Home Depot to help Ford promote trucks Their campaign will run through Aug. 5 May 25, 2005 BY KORTNEY STRINGER FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER Ford Motor Co. will combine its marketing heft with the nation's largest home improvement chain to jump-start pickup sales this summer. The second-largest U.S. automaker will display its Ford F-series Super Duty and F-150 pickup trucks in 17,000 Home Depot Inc. stores nationwide today through Aug. 5. As part of the campaign, Ford will also offer customers who buy or lease a 2005 Ford Ranger, F-Series Super Duty or Ford F-150 a choice among four home-improvement packages valued at up to $870 or a $500 Home Depot gift certificate. Ford said it hopes the campaign will reach customers who have an interest in home improvement projects. According to Ford research, 43% of do-it-yourself customers are more likely to buy a pickup than the average person. This is not the first time Ford has teamed with Home Depot to drive sales. The automaker took advantage of Home Depot's muscle last fall when it showcased its next-generation F-series Super Duty truck in nearly 400 Home Depot stores in six markets nationwide. The event led to 7,000 test drives and more than 500 truck purchases. "This promotion is an evolution of a grassroots strategy to put together a promotion that leverages the Home Depot brand with ours and capitalizes on the traffic in their stores," said Doug Scott, Ford truck division's marketing manager. "More than 4 million people go through Home Depot stores every day. That's extensive reach." In February, Ford partnered with Dell Inc. in a campaign that helped boost sales of its Ford Focus. The promotion, which offered customers an opportunity to get a Dell computer, flat screen monitor and printer valued at $500 with the purchase or lease of a Focus, helped fuel a 10% February increase in Focus sales compared with a year earlier. Contact KORTNEY STRINGER at 313-223-4479 or stringer@freepress.com. Web source: http://www.freep.com/money/autonews/ford25e_20050525.htm
Ford sure is innovative about marketing. Chrysler has great big balls when it comes to putting cutting edge vehicles to the market (Prowler, SRT-4, SRT-10, the new Dodge Charger, etc.) GM is in contrast. They need to fire at least half of the management staff and get some new blood in there with some new ideas, or they will continue to be the also-ran maker of motorized, plasticized, squeaky jelly-bean vehicles. Not including their trucks, of course.
Hmmm, now if all those trucks that will be showcased in Home Depot's all had a TowRig.com sticker on them.
