Brand slogans should reflect core values

What do the phrases, “Built for the Human Race,” and “Relieves Gas Pains” have in common? No, they’re not catchphrases for antacid – instead they’re slogans used by automakers. Karl delves into some of the hits and misses...

When someone utters the phrase, “The Ultimate Driving Machine,” what immediately springs to mind? If it’s not the blue and white roundel, I’d suggest it’s time to close this magazine and pick up a gossip mag instead.

Yes, that catchphrase has been synonymous with BMW for almost four decades, and it was originally coined for the North American market under the leadership of one Bob Lutz. The reason the saying has been so enduring is that BMWs have actually lived up to that premise. For a slogan to really cut through in this age of acronyms and punchy sayings, it really needs to reflect the values of the brand. Problem is, some of them don’t actually make much sense.

Nissan, for example, came up with the slogan “Built for the Human Race.” But you have to ask, what other race would they have been built for? Then there’s Cadillac’s classic: “The Penalty of Leadership.” If that’s not the most negative slogan I’ve ever heard, I’m not sure what is. Whomever started that line with the word penalty should have been taken out and shot.

Mazda’s also guilty of a bad slogan – “Zoom, zoom.” Seriously? Sorry, Mazda, but people who drive cars aren’t three year olds. Of course, you can see why they’ve done it – they’re trying to tap into our inner child. But if that means treating you like one, well then you’ve missed the mark.

Volkswagen’s “Relieves Gas Pains” is again not the most positive of phrases, given its double meaning. And given its issues of late, at least it’s not still running with “If only everything in life was as reliable as a Volkswagen.” Saab’s slogan sounded selfish: “Find Your Own Road” (Because This One’s Mine?). Then there’s the mouthful that Plymouth chose to run with at one stage – “The 9 most important words to Plymouth: Satisfy the customer, satisfy the customer, satisfy the customer.” And after years of people saying “don’t go there,” Holden now has “Let’s Go There.”

Subaru has dropped the “All 4 The Driver” idiom, and has instead adopted “Confidence in Motion.” Not bad, but still not hugely inspiring. But it has made a critical error advertising its brand in some markets.

The advert starts out innocent enough. A small dog is bored and trapped in its house, looking longingly at the outdoors. It walks to its owner and starts singing the line “Do-do-do-do-do-do…” from Walk on the Wild Side by Lou Reed.  More dogs walk in joining the chorus, and then the family heads outdoors in their Forester – to “do” things.

The marketing people are trying to get people to think “Subaru do.” It seems no-one at the advertising agency ever thought to work out what happens when you combine dogs and the word “do.” Now the advert isn’t known as the 2016 Subaru Forester ad – it’s affectionately known as the Doggie Doo ad.

Catchphrases can be done right, however. Honda’s “The Power of Dreams” is good. Lexus states the truth in its catchphrase “The Relentless Pursuit of Perfection.” But perhaps the best one was made famous by Tom Cruise in Risky Business. After a car chase in a German sports car, he utters that oft-repeated line: “Porsche. There is no Substitute.”