Ford Hopes to Catch Up to GM and VW in China With Cheaper Cars

Joe Hinrichs, chief of Ford Motor Co.’s Asian operations, has a solution for the automaker’s minnow status in China: Sell cheap cars in China’s backwaters.

“If you want to become a volume leader in the world, you’ll have to compete at the lower price points because that’s where the growth is,” Mr. Hinrichs, who oversees Ford operations in Asia and Africa region, said over lunch at Morton’s in Shanghai last week. “In China, we decided — and you can debate the intelligence of that decision — not to offer a full range of products. That’s something we’re changing.”

For now, Ford’s offerings in China are neither cheap enough nor extensive. The Fiesta subcompact, the lowest-priced of the automaker’s five models, costs 40% more than General Motor Co.’s entry-level Chevrolet Sail. Volkswagen, Europe’s largest carmaker, has a product lineup that ranges from the $12,000 Jetta to the $363,000 Audi R8 sports car.

Gaining ground in China would help Ford reduce its reliance on U.S. sales, which unexpectedly fell last month, and blunt European losses projected to exceed $1 billion this year. (www.adage.com)

Sizzler has a Food Truck. Sorry, Hipsters.

Should you come across a broken-down food truck on the side of the road, there’s a chance Larry Olmsted let the air out of its tires.

When the USA Today food columnist recently documented America’s worst culinary trends for Forbes, he placed food trucks at the top of the list, beating out such abominations as TV cooking competitions, gastropubs and restaurants named for (but rarely featuring the actual cooking of) celebrity chefs.

Olmsted dubbed food trucks—those mobile purveyors of dumplings, tacos and cupcakes popularized by hipsters, foodies and office workers from coast to coast—“ridiculous” and even “morally reprehensible,” arguing that they are less a real innovation than simply another means of delivering grub to consumers, “akin to the ‘invention’ of home delivery, take-out containers or the drive through.”

The writer proclaimed it ultimately “more a fad than a trend,” adding, “I’ve yet to see any tangible benefits of the food truck craze to the average consumer.” (www.adweek.com)

Target Racing Drivers To Be Featured On Select Kellogg’s Products

The Team Target drivers Dario Franchitti (INDYCAR), Scott Dixon (INDYCAR) and Juan Pablo Montoya (NASCAR) will be the new faces on select Kellogg’s brand packaging nationwide starting August 19. The dynamic trio, who has given Target and Chip Ganassi Racing 45 career wins, including four in the Indianapolis 500 and six championships, will now be featured on limited-edition Kellogg’s foods, including Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes, Pop-Tarts, Rice Krispies Treats and Vrooms cereal, which will all be sold for a limited time only at Target stores.

Through the Target Racing relationship, partner Kellogg’s will activate their relationship away from the race track for the first time with driver imagery on packaging that will include driver images, tidbits, fun facts and games – all tying into an on-pack sweepstakes where one lucky fan will win the “Ultimate Racing Experience” prize package and attend a NASCAR or INDYCAR race in 2013. (www.sponsorship.com)

Samsung Canada Partners With Tough Mudder, Seeks Additional Deals

Just ten months after joining Samsung Electronics Canada, Inc. as vice president of marketing, Andrew Barrett has already made significant strides in taking the company’s sponsorship strategy to the next level. That includes developing new consumer-facing promotions around the company’s two national sponsorships—Hockey Canada and the NFL in Canada—as well as Seoul-based Samsung Electronics Co.’s partnership with the International Olympic Committee. (www.sponsorship.com)

GEICO Becomes Ninth Founding Partner Of Barclays Center

GEICO, one of the fastest growing major auto insurers in the U.S., has formed a fully integrated strategic marketing alliance with Barclays Center and the Brooklyn Nets that will include the entitlement to the spectacular GEICO Atrium inside the main entrance of Barclays Center. GEICO becomes the ninth Founding Partner for Barclays Center.

The 9,000 square-foot glass-enclosed GEICO Atrium will be the main entry space as visitors walk through the front door of Barclays Center. Fans will have easy access to the 12-booth box office, views into the below-grade practice court, and quick access to the Nets Shop by adidas. Most impressively, the GEICO Atrium opens onto a dramatic view of the arena bowl and scoreboard.

