GM is starting a major campaign this week in the United States and will be phased out globally to highlight the automaker’s move to electrification. The campaign was carried out by McCann, as well as the logo and typography, which were developed internally. It is a major change and will involve all of its products, including its legacy ICE vehicles.
GM’s ‘All in’ EV marketing campaign
GM says its new “Everybody In” campaign sets “an optimistic and inclusive tone for the company’s future EV and focuses on three themes”:
- Exciting a new generation of buyers and accelerating the adoption of EV;
- Demonstrating GM’s EV leadership, which includes a $ 27 billion investment in EV and AV products by 2025 and the launch of 30 new EVs globally by the end of 2025; and
- Highlighting the reach, performance and flexibility of the Ultium platform.
Deborah Wahl, GM’s director of global marketing, is leading the “attack”:
There are times in history when everything changes. Inflection points. We believe that such a point is upon us for the mass adoption of electric vehicles. Unlike always, we have the solutions, capacity, technology and scale to put everyone on an EV. Our new brand identity and campaign are designed to reflect this.
GM influence
GM brought in Malcolm Gladwell, author of Turning Point, to highlight the radical change that lies ahead in the sector. Gladwell will have a conversation with GM President Mark Reuss at CES next week, which should be interesting. Gladwell, along with Cody Rigsby of Peloton fame and influencers such as professional surfer and shark attack survivor Bethany Hamilton and gamer Erin A. Simon will also appear in advertisements and promotional videos from GM.
GM logo
Here’s a look at the history of GM’s logos and saying that there were 5 is a bit forced. There are realistically 3 with 3 iterations from the previous one, which worked from 1964 until today, so to say that this is a big deal would be an understatement.
GM plans to spend a lot here, so expect to see these campaigns everywhere.
Electrek’s Take
A big part of me is like, “Just show me the cars at dealerships, I don’t need all that marketing!” But I have to remember that I cover EVs, and I am not the typical GM buyer, although I have rented a Bolt for three years that I loved.
The move here is bold for GM, for sure. To say that the company is betting on the Zero electrification, autonomy and safety campaign is almost an understatement. They are turning this tanker into the future (a little late, in my opinion) using traditional marketing tools.
But marketing is often a lot of trash, smoke and mirrors and mischief. I want to see batteries, motorcycles, specs and, most importantly, vehicles … in person. GM will have to move away from its reputation for having the first mass market EV (EV1) and the first long-range EV (the Bolt) and then wasting its lead on Tesla.
That said, I like the direction GM is taking here. They reduced their future to three priorities in their Zero Campaign that I think fit their brand perfectly. They want to bring EVs to more people, including the lower market, where Tesla and other EVs really haven’t been. To be honest, this is exactly what I think GM needs to do to stay relevant in the future. They understand.
Now it remains to be seen whether they can move on or whether they keep these assets stuck like the EV1.
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