U soccer millions advertises Chevrolet , where the team members don't drive the product and Chevy's presence is disappearing in Europe , anyway ! Cadillac's best publicity may have come from the New York Move to that City , that was debated extensively in the news media and in the forums . Frankly speaking , GM's best advertising has always been the reputation of its vehicles , built on quality and customer satisfaction !!
Effective advertising means effectively placed where it markets are strong and wisely spent . The savings here can probably support other quality issues .

Here's a thought , what if assisting the every heart of America , or North America , that of the American Family who have born the brunt of recessions , job loss , pay cuts , and the many families that must have two incomes , just to have a roof over their heads . Full time Working Parents can mean the children are not getting enough quality time , love and attention during the formative years , which can result in behavioral problems and add more stress to the family unit . This stress can get more aggravated when the children reach puberty and issues of sex , independence, and drug addiction and its terrible consequences for the family gets magnified and be overwhelming .

Why not put a portion of these huge sums of advertising dollars into a Family of America program( or North America ) to perhaps offer counselling and support to families in need . This could have the same result as the Ronald McDonald House program . A highly valued resource that isn't about selling burgers and fries but gives comfort and relief to those who need it the most , a place to stay to be near sick loved ones in hospital . A Family of America program giving counselling and support will also bring a measure of respect and a new found sense of admiration to a company which had such a profound affect on the lives , jobs , or investors who were caught up in the bankruptcy . The American family is the rock , the foundation and cornerstone of the nation and it needs your support .

There were probably some very fine employees of GM that would share a strong passion to organize a committee that would undertake this mission , take the first step , this journey will be coming from the heart !

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BlackGTP

· #2 · Dec 7, 2014

While a great idea and much more beneficial to both the beneficiaries and GM (GM would get great publicity doing this vs. advertising for a brand they are no longer selling), methinks that Manchester United wouldn't like it so much and have a binding contract to back them up.

But it is a good question, now that GM isn't really selling Chevy in Great Britain, what do they do with all the ad dollars? A half billion dollar budget to sell left hand drive Corvettes and Camaro's seems a bit extreme. With that amount of wasted $$ I'd think it would be worth exporting some Ute's and SS's and anything else unique from Australia - at least give Australia better plant utilization while they are still producing. Though my guess this would still be a loss, at least it wouldn't be a total waste of money as is the situation they are in now. Anyone have a better idea or know what GM is going to do?

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Sox

· #3 · Dec 7, 2014

I am more worried about what happens when the usual Cadillac marketing/PR people reach puberty, myself.

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Ruperts Trooper

· #4 · Dec 7, 2014

BlackGTP said:
While a great idea and much more beneficial to both the beneficiaries and GM (GM would get great publicity doing this vs. advertising for a brand they are no longer selling), methinks that Manchester United wouldn't like it so much and have a binding contract to back them up.

But it is a good question, now that GM isn't really selling Chevy in Great Britain, what do they do with all the ad dollars? A half billion dollar budget to sell left hand drive Corvettes and Camaro's seems a bit extreme. With that amount of wasted $$ I'd think it would be worth exporting some Ute's and SS's and anything else unique from Australia - at least give Australia better plant utilization while they are still producing. Though my guess this would still be a loss, at least it wouldn't be a total waste of money as is the situation they are in now. Anyone have a better idea or know what GM is going to do?

The main benefit to GM of using Manchester United shirts to advertise Chevrolet was meant to be that the team would play in plenty of international competitions which would be televised around the world helping promote Chevrolet in all those countries - but Manchester United has performed even worse than GM and has failed to qualify for any competitions outside the UK Premier League.

It's generally accepted that GM tried to renegotiate the sponsorship deal as soon as Chevrolet's withdrawal from Europe was decided, even if it meant using Vauxhall or GM on the shirts but by then the team were so strapped for cash they played hard ball.

Even though Holdens can be easily imported into the UK, as Australian safety and emissions regulations are closely aligned with EU ones, their models sell no better than Camaro, Corvette and Cadillac as they're nearly as unsuitable for UK's congested roads and high taxation fuel - althought they do have the steering in the right place. The Holden Maloo ute has been sold in UK, but it's single digits/year - the HSV Commodore does slightly better, badged as the Vauxhall VXR8, but that's only double digits.

GM simply has to write-off the Manchester United sponsorship money, just like it writes off the development costs of the VM Motori V6 turbo-diesel and several other engine projects that get developed but never used.

