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Feeling the Good Vibe: A Groundbreaking New-Product Launch
Lynn Myers
Good afternoon. This morning I had the opportunity to visit the NUMMI assembly facility... and let me tell you, I am VERY IMPRESSED. Everywhere I looked, the factory was alive with energy and enthusiasm... and why not? Jobs are on the rise... production capacity is up... and everyone is gearing up for great success with the Pontiac Vibe ... as well as the new Corolla. I have every confidence that the entire Vibe Team will achieve great things with this groundbreaking new vehicle. I know we'll be able to sell every one we get. Vibe is critically important to the NUMMI partnership ... and to Pontiac Division. You all know that Vibe isn't just another entry in a crowded field. As an innovative new crossover, Vibe will allow us to bring a new generation of buyers into Pontiac showrooms. This is important for Pontiac and GM because Pontiac currently has the youngest buyers in GM and among the youngest in the industry. And this is going to bring a new generation of young buyers into the showroom. The launch of Vibe marks the start of a new era for Pontiac. We're taking the Pontiac brand character to its next evolution ... by designing cars with clean, fresh and athletic lines. And Vibe is the first expression in a lineup of new Pontiacs coming that reflect this new direction for the 21st century. Since we first introduced the Vibe as a show car at the 2001 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, we've heard nothing but praise for this car! We love it, dealers love it, and the media coverage we've gotten has been overwhelmingly positive. So far, we've seen the Vibe on the cover of Auto World Weekly, Car and Driver, Auto Week Magazine, African Americans on Wheels, and Auto World Magazine. Here are just a handful of the terrific things the press is saying about Vibe: "Move over PT Cruiser. Here comes the Pontiac Vibe." From the San Jose Mercury News. "All in all, Vibe is a significant piece of work." Motor Trend Magazine. "The well-equipped Vibe looks to us as if it will be a definite 'w' for 'winner.'" Car and Driver. And from Kelley Blue Book ... "The Vibe is going to be a hot seller for Pontiac, drawing younger, foreign-car buyers back to American showrooms. Everything about the Vibe deserves applause." Clearly, we have a winner on our hands when even the automotive media love us! More important though, is what customers think of the Vibe. Who are these potential buyers? We think the people who will love Vibe the most are in their 20's and 30's. That group represents our best opportunity to grow market share for Pontiac and GM. The population in this age group - that is, those under 35 - is roughly 111 million strong... and growing. And these younger buyers are expected to constitute 60% of the population by 2011. They currently account for $200 billion in annual sales... and they spend 25% more on new cars than the average "low-market" buyer. We think Vibe's target buyers are also more discriminating than typical entry-level customers... demanding a lot more for their car-buying dollar. We're targeting people who are young professionals, many just a couple years out of college. And for about one-third of them, this will be their first new vehicle purchase. Tops on the list of attributes they demand are: value, safety, good looks, functionality and quality. Research tells us that consumers in this age group are intensely focused on choosing products with top-notch quality, and they demand dependability and durability. In fact, quality and price are the most important reason for purchase by buyers under 35. And here's something you may not know -- 65% of teenagers say that dependability is what they look for most in a car. And these are our future buyers! Of course, they also put a premium on exciting, cool vehicles that are versatile, sporty and fun to drive. Pontiac division has made a specialty of catering to the needs of younger buyers. And now, with the Vibe, we're committed to making Pontiac Driving Excitement relevant and compelling to Generations X and Y. Vibe is an opportunity to reach younger buyers who lead increasingly active and varied lifestyles. We are confident that the Vibe will attract these new, younger buyers to the Pontiac family, solidifying our position with this important target. And it took a lot of great teamwork by people at Pontiac, NUMMI and Toyota to bring it to market. As revolutionary as the car itself ... is the story of how this remarkable vehicle came to be built. It's no exaggeration to say that Vibe product development inaugurated an unprecedented era of cooperation among GM, Toyota and NUMMI. We had a shared vision about what we needed in a lifestyle vehicle, and GM, Toyota and NUMMI all worked together from the very beginning. We relied on Toyota's outstanding engineering expertise to get the vehicle engineered to their characteristically high standards. And NUMMI's responsiveness and ability to address our customers' needs allows us to offer a variety of configurations, including ... 