The Cadillac Escalade has been Lincoln’s primary competitor for over a decade. So to re-launch the newly designed flagship vehicle, the Navigator, we knew we had to find a unique approach in order to shrink the sales gap. We determined the Navigator was more than a luxury SUV, it was first class travel.

Coincidentally, in 2018, the American airline industry was under siege from bad press. In addition to the daily hassles of delays and cramped seats, there was a spate of news stories about airline personnel treating passengers in a deplorable manner—each of which made national headlines.

Tapping into this cultural pain point, we saw this as an opportunity to offer relief, or at least a viable alternative – the Lincoln Navigator – as a way to travel between shorter regional routes in a more effortless way.

Given the size, entertainment technology and “first-class” appointments of the Navigator, we positioned the Navigator as competition not to other luxury SUV’s, but rather, airlines. We took aim at regional carriers by asking weary travelers to choose “Wheels Over Wings.”

We staged a race between two popular characters — Jeff Garlin & Susie Essman — from the hit HBO TV show “Curb Your Enthusiasm” to see who could get from Los Angeles to Las Vegas quicker—and in a better emotional and physical state.

While the flight from LAX to LAS is just over an hour in the air, packing, traffic, security and delays can easily bring the total travel time to 4+ hours—the same time it takes to drive.

Jeff and Susie’s on-screen relationship dynamic is a bit contentious which added the perfect competitive (and humorous) balance to make this message relatable and memorable.

Consumer Research:

Target audience research conducted a year earlier unearthed the fact that many of our consumers’ happiest moments were with their family on road trips, traveling 3-5 hours away from their home.

Product Characteristics:

We knew this would have best in class claims around speed and spaciousness. So we positioned the Navigator as competition not to other luxury SUV’s, but rather, airlines.

Segment Opportunity:

We were never going to out-swagger the Escalade. Instead, we focused on the customer who was tired of the brash, aggressive persona of the Cadillac Escalade and wanted something powerful, but a little more understated, to better suit their needs.

Cultural Input:

Reddit, Google, and other search websites were filled with queries about the best way to travel regionally, by plane or car. Routes researched most often included Los Angeles to Las Vegas, New York to Boston, New York to DC, and Dallas to Houston.

Partnering with Condé Nast we identified brands which aligned with Lincoln’s passion points – publishing the the video and an array of supporting material on Condé Nast Traveler, GQ, Vanity Fair and WIRED.

The team created the primary long form video to entertain viewers while a series of social videos, custom targeted pre-roll, banners and digital articles created legitimacy to the Navigator and Wheel Over Wings claim.

‘THE BET’ PAID OFF:

Navigator market share has doubled and the gap between Navigator and Escalade shrunk from 20% to 3.8% pts, with Navigator projected to take #1 in 2019.

During the program, Navigator sales outperformed projections by 142%.

After viewing The Bet:

• Intent to purchase improved 250%, exceeding norms by almost 3x

• Favorability exceeded control by 18 pts – exceeding norms by almost 2x

• People who thought the content is relevant to them exceeded norms by 160%

• Key brand perceptions: Stylish, Sophisticated, Comfortable, Luxurious, Spacious, and High Quality all significantly outperformed norms

‘The Bet’ is also among Top 4% of all content tested by our research partner

The campaign was extended past its original flight due to its success.

Lincoln even began exploring the viability of developing a service, providing Navigators to compete with airlines along regional routes.