Chrysler Breaks Campaign Targeting Texas Hispanics

Chrysler today launches a campaign from GlobalHue that pitches Dodge to Mexican-Americans living in Texas, better known as Tejanos, with work considered so precisely targeted it wouldn't work elsewhere, an executive with the automaker said.Tejanos are an appealing demographic for the DaimlerChrysler unit, making up the majority of the Hispanic group that composes 22 percent of Dodge buyers in the state. Nationwide, Hispanics represent just 5 percent of Dodge buyers, according to the automaker."You can't ignore the population," said Fred Díaz, senior sales and marketing manager for Chrysler's Southwest Business Center in Dallas. "They have tremendous buying power, and most important, Hispanic buyers have a tendency to be very loyal to a product."The Chrysler Group on Jan. 1 consolidated 24 regional offices nationwide into eight, with the goal to improve coordination between corporate and its field organizations, and to "streamline the go-to-market process," the automaker said. Díaz said the new organization paved the way for the campaign, the first time the automaker has targeted Texas Hispanics so precisely.GlobalHue is Chrysler's multicultural shop, and its office in San Antonio handled the Tejano work. The initial spot promotes the new Dodge Ram 1500 Lone Star Edition. In "Fiesta," Hispanic men are shown clearing brush and loading their Ram pickups as Tejano music plays. Then they carry large wooden beams out of their trucks and start construction. The truck's headlights are switched on, showing the men have built a stage, and musician Flaco Jiménez appears after being introduced in Spanish with, "Ladies and gentlemen, Dodge presents Flaco Jiménez!"The 30-second spot closes with the tag, "Vive con ganas," the Spanish version of general-market tag, "Grab life by the horns."Jiménez, a Grammy winner, and his original score were chosen because "he can help us make a connection with Hispanic buyers and make them say, 'OK, these guys at Dodge understand us, appreciate us and like us,' " Díaz said. "He can play every genre and is versatile, like our truck. Everything about him, from his music to his demeanor, says Tejano." Jessica Serna, GlobalHue's vp and field events director, said focusing on Jiménez makes sense. "Music is the driving force for the Hispanic culture," she said. "It's an important element on how we get our message out."In the past, Dodge has created general-market spots targeting Texans, "but this is the largest and most specific attempt to speak directly to the state's Hispanics," Díaz said.The segment accounts for 32 percent of the Texas population, with nearly 7 million people. By stepping up event-marketing efforts, Dodge increased sales to Hispanic buyers nearly 50 percent last year, Díaz said. "We noticed giving some attention [to the group] was a tremendous success, and we think we've only scratched the surface," he said.This year, Dodge will also break another corporate spot, six dealer ads and radio work aimed at Tejanos."Dodge is a brand that has been dormant in the [U.S] Hispanic market, but it has a heritage because it's been active in Latin America," said Felipe Korzenny of Cheskin, a California market-research firm. "When the Hispanic market rekindles a relationship with a brand, it can happen really fast."

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Chrysler Breaks Campaign Targeting Texas Hispanics

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Mindy Charski