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As I see it, Chevy has blown the Colorado introduction so far. Here's to hoping that they do a little more in the future.
Where was the fanfare? The excitement? The bold and impressive advertising?
All I saw was a glimpse of one in the "Car Carrier" commercial, and that parody of a commercial that Joe Isuzu would have been perfect for, with Shania Twain's "Feel like a woman", and the uncomfortable occupants of the Colorado crew cab. Print advertisments have certainly been there, and they aren't bad at all, but they lack the impact a single good television commercial can have.
If I recall, Nissan threw a ton of money, if unsuccessfully, at its truck advertisements, pumping the macho image and giving the trucks some serious red meat commericals. The Frontier commerical where the truck is formed from a forge of molten metal is a classic.
Perhaps there were better regional advertisements for the Colorado that I missed, but I doubt it. (If you've seen any, let me know) Instead, I see plenty of gender neutral Chevy Malibu ads running - that aren't that bad for their target audience, I suppose - and unlike Colorado, they look sharp and put the point across that the Malibu is big for Chevy, and they don't make a joke out of it. In Texas, the full size trucks are still pumped (with obligatory country music) far more in regional commericals than the Colorado.
Still, the Colorado / Canyon should be pivotal for Chevy and GMC. They've been making the S-10 and Sonoma and vehicles very similar to them for more than 20 years now. These replacement vehicles have been praised by many auto publications, and one version has even been dubbed the "Pony Pickup" in reference to its excellent driving capabilities.
GM marketing executives seem content to watch the Colorado / Canyon fail or succeed on their own merits alone, without much in the way of impression-creating commercials. Next thing you know they will have the television advertising budget of the Chevy Astro or Chevy Express vans.
And if the Colorado gets little in advertising dollars for TV, the GMC canyon is its poor stepbrother. Again, I may have missed them, but I don't recall seeing a single one.
Perhaps GM is "competing" against the near non existent ads for the Ford Ranger. Perhaps it figures that if the S-10 could keep selling so well over the years despite an ancient platform - the Colorado should do well without requiring advertising dollars.
But why leave it at that? The Colorado is a modern truck with a modern engine (something I wish the commercials would pick up on) that has the potential to make conquest sales from other brands, even the Imports. But not if GM is content with Saturday Night Live-esque commericals.
GM is missing a huge opportunity here to capitalize on a great product. All they need are some great commericals to tout it, and get the word out to a wider audience. I want to see them saturate the market like even just one of the better HUMMER commercials. Perhaps I've just been unlucky and have missed them so far.
Maybe this is just cynical, but I get the feeling Chevy would rather have people buying its large pickups with the outdated interiors and engines slipping behind the competition instead of the Colorado. If they focus too much of a spotlight on the virtues of the Colorado, they might miss some sales on the more profitable large trucks like the Silverado, especially considering so many "Urban Cowboy" large pickup drivers in reality would be just as well served with a truck the size of a Colorado/Canyon.
Either way it goes, Colorado needs more in its TV advertising legacy than "I Feel Like a Woman". A LOT more.
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Where was the fanfare? The excitement? The bold and impressive advertising?
All I saw was a glimpse of one in the "Car Carrier" commercial, and that parody of a commercial that Joe Isuzu would have been perfect for, with Shania Twain's "Feel like a woman", and the uncomfortable occupants of the Colorado crew cab. Print advertisments have certainly been there, and they aren't bad at all, but they lack the impact a single good television commercial can have.
If I recall, Nissan threw a ton of money, if unsuccessfully, at its truck advertisements, pumping the macho image and giving the trucks some serious red meat commericals. The Frontier commerical where the truck is formed from a forge of molten metal is a classic.
Perhaps there were better regional advertisements for the Colorado that I missed, but I doubt it. (If you've seen any, let me know) Instead, I see plenty of gender neutral Chevy Malibu ads running - that aren't that bad for their target audience, I suppose - and unlike Colorado, they look sharp and put the point across that the Malibu is big for Chevy, and they don't make a joke out of it. In Texas, the full size trucks are still pumped (with obligatory country music) far more in regional commericals than the Colorado.
Still, the Colorado / Canyon should be pivotal for Chevy and GMC. They've been making the S-10 and Sonoma and vehicles very similar to them for more than 20 years now. These replacement vehicles have been praised by many auto publications, and one version has even been dubbed the "Pony Pickup" in reference to its excellent driving capabilities.
GM marketing executives seem content to watch the Colorado / Canyon fail or succeed on their own merits alone, without much in the way of impression-creating commercials. Next thing you know they will have the television advertising budget of the Chevy Astro or Chevy Express vans.
And if the Colorado gets little in advertising dollars for TV, the GMC canyon is its poor stepbrother. Again, I may have missed them, but I don't recall seeing a single one.
Perhaps GM is "competing" against the near non existent ads for the Ford Ranger. Perhaps it figures that if the S-10 could keep selling so well over the years despite an ancient platform - the Colorado should do well without requiring advertising dollars.
But why leave it at that? The Colorado is a modern truck with a modern engine (something I wish the commercials would pick up on) that has the potential to make conquest sales from other brands, even the Imports. But not if GM is content with Saturday Night Live-esque commericals.
GM is missing a huge opportunity here to capitalize on a great product. All they need are some great commericals to tout it, and get the word out to a wider audience. I want to see them saturate the market like even just one of the better HUMMER commercials. Perhaps I've just been unlucky and have missed them so far.
Maybe this is just cynical, but I get the feeling Chevy would rather have people buying its large pickups with the outdated interiors and engines slipping behind the competition instead of the Colorado. If they focus too much of a spotlight on the virtues of the Colorado, they might miss some sales on the more profitable large trucks like the Silverado, especially considering so many "Urban Cowboy" large pickup drivers in reality would be just as well served with a truck the size of a Colorado/Canyon.
Either way it goes, Colorado needs more in its TV advertising legacy than "I Feel Like a Woman". A LOT more.
