How Fiat Repositioned Themselves

What are the three words that pop up in your mind when you think of Fiat?

Small, affordable, and… boring.

After watching a Fiat ad today that announced their repositioning, I scratched the word boring, and replace it with cool.

What Led To The 180 Positioning?

Fiat announced they’ll no longer produce cars that are painted grey.

But what sold the story was their new colorful ad that introduced the repositioning to customers.

The storytelling in the ad masterfully secures a new position in consumers’ minds for Fiat.

The strategy Fiat used for introducing the new positioning is something highlighted by Al Ries and Jack Trout in their classic book, Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind.

Because the mind tends to filter out unfamiliar new information, if you want to introduce a new positioning, you need to position it against something people are already familiar with.

Here’s the ad frame by frame and how it repositions FIAT.

Position Against Competitors That Prospects Know Well.

Say What You Are Not To Highlight What You Are

So to tie back to its brand heritage as an Italian brand, Fiat will no longer produce grey cars.

Because unlike Germany, Japan, or France, Italy is the land of colors, and Fiat is the brand of colors.

“Positioning is not what you do to a product. Positioning is what you do to the mind of the prospect. That is, you position the product in the mind of the prospect.”

Voila! That’s precisely what Fiat achieved through this ad.