When nothing else happens, and everything else seems desperate, many companies try to resort in some innovative activities such as creating sexy and saucy ads thinking it would sell their product. Truly, the same thing happened with Chrysler, where they are heating up Dodges advertising campaign like that of Fiats with Gallic sizzle.
However, the sad story is that sex appeal had virtually disappeared from American car marketing. This is practically perhaps of their liberated culture where everything seems to be natural for them. It doesn’t create a head turn. Unlike in Asia, it does create a head turn because sex appeal isn’t natural in their conservative culture.
Moreover, Chrysler is turning European car again from time. However it is no longer the Germans who are calling the shots. It is now the Italians from Fiat and their French marketing chief are in charge. The next generation of Chryslers and Dodges will resemble the quirky little cars at that zip around Rome.
And they are doing a branding makeover with the goal of attracting younger, hipper, and wealthier customers. But they were too much known for creating controversy. For one, Fiat apologized to China after a European Lancia ad starring Richard Gere obliquely backed and independent Tibet. In US, they featured Mikhail Gorbachev, Poland’s Lech Walesa, and Mohammed Yunus, who founded microlender Grameen Bank. Each man climbs out of a 300 sedan, and a fourth car arrives empty. An announcer dedicates the ad to jailed Burmese democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi.
Whatever their plans may be – their planned sexy and saucy advertisements must take into consideration the cultural differences among nations. Because obviously, no on wants their past mistakes to recur again and again.