463_Detroit_Brand

©2009 Patt Cottingham All rights reserved.

“Detroit Brand Retrograde To Retrofit”

By Patt Cottingham


TOPIC: What does Detroit need to do to reclaim the edge to innovation?

WORD COUNT 1,493


© 2009 Patt Cottingham/ www.genuineimprints.com

“Detroit Brand Retrograde To Retrofit” What do GM, Ford, and Chrysler have to do to change the brand perception that Detroit has been sleeping at the wheel when it comes to innovation? How can Detroit shift gears and go from being perceived as a deteriorating retrograde brand still driving old ideas from the 20th century into an innovative brand retrofitted to meet the requirements of greener 21st century with enthusiasm? Well the first thing they have to exhibit is a complete change of thinking and they have to do this quickly. The collective heads of GM, Ford, and Chrysler need to communicate directly to the American taxpayer and ask for input into a new way forward for the American automobile industry. This would do two things. First, it would allow taxpayers a place to vent. There is a lot of anger about bailing out Detroit when the average taxpayer sees nobody bailing them out. This may be even more critical if Detroit has to


go back to Washington to ask for even more money. Second, it would open up the lines of communication and idea generation. Detroit would be served well by listening right now. They have to get into the Obama mindset that looks at the world through the lens of engagement and open to good ideas wherever they come from. So how could they do this? One idea could be to have representatives from the National Automobile Dealers Association, Michigan Taxpayers Alliance, GM, Ford and Chrysler to very quickly put up a unified website as a communication vehicle. This site could be served not only to the American public at large but also to car dealerships across the country, which in turn could e-mail the link to the site to all their customers. This two-way communication could be in the form of blogs, podcasts, streaming video, and an open source network for of sharing ideas. All of which could, engage, inform, address, and empower people to have a hand in the remaking of Detroit. Today's road to innovation may be a shared road. America once drove this auto innovation road quite well with Henry Ford and his revolutionary Model-T. Ford saw the idea of the assembly production line to reduce costs putting a car within reach to many Americans. The world of course has changed dramatically since 1908. Innovation needs to answer to a confluence of many different global factors. Existing in a universe that is much more shared and transparent than ever before. Detroit can find its place as innovator again if it designs out the blind spot that had its CEO's Wagoner, Mulally, and Nardelli flying to Washington in their corporate jets to ask for bail out money. GM, Ford, and Chrysler may still be able to write themselves into the future if they wake-up, get a lot scrappier, be willing to junk everything that is not working, share ideas, and listen. Oh by the way Detroit you might want to consider the history, both the good and bad of JetBlue www.jetblue.com David Neeleman founded the airline back in 1999 with the crazy idea of low-cost airline based in New York. Remember that this was during a time when the airline industry reported tremendous losses and several of the largest US airlines went into bankruptcy. That's innovation. For the past 10 years Neeleman has taken weekly JetBlue flights, talks to customers, and keeps a running log of how to make service better. That's listening. This relationship to customers was tested when in 2007 JetBlue, whose record was unblemished up to that point, had to face their first crisis. Due to bad weather and an under performing communication system nine JetBlue planes sat on the tarmac of JFK International Airport for six hours. The confusion led to angry exchanges between customers and employees. Neeleman admitted to being "humiliated and mortified" by the huge breakdown of the airlines operations. Neeleman enacted a JetBlue customer bill of rights that would financially penalize JetBlue and pay customers by the hour for being stranded on a plane. JetBlue survived by overhauling its communication systems and establishing employee rights that insured compensation for being stranded on a plane.


That's eating humble pie and getting it right for the future. And, that is how you keep a brand people will want to stay connected to. The other communication vehicle that can go a long way in communicating change is the car company logos. This may be the time to look at evolving and changing them. GM with its blue medal box, Ford with its script that is dating back to the beginning of the last century, Chrysler with it's star all seem a little dated now. Logos, icons, images, color, graphics, and design has always been high touch (Coined in 1980's by John Nesbitt meaning high human interaction) and therefore have always had the ability to shape how people perceive things. A change in thinking in Detroit will require a change in the graphics to reflect this change. In the business of brand perception "Every thing communicates and communication is everything" The graphics below are more conceptual starting places to communicate new, fresh, innovative thinking. I'll leave it to stellar graphic identity design firms like DesignWorksUSA http://www.designworksusa.com to refine the concepts and deliver graphics that communicate this new identity powerfully.


The following are some 4 examples of how color, graphics, and design have played a critical role in communicating a change in corporate direction, philosophy, mission, or vision. Quickly signaling a fundamental shift and change in the brand's role going forward. People notice when a logo changes. The bigger the change in design the bigger the expectation is that something big is happening.

BP: Oil company to energy company


Sprint: Merger with Nextel, –no longer just an analog phone service

Wal-mart to Walmart: Being a more fashion forward retailer who is not just about price.

Pepsi globe logo of the 50's and the new logo designed with a smile designed into it. In the Detroit brand recovery having the funds to invest in a national roll out of logo changes for GM, Ford, and Chrysler will initially be far too costly. However that does not


preclude them from investing in a small-scale logo change that captures the spirit of where the companies are heading. This revised logo can be used to communicate to employees, stakeholders, and to the public with a full role out to happen in stages. Of course we are in an unprecedented economic crisis in our country. The credit crunch has made selling cars all the more difficult. GM, Ford, and Chrysler all posted losses for December and cumulatively for the year. General Motors, the company that appeared to be in immediate need of bailout funds ended the year posting a 22.7% drop in sales. Ford Motor Company posted a 34.4% drop in December 2008. Chrysler LLC sold 53.1% fewer vehicles in December 2008 than they did in December 2007.

Hyundai has a campaign running called "Certainty in uncertain times" the commercial states that if you buy a Hyundai car and in the next year you lose your income they'll let you return it –walk away from your loan or lease without worry about negative equity. Brand Detroit has an opportunity to send out a strong signal to taxpayers that would acknowledge the investment they have made in its survival – You are helping us out, we want to help you out. Detroit could become the innovative hero if GM, Ford, and Chrysler could structure a collective credit plan where people could start buying and leasing cars again. Perhaps at very reduced rates that gets some momentum and movement into the dealerships across the country. Detroit's has to keep coming up with pricing, programs, rebates, credit structures, and incentives that are breakthrough. To be able to think in a whole new way Wagoner, Mulally, and Nardelli, the heads of GM, Ford, and Chrysler need to get out of their insulated towers. Brand revolutions never happen inside protected gates. They need to get out in the world and connect to the people who have been buying their cars all these years. They need to listen and gather the kind of unfiltered data that is critical to their success going forward. Innovation in products, services, sustainability, and green technologies will be informed by and spring out of this information. If Brand Detroit is going to lead an American Green Car Revolution for the 21st Century then it needs to use this information to build in a compelling reason for people to choose greener cars. People across the nation will step up and make the changeover to electric and hybrid cars if they see Detroit's recovery in the context of a wider American recovery of leadership and pride. The times may be


challenging indeed, but to the degree they are, is the exact measure of the innovation that is needed. To that end, this may be the best time for Brand Detroit. Patt Cottingham/USA 001-201-612-5533 www.genuineimprints.com www.workforcetobrandforce.com [email protected]

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