Sunday, May 18, 2008

The Cadillac rebranding

Who remembers when Cadillac’s demographic market was to your grandfather? For most of Cadillac’s history, their brand sold to the older more affluent age group. Apparently, that market has died off and Cadillac is in search of greener pastures.

I think one of the best tag lines I have ever heard is the new Cadillac motto, “when you turn your car on, does it return the favor”. That sends a clear message that the Cadillac brand is no longer for your grandfather. The transformation of the Cadillac brand into a younger, sleeker, sexier model is an example of a bold rebranding. It must have been quite a shock to Cadillac’s original demographics to wonder into a dealership and find the DTS or the CTS. Certainly not the type of models you would want your grandmothers driving or were they accustomed to driving.

However, all this rebranding has paid off for Cadillac because the CTS won the 2008 Motor Trend Car of the year, something a car out of Detroit hasn’t done in a while. Cadillac is quoted as saying, “The CTS obliterates the ‘old man' image of Cadillac”, and it appears it has. Now the only question I have is, what is my grandmother suppose to drive?