A new car needs to make a big statement at launch, not least when it is creating an entirely new vehicle segment. The new Ford Fusion led the way in the now increasing B-MAV segment, using a mixed media schedule of outdoor, TV, national press, magazines and online activity to announce its arrival.
The outdoor element included a range of formats, divided between roadside sites and formats targeting rail users around the country. As well as static posters, the campaign also used the Transvision screens at mainline rail stations in London.
The campaign used the tagline "Get used to a Better View" and was designed to emphasise the car’s command driving position and tough stature. High quality, prominent outdoor sites were used to match the media to the message.
The results of the entire campaign were researched to test which media had delivered the most impact and the highest awareness.
"Outdoor was a core element in the launch of the Ford Fusion. Multiple formats were used to target an audience with an Urban mindset. The rail element of the campaign is proven to have boosted overall awareness, ensuring that the entire campaign made a big impression."
Daniel Thompson, Account Manager, Strategic Planning, Ford of Britain - Small Cars, MindShare
Campaign results
The campaign created a huge groundswell of awareness. Prompted scores for the Ford Fusion were 52% in response to the question what makes and models of the cars have you seen advertising for recently.
Outdoor also scored well with 46% of people saying they could recall seeing Fusion posters. The response was even better among rail users, with 82% of regular train passengers attributing the advertising to outdoor. The huge awareness generated by rail posters was not only testament to the impact of this environment, but also to creative media planning. Most automotive brands concentrate simply on roadside posters, leaving brands like Fusion, that dare to be different, to benefit from the almost virgin territory that environments such as rail and retail provide.
Outdoor as a whole also outperformed the campaign average for light and medium TV viewers, achieving higher ad recall scores among those watching less than 20 hours of TV a week. Underlining the fact that Outdoor is particularly good at reaching light TV viewers and showing the benefit, in terms of new consumers, that Outdoor can bring to a mixed media schedule.
The research also showed that consumers regarded the outdoor executions as being more persuasive than other media, 66% of those who had seen the posters said the advertising had increased their interest in the vehicle compared to 50% of those who had seen the press ads.
The Ford Fusion needed to make a big statement at launch and outdoor ensured that awareness was high