GM ads seek to soothe public's fear of buying

So if you're selling popsicles in a snow storm, nobody is going to want to buy any. Right now, in the midst of a recession blizzard, consumers have turned a cold shoulder to buying new cars. It's no big secret. American consumers are mostly afraid of taking on new car payments and then losing their jobs. This fear has caused auto buyers' confidence to plummet and is burying the auto industry, including America's top domestic manufacturer, GM.

Aim to boost confidence

As a self-proclaimed car enthusiast and Caddy owner, I want these guys to win. In fact, GM is a big part of making our economy go round and round. Everyone loves a comeback, and GM's latest campaign proclaims that it's time to put on our rally caps. This ad is part of the company's ambitious new marketing program themed the Total Confidence Plan (http://www.gmconfidence.com/).

The first part of the plan has similar features to a recent and innovative Hyundai program. If you lose your job during the first two years of ownership, GM will cover your payments. There are some caveats to this deal including, that the coverage is up to $500 per month and for no longer than nine months.

Vehicle-value protection offered

Another new ground-breaking part of the Total Confidence Plan includes vehicle-value protection. This provides buyers with insurance should they be upside down with negative equity and decide to trade in their vehicle early.

These two new offerings are packaged with GM's 5-year or 100,000-mile warranty and one free year of OnStar. GM's plan is smart marketing. It's on message with what will likely move their sales needle. The program effectively addresses consumers' fears of losing their jobs. Giving payment protection for a buyer who becomes laid off will resonate with consumers. GM isn't the first to offer this program, but so what; Hyundai should be flattered.

GM is also on message taking on the perception, and sometimes fact when compared to many
imports, that domestic cars don't hold their value. This is especially true since, not long ago, consumers got stuck with undesirable, domestic SUVs when gas prices skyrocketed. So now GM is going to back the value of your new car should you trade it in early. This part of the program is refreshingly authentic and on-message advertising for the buying public. At this point, we don't know if GM's confidence program will help the company's sales rebound, but it is a good lesson in responding to market demands.

I'll bet on GM continuing this program past April 30, the current program end date. But that's just me wearing my rally cap.