NEW YORK--In yet another nontraditional marketing move, Cadillac has gone to Times Square with a new outdoor advertising spectacular that features bold views of the Evoq luxury roadster concept car.
The three-dimensional Evoq billboard joins a series of bold statements by Cadillac, including using George Thorogood's "Bad to the Bone" song in Escalade advertising, and new, hip Catera commercials. Cadillac already has featured the Evoq concept car and Evoq-based Le Mans race car in full page print ads in national newspapers.
The Times Square display, located at the corners of 47th Street, Broadway and Seventh Avenue, is a wrap-around display composed of one head-on view and two profile shots of Evoq. Above the three separate shots of the concept car are three more billboards with the Cadillac wreath and crest emblem along with a series of icons that symbolize Cadillac's fusion of art and science in its products and services.
"Evoq is a forerunner of what you will see in future Cadillacs," said John F. Smith, General Motors vice president and Cadillac's general manager. "As an embodiment of Cadillac's direction for the new millennium, Evoq is a bold statement of individual style and driver-focused technology. Taking Evoq to Times Square proclaims our commitment to rekindle the imagination and excitement of luxury car customers around the world."
The six flex face vinyl panels that make up the display were posted to coincide with the New York Auto Show. Evoq, a distinctive, crisply-styled two-seater with retractable hardtop, won AutoWeek's award as "Best Concept Vehicle" when it was unveiled in January at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
The three bottom panels, which show the car, each are approximately 19 feet tall by 38 feet wide. The Evoq is not identified, but the two flanking bottom panels give the Cadillac World Wide Web site address, "cadillac.com."
Each of the top three faces are 14 feet tall by 38 feet wide. In addition to the Cadillac emblem, those panels show a compass, a rose, a view of our planet seen from space, a human eye and Leonardo Da Vinci's symbol for universal man.
On a daily basis, an estimated 1.5 million people will see the Times Square billboard, according to the Times Square Business Improvement District.
Cadillac has signed a three-year contract with Sherwood Outdoor for the Times Square site. The top of the platform will be redesigned to enable three automobiles to be incorporated into future postings.
"The Times Square placement raises Cadillac's profile in one of the most important luxury markets in the United States," Smith said. "And because so many international visitors come through Times Square, it gives Cadillac an opportunity to talk to the world."
Cadillac's advertising agency is D'Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles in Troy, Mich.
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