Ford is Built to Care
Ford Motor Company replaces its national advertisements with an emotinally targeted commercial that appeals to the current climate of COVID-19.
By Isabel Manella | April 30, 2020
The world has stepped into unprecedented times but companies are learnig to adapt to the new reality. Ford Motor Company’s new campaign addresses COVID-19 by using the marketing tactic of emotion. Jonah Berger, author of Contagious, emphasizes in his book the power of emotion and how it affects an audience.
The 36 second advertisement is kept simple so that viewers are focusing on the words, not the background noise. The commercial explains that Ford has been built to handle challenges.
What challenges can Ford Motor Company handle?
· Built through world wars and natural disasters
· Built for those who built this country
· Built for those who protect it
· Built for workers, parents, sons, daughters, teachers, caretakers, families and people
· Built to lend a hand
· Build to do that right now
Why Emotion?
The words in the commercial evoke emotion because they remind us that Ford is here to protect and comfort us. Ford mentions that they have been a company in the United States since 1903; they have survived other horrednous times in history and they will help the community survive this.
Through emotion, Ford has utilzied empathy and action regarding their current campaigns for COVID-19. This is a strategic approach that other companies can learn from. Ford had to pivot their initial ads that were representing new Ford Escape and Explorer models. Matt VanDyke, U.S. Director of Marketing for Ford Motor Company, felt the need to change advertisements because he didn’t want the brand to come off as “tone deaf.”
“So at that point we knew we needed to be empathic, we needed to be reassuring, so that was the initial tone of those ads.” — Matt VanDyke
Another aspect of the commercial that utilzied emotion was how there was no voiceover. The message that Ford is trying to communicate is more powerful and allows the viewers to focus on the words and not be distracted by anything else. This tactic has become commonly used for advertisements that are played in large stadiums so that the audience can read the commercial without actually listening to it.
How else is Ford helping others?
Ford is here to help with COVID-19 by not just being a vehicle but with their benefits. Ford is helping customers if they are leasing or financing through Ford Credit. The company has also emphasized the importance of giving back during this time. Ford has donated over 1,012,756 million face shields to first responders.
Ford understands that this is a crisis and the company is not trying to make the new campaign into a sales event. The campaign is trying to connect with viewers that Ford acknowledges their feelings and that if they can overcome previous challenges, then the American people can overcome this, too.
