1 Cadillac

Cadillac has done an outstanding marketing job in reorienting its program toward its dealers. The marketers at Cadillac had a serious problem. Cadillac had taken its nice, old, conservative, and highly differentiated car and made it look like an Oldsmobile - and, at $ 10,000 more. True, Cadillac was previously purchased primarily by older people, and yes, it had an image problem. But to make it look like an Oldsmobile was foolish.

Cadillac marketers recognized their mistake and did not want to show their new model on TV, telling everyone how great it was. There was no point in trying to fool the public by saying that the Cadillac was still a well-differentiated product. Instead marketers gave promotion money to local dealers so they could run programs that would be effective in their local areas. I don't know how Cadillac sales are doing, but using push marketing through its dealers was a smart decision in face of a poor product decision.

2 Ford

Ford has had two major thrusts over the last few years. The first is "Quality is Job One," and the second is that Ford builds cars "with the shape of things to come." In other words, Ford is building cars which are ahead of its time, and Ford is an innovator. In both instances, Ford gives the impression that it is a company that really knows the car business. These thrusts are simple, meaningful, and effective.

3 Michelin Tires

Michelin runs a program with babies playing happily amongst tires with the theme "Because so much is riding on your tires." Michelin is a known name, and its tires are considered to be outstanding, though expensive. Michelin's problem is convincing people that its tires are worth the extra money. Its campaign is much better that a features/benefits ad because the campaign deals with the emotion of purchasing a premium product.

4 Pepsi

Pepsi has done a great job positioning itself as the drink for younger people. First it promoted the taste tests in which Pepsi claimed its taste was better than that of the traditional market leader Coke. The new Pepsi campaign, "Choice of the new generation," builds wonderfully on that same concept. Of course, Coke helped Pepsi by switching over to a product with a "Pepsi" taste. Building on a strong concept is an excellent strategy, and Pepsi does it well.

5 Prudential

For the past 20 years, Prudential has used a strong visual image: "The rock." This is an excellent image for an insurance company: solid, dependable, and consistent. Other good examples of companies with memorable visual images are Walt Disney's Mickey Mouse and Budweiser's Clydesdales.

6 Jiffy Lube

Now, I'm not sure about all Jiffy Lubes, but the one by my home has done an effective job of marketing. Because it is located in an old gas station, the first thing the owners did was to clean up the pavement and clean and remodel the station. In a clean waiting room, a host or hostess takes customer information. The image projected is that getting an oil change is a pleasant experience - much, much different from the local gas station. I get my oil changed at Jiffy Lube every 5,000 miles now. Before, I'm not sure I changed it more that once a year.