A great ad logan is more than just a catchy sentence – it is a mission statement that is wrapped in a few carefully selected words. The best of them don’t just sell one product; You define it. Think about: “Just do it”, “where is the beef?” or “a diamond is forever.” These lines are not only unforgettable; They use something so -leading, somewhat irresistible.
But if there is a slogan that is at least in the automotive world over the rest, it is “the ultimate driving machine”. In 1974 Martin Puris shaped for BMW, it not only sold cars – it has the essence of what kind of BMW Is.
At that time, BMW was in the middle of an inner revolution. The company fought to free himself from its long -term (and increasingly problematic) sales contract with Max Hoffman, the man who had introduced the brand to the USA for decades earlier. In the early 1970s, the leadership of BMW – in particular Bob Lutz, then a board member for the sale – became that Hoffman’s model held them back. Independent distributors like him made their own marketing decisions, which led to a fragmented brand image.
“You cannot define the brand if you have individual dealers and individual companies that decide how to advertise, how to position the car and so on,” Lutz later recalled. “They had all different advertising agencies and the vehicles were all positioned differently, even in Europe. But despite the quasi-infitity of some dealers in the way they positioned the cars, the brand was so strong for some reason. “This reason? The sheer brilliance of the cars itself. BMW had already earned a cult support in automatic magazines, and the product spoke for itself – what it needed was a uniform voice to strengthen its message.
When BMW was officially launched by North America, Lutz knew that marketing would be everything. He set up the company’s advertising account for the review and narrowed the field to three agencies: two large, established companies (Ted Bates and Benton & Bowles) and a scratchy start called Ammirati, Puris, Avrutnick (which would soon become Ammirati & Puris) .
BMW granted every company full access to managers, a serious budget and three months to develop a pitch. In Munich, Ammirati & Puris made her case at Lutz, the CEO of BMW Na, John Plant, and other important decision -makers. The first ad that you presented? A simple pressure piece that presents a bold new slogan: The ultimate driving machine.
“You loved it!” Puris remembered years later. “I think we were the only agency to understand the built car.”
And what you understood was the following: BMW was not about luxury in the traditional sense. It was not about wood cladding, soft leather or disused cabins. It was about a little more viscover – relationship. “It is the only thing that makes an expensive car worth the money,” said Puris. “We never said” luxury car “. The question [to the customer] How do you want to spend your money? Is it on leather and burled walnut? Or would you like to spend it for it? Performance? The line itself chooses its market. “
At first, BMW from North America only had a limited ability to lead his own advertisements, since Hoffman was still technically the official importer. Instead, the brand was based on BMW Motorsport to spread the floor. When BMW’s racing team achieved its first great American victory in Sebring on March 21, 1975 – just a week after BMW NAS legal dispute with Hoffman – the company did not waste time. They delivered solemn advertisements with the Ultimate driving machine Slogan and from that moment on the marketing of BMW had a clear, undeniable identity. The performance of the brand was not just a advertising spin-sie was supported by the product itself. “BMW put a racing engine in a family car that had never done before,” said Puris.
Over time, the relationship between Ammirati & Puris and BMW only deepened. Puris’ team got to know the people behind the cars, the engineers, designers and decision-makers who shaped the DNA from BMW. “The body has changed. The technology has changed. But it is still the car that was designed and constructed by people who love performance, ”he said.
The numbers told the rest of the story. In 1974, BMW sold 15,007 cars in the USA in 1975, and this number had risen to 19,419. Until 1976 it was 26.040. A decade later, BMW pushed 100,000 cars a year.
“The Ammirati & Puris ads helped enormously,” said Tom McGurn, PR manager of BMW Na. “In the beginning we tried to distinguish ourselves and their work was brilliant. Their ads were compared to driving in a BMW compared to a sofa that went down the street on a sofa-really right. “The campaign has not only created brand awareness. It cut out a unique room for BMW in a market dominated by Mercedes, Volvo, Jaguar and Audi.
In 1992, BMW NA made its advertising account for the review. Ammirati & Puris nevertheless rejected the entire US identity of BMW, a new proposal, which was distracted from an account worth 70 million US dollars a year. Since then, BMW has worked with various agencies, but The ultimate driving machine has endured.
And that’s no coincidence. Puris always knew that the line was maintaining strength. “As long as they keep building the same cars as long as they followed the same concept of what a BMW was and is as long as they pursued the history of exceptional performance … If they produce real BMWs, they can use the line forever. “”
Fifty years later, BMW still uses it. Because there is a truth for all marketing in the world: A big slogan only works if the product corresponds to it. And BMW? Well, for decades they have been building cars that were not only good – they were the ultimate.
