2012 Chevrolet Volt Owners Help With Peppy Volt Ad Campaign

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2012 Chevrolet Volt Owners Help With Peppy Volt Ad Campaign

Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield

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Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield is a self-confessed petrol head. She grew up in a carless family but was able at a very early age to name cars passing her on... More

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Just how do you advertise a plug-in car like the 2012 Chevrolet Volt?

In the two years since advertising for General Motors’ first plug-in hybrid started, GM has tried a whole bunch of different tactics. Sadly, to date, very few have been successful, focusing on why you should want a Chevy Volt rather than why you’ll want one.

Now it seems GM has taken a leaf out of the Apple school of advertising, launching a series of ads which focus on real-life owners who have made the switch to electricity.

They are, it says, the happiest car owners on the planet.

Filmed in an all-white photo studio with a Chevrolet Volt beside them, existing Volt owners talk about everything from the car’s acceleration to running costs, features and range.

Looking and sounding much like Apple’s own switcher ads from a few years ago, the ads cast the Volt not just as a car, but as a must-have device.

With its relaxed presentation, no gimmicks, and not an alien, polar bear or zombie in sight, the new Volt ads are certainly more appealing and personal than the ones we’ve seen before.

But will GM’s happy-band of happy Volt owners giving personal testimony alongside a peppy music track encourage you to buy the range-extended electric car?

And will the online ad campaign mean that, just like the Apple Switch ads, we'll see a rush on Chevrolet Volt spoof ads?

Let us know your thoughts in the Comments below.

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Comments (13)

Kent Beuchert Posted: 6/13/2012 9:40am PDT

As one who is thoroughly convinced that far superior and cheaper batteries are just around the corner,I see those looking to sell and encourage others to buy current electric cars as facing a dilemma : is it fraudulent to sell,at a very high price,a product that you can reasonably assume is very likely to be totally obsolete and severely overvalued in the near future, far before the end of its expected lifespan? If I were Elon Musk or GM or Nissan,I would call a halt to current EV production and await developments. GM and Nissan would not suffer any economic consequences whatsoever in doing so. Tesla Motors, on the other hand, needs to sell its Model S. I'm referring to WSU's super battery: I'm convinced real and close at hand. I'm waiting

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robok2 Posted: 6/13/2012 10:19am PDT

Yes, Kent, every OEM should immediately quit the years of development work that have cost billions and just wait for that WSU superbattery to become commercially viable. You know, since every other "next big thing" has worked out so well thus far...

And the development engineers at the OEMs, should they be paid to wait or should the OEMs immediately let go of some of the brightest young minds around the industry in a long time?

Contrary to your bizarre comments, there is both an obvious economic advantage to continuing to produce EVs, as well as a clear technical development advantage. Sunk costs are already sunk and companies compete to be first to market and best in market, things that will not change due to one technical advance.

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Jon Gundersen Posted: 6/13/2012 10:22am PDT

I like the ads. And to say its fraudulent to sell electric cars is not true at all. We have been waiting 30 years for a battery good enough to run an electric car with todays high automotive standards. If we all keep waiting now for the next best thing we will never have electric cars that are affordable. To me the value in things like computers, cars, TV's is that if it works for your needs now. And as long as it does that you shouldn't regret what you bought because a newer improved model became available. When I get my next electric car I'll have a better model then the one you got, if you ever stop wating. So in the end it will even out. Besides the current electric cars are way more fun to drive than the current ICE models out there.

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robok2 Posted: 6/13/2012 10:23am PDT

As far as your ridiculous claims of fraud, I don't have any problem recommending today's EVs, possibly since, unlike you, I actually drive one (well, a Volt...) and have a concept of the actual cost.

$381/month for my Volt lease, $18-$20/month for electricity, then about $180/month in fuel savings. Is $220 still too much for my monthly after fuel savings-cost? Then call me King of the Frauds, I guess...

Let's all stop all the current technological improvements whil we wait for that superbattery, since all other "game-changing improvements" have done so well. I know, Kent, this time is different. It always is...

Even if the improvement is real, it will take time to incorporate into a vehicle system, taking several more years.

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Xiaolong Li Posted: 6/13/2012 10:04am PDT

GM needs to have ads showing the Volt blow away Prius and Leaf in performance. That will bring some other type of buyers to the showeroom who do NOT want a slow hybrid/ev.

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Caroline Lin Posted: 6/13/2012 2:23pm PDT

Nice commercial, simple/happy, appealing to sense of discovery. I don't see Volt ads at all, so I don't think GM is trying too hard to sell this to the average consumer. This car is currently attractive to a niche group. The Volt and EVs in general will slowly gain market share only after several yrs of on-the-ground performance/reliability data. I just bought a Volt and absolutely love it so far (had a Honda CR-V before this). I get 42-43 miles per charge, which gets me to/from work daily and then an errand/soccer on the side without gas. So far, 495 of 511 miles driven are "EV" miles. The "spaceship" sounds are real. No engine noise in EV mode(and very little road noise). Bluetooth audio and touchscreen controls are great.

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RIck Scinta Posted: 6/18/2012 6:43am PDT

When my current lease ends, I will definitely look into the volt. Hoping more condos, apartmets, businesses and such start installing charging stations! Otherwise it would be hard to justify 37mpg and no where convenient to charge.

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Andrew Sullivan Posted: 8/22/2012 12:09pm PDT

Technology will always be obsolete prior to it's end of life but that's no reason not to invest in it. While my Volt is achieving its technological obsolescence I am saving $4000 per year on gas costs. I am one of those happy Volt owners and if I was in that commercial I would talk about how much money it is saving me. When I drive down the road, the guys in the BMW's, Audi's and Porsche's are checking out my ride and giving me the thumbs up. Want to see what real Volts are doing in the real world? Go to www.voltstats.net, it will blow your mind. I've driven 17000 miles in the past year in my Volt and only burned 75 gallons of fuel doing it...I commute 75 miles per day and because I charge at work I only pay for half of the electricity.

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