Composing copy that connects Ford to its customers to increase sales of the F-150.
In a declining trucking market, Ford looked to reconnect with its customers and increase the sale of the Ford F-150 in the southern region of the United States. Through customer surveys, the company learned that many owners of the F-150 felt that the brand was not inclusive and did not speak to what mattered to them. The company engaged with its marketing partner Go Team Blue and explored a marketing campaign that spoke to the interest of their customers and married those interest with the brand identity of Ford. What resulted was a commercial campaign that aimed to highlight the similarities between the spirit of college sports and the spirit of Ford in order to increase sales.
Tapping into the rich spirited history of the
college sports fan and creating copy that not only communicates college sports tradition, but connects it with the brand identity Ford.
As the lead copywriter, I was tasked to create copy for four 30 second nationally televised commercials representing the following South Eastern Conference schools - Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, and Tennessee. This copy needed to encompass the rich tradition of Ford as well as southern college sports.
While each project has its own uniqueness, identifying the 'voice of design' was one of my early approaches to discovering the verbiage that would meet Ford's business goals and inspire millions.
The goal was to create a unique message that could live independently, but thrive as a part of something greater. My research preparation included analyzing key measurable and brand values identified by Ford and its marketing partner Go Team Blue.
Proto-personas help me to understand and further empathize for the customer's expectations and core needs. Identifying the key tasks and the persona’s emotional state at each stage helps to shape my user flows and highlight primary touchpoints and key drivers in decision making.
"Personas shift my mindset to customer-centered thinking and provide an overlay to customer segments."
Upon building a proto-persona based on insights and brand knowledge provided by the Ford-GBT marketing team, I began writing the “The Big Picture.” This poem was designed to give voice to the brand promise of going further and the brand purpose to drive human progress through freedom of movement. Learning that Ford's goal was to be inclusive and inspiring, I conducted a word association exercise with the GTB marketing team. These words would later form the beginning the lyric for the "The Big Picture"
We are the big picture.
Tethered by a legacy of fierce ambition, and fearless optimism.
We are the shining star.
Connected in a cosmos of brilliance and fidelity.
Bursting with energy to illuminate the world.
We are the passion that finds a home in the heart of every dreamer.
Inspiring every child to dream with their eyes open.
And this...this is our time.
This is our moment to be who we are.
What we dare to achieve and who we dare to become is our solace.
Never bargaining for average, and aiming high on the other side of expectation.
We are creators. Lifting the window, unlocking the door, and embracing achievement.
Yes, we are the big picture. So paint with all colors and let the show begin.
Upon receiving still images of the commercial shoot, I began to iterate the copy to align with the emotional expressions on the faces of the participants.The final product and measurable can be viewed below.
As we continue to engage with our users and learn through User Interviews, Foresee Feedback, Pendo insights, we will continue to deliver customer centered user experiences that exceed our users needs and business expectations.
As a result, over 1 million F-series were sold during the life cycle of the commercial, shattering the company’s previous sales high only 4 years into the product cycle and in a declining market.
This project was one of the first projects I leveraged my knowledge of the UX design process and applied it to a product that was not digital. I learned that while products vary, the UX design methodology of empathizing with the user, identifying the problem, ideating, and building and testing works well in a variety of situations.
