The Dodge Nitro may well be a very nice mid-sized SUV, but its online advertising is far from being as slick as glycerin. It doesn’t even come close to the excellence we saw with Audi. If the Audi Q7 site rates a nine or ten, then the most that can be awarded the Nitro site is a three.
What is the problem? Have American automobile manufacturers not only forgotten how to build cars, but also how to sell them? To The Distillery it certainly seems so. There is little wonder that American car builders now find themselves being displaced from the top by foreign-based car companies.
Dodge’s online multimedia advertising for the Nitro is sometimes irritating, invariably too loud, and frequently inconsistent. Also, far too much of it is the sort of advertising which is better suited for the television and not the internet. Dodge, in case you have somehow missed it, you are now using the internet to reach your target markets. Consumers are using it to make their purchase decisions. It is about time you fully recognized that and have your online content reflect a new awareness.
When will firms like Dodge understand that people will use the internet for information they cannot easily obtain elsewhere–or would like to obtain with a minimum of hassle and trouble? When will those firms recognize that at the stage of looking for online information, the consumer is in a state of high-involvement with the target product?
Consumers not only want to be shown static pictures and occasionally be entertained with sound, but instead are looking for an online experience. In addition, they want cold hard facts. The Distillery’s advice to Dodge: Flatter Audi and imitate its superb efforts.
Home page: Dodge Nitro
Hillary for President
Tuesday, 23 January 2007; 8:57This is indeed a very different era. We are witnessing changes with politics and the internet as profound was the first televised presidential candidate debate between Nixon and Kennedy. We now have at least three presidential candidates who first disclosed their presidential aspirations via not traditional media outlets, but the internet instead. Of those using the internet, let us first look at Senator and former First Lady, Hillary Clinton.
In a nutshell, Hillary’s people fully get the internet. Senator Clinton’s web site is replete with video and interactivity. In fact, video can be found on every page of the section About Hillary. And, we’re not seeing rehashed TV commercials, either. We’re witnessing a true understanding of the internet and its audiences. It appears we can take Senator Clinton at her word. She is not only beginning a bid for President, but even now is having a “conversation with the American people.” Yes, Hillary gets the internet–and The Distillery’s vote.
Home page: HillaryClinton.com
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