What's Next for Ford's 'Fiesta Movement' Experiment?

Ford credits the low-cost ad campaign for increasing awareness of the Fiesta up to 38% among 16- to 24-year-olds, a demographic that wasn’t even alive when the Fiesta left the U.S. back in 1980. The Fiesta’s awareness level compares to that of the Ford Flex and Ford Edge, two cars that are already available and have standard marketing campaigns behind them. Now the question is, what’s next?

Due to emissions laws, the 100 Fiestas are heading back to Europe, and the vehicle won’t hit U.S. dealerships until the third quarter of 2010. Ford’s experimental marketing department is tasked with creating “Fiesta Movement 2.0” to bridge the gap. While the team continues to brainstorm, Fiesta brand manager Sam De La Garza has said that ad budgets will be 10%-20% lower for the Fiesta than a traditional launch due to social media.

Of course, by next year no one will be talking about social media’s advertising abilities if the Fiesta fails to sell. The real challenge will be when it goes head to head with other models that target the same demographic like the Kia Soul.

Ford’s Fiesta to Party on—Without the Fiesta (AdvertisingAge)