Olds brand just fades away

Thoughts about the demise of the Oldsmobile brand

So, the Olds brand will be discontinued. The powers that be at GM have decided that the division's dwindling market share trend could not be reversed. As many have pointed out, the brand has "Old" in its name. That is supposed to pigeonhole the brand as one for an older affluent target. The company tried very hard to change its older image, pointing out how the cars weren't "your father's Oldsmobile" and even selling models with no outside brand identification. To no avail.

And why is "old" a bad thing? Because, we're told, even mature customers do not like to be marketed to as "old." As to the younger ones, if you're seen as "old," forget it: you will not sell them a thing.

Interestingly, it is young people who usually preach this paedocentric vision of the world. And they say that at a time when America's population is aging and is more affluent than ever before. I, for one, do not buy the notion that there was an inherent disadvantage in the Oldsmobile brand name. "Old" was in the name well before I was born and hasn't prevented the brand from being successful in the past.

The decline of the brand is more likely tied to a product line that's been devoid of innovation coupled with poor brand management.

A product that lacks innovation

For many decades, Oldsmobile was innovative both with design and with engineering firsts. In 1926, it was the first car with chrome-plated trim, later earning it the title of "King of Chrome." In 1939 it was the first production line car with a fully automatic transmission (the Hydra Matic Drive, remember?). In 1966 it introduced the Toronado, the first mass-produced US car with front wheel drive. Those were significant engineering feats, which made the brand a pioneer in the industry. What happened since then? Small incremental innovations, quickly copied, that could no longer cast the brand as a pioneer in its field were not enough. Oldsmobiles began to look like other GM cars with only minor cosmetic enhancements.

In a brand's gestalt, all elements including product design, quality, performance, image and communication, contribute to creating and nurturing a brand profile. One can change some of the elements providing that the consumer continues to recognize that the same brand values are still present after the change. But, once your brand is known for being innovative, innovation becomes one of its values. Abandoning a value will alter the brand forever. When it ceased to be innovative, Oldsmobile betrayed its brand values and weakened its brand.

Poor brand management

In addition to omitting a regular dose of innovation in its products, Oldsmobile managers also launched a frontal assault on their own brand. Rather than accepting the older audience as a part of the brand's profile, brand managers (perhaps young and not very enthralled at working for a brand with an older user profile) tried to 'reposition' the brand to attract a younger driver. Their disdain for the brand was such that they even tried selling cars without the Oldsmobile name on the outside...

The problem they encountered is that brands, particularly brands with a well-established image, cannot be repositioned. At best they may be nudged slowly in a new direction but not one that is the antithesis of what it stood for. From old to a bit less old, yes. From old to young, no way!

As we all know, a brand consists of the values that consumers attach to it. But it is more that just a set of interchangeable values. It is the predictability with which those values will always be associated with the brand; it is how dear the set of values is to the brand. In short, it is the character of the brand. Character is having values and sticking to them.

But creating a whole new brand is expensive, risky and not always financially viable. And there remains the issue of what to do with the brand you already own even if it has a profile you disapprove of.

A better solution, and a more unique approach, would have been to accept the brand as it was, with its older profile, and give its older customers a product they wanted to own with a message that appealed to their needs. In addition to capitalizing on the existing profile of the brand, that strategy would have taken advantage of the growing number of mature Americans and their increased spending power.

By Jacques Chevron
JP Group
2016 West 55th Place
La Grange, IL 60525
© 2001 Jacques Chevron