Lincoln launching ad blitz to get back on radar

Lincoln to use Twitter to develop Super Bowl adLincoln will “crowdsource” brainstorming for the Super Bowl ad that it hopes will boost efforts to revive Ford Motor Co.'s luxury brand.Matt VanDyke, Lincoln's global head of marketing, sales and service, said today that late-night television host Jimmy Fallon will “be working as a curator,” sorting through suggestions from Twitter users.“We're going to invite the Twitter universe to co-develop this Lincoln commercial for us,” VanDyke said.After getting ideas from the Twitter-verse, Lincoln's New York-based advertising agency, Hudson Rouge, will develop a 60-second Super Bowl commercial. VanDyke said he is uncertain whether the spot will be released online prior to the Feb. 3 game -- a move done by nearly all automotive Super Bowl advertisers last year. Ford's decision will depend on the nature of the ad, he said.He said Lincoln decided to use the Super Bowl, which Ford skipped last year, because it needs to build awareness quickly for Lincoln after this month's launch of the MKZ mid-sized sedan. “It's clearly scale, reach,” he said. “You're going to get noticed when you go with the Super Bowl.”The advertising campaign launching today will run in a broad range of media, including television shows such as “The Voice” and “Modern Family,” rather than the opinion-leader media often favored by luxury brands, he said.-- Dave Guilford Ford Motor Co.'s Lincoln luxury brand today launched its biggest advertising campaign, a multimedia initiative that will include a one-minute spot during the Super Bowl on Feb. 3.The ads, appearing in conjunction with the launch of the 2013 MKZ sedan this month, go live today accompanied by events in New York, Miami and Los Angeles.Ford CEO Alan Mulally and global Lincoln chief Jim Farley hosted a press conference at Lincoln Center in New York this morning.They announced the rebranding of Lincoln as Lincoln Motor Co., the name it had when Ford Motor Co. purchased it in 1922."The new Lincoln brand will be defined by great new luxury vehicles, such as the new MKZ, that feature quality, unique style with substance and innovative technology," Mulally said in a statement. "These elements, coupled with a new level of warm, personal and surprising experiences, will enable Lincoln to appeal to today's new luxury customer." The rebranding was first reported in September by Automotive News.

Lincoln launching ad blitz to get back on radar

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