Ford goes after Jeep with new off-road event

Ford Motor Co. is launching a new program aimed at boosting its image as the world's premier maker of sport-utility vehicles. And Ford executives are taking a page out of Jeep's playbook to do it.

Dubbed "No Boundaries Experience" (NBE), Ford's new program expands upon the "No Boundaries-Ford Outfitters" advertising campaign initiated last fall. That umbrella campaign promotes the company's entire SUV line.

"Consumers have a tougher job to know the difference between a Ford and a Jeep," asserts Ed Molchany, Ford division marketing manager for trucks and SUVs. "We want to leverage the strength of having the broadest line of SUVs of any manufacturer."

The NBE program kicked off last month in Mahwah, N.J. It was followed a few weeks ago by an event in San Diego. The program will visit five major markets across the U.S. A new concept for Ford, NBE borrows a key page from "Jeep 101," the extremely successful customer-relations program initiated in 1996 by DaimlerChrysler's Jeep Division.

Jeep 101 is an outdoors event featuring off-road driving instruction, Jeep product presentations, aftermarket parts displays and sales of Jeep-brand clothing, sports gear and accessories. The event now has 18 stops each year, including a new one in South America.

Ford's Molchany explains that the NBE program was initiated through a direct-mail campaign aimed at the automaker's SUV owners, as well as potential and competitive-vehicle buyers. In addition, Ford is using its Web site (www.noboundariesexperience.com) to inform customers about the events, which include a Jeep-like off-road driving course, various outdoor sports demonstrations (with experts from the Sport Trac Challenge and TV series), plus a Ford Outfitters gear store.

Ford is assisting its dealers in developing the No BoundariesFord Outfitters theme in their showrooms "to create a special mindset for the SUV buyer," enthuses Molchany. Ford has also developed a special line of dealer apparel to enhance the No Boundaries visual.

"We're very excited about the initial consumer reaction to the experience," says Doug Scott, Ford's SUV group marketing manager. He reports that over 4,200 people attended the four-day Mahwah event. "We were actually overbooked for the weekend. The No-Boundaries Experience is an exciting and entertaining venue to present the Ford division lineup the most far-reaching line of SUVs on the planet," he gushes.