There’s a car dealership in Dallas that uses a 28-year-old novelty song about poltergeists as the basis for its radio jingle. I’ve been hearing it as I drive for years — the jingle, not the song — but the absurdity of this concept didn’t strike me until this week. Am I wrong to call it absurd? Is this really a bit of marketing genius?
11 comments
I had that same thought as I heard Dunham and Miller and Gordo discuss this exact same thing last week.
I guess they figure that the car-buying decision makers fall into the demographic that remembers that song?
Bethany would call that an ear worm. I vote marketing genius.
I’ve hated that song for years and years. I also hate the other dealership commercial where the guy yells at you “Cowabunga!” This isn’t marketing genius, this makes me want to go anywhere BUT them to buy a car, so hopefully they’ll go under and I won’t have to hear their commercials ever, ever again.
I, too, hate that jingle. Almost enough to find out who owns the rights to Ray Parker Jr.’s song and then see if they’ve been paid by that dealership to use the music.
What dealership?
Ray Parker Jr. didn’t own the rights to it if I remember right. Huey Lewis sued him for ripping off I Want a New Drug.
The fact that we are talking about it, like it our not, I’d say marketing genius.
I’ve purchased 11 cars from them in the past three months. I can barely afford one of them. Fortunately bad credit=no problem.
I can’t wait for the report, Tim. Your readers want to know! This one does at least.
The only “genius” jingle in Dallas radio history was the one for Dallas Times Herald classifieds. I still remember their phone number.
Huh. Whatever happened to Dallas Times Herald again?
The same dealership’s slogan used to be “______________, the most important name on your car.” In fact, the dealer’s name is the least important name on a car. I’d say the manufacturer is the key identifier in automotive taxonomy.
Then again, if it doesn’t matter what you drive as long as it’s somewhat rarefied, apparently those ubiquitous golden, two-letter stickers on half the mom-movers lumbering about Preston Center get one lots of social mileage. Maybe that’s the most important name on Dallasites’ vehicles. That, or the green dragon inset in the state of Texas. But that’s not as much a name as a logo. I digress…
I agree: misappropriated melodies are travesties of artistic justice. Don’t people have to pay royalties anymore?