GM & U Campaign

Stephen Burke Metta ChaphivJennifer Hays Timothy Ipsaro

November 17th, 2009Integrated Marketing Communications

IntroductionObjectives

• Increase General Motors (GM) reach to college student demographic

• Reverse consumer perceptions of GM through various marketing efforts

• Enhance GM’s online presence and connection with its desired target market

Target MarketInitially Defined

• 2-year, 4-year students of colleges, college graduates (19 million total1)

• Female & Male students; ages of 20-25 years, single• Commuters, live on campus• Average annual income of $30,000 - $60,000• Modeled after PRIZM’s “Young Influentials” segment• Moderate to heavy Internet users, can access the Web via

their mobile phones

1 Provided by Government Census Bureau.

Primary Research

• Target Market– 12.5% own a GM vehicle– Top 3 factors in buying a car

1. Reliability2. Price3. Fuel Efficiency

– 50% received assistance in purchasing last car

Primary Research

– 9 Attributes for perception offered• 55.5% of participants were indifferent towards the GM

brand

– 90% of participants have an income under $20,000

Redefined

• Ages of 18-25 years, single• Actively follow publications like BusinessWeek and WIRED• Participation in one or more outdoor-oriented activities or

sports for leisure• Follow at least one primetime TV program• Reliability and price were two greatest factors in car

purchases

Target Market

Media – Traditional AdvertisingBusinessWeek• Half-page, color print advertisement inserts• Special Automotive Advertising section• Special student-personalized inserts in BusinessWeek student

subscriptions

Readership are entry-level professionals, business studentsSurvey revealed 10% of our participants read BusinessWeek;

publication with the highest number of readersReaders are known to be web-savvy (68%)2

2 Provided by BusinessWeek’s Media Kit.

WIRED• Half-page, color print advertisement inserts• Targeted age range of 18-34 years of age at 55%3

• 44% of readers have graduated from college

Valuable outlet to those who may be skeptical or have unfavorable attitudes towards GM products

Favor high-tech vehicles; feature GM’s emphasized efforts in fuel efficient technology would provide GM with more credibility

Create hype about the Chevy Volt (2010)predicted to be the true mass electric option

3 Provided by WIRED’s Media Kit (Conde Nast Publications).

Media – Traditional Advertising

Television• 30-second ad costs dropped 16%; Fox’s average ad cost of

$121,000, the highest of all networks4

• Nielsen Ratings: week of October 19th, Family Guy: viewer audience of nearly 4,600,0006

Top programs: Burn Notice, House, Entourage, Family GuyCurrent vehicle owners, 75% of them participate in outdoor-

oriented activitiesAd: 30 seconds, montage of active, young individuals participating

in outdoor-oriented activities, b&w with color GM vehicles narratives relay phrases like, “strength,” “endurance,” etc.

4 “Analysis: Prime Network TV Ad Cost Dives in Q3” by Steve McClellan; 6 “TV Ratings – Syndication.” Nielsen.

Media – Traditional Advertising

Social NetworkingAs a result of young and internet savvy target market, social networking is a

powerful form communication. According to a survey done by internetnews.com “75 percent of adults aged 18 to 24 were social networking users, compared to just 7 percent of adults 65 years and older.”

• Facebook– Creation of a Facebook fan page can communicate information about

sweepstakes, giveaways, new features, and vehicle information.

– The cost of utilizing Facebook’s fan pages, advertising, and other services is insubstantial compared to other forms of promotion.

7 “More Adults Jump Into Social Networking” by Judy Mottl

Social Networking

• MySpace– Pictures, campus locations, message boards, and artist’s music will all

be displayed through the GM & U MySpace page.

– Artists from the Campus Takeover Tour: Owl City, The Conditions, NAS, and Darius Rucker will all have available music to listen to and download, along with tour dates and locations.

– Message boards will help the GM & U program gain understanding of the effectiveness of the campaign.

Social Networking

• Twitter– Concert details, celebrity endorsements, and real time updates, can all

increase the brand awareness for GM and its products.

