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. With Dr. Z: Fear him
The other night, E and I were talking about the DaimlerChrysler ad in which a guy with an absurd moustache, identified as the company’s top executive, terrorizes a pretend journalist. I assumed this man was an actor, but then I read that he really is the top executive, and that the company is actually trying to establish him as its public face. You can see the ad I’m talking about at this (too-ludicrous-to-discuss) company site, AskDrZ.com (after the skippable flash intro, it’s ad No. 1 — just click on that when you get there).
Dr. Z is not, as the New Yorkers among you might assume, Dr. Zizmor, creepy dermatologist of subway-placard fame. It’s Dr. Dieter Zetsche, chairman of the DaimlerChrysler board of management since January 1 of this year. (Doctor of engineering, if you’re curious.) The premise of the ad is that this sort of shaggy-haired young journo with a notepad accosts Zetsche, who is about to get into his car, and asks to know how the merger of Chrysler with Daimler-Benz has paid off. Dr. Z looks at his watch and then says: “Get in.”
While mouthing a predictable hash of alleged benefits (like “better capability,” and other meaningless phrases), he whips the car around roads, spinning out and so on, while the journalist looks steadily more terrified. “Are you really a doctor?” the young guy asks. As if in answer, Z slams the car into a wall, and says to his rattled interlocutor: “Any more questions?”
That line, in combination with that ‘stache, Z’s German accent, adds to the overall feeling that he’s some sort of b-movie madman, who answers pesky questions with displays of threatening violence and borderline dementia. What is the message here? Will the mysterious Z’s weird shows of force escalate if we don’t start buying his products in sufficient numbers? Will skeptics be systematically terrorized? Is DaimlerChrysler trying to intimidate us into being impressed with its cars?
I look forward to future ads featuring Dr. Z holding preparing to push a bothersome inquisitor onto a busy freeway, or locking one in a garage with a running SUV, and asking, humorlessly, “Any more questions?”
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Reader Comments
I love these ads. Yeah, he’s a bizarre character, but it’s the first memorable Chrysler ad I’ve seen in some time. There’s something oddly endearing about a CEO who will make fun of himself.
I’m for them too. No one has ever described Chrysler as quirky – and quirky works for the 18-34s. This is nice way to appeal to a new demographic without pandering.
Yeah, it seems to me its a way for Chrysler to connect Mercedes and “precision German engineering” to its brand, without trashing Mercedes brand any more than it has been already (too late.) But their weird attempt at humor here… its like two forces were competing in the company; one that said “we need to make the connection to quality and be serious” and another, more realistic side that says “if this isn’t funny, this isn’t going to be noticed”.
No, these commercials aren’t working. But were any other Chrysler ads lately? Don’t take that’s as a defense of these poor ads.
These ads make a lot of sense to me. Like the “Happy Mornings” ads for Folger’s, they aim – and to a lesser extent, succeed – at making the viewer uncomfortable. That’s the last unplowed emotional response from consumers – they’ve already exhausted our ability to be aroused, amused, etc. Creepiness is the last frontier for advertising.