Last night when I picked up my daughter at the airport here in Phoenix, I saw a Mondeo parked in the terminal parking garage. It had plates marked "manufacturer plates" or something like that, and was from Michigan. I thought Mondeos were about the same size as the Fusion, but this was bigger; more like a Taurus. It was a great looking car, and I'm just wondering if it's coming here.
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Ford will be making the Fusion and Mondeo a one world car for the next gen model IIRC. So we will be getting the Mondeo but it will most likely be called the Fusion. Time will tell if thats still the plan.
I really wonder if they will change the name globally to be the same. There position is they want to have global marketing campaigns, and that's hard to do with cars that don't have the same name and badge even if the ARE the same car.
It will be interesting to see how that plays out.
It will be interesting to see how that plays out.
The Fusion has turned out to be a very popular car... Everyone, including Ford knows this. They won't change the name, it's got too much name recognition now. Advertising isn't necessarily global... I doubt Ford will give us the same advertising for the Focus and Fiesta as say... Europe or Japan.
Building a global car and sticking on different exterior badging is no big deal, the Fusion has been a great car for Ford so losing that name recognition would be insane.
I'm sure the Mondeo is here for testing, they do that all the time.
I'm sure the Mondeo is here for testing, they do that all the time.
The next gen Escape is supposed to be a Kuga with Escape badges on it, I doubt they'll also rebrand the Escape as the Kuga here in the states....
Again it's a trade off on the short term savings and advantages on using the names that are well known in each market, vs the cost savings and advantages of global brands and marketing. As they found simply having the "Ford" brand being global is a huge advantage over GM which is a global company, but does not have the same brands in each market.
Hell if Ford really wants to push it's "global" aspect, I would not be shocked to see a "fusion" ad campaign touting the "fusion of the mondeo"
Coca Cola uses the same name in every market for a reason
Hell if Ford really wants to push it's "global" aspect, I would not be shocked to see a "fusion" ad campaign touting the "fusion of the mondeo"
Coca Cola uses the same name in every market for a reason
yes but that is what happns when you don't think globally from the START with the name. When you say "what does the name matter" from a cost perspective, I would not be shocked if a different name in different markets cost $10s of millions a year from adjustments in advertising and reduced global brand recognition.
^ ?
Now you want to outsource advertising?
You are going to spend money placing the ad's anyways. Why not make them more effective by localizing them to your market? It would be silly to advertise a Focus at a Soccer game, in the middle of superbowl programing? Just like it would be dumb to show a American Cowboy on a Taurus ad campaign in Kuait.
Plus the savings you get from not having to make different badges is peanuts. It costs more to pay a non union janitor to take a day off, then it does to make a few thousand injection molded name badges. You arent saving anything there.
Advertising is expensive, even if you build a car that can carry its name all over the world. The reason for that is, you still have to make the product desireable to the market you are selling in.
But all of that is besides the point. The topic is will the Mondeo be sold here. Not what will Ford call it once it is.
Now you want to outsource advertising?
You are going to spend money placing the ad's anyways. Why not make them more effective by localizing them to your market? It would be silly to advertise a Focus at a Soccer game, in the middle of superbowl programing? Just like it would be dumb to show a American Cowboy on a Taurus ad campaign in Kuait.
Plus the savings you get from not having to make different badges is peanuts. It costs more to pay a non union janitor to take a day off, then it does to make a few thousand injection molded name badges. You arent saving anything there.
Advertising is expensive, even if you build a car that can carry its name all over the world. The reason for that is, you still have to make the product desireable to the market you are selling in.
But all of that is besides the point. The topic is will the Mondeo be sold here. Not what will Ford call it once it is.
I think the nameplate will be important. Just as the whole Five Hundred debacle developed, Ford wants to make sure it doesn't repeat its past mistakes.
That being said, remember that there is a European model named Fusion (larger Fiesta/minicrossover-ish/tall wagon). The name Mondeo has more recognition in the rest of the world. If Ford changes the name to Fusion, I can see a lot of people in the world doing the same thing North Americans did with the Five Hundred.
Because of how entrenched these names are, I have a feeling their names will remain.
If you go to Detroit, you will find almost as many Mondeo's as Fusions! They are everywhere! In the winter, Ford does a lot of testing in Arizona, so that is why it is there. Should be a good number of Fiesta's there too.
Do I want one name for the car worldwide? Yes.
But do I think for a second that the Fusion will be as successful if the name is changed to Mondeo in the U.S.? Hell NO.
