Dodge, BBDO Change Rules for Ram Rollout -- Chrysler Launches Teasers, But Doesn't Focus on Usual Muscle Performance By David Kile

DETROIT - Chrysler Corp's Dodge division is getting ready to roll out the Ram pick

With the themeline ‘The Rules Have Changed’ – echoing somewhat the ‘This Changes Everything’ tagline that relaunched the Dodge division last fall – the Ram ads will be launched with a three-week teaser campaign beginning later this month that includes TV and outdoor, followed in September by a brand campaign. The launch budget, according to sources, will be about $40-$45 million.
Brand ads will be somewhat unconventional for the truck market. One ad, for example, shows only the interior of the truck. Another will show off the new V-10 engine, a unique option in the truck category where engines among competitors top out at eight cylinders.
Ads for the new Ram are devoid of the usual ‘lumberjack’ or ‘diesel mechanic’ cues, such as trucks being driven off road, up mountains, across rivers, or hauling rocks. ‘The marketing campaign revolves around the product . . . its comfort, the safety features, the performance,’ said one exec involved in the marketing plans. ‘We didn’t put a lot of people in the ads, like using a 20-something kid to attract young buyers, or a woman putting her groceries in the truck to reach women.’
Analysts say that while conquering other brands in the truck market is difficult because of brand loyalty, the new Ram should attract a healthy number of first-time truck buyers, and take equally from the full-sized and compact truck segments. ‘It is a very refined truck that truly appeals to the traditional truck buyer as well as the personal use/suburban buyer,’ said Jim Wangers, senior managing partner, Automotive Marketing Consultants here.
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