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F14CRAZY

· #5 · Dec 7, 2014

If it helps I've volunteered at a Boy and Girls Club as part of my teacher service learning and I've noticed that they've received one of those big checks they leave on display from the GM Foundation.

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Neanderthal

· #6 · Dec 7, 2014 (Edited)

usayjim presents one of many good ideas regarding a re-channeling of the GM ad budget that, like half the federal budget, is wasted or abused on useless or idiotic campaigns and programs.

GM might consider negotiating a cash buyout of the idiotic Manchester United contract. Its perpetrator should have been fired long ago.

Unfortunately, it seems like the creative, good and actually useful ideas for channeling ad dollars in creative and mutually beneficial ways do not exist at GM.

Locally in the Toledo area there's a 24/7 "Discover the New Spirit of Cadillac" TV campaign which I've described elsewhere and which I believe Envoy dissected elsewhere.
Whatever it may cost Cadillac, it's an embarassment to anyone over 10 years old but it will likely run through year's end.

There's the utterly worn-out 80s-style Chibby PUT ad that seems to be about the only other GM TV ad that runs regularly on TV. Also an embarassment and can anyone say "OK OK we heard it!"?

My suggestion that Cardiac lottery-out the remaining ELRs that sit on lots today has been tossed out before.
Throw names into a hat.
Caddy purchasers or leasees over the past three years who still drive those cars will be eligible. Give ELR buyers a triple or quadruple chance.

Gift the ELRs to the winners, taxes paid, no obligation to even keep the car.
GM gave away a bunch of Malibus some years back and GM, being stupid is as stupid does, Oprah Winfrey got the credit for the gig.
Just how inept can your PR department be? Let me count the ways.

While the handful of elitists at GMI are swooning and oooh!-ing and ahhhh!!-ing over Caddy's new Mutant Ninja Teenage Millenial PR Genius, the self-congratulatory Ms. Lee, if her actions in any way reflect the inane sputterings we've heard so far from her, Caddy will be hoping for the frying pan while roasting in the fire, sooner rather than later.

Lots of good ideas for GM or divisional PR campaigns have been put forth here over the years. I see no evidence that the corporation is in any way changing the course of their Titanic multi-billion dollar misspent ad cruise ship. Lotsa luck! :fall:

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BlackGTP

· #7 · Dec 7, 2014

Neanderthal said:
usayjim presents one of many good ideas regarding a re-channeling of the GM ad budget that, like half the federal budget, is wasted or abused on useless or idiotic campaigns and programs.

GM might consider negotiating a cash buyout of the idiotic Manchester United contract. Its perpetrator should have been fired long ago.

Unfortunately, it seems like the creative, good and actually useful ideas for channeling ad dollars in creative and mutually beneficial ways do not exist at GM.

Locally in the Toledo area there's a 24/7 "Discover the New Spirit of Cadillac" TV campaign which I've described elsewhere and which I believe Envoy dissected elsewhere.
Whatever it may cost Cadillac, it's an embarassment to anyone over 10 years old but it will likely run through year's end.

There's the utterly worn-out 80s-style Chibby PUT ad that seems to be about the only other GM TV ad that runs regularly on TV. Also an embarassment and can anyone say "OK OK we heard it!"?

My suggestion that Cardiac lottery-out the remaining ELRs that sit on lots today has been tossed out before.
Throw names into a hat.
Caddy purchasers or leasees over the past three years who still drive those cars will be eligible. Give ELR buyers a triple or quadruple chance.

Gift the ELRs to the winners, taxes paid, no obligation to even keep the car.
GM gave away a bunch of Malibus some years back and GM, being stupid is as stupid does, Oprah Winfrey got the credit for the gig.
Just how inept can your PR department be? Let me count the ways.

While the handful of elitists at GMI are swooning and oooh!-ing and ahhhh!!-ing over Caddy's new Mutant Ninja Teenage Millenial PR Genius, the self-congratulatory Ms. Lee, if her actions in any way reflect the inane sputterings we've heard so far from her, Caddy will be hoping for the frying pan while roasting in the fire, sooner rather than later.

Lots of good ideas for GM or divisional PR campaigns have been put forth here over the years. I see no evidence that the corporation is in any way changing the course of their Titanic multi-billion dollar misspent ad cruise ship. Lotsa luck! :fall:

I wonder if it would be cheaper if GM just buys the team, cancels the contract then immediately re-sells the team.

