The Red-Ribbon Campaign for 2008 Lexus models

Lexus, the luxury car division of Toyota Motor Corp., has launched its yearly red-ribbon campaign. It is a year-end clearance push to boost the 2008 models.

The campaign is aiming to give the buyers the idea that a Lexus is a gift, complete with a big red bow. The new effort, Lexus said, will be keeping the gifting campaign, but with a twist. It will be more of the person getting the Lexus being the person giving it.

According to Lexus, almost 10 percent of Lexus vehicles sold during the holidays are bought as gifts. Thus, they had the thought of Lexus dealers extending the creative element of the ads. There will be enormous red bows for people who purchase the cars as presents.

The campaign has been launched through three TV ads, two print ads and three radio spots. The TV spots will be viewed through network television, cable news, and entertainment and sports channels.

One of the ads feature a 30s man opening odd gifts such as reindeer made of Christmas tree bulbs and cuckoo clock. The voiceover says, “If you didn’t get everything you wanted this holiday season, just remember, there’s no law that says you can’t get yourself a little something.” At the end, the man gets himself into a new IS that has a big red bow.

Another ad shows Lexus’ three SUVS: the LX, GX and RX. The cars are dancing in the snow to the song “Baby It’s Cold Outside”. The voiceover was an encouragement for shoppers to come in from the cold for the December sales event.

As with the print ads, the headlines include “Bet nobody re-gifts these” and “New Year’s Resolution”, which were handwritten provided with resolutions such as “eat better”, “learn to skydive”, and “treat myself to something nice”.

Taking into account the high fuel prices and the mortgage crisis, other automakers, such as Ford and Chrysler, are looking forward on offering year-end deals. Considering the fourth-quarter sales being squeezed by gasoline costs, Gorrell Group (California-based consultancy) President Dan Gorrell said, “That’s the biggest influence… Consumers are shifting to smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles because they have not seen gasoline shift back to historically low levels. And I think the fact that the industry is not going to fleet sales as much as they did is impinging on sales.”

General Motors, as well, is running its year-end campaign – Red Tag Event. It was first launched as an incentive program in 2005. The program covers discounts on several 2008 vehicles. It also offer zero percent financing for 60 months on several 2007 vehicles under the Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, Pontiac and Saturn brands.

Gorrell said, “Luxury brands don’t feel the pinch as much, and they do typically run incentives and programs to capitalize on the fact that people buy such vehicles at year-end for spouses, for instance, but also for accounting reasons; a lot of luxury cars are business expenses.”

With such program, people take the end of the year as the best time to buy a new car, perhaps a new Lexus with quality Lexus radiator, or even other brands that are having the same campaign.

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