'It's Go Time' for Mitsubishi Campaign

NEW YORK In an effort to energize the momentum of its best sales year since 2004, Mitsubishi Motors North America this week will launch a brand campaign with a new tag, "It's go time."Creative includes TV, radio and print, via BBDO West, Los Angeles and San Francisco; and online, via Organic, San Francisco. "It's go time" will replace the three-year-old "Driven to thrill" tag.Mitsubishi said last week that calendar year 2007 sales were 128,993, an 8.8 percent increase compared with 2006. However, December sales were 5,904, a decrease of 40.4 percent compared with the previous year.The new tagline is part of the company's strategy to get consumers to think of Mitsubishi as being an aspirational brand rather than a foreign car company merely seeking to compete with Hyundai, Kia and other imports."We looked at the new tagline as an invitation," said Jim Lesser, evp and executive creative director at BBDO West. "The whole campaign is based on the momentum we have coming out of last year. This is a full motion, sound and energy campaign with a palpable energy that is well suited to TV."The first spot, breaking this week, touts the Lancer and two versions of the Evo. It shows the sporty sedans in the desert sweeping across the landscape. A voiceover offers, "Three machines plus one soul equals 'It's go time.'" A second spot promotes the Outlander SUV, showing it driven by twenty- and thirtysomethings in the mountains, the city and other scenarios. Voiceover: "Hop in. It's go time." A third spot, breaking Feb. 1, shows two twentysomething women dressed for a night on the town driving through the city in their 2009 Galant Sport edition, which hits showrooms later this month.Print will break in auto publications. A media buy in lifestyle magazines is being considered. Support includes direct mail and POP. However, TV with a sports flavor will continue to be the staple of the spend because of its ROI, said Matt Mendez, retail marketing manager at Mitsubishi Motors, Cypress, Calif."We are focusing on brand awareness and familiarity and we've had great success with the sports programs that we do," said Mendez. "We have re-upped with the Arena Football League, we are doing NCAA, NBA, and we like the exclusivity we get when we do ESPN."Mendez said that Web and print executions this year might trend more to lifestyle sites and books, respectively. "The last couple of years we have done just enthusiast books," Mendez said. "We are now trying to marry lifestyle and the enthusiast."Mitsubishi spent $130 million on TV in 2006, 90 percent of its ad total, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus. Its Jan.-Oct. 2007 TV outlay topped $155 million.

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'It's Go Time' for Mitsubishi Campaign

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