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Neanderthal

· #8 · Dec 7, 2014

BlackGTP said:
I wonder if it would be cheaper if GM just buys the team, cancels the contract then immediately re-sells the team.

ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT SOLUTION!! :drive::drive::drive:

SEEE??!! See what (pardon the cliche`) outside the box thinking can achieve?

Given the appreciation rates of sports teams, at least in the USA, this might be a great idea.

Some other bennies:
As owners, they cold force the joxx to drive GM products.
As owners, they could push subliminal ads on the giant screens throughout all the rumbles and riots, I mean games.
As owners, they could lateral transfer some of GM's biggest idiots to MU and call them "promotions!"

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Jesda

· #9 · Dec 7, 2014

Hell, a half billion dollars spent on plastic bendy straws would be a better use of funds than GM's marketing programs.

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Ruperts Trooper

· #10 · Dec 7, 2014

BlackGTP said:
I wonder if it would be cheaper if GM just buys the team, cancels the contract then immediately re-sells the team.

Net worth of $3.3bn according to Forbes - it's owned by the family of the late Malcolm Glazer who never set foot in the stadium!

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patrickbec

· #11 · Dec 7, 2014 (Edited)

What an incredible stupid suggestion. First, the Man United deal is not worthless, you people need to dissuade yourselves on the idiocy that the sponsorship is aimed at a U.K. or even European audience. It is not, it's aimed at China and the Middle East, both very hot Chevy markets and both that have legions of Man U fans.http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/fo...-fan-base-to-659-million-over-five-years.html

In any event, the notion of giving a bunch of poor people GM marketing money is dumb, GM's brands would be associated with poverty, and sad to say it, will remind potential customers of something that most of them don't want to be thinking about, except maybe at church on Sunday's. No one likes a Debbie-downer, especially when it comes to auto brands that are supposed to be vibrant, optimistic and reflect success. Besides, the U.S. job market is finally getting better so the timing is wrong, and I am personally opposed to private companies using shareholder money to do the governments and private charities work.

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Ruperts Trooper

· #12 · Dec 7, 2014 (Edited)

patrickbec said:
What an incredible stupid suggestion. First, the Man United deal is not worthless, you people need to dissuade yourselves on the idiocy that the sponsorship is aimed at a U.K. or even European audience. It is not, it's aimed at China and the Middle East, both very hot Chevy markets and both that have legions of Man U fans.http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/fo...-fan-base-to-659-million-over-five-years.html

The world-wide legions of fans aren't getting the big games to watch because they aren't playing in any international competitions.

The survey you refered to was done in Spring 2013, while Sir Alex Ferguson was in charge - they've gone badly downhill since.

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patrickbec

· #13 · Dec 7, 2014 (Edited)

Ruperts Trooper said:
The world-wide legions of fans aren't getting the big games to watch because they aren't playing in any international competitions.

The survey you refered to was done in Spring 2013, while Sir Alex Ferguson was in charge - they've gone badly downhill since.

Yes they have gone down hill since the survey was done. Arsenal is more popular in China now. But Man U is still the second most popular team in China. Last I looked China was a pretty important market for Chevy. People in China (and South Africa, Saudi Arabia etc) watch the FA Cup, not international competitions exclusively.

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Neanderthal

· #14 · Dec 8, 2014 (Edited)

No doubt China is an important market.

But the question is, is GM's Manchester United/Asia advertising dollar spent any more effectively there than it is here in the USA? Because if it isn't (is there evidence to show it is?) then isn't MU sponsorship just another way to flush $$ down the toilet?

America’s appetite for Cadillacs is so low that General Motors is laying off some of its workers in Michigan. But at the same time, the company says sales of its luxury auto brand in China jumped 58 percent in the first 10 months of the year.

Thanks in part to Cadillac’s strong sales, the Detroit automaker said Friday that it topped 3 million vehicles in the world’s largest auto market one month earlier than it did last year.

“GM has experienced particularly strong growth in demand at the higher end of our lineup and in the SUV and MPV segments,” Matt Tsien, head of GM’s China operations, said in a statement.

China is still largely a country of poor people -- its per capita income is lower than Colombia’s, according to the World Bank. But about 110 million Chinese will earn between $40,000 and $1 million a year by 2020, according to Boston Consulting Group, providing a lucrative luxury car market in which the world’s top auto companies compete aggressively for market share.

http://www.ibtimes.com/cadillac-china-sales-58-us-sales-gm-luxury-brand-slump-1723878

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