By Jazmin Nelson
http://heidicohen.com/earned-media-examples/ #33
Brand Purpose: A division of the Ford Motor Company brand, Lincoln sells luxury vehicles, including some models exclusively for limousine use.
What:
- Lincoln put out some particularly “profound” ads starring Matthew McConaughey. These commercials inspired parodies from SNL, Ellen, Tommy Chong, and a Texas police force.
- These parodies poked fun at the philosophical nature of the original commercial and Matthew McConaughey’s role, but ultimately brought more awareness of this set of commercials and the Lincoln brand.
Who:
- The desired audience would be people who haven’t bought Lincolns, and don’t know much about the brand. It also tries to appeal to a slightly younger audience, with the use of some actual philosophy and some humor, and Oscar winning actor Matthew McConaughey.
Why:
- The commercial was made to be a little humorous while also shallowly profound, which left a lot of room for these satires, which built further on the humorous aspect, building up Lincoln’s reputation as sleek and luxurious but now more culturally relevant and popular with younger generations.
Where:
- These parodies took place on SNL which millions watch every Saturday, on the Ellen Degenerous Show which also gets millions of viewers, and the others took place on the Internet, with all of the parodies ending up on YouTube. This brought not only the parodies but also the original a lot more media attention than they would have individually.
Audience Insight:
Audiences respond positively to comedy and parodies of commercials, and will look forward to more original commercials because of the parodies. The parodies and original have a symbiotic relationship that works together to make them both successful.
(earned media, bull, Lincoln, matthew mcconaughey, parody)
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