Chrysler knows a thing or two about how to coax an emotional response out of American consumers. Exhibit No. 1: The now-iconic "Born of Fire" TV ad during the Super Bowl game some 25 months ago, starring Eminem and the Chrysler 200. It and the "Imported From Detroit" campaign it introduced nearly singlehandedly rescued the Chrysler brand from the scrap heap.

Now, Chrysler is angling for would-be Exhibit No. 2: The evocative "Farmer" ad that it ran on behalf of Ram trucks during the Super Bowl in February. There's already evidence of a medium-term impact from the ad and the attention that was paid to it in the game's aftermath: Through April 1, sales of Ram pickups were up 15 percent year-over-year in the US, to 77,594 units. And that included a 26 percent gain in March over 2012 and a 3 percent increase in February over a year ago.

April sales figures will be released on Wednesday.

Olivier Francois, Chrysler's CMO, insisted that the spot and follow-up actions by Chrysler to mark what it calls "the year of the farmer" are persuading Ford, GM, Toyota and Nissan customers to consider Ram trucks too. "I receive letters every day from loyal customers of the competition thanking us for doing that spot and saying that they are considering the Ram," Francois told Automotive News.Continue reading...

Every game-changing relationship has an arc that eventually dwindles, and maybe even ends. Obama-Clinton. Manning-Colts. Kardashian-Humphries.

That may be the case with Chysler-Detroit. Even as the company has been moving some of its suburban employees to downtown Motown, Chrysler marketers are signaling a change in the three-year-old, market-changing relationship between Chrysler and the city that helped the brand and the company back up off the canvas and played a huge role in returning Chrysler to long-term viability.

"There are three words in 'Imported From Detroit,'" Olivier Francois, Chrysler Group's CMO, recently told brandchannel. "Everyone thinks of the noun, 'Detroit." And we might have put more emphasis initially on the noun because Eminem is a great ambassador and music is all about Detroit and Chrysler 'is' Detroit. And 'Detroit' brings a certain romance to the brand."Continue reading...

Earlier in the year, it appeared as through Chrysler might be abandoning its "Imported From Detroit" tagline. At least — in the wake of the controversial Clint Eastwood commercial during the 2012 Super Bowl, "It's Halftime in America," and with a spate of new TV advertising that didn't mention the Motor City — it seemed that way for a while.

But Chrysler's Motown sensibilities have returned through the course of 2012, and now they're back bigger than ever. First the gospel choir that co-starred with Eminem's iconic 2011 Super Bowl commercial for the auto brand popped up in Chrysler's current holiday campaign. And now, Chrysler is coming back with the ultimate tribute to its Motown home: a new campaign starring Berry Gordy.

In a new 60-second commercial titled "Who We Are," Chrysler showcases the new 2013 Chrysler Motown Edition by featuring the legendary Motown founder. As promised back in October, Gordy takes us through his humble beginnings in Detroit and ultimately to New York's Times Square and the home of the new Broadway show, Motown: The Musical.Continue reading...

The Chrysler brand and Carhartt this week launched a limited-edition "Imported From Detroit" work wear collection that pays homage to the spirit of the Motor City, and serves as yet another reminder of the effectiveness of Chrysler's turnaround branding campaign sparked by the 2011 Super Bowl commercial featuring Eminem.

Debuting at the Los Angeles Auto Show this week, the collection includes shirts, jackets and pants that are individually hand-numbered, 100-percent Made-in-America, and reflect iconic Carhartt styles with exclusive design detailing such as blacked-out hardware and leather brand labels.

"The pairing of the Chrysler brand and Carhartt is another example of how we are continuing to champion the energy created from the 'Imported From Detroit' campaign," stated Saad Chehab, president and CEO of the Chrysler brand. "Carhartt shares Chrysler's respect and appreciation for hard-working Americans."Continue reading...

Chrysler can celebrate its comeback from the dead in just three years in large part due to the contributions of two executives. Let's call them Mr. Outside, Olivier Francois, and Mr. Inside, Klaus Busse.

Francois is the Chrysler CMO whose inspired vision and creative command conjured up the "Imported From Detroit" campaign that caught fire at the 2011 Super Bowl and other magic that just got Chrysler Group named Ad Age Marketer of the Year for 2012, and Francois named a 2012 Brand Genius by Adweek.Continue reading...

Chrysler released a trio of new "Imported from Detroit" commercials touting the 2013 Chrysler 300: "Show up," above, and below, "A Title You Can Earn" and "Advice." The automaker is planning a special edition of the Chrysler 200 with Eminem, whose 2011 Super Bowl commercial for the brand introduced the tagline.Continue reading...

Chrysler was relying on smoke and mirrors for a while as it bid to come back in 2009 and 2010 from its bankruptcy and rescue by the U.S. taxpayer and Fiat.

But increasingly the company is turning out worthy brand-new or substantially overhauled models, such as the Dodge Dart and the new Chrysler 300 and Jeep Grand Cherokee. And it's those new vehicles that are fueling the company's continuing ability to post year-over-year healthy monthly sales increases after many pundits thought the strong comparisons of 2011 would be too much for Chrysler to overcome.

To build on that momentum, Chrysler is developing what it's calling "buzz packages" — special versions of nameplates that connect in a pyschographic or marketing sense with subsets of the overall markets for its increasingly successful nameplates. In its buzziest buzz package, Chrysler will roll out an 8 Mile edition of the Chrysler 200 sedan in partnership with Eminem.Continue reading...

Sergio Marchionne got Chrysler dealers from across America fired up this week by pulling the wraps off dozens of potential new models and variations of vehicles that are in the pipeline for the next few years, including aerodynamic versions of current best-selling nameplates for Jeep, a vastly improved Chrysler 200 sedan, and an all-new Chrysler 100 subcompact that would fill a niche where the brand hasn't had a credible entry for decades.

But most of the hardware that the Fiat and Chrysler CEO showed off in Las Vegas is for the future. Right now, with double-digit sales increases each month, Chrysler has been doing a great job of selling just a very few all-new or substantially overhauled models along with others that are mainly reskinned. And one reason they've been so successful is some innovative marketing.

Chrysler launched a new initiative in that regard during Fashion Week in New York, introducing a new Chrysler 300C John Varvatos Limited Edition and a Chrysler 300C Luxury Edition featuring the stylings and touches of the menswear (and now kids) designer. A native of Detroit, Varvatos was featured in a TV campaign for his 300 collaboration with the automaker.Continue reading...