This first-ever Certified Service TV spot launched this new brand for General Motors. Certified Service would replace the Goodwrench brand, becoming the new service arm of all GM brands including; Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC.

The spot focuses on the technicians and their unique skills and well as the knowledge that is important when servicing a GM vehicle. Together with the service technicians and specialized tools, it demonstrates the importance of bringing your vehicle back to where you bought it so that it is properly maintained throughout its life with a customer.

I applied this basic concept to the dealer service offers for dealerships across the country. See Certified Service LMA Tire Offer within the CAMPAIGNS tab.

The Assignment
After 100 years of providing the automotive trade industry with the very best parts and its wholesalers and retailers with leading-edge training and business consultation, ACDelco realized that their legendary name had lost its luster. The brand wanted people to realize that they’re still very much alive and thriving.

The Solution
“Part of Something Bigger” was created to be more than merely an ad slogan. It’s the human expression of what it means to share a common approach to living and working. So when trade customers work with ACDelco, they’re not just buying and installing parts. The collected resources of a global automotive marketing machine is also there to play are even bigger part in their success.

The Thought Behind
Perhaps the strongest emotion driving us humans is the power of self- expression. Even within larger social groups like our families, friends, clubs, fraternities and the larger ACDelco community, the desire to express our individuality runs deep.

The Idea
By their very nature, tattoo, graffiti and pin striping artists create highly personal self-expression works of art. Yet, they still maintain tight bonds within their bigger community of fellow artists and those who appreciate their art. We will commission the best of these artists to create limited-edition original “Symbols of something bigger” works of art. The symbol placements will be clandestine and random in packing crates and at the bottom of boxes to produce responses like “whoa, what’s this?” and “I gotta put this on my…” in those who find them.

The Idea Goes Viral.
Once these symbols start making the rounds within the ACDelco community, they could go viral in the style of the highly successful Andre the Giant Obey campaign.

The brief was exciting, a once in a lifetime offering of a limited number of the Anniversary Edition 427 Big Block V8 engines available from select GM Performance Parts dealers.

The assignment was to create “buzz” around the Anniversary Edition 427 engine. This would be GM’s tribute to the legendary ZL-1 427, right down to an all-aluminum block created from original 1969 tooling, and only 427 serialized engines would be produced.

My partner and I started by creating a 427-engine kit. With cars, documentation makes them more valuable, and collectible in the performance car market. So, we set out to designed a limited box kit of a numbered certificate, chrome 427 dash badges and air cleaner sticker based on the 1969 original. Four hundred and twenty seven kits were produced based on the number of the engine.

With only 427 engines to sell, we also created and designed marketing materials for car shows, and magazine ads to promote the limited production of this historic engine. But, we wanted to announce this product in a big way. Convincing our Performance Parts client to reveal this historic offering at a Barrett Jackson auction. A venue which attracts automotive enthusiasts from various automotive cultures. Although the auction is only meant to auction special or rare cars, we convinced Barrett Jackson on the importance of this engine, and its history in the car craft. The auction would also be shown live on television and would be the perfect platform to announce GM’s Anniversary 427.

The 427 launch at Barrett Jackson was a huge success. The client had the opportunity to address the auction crowd and speak to the importance of the engines past and renewed presence. The first 427 engine marked as serial number 001, was auctioned off with proceeds donated to charity. The “buzz” of GM’s Performance Parts 427 Anniversary engine turned into an explosion of engine sales.

These Certified Service TV spots launched this new brand for General Motors. The concept focused on the technicians and their unique skills and knowledge that is important when servicing a GM car.

These branded spots were for a tire offer and demonstrated how a dealer in any area of the country could create a personalized tire offer.

For the Certified Service Launch spot click this link.

As a Jeep and off-road enthusiast it’s important to support the sport. DOA or Drummond Off-road Adventure is a two-day trail ride for full-sized off-road vehicles on Drummond Island in Michigan.

The following are examples of the event logos for each year beginning in 2011 to the present. The event logos are energetic graphics to be used on shirts, web and support marketing materials for the yearly event.

ACDelco developed Knowledge Is Power, a women's car care seminar, which was designed and marketed to empower and educate women in vehicle maintenance and repair. The program, offered through ACDelco service shops helped to gain access, create a connection, and build a relationship with an audience of women that they may not have previously had.

This Women's Car Care Seminar kit design included an instructor guide, an instructor presentation CD, program poster and smaller trainee book covering key automotive topics for women to keep and use as a reference when having their vehicle serviced in the future.

I helped develop and concept The Block an online community for GM Performance Parts. The idea was simple to engage a car culture and bring them together through this GM portal. Any aspect of,car culture was welcome from hot rodding, to drag racing, to anyone just interested in cars. The ultimate goal was to create a place where different automotive interests could come together, and since GM Performance Parts was the host, the brand would be top of mind when that participant might need a part for their car or sport.

The Block would feature different drivers from every kind of racing or car culture. A place for each in the community to show off their ride, discuss interested and learn from others in there respective car craft. Drivers, racers, and parties of the car culture could share ideas, help others or gain further knowledge in their area of interest.

Each registered user created an account and received a QR code to use on their vehicle(s) to identify themselves as part of The Block community. The portal offered a centralized community of car and race enthusiasts to share their passion, GM performance product information, a forum page to gain information from, and a video gallery.

The site was extremely successful for the GM Performance Parts brand, keeping it top of mind for enthusiasts, and cementing itself as the leader in the performance parts industry.

Standing out in an already competitive market of performance parts is a challenge. Working with the brands marketing directors, I created this Yellow Campaign as a way for the brand to command attention and be considered when purchasing parts.

The GMPP brand had invested resources and money in promoting three racers in the Sportsman category in drag racing, painting their cars yellow and in a stars and bars theme. Using this as a graphic springboard for everything that the brand would create or publish. The yellow theme was also comprised of engineering type graphics, contemporary use of typography and engaging headlines to capture the viewer. The campaign was wildly successful in generating interest in the GMPP brand and in generating brand revenue.

The client saw great benefits in working together with agency creative and its team in developing a cohesive and conceptual approach. Each new ad or promotion covered a different segment of the brand.

The GM Goodwrench brand was used to market General Motors franchised dealers' service departments, replacing a patchwork of separate GM-divisional offerings.

The brands refresh shown here was graphically based on historical Russian propaganda posters, in part because of its strong graphic concept and call to action messaging.

While working as part of the creative team handling the Goodwrench brand I had the honor of generating varies collateral and marketing concepts for the brand. Including brand campaigns for Collision, branded logos., posters, newspaper and dealership materials and point of sale.

As the campaign evolved it moved away from a pure graphic art look to capturing a service technician in a graphic reality.