Chevy Gears Up Ad Budget 5-10%: Brand Wants Louder 'Share of Voice,' Sales Comeback to 50% of GM's Total By David Kile

NEW YORK - Chevrolet general manager J.C. Perkins said last week that the troubled General Mot

Though Perkins declined to say how much, GM sources said Chevy’s budget will likely get a 5% to 10% bump.
‘Jack Smith (GM ceo) told me he wants Chevy to get back to where we are doing 50% of GM’s sales volume next year,’ said Perkins. ‘And we are going to get the advertising resources to get us there.’
Chevy’s combined cars and trucks sales, including Geo, in 1992 represented about 48% of GM’s total. The real trouble area is Chevy branded passenger cars. Chevy has lost more than 400,000 in car sales over the last six years, while market share has fallen from 13.3% in 1987 to 11.2% in 1992. Those figures do not include Geo sales. Meanwhile, ad spending for Chevy passenger cars, according to LNA, fell from $164 million in 1990 to $140 million in 1991, and an estimated $120-130 million for 1992.
Chevrolet general marketing manager Jeff Hurlbert said that share of voice for Chevy branded passenger cars has fallen perilously low for GM’s volume division. ‘We analyze share of voice all the time, and we try and maintain what we think is an acceptable level.’ But, he added, ‘There is a limited amount of money in the pot, and Chevy has not had the same level of new products as the other divisions.’
Some of the additional spending going to Chevy this year will support the all-new Camaro, which will be available in March. Ads by Lintas:Campbell-Ewald, which Hurlbert said will feature classic rock music, are set to break next month.
Copyright Adweek L.P. (1993)