Hasta La Creative!

Following speculation this spring that General Motors was launching a review for its GMC and Buick brands, a spokesperson confirmed today that the company has issued a creative RFP to “multiple agencies”. The review is exclusively concerned with GMC, however, and the Buick brand will not be impacted.

Both accounts currently reside with Publicis agencies Leo Burnett and DigitasLBi, which will defend in the review. According to Kantar Media, the parent company spent $269 million on measured media for the brand last year.

Leo Burnett was appointed as lead creative agency for Buick and GMC in 2007 without a review and has worked with General Motors in some capacity for over 45 years.

“Expanding the relevance of GMC brand and positioning it for continued success are key priorities,” the spokesperson said. “To support this effort, GMC is inviting multiple agencies to participate in a RFP to develop advertising strategies for the brand. Our current agencies of record, Leo Burnett and Digitas, will participate in this process. This RFP is specific to GMC and does not impact in any way the relationship between Buick, Leo Burnett and Digitas.”

GMC declined to disclose specifics about the review and the new agencies involved aside from the fact that an RFP will be issued within 30-45 days and the review is expected to conclude by the end of the year. Two to incumbent agencies deferred to the client for comment.

Sources told Adweek that Leo Burnett and Digitas were informed of the RFP last week, following the announcement by McDonald’s that it had concluded its own creative/media review by sending its creative account to DDB, thereby ending its 35-year relationship with Leo Burnett and consolidating its account with Omnicom.

Back in June, the Detroit offices of Leo Burnett and Digitas LBi merged to form a new unit called Engage M-1, dedicated to serving General Motors, while retaining separate office spaces and agency brands. 

General Motors has made a few changes to its agency roster in the recent past. In February, General Motors sent creative duties for Chevrolet certified service and Chevrolet commercial vehicles to Commonwealth//McCann nearly a year after sending creative for Silverado to McCann. This year General Motors also sent PR duties on its Cadillac and Chevrolet brands to Kovert Creative and Weber Shandwick, respectively — and the Detroit News reports that the company will issue RFPs for public relations work on Buick and GMC by the end of this year.

Você consegue se lembrar dos fatos mais importantes que aconteceram nos últimos 40 anos na política, cultura e esportes? Os ídolos que surgiram e desapareceram, momentos que mudaram para sempre os rumos da história? Alguns deles fazem parte da belíssima introdução que a Ignition Creative criou para o Monday Night Football.

Realizada em parceria com o diretor e produtor Peter Berg, ESPN e GMC, a abertura também passeia por momentos inesquecíveis da NFL e o Futebol de Segunda à Noite, que entre 1970 e 2005 foi transmitido pela ABC e desde 2006 é exibido pela ESPN, inclusive no Brasil.

A dica é do leitor Paulo Almeida Prado, que destacou a qualidade da introdução, lembrando que ela segue a mesma pegada da abertura da primeira temporada de The Newsroom. Vale o play.

Post originalmente publicado no Brainstorm #9
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Hearken back to the days of yore, when America was Built Ford Tough and Chevy had launched what was the start of An American Revolution, became The Heartbeat of America, and grew strong, Like a Rock. At the same time, Buick offered consumers The Spirit of American Style. The cars and the ads were  inspiring…making us want to love America more than we already did. Yep, the good ‘ol days, how we miss ‘em. Thus, it’s fantastic news to hear that GM is gonna bring ‘em back!

Will they be able to pull it off? GM would like us to think so, counting on their new “Total Confidence Plan (TCP),”  announced by several new TV spots meant to inspire America. The TCP provides payment protection if you get laid off ($500/month for up to 9 months), guarantees trade-in value for your vehicle, and also provides a 100,000 mile drive train warranty. The premise behind the spots is that GM is rebuilding from the “ground-up;” but, based on the ouster of former GM CEO Rick Waggoner, it looks like they’ll be using the famous ”top-down” strategy instead.

The spot anouncer starts with: “You know what America needs right now? America needs a comeback…”

No, what America needs right now is for GM to pull their own weight. There are two primary goals in business: 1) Make a profit, and 2) Stay in Business. Very simple. The third thing most pick up along the way: Keep the Government out of your business. Although GM’s restructuring efforts don’t seem to address a single one these items as of yet, it is only fair to give them more time…

(This Announcement was paid for by the Automotive Bailout Package, with funding and support from taxpayers like you.)