If I've learned one thing selling cars for the past two years, it's that the vast majority of American car buyers know jack **** compared to people like us who read up on this stuff. Half my customers don't even know Subaru is Japanese. And I guarantee if you did a poll of American consumers, 3/4's of them would not know that the Five Hundred and the subsequent Taurus were the same car.
But do I think for a second that the Fusion will be as successful if the name is changed to Mondeo in the U.S.? Hell NO.
If I've learned one thing selling cars for the past two years, it's that the vast majority of American car buyers know jack **** compared to people like us who read up on this stuff. Half my customers don't even know Subaru is Japanese. And I guarantee if you did a poll of American consumers, 3/4's of them would not know that the Five Hundred and the subsequent Taurus were the same car.
^ You got that right. Americans are becoming ignorant to the automotive world. Sixty years ago it was different, now with all the gadgets, gizmos and what nots that keep people distracted. They have no clue anymore whats what in the auto world. Ford could bring the Tempo back and nobody would notice.
which is why you don't just drop the name but transition to the new name. In the US market you could do an ad promoting the "fusion of the mondeo" showing ford combining the best of the US fusion, with the best of the mondeo to bring a better "world" car.
It would cost a little more upfront but in the long run you would be able to globalize the name on the new car.
many companies do that when the merge something. They duel brand stuff for a wile if the old brand is very strong, but they want to unify the customers on another brand.
It would cost a little more upfront but in the long run you would be able to globalize the name on the new car.
many companies do that when the merge something. They duel brand stuff for a wile if the old brand is very strong, but they want to unify the customers on another brand.
Fusion in the rest of the world is a B-Segment car built on the Fiesta chassis, mainly in the Koln Ford Werk plant. I was lucky enough to see them being built first hand. So the Fusion name will probbaly stay in the US only.
What's so difficult about having the Fusion and Mondeo nameplates used globally on the same car? I don't get it.
The only physical difference would need to be exterior badging and we all know how easy that is to change.
The Apple advertisements were a pretty good example, although it was the same marketing they used different actors in each region.
The same would work for marketing the cars, same strategy different name plate.
Just a thought, How do you suppose the Merkur XR4Ti would have sold here in the states if it had been sold through Ford dealerships as either a new (to the U.S.) Sierra Cosworth or an as Escort Cosworth?
Selling that car here as a Merkur with a model name (XR4Ti) that no one understood was a huge mistake.
It was a wonderful car but hugely let down by marketing.
The only physical difference would need to be exterior badging and we all know how easy that is to change.
The Apple advertisements were a pretty good example, although it was the same marketing they used different actors in each region.
The same would work for marketing the cars, same strategy different name plate.
Just a thought, How do you suppose the Merkur XR4Ti would have sold here in the states if it had been sold through Ford dealerships as either a new (to the U.S.) Sierra Cosworth or an as Escort Cosworth?
Selling that car here as a Merkur with a model name (XR4Ti) that no one understood was a huge mistake.
It was a wonderful car but hugely let down by marketing.
What happens with Honda or Toyota or Nissan? all the people into modding the car etc... insist on changing the badgeing to the other name when they mod the car. You also have the "grass is always greener on the other side. As has been said ford wants to give the same cars etc.. because they want to get rid of the "grass is always greener on the other side."
Also if they do a viral ad campaign in one market, it will reduce its effectiveness in other markets. Think of the Honda cog commercial (which in the US was the Acura tsx) that got massive viewership in the US, but it did not help sell that car here just because of how it was badged.
Everyone who says "changing the badge is not that hard" just does not get it. It's way more than just the badge. If you come up with a pun or anything that plays off the name, it will not work and that defeats the use of some global marketing plans, which means developing different marketing plans for different markets, which can mean $10 of millions more in developing the ad campaign.
Also this is not a case of things like the nova where it was not considered what the name meant. Names like the fusion etc ARE in use in the different markets, they are just tagged onto different vehicles. Let me guess so when we get the US version of the EU Fusion ford will call it the Kuga here
Also if you want a GLOBAL brand with GLOBAL products it's harder to do that if you have different names on the car. You have people moving, traveling, and dealing with people all over the world.
BTW I only showed the versions of those ads that were filmed with different actors. In MOST markets they just used the American ad, and dubbed over the voice. The british ad's were re-filmed because of Britain's frigging insane media laws in place to "protect" British jobs that would not allow apple to air the American version of the ad with non-British actors in it.
BTW, Are we still getting a "bronco" at some point that would be a version of the EU Fusion or south America EcoSport? Do they plan to unify this cars styling etc... for all markets and give it the same name, or continue to give it different looks and names when its basically the same car?
Also if they do a viral ad campaign in one market, it will reduce its effectiveness in other markets. Think of the Honda cog commercial (which in the US was the Acura tsx) that got massive viewership in the US, but it did not help sell that car here just because of how it was badged.
