Jeff Lechtanski’s Weblog » Cutthroat Car Commercial

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12-28-2008

Nissan’s latest campaign is pretty brutal.

“You don’t just need a car, you need a car company.”

Wow! That’s cold. It’s obvious they’re poking at the American car companies facing potential bankruptcy – sorry, Organized Bankruptcy.

The concern whether people will buy a car from a company in bankruptcy is well reported. The media was already doing a good job of that. There was no need for Nissan to get down in the gutter and address it, too.

Especially when one of those troubled companies (Hint: Chrysler) was good enough for a non-partnership partnership just this last April. What does that say about Nissan the company?

This kind of negative advertising is a bad idea. Nissan is a respected company producing quality cars. But promoting yourself by tearing someone else down leaves a bad taste in the consumer’s mouth. Sure you want attention, and the timing of the ad is about right. The public is ready for smaller, more fuel-efficient cars, and that is Nissan’s niche. A snappy one-liner is a disappointment.


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[...] since I was so good to point out that Nissan is doing it wrong, I thought I might speak up when I see it done [...]

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