4 powertrain systems and 8 exterior colors. And now, as Linda said earlier, we're relying on NUMMI to deliver flawless execution, and that can't happen without your help. We believe that NUMMI's suppliers are unique. You represent the best of both cultures - like NUMMI, you apply the principals of TPS to North American manufacturing. And we are counting on this unique strength to produce continuous improvements in cost and quality from each of your organizations. Needless to say, the Vibe project demanded a huge commitment from all sides and for some, a lot of travel - with some team members logging over half a million air miles since the program began in late 1998. One of the really interesting aspects of the process was the cross-cultural learning that took place. For example, our Toyota partners embraced the idea of immersing themselves in the culture of Pontiac Driving Excitement. The Vibe Team familiarized Toyota with some of the high points of Pontiac's 75 years of "Excitement Heritage" ... with great performance cars like the GTO, "The Judge," Firebird and many more. Toyota engineers gained hands-on driving experience in our current Grand Prix, Grand Am and Trans Am models, so that they could develop a "seat-of-the-pants" feeling for Pontiac's performance characteristics. And the team spent a lot of time talking about Pontiac "To Die For" brand character cues that were essential to the Vibe concept, including its... * Fastback roofline... * Roof with integral rack... * Five-spoke wheels... * Cat-eye headlamps... * Dual port grille ... * Dihedral taillamps... * And red lit gauges. Throughout the process, Toyota was extremely responsive... and attentive to Pontiac's requirements. In fact, Vibe is so distinctive, so unmistakably "Pontiac" that it doesn't share a single exterior body panel with Toyota's Matrix, which as you know, is also built on the same platform. On the manufacturing side, NUMMI has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to assure build quality that lives up to Vibe's design and engineering. We are pleased to be part of the Fremont assembly facility, which has a well-deserved reputation as one of the highest quality manufacturing plants in the U.S. On a symbolic level, perhaps the best indicator of NUMMI quality is the fact that Fremont will be exporting right-hand drive Vibes to Japan, marketed as the Toyota Voltz. This is a proud day indeed for this outstanding assembly facility and you, its supplier partners. While design, engineering and manufacturing development were still underway, Pontiac initiated pre-launch marketing support that would build interest and excitement for Vibe. During pre-launch, Pontiac strove to bring Vibe's target consumers on board, to get them involved and let them know what to expect when Vibe started hitting Pontiac showrooms across the country. Our Internet-based "What Color is Your Vibe?" color-naming contest is a great example of how we tapped into the creative energy of young buyers by giving them an opportunity to name all eight colors of the Pontiac Vibe. They came up with some cool names, like "abyss" for black and "Neptune" for blue. We promoted the contest last summer during the 45-city "Warped Tour," and generated more than 250,000 color name submissions. We had thousands of potential buyers visiting our web site and attending on-site promotions up to six months before we launched the Vibe. And over 15 million people were exposed to Vibe's pre-launch online advertising! Another example of how we involved the target audience to market to itself ... happened when we introduced the Vibe at the L.A. Auto Show. We showcased a video that was created by students at the UCLA film school. Pontiac provided the funds to produce the video, but it was the students themselves who came up with the creative and their impressions of Vibe. It's pretty cool. Take a look ... These young "Spielbergs of tomorrow," as we call them, really captured the essence of Vibe in a way that its target buyers understand. We began advertising the Vibe on the Super Bowl in February. By next week, we'll have four Vibe commercials on the air. They play off the "reality TV" format that is particularly relevant to younger buyers. What better way to generate interest and enthusiasm for the Vibe than to show "real people experiencing real excitement" in the car? Here are the four commercials ... If early media and consumer reaction is any indicator, Vibe truly HAS what it takes to bring new buyers to Pontiac - especially young buyers who might not have previously considered a Pontiac. So far, sales are terrific with Vibes selling almost as fast as they come off the truck. A Vibe even saved the day for one dealership in Michigan, Somerset Pontiac. Power to the dealership was lost when their electricity line was accidentally cut. They connected an extension cord to the 115-volt outlet in a Vibe parked outside, and were able to power enough office equipment to sell 8 Pontiacs that day! Otherwise they would've had to close the dealership. Vibe proved that it isn't just a sporty-looking vehicle - it's versatile and practical too! Without question, Vibe marks one of the most significant new-product launches for GM and Pontiac in a long time. And with flawless quality, production, delivery and customer care ... I predict it will be one of the most successful launches. Let me close with a couple comments. I have to do a little selling. I hope all of you know that key employees in our organization are eligible for special discounts on most GM products, including Pontiacs and GMC trucks. * Recognize Jim Hunter Thank you. |
