Bronco Sport: Raised by Goats

By: Dusty Rhodes

Ford announced today a comprehensive advertising campaign created to introduce the all-new Bronco Sport to consumers. The campaign “Raised by Goats” will debut today (January 9) during the NFL Wildcard game on Fox and follows the 2021 F150 and Mach E campaigns which kicked off a product onslaught by Ford.

The campaign which includes three different commercials, but will launch with a clever 60 second spot portraying a young colt who was raised by mountain goats. The campaign, created by Ford’s agency Wieden+Kennedy, known for their work on Nike, was created in October outside of Seattle on Mount Baker and presented several challenges given the conditions and use of horses and goats.

The term “goat – goes over any terrain” reprises the code name for the initial Ford Bronco introduced in 1966. All three spots are under the communications umbrella for Bronco called “Built Wild”. “We challenged the team to make a spot that was Super Bowl worthy,” said Matt Vandyke, Director of Marketing for Ford. Although Ford has no plans to air the spots during the Super Bowl, the gauntlet initiated by Vandyke, underscores the importance of getting the ads right. The second spot will debut on Good Morning America on the 11^th highlighting the diverse audience Ford is trying to appeal to.

The Bronco Sport which started arriving in dealerships late in 2020, kicked-off the revival of the Bronco nameplate which ceased production in 1996. “We had a bit of a marketing challenge,” admitted Vandyke, referring to the reveal of the full-size 2 and 4 door as well as the Sport last Spring. “What we are hearing from our dealers is the Sport is “sneaky good” added Vandyke hinting at the brisk traffic and sales the new product is generating. Although the ideal launch cadence of these two products would have had the full-size Bronco launching first, the new campaign does an effective job of establishing the credibility of the Bronco Sport.

For the vast majority of consumers who will use the vehicle for work and play, the all-new Bronco Sport has what it needs to get you where you are going including the slopes or to the trail head. Advancements in terrain management, traction control systems, and tire technology have enabled many utilities to get further down the the trail then ever before. Additionally, the Sport has some clever stowage solutions for your gear. “Stowage is important to our target buyers who often take their equipment with them, then head for the trail directly from the office,” said Dave Rivers, SUV Marketing Manager for Ford. “We drew on the truck durability standards to help ensure delivery of the off road capability including extreme testing in Johnson Valley in the summer and Alaska in the winter,” added Rivers.

Ford also announced an Ambassador program which is slated to kick off later this quarter. These programs are not new to the company having used influencers, opinion leaders, and notable athletes – usually of the extreme sports variety – to promote their products.