Which GM Brand Should Be Saved?

Consumer Survey Picks Pontiac – the One Least Likely to Survive

General Motors Corp. is looking to sell three brands and kill off one, Pontiac. And which brand was overwhelmingly named by consumers in a recent survey as the one they’d like to live on? Pontiac.

In a new worldwide survey from online auto community CarGurus, consumers were asked which of the four brands they would most like to see survive. Of the nearly 1,700 respondents, 44% named Pontiac, 27% said Hummer, 20% picked Saab and only 9% named Saturn.

Langley Steinert, CEO of CarGurus, cited Pontiac’s “trailblazing heritage” — including the 1964 GTO, which started the muscle-car craze — as reasons for consumers’ apparent fondness for the brand. Pontiac’s “current G6 is the 20th-best-selling car in the U.S.,” he said, “so I’m not surprised to see consumers vote to save this historic brand.”

That’s not to say there weren’t a few of the findings that took him aback — such as the popularity of the gas-guzzling Hummer. “What did surprise me was the relative popularity of the Hummer brand over that of Saab and Saturn,” Mr. Steinert said. The Saturn Vue, he said, is a top-50-best-selling car in this country, while Hummer’s best-selling model, the H3, ranks in the No. 153 slot. “I would have expected Saturn to be the other brand consumers wanted to see survive GM’s reorganization,” he said.

Powerade for False Advertising

Says Coke Brand’s Campaign Misleads Consumers Into Thinking Pepsi Beverage Is ‘Incomplete’

PepsiCo’s Gatorade brand today filed a lawsuit against Coca-Cola’s Powerade, alleging false advertising, trademark dilution, deceptive acts and practices, injury to business reputation, and unfair competition. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in New York, takes Powerade to task for its new advertising campaign, first reported by Advertising Age.

In its suit, Gatorade asserts that the campaign misleads consumers and overstates the product benefits of its Powerade Ion4. The campaign positions Powerade’s newly reformulated drink as the “complete sports drink.” Billboards, digital efforts and an ESPN cover, which was criticized by ASME, picture half of a Gatorade bottle with the text “Don’t settle for an incomplete sports drink.”

Powerade is seeking to set itself apart by touting its drink as containing four electrolytes — sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium — while Gatorade’s formula contains just two electrolytes, sodium and potassium. Gatorade’s suit takes issue with Powerade’s positioning, noting the “miniscule” amounts of calcium and magnesium that are part of the new formulation. “There is no evidence that the minute quantities of magnesium and calcium present in Powerade Ion4 make it superior to Gatorade in any way,” the complaint states.

‘No evidence’ of Powerade’s claims
“As the category leader, we have a responsibility to ensure consumers are accurately informed about the benefits of a sports drink. And the truth is, scientists say there is no evidence that Powerade Ion4 is a more complete sports drink than Gatorade,” PepsiCo said in a statement. “This claim is complete in only one way — it is completely false.”

BBDO Loses Brand Pepsi

After Nearly 50 Years, BBDO Loses Brand Pepsi in U.S. TBWA Will Take Over Communications; Arnell to Handle Design

The beverage giant today named TBWA/Chiat/Day, Playa Del Rey, Calif., communications agency for the Pepsi brand in the U.S. The agency already has responsibility for PepsiCo’s Gatorade label and will now handle advertising duties for the trademark.

“We decided to appoint TBWA/Chiat/Day to refresh Pepsi’s communication across multiple consumer touch-points and to reinvigorate Pepsi’s legacy of leading-edge advertising,” said Dave Burwick, chief marketing officer, PepsiCo North America Beverages, in a statement.

Pepsi’s new identity
Pepsi also tapped Arnell Group, which created Pepsi’s much-talked about new logo, as its design shop. Arnell will be responsible for brand identity and packaging innovation for Pepsi. The agency already handles PepsiCo’s SoBe brand.

“This is fully complementary with our ongoing relationship with Arnell, who has created the new Pepsi identity and packaging and is responsible for the ongoing design and brand identity development,” said Mr. Burwick.

BBDO will retain responsibilities for several core businesses, including Pepsi Max, Mountain Dew, Amp Energy and the North American Coffee Partnership. The move does not affect BBDO’s PepsiCo business outside of the U.S. A BBDO spokesman declined to comment on the move.

FULL ARTICLE

Brand vs. Brand: Attack Ads on the Rise

Dunkin’, Burger King, Microsoft Latest to Go Directly After Their Rivals

CHICAGO (AdAge.com) — Marketing seems to have entered a new era of attack ads. Whatever the reasons, comparative ads — some of them pretty aggressive — are all the rage.

FULL ARTICLE

As the Lines Blur, Digital Agencies Are Taking Lead Today Agency-of-Record Status Can Go to Anyone; Just Ask Tribal or Tequila

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Digital agencies are not only being invited to pitch brands as agencies of record — increasingly, they’re winning.

FULL ARTICLE

PepsiCo Launches Massive Overhaul

Faced With Falling Sales, Will Revamp Brands, Lay Off Thousands, Close Six Plants

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — PepsiCo said Tuesday it will pour some $1.2 billion over three years into a push that will include sweeping changes to its brands, including what Chairman-CEO Indra Nooyi characterized as a revamp of “every aspect of the brand proposition for our key [carbonated soft drink] brands. How they look, how they’re packaged, how they will be merchandised on the shelves, and how they connect with consumers.”

