Oldsmobile: The final parking lot

Oldsmobile is a brand in the portfolio of General Motors (GM), and a decision has been taken to phase it out - in other words, to kill the brand. The brand itself is over 100 years old and possesses considerable heritage, but GM feels it isn't going to make any further attempts at revitalization. Previous attempts at breathing life into Oldsmobile have involved massive A&P expenditure during the 1990s and various product improvements. Why is the famous brand now being axed? There are four fundamental issues that GM has had to address in this respect and has failed to conquer.

The name issue: The word "old" isn't the best one to use in a brand name. One of the obvious problems for the brand is the name itself, which has proven to be a major consumer deterrent for a few decades, so much so that in the 1960s GM commissioned an advertising campaign to change the name to "Youngmobile." However, the problem persisted. In the 1980s, GM even changed the tagline to "It's Not Your Father's Oldsmobile" in an effort to shake off the image that people had of a revered but old-fashioned brand. But despite GM's efforts, the brand still couldn't shake off the age association.The product issue: From the 1940s to the 1980s, the Oldsmobile brand heritage and image was one of sportiness and innovation. Its "Rocket" engines and the long, low designs were renowned and admired. But from the 1980s onwards, product developments moved away from this central brand character. Chevrolet engines were substituted ad diesel engines were given as an option. Even though these product decisions wee tied in with the Arab countries' oil embargoes of the 1970s, when big cars were pronounced "gas guzzlers," they nevertheless had the effect of helping to shatter the brand image of Oldsmobile, and triggered off more brand dilution when added to the name problem.The image repositioning issue: Attempts at repositioning the name as a luxury brand, accompanied by logo changes and product variations to match European competitors, failed, even though US$4 billion was spent. Major discounting to boost sales worked against these efforts, and consumers were confused. They couldn't accept the widespread transformation of a brand that they perceives was "really not like that," and their associations with the old brand heritage ran deep. Brand sales consequently moved in the direction of fleet purchases and away from individuals.The consumer issue: The result of all the above - which amounts to inadequate brand management - is that consumers have fled from the brand in large numbers, seeing no benefits and no differentiation, and no longer feeling an emotional association. GM has at last given up and bitten the dying brand bullet. But like all great characters, according to Hollywood lexicon, the Oldsmobile may not really die: it will just fade away, but still be remembered.

The demise of any brand isn't a joyful time, and one wonders whether or not Oldsmobile could have survived if it had been consistent over time with its initial identity and evolved as a sporty and innovative brand, leveraging on its heritage. The imposed schizophrenia of the brand personality through inconsistent brand communications and product development basically turned people off. Oldsmobile was no longer the trusted and believable personality they knew. The emotional association was destroyed.

   

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