In addition to the GEICO Atrium branding, GEICO will be fully integrated into some of the most high-profile positions at Barclays Center, including the unparalleled “Street-to-Seat” brand signage at Barclays Center.

As part of its alliance with the Brooklyn Nets, GEICO will receive television-visible branding on each side of the basketball hoop stanchions for each Nets home game. (www.sponsorship.com)

Amazon’s New Secret Weapon: Delivery Lockers

Amazon.com Inc. is doubling down to combat a problem that has long bedeviled online retailers: failed package delivery.

The Web giant has quietly installed large metal cabinets—or Amazon Lockers—in grocery, convenience and drugstore outlets that function like virtual doormen, accepting packages for customers for a later pickup. Amazon began putting lockers in Seattle, New York state and near Washington, D.C., about a year ago.

And the company is now ramping up the service. In the past few weeks, Amazon has opened its first lockers sites in the San Francisco Bay area.

By adding the lockers, Amazon is addressing the concerns of some urban apartment dwellers who fear they’ll miss a delivery or have their items stolen from their doorstep. Amazon is also taking on some of its rivals who are shipping to appointed sites, such as other retailers or United Parcel Service Inc. stores. (www.wsj.com)

A Surprise in a Hot Dog Cart

On Wednesday and Thursday, Trojan Vibrations, a line of sexual enhancement devices, will hand out 10,000 free vibrators from two hot dog carts identified as pleasure carts. Along with the brand’s logo, the carts will feature sayings like “Getcha vibes here!” and “Relish the moment.”

Trojan plans to distribute 5,000 each of the Tri-Phoria device, which retails for $40, and the Pulse, which retails for $30, for a total retail value of $350,000. It goes without saying, surely, but Trojan asserts this is the biggest handout of vibrators ever.

The promotion begins Wednesday morning with a live commercial by Howard Stern on his show on Sirius XM Radio. The carts will roam Manhattan for two days, with their locations updated on the Trojan Vibrations Facebook page.

In what Bruce Weiss, vice president for marketing at Trojan, called “almost like a gateway product,” Trojan introduced a vibrating ring in 2005 that was included in some packages of condoms for an “improved condom experience.” (www.nytimes.com)

MassMutual’s Facebook Effort Benefits Easter Seals

Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. has launched a campaign on Facebook to benefit Easter Seals.

For every “like” to the video generated on the Facebook application, MassMutual will donate $5 (with a total of up to $25,000) to the Easter Seals’ Make the First Five Count program, which promotes awareness and facilitates early identification of disabilities and development delays.

Additionally, the tab will link to helpful resources from MassMutual and Easter Seals for families with members with special needs.

The Facebook campaign aims to drive awareness of challenges facing families with children with special needs. A video on the Facebook tab shares a glimpse into the day of a mother and son. (www.mediapost.com)

Jordan Back On Court For Hanes

Hanes is bringing Michael Jordan back in a campaign for Hanes’ ComfortBlend Collection.

The company says the new collection is a 50/50 cotton/poly blend developed for softness. Thus, the new effort, via AOR Richmond, Va.-based The Martin Agency, includes a TV ad that exaggerates that quality. The spot shows a group of young men at home, but one of them is wearing white kittens as a shirt. They are literally living, purring kittens.

One of the guys suggests a Hanes ComfortBlend undershirt might have been a better choice as it would have been just as soft but also an actual shirt. Jordan walks on, looks at the guy’s kitten shirt and just says “Dude? Wow.”

The ad will run on Major League Baseball (TNT, ESPN, MLB Network) and on entertainment networks such as ABC, TBS, Comedy Central, Spike and SyFy. In addition to the TV spot, the campaign will also be supported on Hanes social channels through product sampling and video seeding. (www.mediapost.com)

Post Foods Launches ‘Goodness’ Social Site

Cereal giant Post Foods has launched an inspirational social site, PostGoodness.com.

Users are being encouraged to log in daily to share their good intentions and motivational thoughts, to “help set them on the right track for the day.”

All posts are added to a dynamic grid that invites likes, comments and shares from other users. Users can also share their posts with their existing communities on other social platforms, including Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

The site also features a “Goodness Forecast” barometer that offers daily regional, by-market and national scores indexing “goodness” based on factors such as weather, economic and other news, and local cultural and sports events. (www.mediapost.com)