Mitsubishi Launches New Ad Theme To Leverage Its Recent Sales Momentum
January 23, 2008

By Dale Buss

Mitsubishi Motors America has hatched a new advertising theme under the slogan, “It’s go time!” hoping that the new campaign will boost its already-accelerating sales performance and help distinguish it from the rest of the second-tier import brands in the U.S. market.

“Mitsubishi has some terrific momentum in the sales area, so we’re looking for a new campaign and theme line that could capitalize on that momentum,” Jim Lesser, chief of the Mitsubishi account at ad agency BBDO West, told AutoObserver.

Mitsubishi’s 2007 sales in the United States were up 8.8% over 2006, an uncommon success story in an overall down market. 

The first spot in the campaign, which broke recently, shows three versions of the Lancer line racing across a desert landscape: Lancer, Lancer Evolution and Lancer Rally. “Three machines plus one soul equals ‘It’s go time,’” the announcer intones.

The Outlander SUV is the focus of a second TV commercial, showing it traversing various landscapes with young drivers behind the wheel. “Hop in: It’s go time!” is the voiceover.

Breaking Feb. 1 will be a third spot, this one depicting two young women out on the town, driving through the city in a 2009 Galant Sport edition. The car hits showrooms later this month.

“We wanted to capture something about the lifestyle of Mitsubishi consumers – people who like to drive through life,’ who pack a lot into every day,” said Lesser, who is executive vice president and executive creative director of BBDO West, with offices in San Francisco and Los Angeles. “So ‘It’s go time’ fits perfectly.”

Also, Lesser said, Mitsubishi wanted to establish a marketing theme that could be referenced internally. “We wanted it to be a rallying cry for the organization and the dealer body,” he said. “It’s like what you would say before a big game.” At the same time, however, he emphasized that “It’s go time!” would emphasize vehicle models and not the overall brand.

And while Mitsubishi spends nearly all of its advertising budget on TV, Lesser said that the company would be little affected by the continuing TV writers’ strike, which has left networks and cable channels with cupboards bare of new episodes of popular dramas and comedies. Mitsubishi long has focused on live sports events for its TV ads, he said.

Source: Edmunds.com

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