– Similar to MySpace, the four chosen concert artists can also share their thoughts for GM and the program to create buzz around at the GM twitter site.

– Regular updates of the Twitter site will also be important for communicating sweepstakes and contest information that can help the program draw in many more site viewers.

Social Networking

• GM & U Website– By creating a specific website for the program we felt GM & U could

gather feedback from on-campus activities and share them with people from around the world.

– Message boards, videos, and testimonials will all help create buzz about the program.

– By creating updates of on campus interaction and concert reviews, GM & U can inform users about the program and benefits of buying a GM vehicle.

Public Relations• To raise awareness prior to the implementation of the GM & U Discount

program, press releases will be communicated a month in advance.

• By carefully monitoring and managing each campus chosen in the program, GM will have to be ready to respond when unpredictable or unfortunate events occur. Avoiding safety and legal issues will require dedicated staff at each campus.

• While focusing primarily on the countless aspect of the GM & U program, GM keep its investors in mind.

• To help calm the nerves of GM supporters on Wall Street, GM must continue to work hard to gain consumer confidence and keep sales steady as the GM & U program takes place.

Concert Advertisement

Digital Media• Creative – think outside of the traditional vehicle

advertising box

• 40% of the target market uses the Internet more than 20 hours per week

• Internet Advertising

• Viral Video

Digital Media

• Viral Video– Widespread reach in short period of time– Controlled-image video created by GM & U partners– Video challenge for college students and recent grads

• Challenge and specifications offered on GM & U website and through social networking sites

• Cash prizes and/or vehicle purchase incentives at the core of prize offerings• Help to better understand target market’s perception of GM

– Utilize social networking sites as well as YouTube to promote videos

– Highly inexpensive

Digital Media

• Viral Video – The Ad– Capture and reverse generally held ideas students have

about purchasing a new car

Digital Media

• Internet Advertising– Gawker Media

Events and Promotions

• GM Sweepstakes using Facebook and Twitter– The idea would be to give away a free GM vehicle.

– Would create a lasting impression upon the target market.

– Students will consider GM a brand that likes to associate with younger people and wants to do business with them.

Events and Promotions

• GM College Campus Car Show– Have car shows at large college campuses around the

country.

– Allow students to sit in the cars and have representatives go through all the features with them.

– Would lessen the negative connotation associated with sales representatives at dealerships being rude and unaccommodating to young people.

Events and Promotions• Concert Tour Car Show

– The idea would be to have a car show just inside the gates of a large concert.

– This would allow people to check out the cars and what GM has to offer in their free time before the concert starts.

– The performing artists could also act as endorsers of the GM car show by mentioning it on their Twitter or Facebook a few days ahead of time.

Direct Mail• The use of large college campuses would be key

for this part of the plan.

• Send out a flyer that offers a day where college age students and recent graduates can come and test drive the GM line up of vehicles

• This would reduce intimidation with test drives and get the target market to become familiar with GM branded vehicles.

Questions?

Thank you for your time and attention.

Stephen Burke Jennifer HaysMetta Chaphiv Timothy Ipsaro

Works Cited• "Business Week Media Kit PDFs." BusinessWeek. 2008. 7 November 2009.

<http://mediakit.businessweek.com/PDF/>.• "Circulation / Demographics - WIRED." Conde Nast Media Kit. Conde Nast

Publications. March 2009. 7 November 2009. <http://www.condenastmediakit.com/wir/circulation.cfm>.

• GM & U Marketing Challenge. General Motors. [no date specified]. 1 September 2009. <www.edventurepartners.com/GMcase>.

• McClellan, Steve. "Analysis: Prime Network TV Ad Cost Dives in Q3." Mediaweek. 27 October 2009. 7 November 2009. <http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/content_display/news/media-agencies-research/e3icf13d4806aba58deaf770b64f4c9058b>.

• "TV Ratings - Syndication." Nielsen. 19 October 2009. 7 November 2009. <http://en-us.nielsen.com/rankings/insights/rankings/television>.