Dealers

July 26, 2010. Dearborn, Michigan. 11:30 a.m., Eastern Standard Time. On the grounds of Ford's world headquarters. 

Live band belting out classic rock from the 60s to mid-80s. I'm now singing tunes in my head from The Kinks, The Who and Journey. T-shirts, frisbees and footballs for the employees and media. Definitely a festive feeling. Hot dogs, chips and water for the employees. A cool canopy for invited VIPs and Ford dealers. Lots of excited Ford employees walking around. It's hot. We want shade. But we want to see the product, too.

Backdrop: A huge 20-25 foot pile of sand and dirt with a clear path coming down onto the main stage has been built. Right next to the stage where the band is playing music. No fewer than 6 fullly grown pine trees adorn each side of this man-made mountain. 

12 noon. Lewis Booth, Fords' chief financial officer, takes the microphone and welcomes everyone. He explains to the crowd he slept very well the previous Friday after Ford announced its second quarter earnings and financial results. All global operations were profitable. The crowd applauses. For a long time. Booth smiles. 

Up comes Derek Kuzak, Ford's head of product development. He is very pumped up. He looks at the crowd and says what the new Explorer is. And what it isn't. You can watch details yourself and read about them here. By the way, the "SUV" segment just lost an entrant - the Explorer is a cross-over based on its uni-body frame (that's shared with the new Taurus). 

12:20 p.m. A white Ford Explorer appears over the crest of the man-made hill. 

Kuzak takes the microphone again. He encourages the Ford employees to get the word out. Share the news with friends and family. Be an advocate.  We rush the stage for photos. (By the way, I witnessed this event due to connections from a friend - not a business colleague... someone at Ford is doing their job).

Good automotive marketing. Explorer hits later this calendar year. Let's see what else they've in store to help their dealers rejuvenate the Ford customer base. 

Posted by Lonnie Miller, Vice President, Marketing & Industry Analysis (7.26.2010)