There's been a lot of talk recently about FoMoCo possibly producing their own "reality" TV show centered on a competition among designers. The idea is that after several weeks of designs being approved or rejected by an "expert" panel (and wouldn't all the judges need to be Ford people?), the winning design would be made into a real-world-size concept car. And there's more...
Corporate sponsorships of reality shows are nothing new — Ford has been a prominent sponsor of "American Idol" — the company is looking to produce the show itself in the hope of reconnecting with younger consumers who have drifted away to other brands like Honda and Toyota.
The show is still in the early phase of development, and Ford has not yet begun seeking out any contestants, producers or a television network to broadcast it.
The show is part of a larger marketing campaign know as "Bold Moves" that Ford started nationally on May 3. Other ideas said to be part of the new campaign are a documentary-style Internet program starring Mark Fields, who leads the company's North and South American operations, and a new series of national television commercials for Ford vehicles featuring a previously unreleased Kelly Clarkson song.
The initial campaign is expected to have a price tag in the tens of millions of dollars. But the cost will probably grow to more than $100 million.
Our thoughts:
This is NUTS! No more or less. How about designing, making and selling cars and trucks which people actually want to BUY!?!? A competition which winds up producing a one-off vehicle which NO ONE will be able to buy is CRAZY! What a waste of time, money and talent! American car companies have in the past invested money in non-automotive businesses and almost each one has proven a financial disaster and resulted in reams of negative PR for the company involved.
Ford: Stick to what you do best and what Mr. Ford wanted his company to do --- That is, create, make and sell the cars and trucks which people the world over will want to buy!
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