New Escalade teaser is why I hate new vehicle teasing

"DCCARGEEK" (dccargeek) 09/24/2013 at 09:42 • Filed to: Escalade, Cadillac, Adwatch

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I’m not a fan of slow reveals and teasers. Seeing a new product for the first time should be more like a hookup after a night out on the town. When you get home you don’t want a slow strip tease. Instead you want to knock over lamps and trip over animals as you get down to business. The same should apply to vehicle reveals. Brands should keep their mouth shut, head down and work to perfect. When the time comes pull the wraps off and leave the public speechless.

General Motors is obsessed with creating buzz. The Stingray was another product that was a victim of the how-sausage-is-made mini-video strategy.

I’m not sure if this approach is the work of Cadillac or their ad agency, Campbell Ewald, either way the latest videos are not very good.

Setting aside my position on the piecemeal approach to generating buzz, there are two reasons these shorts kind of suck.

Same is boring: These videos are very similar to the shorts made to create buzz around the Stingray launch. Do something different, something extraordinary.

Lacks quality: I’m not a videographer, but the video above doesn’t appear to be in focus, the panning isn’t smooth and the text wobbles at the end. Maybe this is a new trend to appear user generated, but I expect professional content from a brand launching what will likely be one of its most expensive products.

My point: If you commit to short videos, shoot them with the same quality you would a TV spot. It'll be interesting to see if the quality of these short videos goes up or down as brands begin to offer them as ad units on Instagram / Facebook.

Will NEW Escalade forget OLD Escalade?

GM announced they were turning to indie rock photographer Autumn de Wilde to tell the story of the new Escalade.

Here deWilde talks about how she falls in love with her subjects: !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!!

From GM’s press release:

“De Wilde's vivid portraiture gives her the perfect lens with which to capture the 2015 Cadillac Escalade from an artistic perspective. The images she created highlight the sophistication, luxury, and iconic nature of the Escalade in an expression different than that of traditional automotive photography.”

It would appear that traditional photography just couldn’t capture this new Escalade. Could this signal some kind of massive reimagining of Escalade? Is Cadillac’s SUV having a Slim Shady to EMINEM moment of maturity?

I’m curious to see how GM might reimagine the Escalade. To many of us the SUV has always been a bold, in-your-face, luxurious people hauler covered in chrome that makes no apology for its glitter and glam. The Escalade is a rolling testament to personal modest financial success.

It’ll be interesting to see how things like sophistication and art factor into the new Escalade’s message.

Mattbob > DCCARGEEK 09/24/2013 at 10:00

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like a super close up of a nipple.

DCCARGEEK > Mattbob 09/24/2013 at 10:01

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Regardless of your subject, boobs or headlights, use proper lighting, lenses, supports, etc.

Mattbob > DCCARGEEK 09/24/2013 at 10:09

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no man, shakey-cam is the new thing. So many movies these days use it to convey intense action. They just made you want to feel like you were having a heart attack from all the excitement.

DCCARGEEK > Mattbob 09/24/2013 at 10:11

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See, these are the things I need to know. Wow, here I thought this was some last-minute idea from Cadillac to shoot in the design studio with an iPhone.

Now I see it more clearly. This is all part of the dramatic effect. Brillant, GM! F'ing Brillant! James Cameron approves.

Atomic Buffalo > DCCARGEEK 09/24/2013 at 11:49

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New vehicle teasing is directly caused by automotive news sites. "They live off a constant stream of the tiniest suggestions of news, let's give them a constant stream of the tiniest suggestions of news."

Fact is we'll drag our eyeballs over poop as long as it's fresh little pellets of poop.

And here we are, feeding a beast that poops fresh little pellets.

DCCARGEEK > Atomic Buffalo 09/24/2013 at 13:02

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This is so very true. Fodder for impressions.

But I still think it's also partly the hunt for "buzz." If you search Twitter for Hashtag associated with this reveal campaign you'll notice most of the people are either GM employees or agency staff.

My point: it isn't working. Just fucking reveal the truck when it's ready.

Atomic Buffalo > DCCARGEEK 09/24/2013 at 21:59

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It's not doing what the hashtag-marketeers dreamed it would, and it's inducing Internet rage in those of us who've decided these teasers are categorically stupid... and yet it's still a recurring reminder that a new Escalade is coming. They're in your head. Damn them.

The Stingray campaign was roundly criticized on teh Corvette webs, and yet they all checked them out, tuned in to the big reveal, and instantly moved on to the lack of final horsepower, dollar, and pound figures. A better sign of success: a non-car-guy I know asked me if I'd seen the new Corvette yet, right after one of the teasers came out.