Everyone who says "changing the badge is not that hard" just does not get it. It's way more than just the badge. If you come up with a pun or anything that plays off the name, it will not work and that defeats the use of some global marketing plans, which means developing different marketing plans for different markets, which can mean $10 of millions more in developing the ad campaign.
Also this is not a case of things like the nova where it was not considered what the name meant. Names like the fusion etc ARE in use in the different markets, they are just tagged onto different vehicles. Let me guess so when we get the US version of the EU Fusion ford will call it the Kuga here
Also if you want a GLOBAL brand with GLOBAL products it's harder to do that if you have different names on the car. You have people moving, traveling, and dealing with people all over the world.
BTW I only showed the versions of those ads that were filmed with different actors. In MOST markets they just used the American ad, and dubbed over the voice. The british ad's were re-filmed because of Britain's frigging insane media laws in place to "protect" British jobs that would not allow apple to air the American version of the ad with non-British actors in it.
BTW, Are we still getting a "bronco" at some point that would be a version of the EU Fusion or south America EcoSport? Do they plan to unify this cars styling etc... for all markets and give it the same name, or continue to give it different looks and names when its basically the same car?
Thank you for that trip down memory lane Jimmy. My first car was the 85 Ford Tempo my parents bought brand new. Well taken care of too, almost 90% original parts when I got it. I miss that car.
We still have one of the last family Topazes. It's leaking coolant As cheap transportation, it worked.
As cheap transportation, it worked.
They will keep the Fusion name. Its been a great selling car for Ford. And as others have already pointed out, Americans have no clue what is what.... they'd go into a dealership wanting a Fusion, not see it, and leave.... even if the Mondeo was sitting right in front of them. Happened with the Five Hundred, it would happen again.
The fusion name did not exist a few years ago, yet ford managed to get people to buy the car after a few years.
I am not arguing if they will or will not keep the name long term. I don't think they will just kill the fusion name overnight and replace it with mondeo, nour do i think mondeo will go away and be replaced with fusion.
They are in an odd situation that will make things hard for them. They don't want both names on the same car in different markets, but they don't want to throw away the brand recognition of the names either.
As I mentioned in my opinion the best thing for ford to do in the LONG TERM is to name there c/d car the same global. They would have to run a campaign telling people that the new name is the merger/offspring/predecessor of the old car and not a "clean slate" but an evolution of an existing car.
It would cost them money, I don't know how much, but in the long run i think it would be better for the ford brand to move to as many global car names, for there global lineup to match there global ford brand.
I still am interested to see how that goes.
I am not arguing if they will or will not keep the name long term. I don't think they will just kill the fusion name overnight and replace it with mondeo, nour do i think mondeo will go away and be replaced with fusion.
They are in an odd situation that will make things hard for them. They don't want both names on the same car in different markets, but they don't want to throw away the brand recognition of the names either.
As I mentioned in my opinion the best thing for ford to do in the LONG TERM is to name there c/d car the same global. They would have to run a campaign telling people that the new name is the merger/offspring/predecessor of the old car and not a "clean slate" but an evolution of an existing car.
It would cost them money, I don't know how much, but in the long run i think it would be better for the ford brand to move to as many global car names, for there global lineup to match there global ford brand.
I still am interested to see how that goes.
^ IMO a well known name is worth more than the efforts to unify the name in all markets. It really isnt that big of a deal to have one car by one name in one market and then, have it named something else in another. It is still a global vehicle reguardless of the name on the trunk lid.
And worrying about advertisement having to rewrite jingles and copy for the name of the car. Not really a problem either. You can have the same theme wold wide and still have to rewrite the copy just to localize it.
The Mac commercials for example. W/o even looking at them I am absolutely sure, that the actors arent saying the same things word per word. Even if it is the same commercial where the PC freezes mid way through. All three versions will have to use different dialog to localize for the target markets. Even over-dubs will have to do it (Like the MAC ad's on Univision). Localization costs will always be a factor in advertising, and one word in the text... That is verry minor.
And worrying about advertisement having to rewrite jingles and copy for the name of the car. Not really a problem either. You can have the same theme wold wide and still have to rewrite the copy just to localize it.
The Mac commercials for example. W/o even looking at them I am absolutely sure, that the actors arent saying the same things word per word. Even if it is the same commercial where the PC freezes mid way through. All three versions will have to use different dialog to localize for the target markets. Even over-dubs will have to do it (Like the MAC ad's on Univision). Localization costs will always be a factor in advertising, and one word in the text... That is verry minor.
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