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Ban all car ads now! - READ ONLY

32 messages,  Last post on May 05, 2006 at 1:26 AM

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Messages Page 4 of 4

#23 of 32 No advertising? by habitat1

Feb 09, 2006 (4:00 pm)

For what it's worth I cannot recall seeing a single television ad for two of the last three cars I bought:
 
Honda S2000
Porsche 911
 
I have seen print ads for the 911 in the Wall Street Journal and certain other publications. But I can't even recall ever seeing a print ad specifically for the S2000.
 
So what's that say? build a really good car that the press eats up with positive reviews and awards, and you don't have to spend money advertising.

#24 of 32 Re: No advertising? [habitat1] by socala4

Feb 09, 2006 (4:01 pm)

Replying to: habitat1 (Feb 09, 2006 4:00 pm)
For what it's worth I cannot recall seeing a single television ad for two of the last three cars I bought:
  
Honda S2000
Porsche 911
  
I have seen print ads for the 911 in the Wall Street Journal and certain other publications. But I can't even recall ever seeing a print ad for the S2000, not counting a Honda brand as that might have had the S2000 in a big picture of all of the models.
 
My guess is that most car ads are largely used to:
- Update customers on the latest incentives/ promotions / etc.
- Inform consumers of a new model launch
- Remind everyone that they exist, i.e. since you're looking at Camrys, don't forget about our Accord
 
Sometimes, ads can be effective for positioning the car as a lifestyle product, as was the case with the Mini and the Beetle, but successful examples of these are the exception, rather than the rule.
 
I'd bet that very few people are going to buy a car based upon advertising alone. Many consumers will want to hear good worth of mouth or get positive referrals from people whom they know before taking the plunge.

#25 of 32 They say ads are effective by pf_flyer HOST

Feb 09, 2006 (6:22 pm)

I don't think that I'm affected by ads much at all, except maybe for awareness of a product... and that may be the "effectiveness" of advertising.
 
But if advertising had the power that some people fear it has (think the cigarette and alcohol ads) then I'd have at least SOME of the hot items in my posession wouldn't I??
 
I drive Nissans, but not a Z, even though that GI Joe stealing Barbie from Ken ad was GREAT.

#26 of 32 Re: No advertising? [habitat1] by nwng

Feb 10, 2006 (8:59 am)

Replying to: habitat1 (Feb 09, 2006 4:00 pm)
come to think of it:
 
M3
6 series, z4
mini (maybe i missed it, but I really didn't recall seeing a mini commercial)
highline mbz - c class only
evo
 
toyota/lexus are on all the time, I think it has to do with locations.

#27 of 32 Who cares? by bobst

Feb 10, 2006 (6:34 pm)

So some dude wants to ban car ads in San Francisco. Who cares? It's not like it is happening in America.

#28 of 32 Re: They say ads are effective [pf_flyer] by kyfdx HOST

Feb 11, 2006 (6:43 am)

Replying to: pf_flyer (Feb 09, 2006 6:22 pm)
Procter & Gamble has based their entire business on the premise that advertising is effective...
 
I'm sure they have studies out the ying-yang that prove it, as well...
 
Not to mention, Edmunds.com would be out of business without it..
 
It really amazes me how many business models are directly attributable to advertising.. Any media or internet business is pretty much all about advertising..

#29 of 32 Re: They say ads are effective [kyfdx] by habitat1

Feb 11, 2006 (4:04 pm)

Replying to: kyfdx (Feb 11, 2006 6:43 am)
Any media or internet business is pretty much all about advertising..
 
It is interesting that, even after dropping 30% in the last month, Google's market cap is still $107 billion. That's approximately 4 times as much as GM ($12 billion) and Ford ($15 billion) COMBINED. what's that tell you about the future of the automotive industry in the US??
 
At some point, however, our "eyeballs" can only be worth so much. And advertising expenditures will have to be justified by hard results. I use Google on a daily basis and have NEVER purchased anything advertised on it's website / links. EVER. But don't tell the advertisers, I like the subsidized search engine and Google Earth.
 
Speaking of Proctor and Gamble, I learned at the age of 16 (nearly 35 years ago) that shelf space was at least as important as advertising in influencing purchases. I worked as a stockboy in a grocery store. I was in charge of the soap & paper isles (box soap, laundry detergent, paper towels, toilet paper, etc.). We were challenged to reduce back room inventory. I bet the store manager I could cut it in half for my isles. I simply gave Wisk more shelf space than ERA, Dove more than Palmolive, Scott Towels more than Bounty etc. until I had won the bet in about 3 weeks. Brand loyalty only goes so far when you are staring at shelves full of Comet instead of Ajax.

#30 of 32 It's not 1970 anymore... by grbeck

Feb 11, 2006 (4:45 pm)

I find it interesting that the writer uses as an example the ban on tobacco ads, which went into effect in the early 1970s. Like so many of his political stripe, he seems to have forgotten that it is now 2006, and the world has changed considerably in the last 30+ years.
 
In his world, everyone gathers around the television to watch ABC, CBS and NBC every night. There are no such things as the TiVO and the DVD. Cable television does not exist. Neither does the Internet.
 
I'll bet that most people simply screen out the majority of car ads on television. I do and I'm a car nut. They all look the same.
 
For any ban to be effective, it would have to ban newspaper and magazine ads (which runs into First Amendment concerns). I would wager that the big, fat color section of The Sunday Harrisburg Patriot-News containing screamer ads from all of the local dealers entices far more people to buy a new vehicle than all of the television ads put together. That scenario is repeated across the country every week.
 
He would also have to ban auto shows, which runs into the constitutional right of the people to peacefully assemble. Good luck on that one.
 
Well, he did gets lots of attention - more than he would have gotten by writing another column touting the tourist attractions of the Bay Area. And that was probably the whole point.

#31 of 32 How about Car and Drug ads? by wilcox

Feb 17, 2006 (10:19 am)

Do you find yourself making more trips to the kitchen?
 
It seems like most TV channels have their advertisments running all at the same time.

#32 of 32 Ban all car ads now! by rockylee

May 05, 2006 (1:26 am)

I do like the tune to the Nissan Z commerical.
 
OTOH-local sales commercials and there gimmicks drive me up a wall. Like one of our local dealer says and he has it right. There are alot of thirty-thousand dollar steak knives sold. He doesn't give gimmicks but a fair price I guess when compared to other dealers in the area.
 
Rocky

Messages Page 4 of 4

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