The opening of the press preview at the North American International Auto Show today was focused on celebrating the renaissance of the American Big Three automakers and their home town of Detroit, but non-U.S.-based automakers stole a march on them in winning both of the prestigious vehicle-of-the-year awards that are dispensed at the show.

The Hyundai Elantra was named the North American Car of the Year, and the Land Rover Evoque, an SUV, was named the North American Truck of the Year, by a panel of 50 automotive journalists. 

Hyundai also won the Car of the Year Award three years ago, for its Genesis, and the clustering of such top-shelf recognition underscored the feat that the Korea-based brand has pulled off in the U.S. market over the last few years. Hyundai's U.S. sales grew by 20 percent in 2011 over the year before.Continue reading...

Chevrolet's future is increasingly global, as the brand chalks up big sales of its new Cruze compact sedan in China, for example, and as General Motors leadership plots ways to extend Chevy further in Europe, where Opel has always been its reigning small-car brand. But for right now, at least, Chevrolet is All-American.

A year after the whole "Chevy vs. Chevrolet" naming flap, GM is wrapping up a weeks-long celebration of the brand's centennial with the showing of a new documentary film, Chevy 100, An American Story, at the Detroit Institute of Arts in downtown Detroit.

The film premiered on the centennial, November 3rd, as Chevy celebrated selling its one millionth Cruze. The New York premiere is on November 14th, after which it will be shown on Discovery's new Velocity Channel.Continue reading...

General Motors' Chevrolet brand turns 100 on November 3rd. To celebrate its pending centenary, GM is debuting the commercial above during the first game of the 2011 World Series, which starts at 7:30 pm ET on FOX.

As the Texas Rangers play the St. Louis Cardinals, viewers who stick around during the commercial breaks (or catch the #chevy100 hashtag on Twitter) will see "Then and Now," a spot featuring Ray Charles' live version of America the Beautiful and the voiceover of celebrity spokesman Tim Allen, along with vintage photos from Chevy's archives, fans, employees and Flickr.

The "Chevy Runs Deep" tagline is included, while Allen intones: "For the first hundred years, and for generations to come. Thank you for making us a part of your life." According to The New York Times' Stuart Elliott, the spot, by Omnicom's Goodby, Silverstein & Partners agency, compliments a pair of online campaigns already underway.Continue reading...

On August 1st, 1981, at 12:01 a.m., MTV: Music Television launched and changed the face of television, music and branding. That means the brand that once typified youth rebellion is (gasp!) old enough to be the age of its target demographic — and you know what they say about trusting anyone over 30...Continue reading...

IBM and Nivea aren't the only brands turning 100 in 2011.

Whirlpool also marks a centenary in business this year and as a little extra feather in its cap, the Public Relations Society of America has recognized it for superior performance in the area of media relations.Continue reading...

Among brand marketers honored at the 2011 Cannes Lions awards, which wrapped up on Sunday, Chrysler won five awards for "Born of Fire," the kick-off to its 2011 "Imported From Detroit" campaign that debuted during the Super Bowl in February.

Featuring Detroit native Eminem, the Chrysler 200 sedan, and the gritty spirit of Motor City, the commercial – and the resulting accolades – were only steps on the way toward the company’s goal of fully defining the Chrysler brand and etching it in the minds of American consumers, according to the brand's marketing head.

“We’re not mainstream or vanilla; there is something special about this brand,” said Melissa Garlick, head of advertising for the Chrysler brand, to brandchannel.Continue reading...

The Oscars of Advertising, the Cannes Lions festival now taking place in France over seven days and 57 sessions, wraps up on Sunday.

At the Cannes Lions 2011, marketing and advertising innovators, communications ninjas, design savants, digital thought-leaders and other big thinkers come together to inspire, debate, and entertain. From outdoor advertising to media to radio to design, almost all forms of communication are covered, judged, applauded and recognized.

Brandchannel joins in the applause — check out the 2011 Cannes Lions Grand Prix winners below, and stay tuned for an update after the final round of winners are announced on Sunday.Continue reading...

The company that invented the memory and hard drive in your computer, the magnetic strip on your credit card, the punch cards developed for Social Security, the … well, a whole lot of things, International Business Machines (originally the Computing Tabulating and Recording Corporation) today turns 100.

The brand's marketers have created a rich array of materials to celebrate the centennial, including corporate citizenship projects, producing a terrific series of short films, making Watson a celebrity, producing an e-book and a hardcover book, a social marketing campaign, and (of course) a company-wide celebration. 

Some of the press coverage today looks at another significant number — the fact that CEO Sam Palmisano is turning 60 — which is the age that IBM CEOs generally retire. He’s been in the position since 2002.Continue reading...