The Ram Truck brand and Warner Bros. launched a new co-branded commercial for the Ram 1500, Motor Trend magazine's 2013 Truck of the Year, as part of a partnership promoting Warner Bros. Pictures' and Legendary Pictures' "Man of Steel," the highly anticipated summer action adventure movie in theaters June 14.
The Chrysler Group provided vintage trucks and other vehicles to Warner Bros. for integration into key scenes in the movie.
"We are excited to partner with Warner Bros. on 'Man of Steel,'" said Olivier Francois, Chief Marketing Officer, Chrysler Group LLC. "With film alignment we have a fresh consumer engagement opportunity, connecting the heroic character traits of Superman with Ram's DNA. Our custom creative and marketing program is squarely aimed at building advocacy among passionate fans outside traditional marketing channels."
The 30-second "Action" spot intersperses scenes from the movie and footage of the Ram truck as the voiceover says, "Everyone has the ability to do something amazing ... Some just do it on a more regular basis." It closes with the Ram logo and the words "In dealerships everywhere" followed by the "Man of Steel" logo and "in theaters everywhere June 14." The spot can be viewed on the Ram Truck brand YouTube channel.
The key message of the television ad – how the work that Ram owners do make them superheroes in their own right – also is reinforced in print ads that will promote Ram trucks and the "Man of Steel" movie through the July 4 weekend. The Ram brand teamed up with DC Entertainment comic artist Shane Davis to create a custom illustration for the ad, which will run June 7 in the weekend edition of USA Today.
"Ram celebrates those who dare to be great and never back down from a challenge," said Reid Bigland, President and CEO – Ram Truck Brand. "This is the essence of Superman and also embodies our Ram truck buyers, who believe in hard work, integrity and standing up for what is right."
The Ram interior and exterior design team created a special edition, one-of-a-kind "Man of Steel" Power Wagon truck with special "Man of Steel"-inspired design cues, colors and branding. The truck will make its debut June 10 in New York City at the world premiere of the movie. It will then be on display at special events throughout the summer and fall, including the National Finals Rodeo and State Fair of Texas, before being auctioned off for charity at a later date.
The Dark Ceramic Gray truck features a high-gloss black roof with Anodized Red grille accents, created from a durable 14-coat paint process. It has forged-aluminum, satin black 17-inch off-road wheels, Superman logos on the front grille and rear tailgate and a custom, one-off vehicle wrap inspired by the crest and texture of Superman's suit. The wrap highlights a tone-on-tone interpretation of the iconic Superman S-shield, and helps unify themes found on the interior and exterior of the truck.
Interior features include custom mesh seat inserts reminiscent of Superman's own suit with integrated Superman logos on the seats and console; Pewter leather seats; and Anodized Red paint trim accents on the doors, steering column, radio cluster and seats. There also is "Man of Steel" logo badging on the glove box and a "Man of Steel" screen backdrop and start-up screen on the radio cluster.
The television ad will run in network and cable entertainment, news and sports programing beginning June 4. The spot and print ads were created by the Dallas-based The Richards Group agency.
