Chrysler Adds Sweeps to Ask Dr. Z Campaign
More than a month after the Chrysler Group kicked into gear its Ask Dr. Z ad campaign to tout the automaker’s American and German engineering roots, Chrysler is out with a sweepstakes dangling nine vehicles as grand prizes to drive dealership visits.
Consumers can enter the Ask Dr. Z Dream Car Sweepstakes at AskDrZ.com by visiting a Chrysler, Jeep or Dodge dealer showroom to obtain an entry code. Consumers then register on the Web site and enter the code where they can make one of three vehicle choices they hope to win. In all, Chrysler will award nine vehicles: three Dodge Challengers, three 2007 Chrysler Sebrings and three 2007 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicons.
The promotion was timed to complement the upcoming 12th annual 2006 Woodward Dream Cruise, a car show, which kicks off on Aug. 19. The 16-mile-long show, held in Royal Oak, MI, features more than 40,000 vehicles and attracts approximately 1.7 million visitors. Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge-branded merchandise and apparel will be sold during the event. Meanwhile, the $100 million Ask Dr. Z marketing campaign, which launched last month, features the automaker’s chairman, Dieter Zetsche, as the centerpiece of Chrysler’s Employee Pricing Plus promotion, employee discounts offered to all consumers (PROMO Xtra July 5, 2006).
The promotion, slated to run throughout July, was extended until Aug. 31. In its first six weeks, Chrysler reported more than 600,000 visitors to the AskDrZ.com Web site and answers to more than 4.2 million consumer questions about Chrysler and its vehicles.
“The [sweepstakes] is really another way to drive showroom traffic and Web traffic through the Ask Dr. Z campaign,” said Chrysler spokesperson Todd Goyer. Chrysler’s Web traffic is up 15% and its Web leads increased 27% since the campaign began, he added.
However, the employee program and Ask Dr. Z ad campaign may not have had enough fuel to stem Chrysler’s plummeting sales.
Auburn Hills, MI-based Chrysler reported its U.S. sales for July slid 35% to 150,349 vehicles, compared to record July 2005 sales of 240,146 vehicles. Higher interest rates and other increased household costs facing consumers were to blame for the slump, Chrysler said.
Responding to the lackluster results, Goyer said: “The [Ask Dr. Z] campaign itself wasn’t intended as a quick-fix for sales, but to increase awareness for the brand and for a company that has American and German design built into every vehicle.”
Still, consumers may be a little confused about the message the automaker is trying to communicate. Yesterday, a segment on NBC The Today Show tagged “Who is Dr. Z?…And What Is He Selling?” said market research indicates 80% of consumers think Dr. Z is a fictional character, and that the discount offer is not carried over clearly in the ads.
Yet, Chrysler said it’s met its objectives with the ad campaign.
“It’s creating exactly the kind of buzz we’ve been looking for,” said Jason Vines, VP-Chrysler Group Communications, in response. Vines then cited the company’s soaring Web traffic as evidence of the campaign’s success.
The sweepstakes ends Sept. 4. Print, online banner ads and TV spots support. BBDO Detroit and Organic Inc., San Francisco, handles.
