Chevrolet Invites Public to Name Volt Color

22nd October 2009

Today, Chevrolet announced a contest to name one of the colors of the upcoming Chevy Volt. The color, which is to be the signature color of the car, is described as “silver exterior with an emerald hue”. There will also be other colors for the Volt when it is introduced in a year, including Black, Silver Ice Metallic, Cyber Gray Metallic, Crystal Red Metallic and a premium White Diamond Tri-Coat. The to-be-named color will be exclusive to the Volt.

“We want to invite consumers into the development process of the Chevy Volt and give people an opportunity to be part of our program,” said Maria Rohrer, director, global Volt and global marketing operations at Chevrolet. “We’re looking for a color name that captures the innovation and spirit of the Volt.”

The contest will award three finalists and a guest roundtrip airfare to Los Angeles, two nights standard hotel accommodations, a $400 gift card and admission to the LA Auto Show on December 2, 2009. The winner will be announced by Chevy on December 1 and be given the opportunity to test-drive the pre-production Volt.

Entrants can submit their color name at www.chevroletvoltage.com through 8:00 a.m. ET on November 4. Chevrolet will choose three finalists among all the entries, based equally on originality, creativity, and the ability to capture the innovation and spirit of the Volt. The finalists will advance to a second round, where consumers will vote for the entries on www.chevroletvoltage.com, starting 8:00 a.m. ET on November 16 and concluding at 8:00 a.m. ET on December 1. Consumers are limited to one vote per person and per internet protocol address during the voting period.

I am stating the obvious here, but this is a cheap publicity stunt. There exists out there a group of people who are really geeked about the Volt. Giving them the opportunity to “help” with the introduction of the car will really get them fired up. In another group, there are some others who are interested in the Volt and its new technology and are looking forward to see how it does. I place myself in this group. The third group, by far the largest, doesn’t know what a Volt is and doesn’t care. Many of them don’t even know or are barely aware of what a Chevy is or what they sell. Anybody reading this is likely not in that 3rd group, but believe me, they exist and I’ve spoken to them. It’s a humbling experience.

This contest seeks to fire up group #1, in the hopes that their enthusiasm will somehow rub off onto group #2 and maybe even to group #3 eventually. Awareness is the holy grail of marketing - automotive and other. If somebody is not aware of your product, they certainly are not going to buy it. Most people couldn’t care less what the name of their car’s color is, much less want a say in that name. However, if Chevy can continue to play this game of keeping the Volt in the public consciousness for ANOTHER year, they will have accomplished a PR feat. The risk, of course, is that the public will be sick of hearing about the Volt before they can even buy one.