FULL ARTICLE

Executive Pay Debated at P&G’s Annual Meeting Meanwhile, J&J Reports Surprisingly Strong Quarter

BATAVIA, Ohio (AdAge.com) — While Procter & Gamble retirees at the company’s annual meeting Tuesday backed criticism of Chairman-CEO A.G. Lafley’s $25 million pay package, rival Johnson & Johnson made it look easy. In results announced yesterday, J&J beat analyst earnings-per-share estimates by 6 cents at $1.17 and delivered a surprisingly strong 6.4% increase in global sales to $15.9 billion.

FULL ARTICLE

Sorrell vs. Benatti: the High Court Rematch

Admen Square off in London for Second Trial

LONDON (AdAge.com) — London’s High Court is hosting another showdown between WPP Group Chief Executive Martin Sorrell and Marco Benatti, WPP’s former manager for Italy.

FULL ARTICLE

Google’s Schmidt Says Internet ‘Cesspool’ Needs Brands Says the Solution Is Quality Content; Tells Publishers and Editors to ‘Increase Your Relevance’

American Magazine Conference 2008

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (AdAge.com) — The internet is fast becoming a “cesspool” where false information thrives, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said yesterday. Speaking with an audience of magazine executives visiting the Google campus here as part of their annual industry conference, he said their brands were increasingly important signals that content can be trusted. “Brands are the solution, not the problem,” Mr. Schmidt said. “Brands are how you sort out the cesspool.”

FULL ARTICLE

DeGeneres Reveals CoverGirl Model Deal

Will Appear in Ads for P&G Makeup Brand Starting in January

BATAVIA, Ohio (AdAge.com) — Ellen DeGeneres confirmed on her syndicated TV talk show Tuesday that she will be the new face of CoverGirl cosmetics, appearing in an ad campaign for the Procter & Gamble Co. brand to break in the January issue of Us Weekly magazine.

FULL ARTICLE

Best Buy Latest Marketer to Cut Spending Will Adjust In-Store Projects, Corporate and Ad Spending Due to Rising Costs, Sinking Profits

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Count Best Buy as the latest marketer to scrutinize its ad costs. In an earnings call Tuesday, the retailer said it has identified cost savings for the second half of the year, following a 17% rise in selling, general and administrative costs during the second quarter.

FULL ARTICLE

Brand Tags’ Noah Brier: How My Website Took Off

From Late-Night Idea to 3 Million Page Views, Some Tips for Agencies and Clients

Commentary

About six months ago, in the middle of the night, I had a very simple idea: If brands exist in people’s heads, as I believe they do, then shouldn’t you be able to ask a whole bunch of people what they think of a brand and then use tag clouds to display the results? After flipping the idea around in my brain for a few minutes, I decided it was a good enough reason to jump out of bed and make it happen.

FULL ARTICLE

DeGeneres as Cover Girl: ‘That’s Gossip’ P&G Denies Page Six Talk That Talk-Show Host Is Joining Makeup Brand’s Celeb Roster

Adages

Is Ellen DeGeneres the next face of Cover Girl? Procter & Gamble Co. isn’t saying, but an item in Page Six of The New York Post cites an unnamed “spy” who said the popular talk-show host is shooting a campaign this week and “must have gotten at least $1 million for it.”

FULL ARTICLE

Reich: TV Networks Should Replace Ad Agencies

A 3 Minute Ad Age Video Report

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — That major TV networks already provide ad-agency-like services to clients is a subject of no small concern for the ad-agency business. But the subject is rarely discussed openly. Speaking at a recent New York MIEG breakfast, Brian Reich, co-author of “Media Rules,” argued that marketers as well as consumers would be better served if TV networks took over the full functions of advertising agencies.

FULL ARTICLE

CSPI Now Has MillerCoors in Its Sights After Taking on A-B Over Energy Drink, Activist Group Puts Pressure on Brewer’s Sparks Brand

CHICAGO (AdAge.com) — The activist group that teamed with state attorneys general to persuade Anheuser-Busch to stop selling alcoholic energy drinks in June is now suing MillerCoors over the same issue.

FULL ARTICLE

Who’s Watching TV at the Office and in Bars?

Nielsen Rolls Out First Out-of-Home Ratings

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Nielsen is out to count all the people in office cubicles, bars and other people’s houses watching TV, and the media-measurement company on Sept. 2 moved closer to that goal by unveiling its first daily all-electronic national-TV ratings of viewing that occurs outside the home.

FULL ARTICLE

Zappos Shows How Employees Can Be Brand-Builders Is This ‘Overlooked Resource’ as Important as Paid Ads?

Commentary by Pete Blackshaw

If you talk to Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh or his marketing chief, Brian Kalma, you’ll find a plan behind the enthusiastic praise that their company often receives from its own employees. The vast majority of trial and repeat at Zappos.com is driven by word of mouth, and employees — their motivation, their attentiveness to customers, their handling of feedback — are the foundation to that approach.

FULL ARTICLE