Chrysler Founding Father Did the Impossible
1 March 2000
Chrysler Founding Father Did the Impossible Chrysler Museum Launches First-Ever Ad Campaign
AUBURN HILLS, Mich., Feb. 29 -- Who did the impossible?
Walter P. Chrysler, that's who. What was the impossible? "He inspired
teenagers to get a job." So goes the copy on the new Walter P. Chrysler
Museum ads.
Whoever said museums couldn't be exciting hasn't checked out the hip,
irreverent and just-off-the-press Walter P. Chrysler Museum ads running in
several local and specialty-automotive magazines. The ads, developed to
generate awareness, and increase traffic, also emphasize that the Chrysler
Museum is more than car and truck displays. The ad campaign marks the first
wave of promotions for the new Museum.
"Our new ad campaign will help us reach out to more people," said Arthur
"Bud" Liebler, Senior Vice President -- Global Marketing and chairman of the
Museum. "The campaign augments our efforts at increasing visits and
membership with our employees and the people who've had a love affair with
Chrysler cars and trucks for a long time. Our ads show that we not only
display beautifully restored classic cars and trucks, but also provide
visitors with the 'slice of life' that accompanied those vehicles."
Three ads were developed by FCB Detroit to reach beyond Detroit's local
and regional Museum visitors and vintage vehicle aficionados. The lead ad in
the campaign, titled "Walter P. Chrysler" debuted in the December issue of
Hour Magazine. "Walter P. Chrysler" shows a photo of the founding father of
the company with copy that reads, "He did the impossible. He inspired
teenagers to get a job."
Additional copy builds upon Walter P. Chrysler's unique accomplishment of
inspiring millions to enter the work force, reinforcing the company's rich
tradition and its early influence on the shaping of today's automotive
industry.
The other two ads are titled "Fuel Gauge" and "Mid-Life Crisis." "Fuel
Gauge" shows a close-up shot of a gauge with the needle pointing to full. A
more humorous tone is conveyed in "Mid-Life Crisis," in which a color "glamour
shot" of a 1969 Dodge Daytona is the star. Copy reads, "Not a good place to
visit if you're about to undergo a mid-life crisis." The museum's attractions
are noted with reference to "60 years of heart-pounding automotive history
through videos, interactive displays and the cars themselves."
"Mid-Life Crisis" can be seen in the January issue of Hour. Hour Magazine
will be the only publication to run all three ads.
For the month of February, an outdoor campaign will display the "Fuel
Gauge" ad on outdoor boards and Detroit Department of Transportation (D-Dot)
and Smart buses. Nine outdoor boards and 146 buses (60 D-Dot and 86 Smart)
will sport the ads.
For the rest of the year, the ads will alternately run in 26 publications
including Automotive News, Car Collector, Crain's Detroit Business, Corp!,
High Performance Mopar, Old Cars Weekly, Smithsonian Regional, Hemmings and
Special Interest Autos. The publications were selected based on content,
scope and key audience.
The Walter P. Chrysler Museum is approximately 55,000 square feet in size
and will showcase about 75 vehicles. The museum is located on 10 acres at the
southeast corner of DaimlerChrysler's headquarters in Auburn Hills, Michigan.
