Dive Brief:
- Cadillac will be ushering in its new Escalade design and auto technology with a campaign featuring award-winning actress Regina King, the company announced on Wednesday.
- King will star in Cadillac's Never Stop Arriving campaign this fall to highlight the 2021 Escalade's new design and technology, which include a curved OLED screen, its AKG automotive audio system and the company's Super Cruise driver assistance technology. Cadillac is creating podcast ad inserts called "The Roadblock" and broadcasting them across 1,000 podcasts over the next two weeks, Adweek reported. The automotive company also partnered with livestreaming platform Twitch and the web series "60 Second Docs."
- The campaign's themes of bravery, resilience and overcoming adversity are a nod to the pathway to success for King as well as Dee Rees, the campaign's director, and Rachel Morrison, the campaign's director of photography, per the announcement.
Dive Insight:
Cadillac's fall campaign arrives as the car company has been experiencing declining sales but is still outperforming rivals. The company notes in its statement that its new technologies and updated vehicle design are part of its effort to regain leadership in the luxury SUV market. The new ad featuring Regina King appears to be an extension of its ongoing efforts to revamp its marketing strategy and adapt amid evolving market conditions. Those efforts have included launching online video sessions with brand representatives to explore cars, a service that saw a 50% increase in visitors once the pandemic started, WARC reported.
Cadillac is the most recent car company to integrate famous women into its ad strategy. In October last year, Volvo sponsored the second season of InStyle's video series about "badass women," and Ford highlighted Black women in its "Built Phenomenally" ad. Ford also made a podcast play, but it opted to run an eight-part podcast about the history of its Bronco SUV, commemorating its return after a 24-year hiatus.
"This is a new era for Cadillac — fearless, innovative and one where we never stop pushing boundaries, and Regina King reflects all those facets and so much more," CMO Melissa Grady said in a statement. "King's unique ability to defy convention and look toward the future are how we approach the opportunities ahead of us at Cadillac."
