Naming the Edsel

Presented by:Siddharth Mishra(10dm10) Chandan Mallik(10dmo30) Sourav Dutta(10dm037) Abhishek Dutta(10dm084)

Background
The Edsel was an automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company during the 1958, 1959, and 1960 model years. Price range ($2400-$5000) for a September 1957 launch. Spent over $250 million in advertising that year. The new car began under the name "E car", which stood for "experimental car . Unique design features : front grille, wide horizontal wings on the back, push buttons on the steering wheel.

Market Research
To inform the optimal positioning for the E-Car. Conclusion was that the cars are the means to sort of a dream fulfillment. Personality of the E-Car.

Process:* Examined the personalities of competitive cars * Hired the Columbia University Bureau of Applied Social Research

Finding:Three core products meanings masculinity, youthfulness and speed  Extensive naming research was also conducted under David Wallace

End of the Edsel

The E-car was ultimately named the Edsel Launched in September 1957 and discontinued in November 1959 But sales quickly fell short of forecast 1958 - production was 63,110 1959 - production was 44,891 1960 production was only 2,846 In total only 110,847 cars were built before the car was taken off the market.

The prime reason behind the cause of the car s demise was the brand name itself.

Edsel, a naming dilema!(1/3)

Ford ran internal studies to decide on a name, and even dispatched employees to stand outside movie theaters to poll audiences as to what their feelings were on several ideas. They reached no conclusions. Ford retained the advertising firm Foote, Cone and Belding to come up with a name. However, when the advertising agency issued its report, citing over 6,000 possibilities, Ford's Ernest Breech commented that they had been hired to develop a name, not 6,000. Early favorites for the name brand included Citation, Corsair, Pacer, and Ranger, which were ultimately chosen for the vehicle's series names.

Edsel, a naming dilemna!(2/3)

David Wallace, manager of marketing research unofficially invited freethinker poet Marianne Moore for input and suggestions. Moore's unorthodox contributions (among them "Utopian Turtletop", "Pastelogram", "Turcotinga" and "Mongoose Civique") were meant to stir creative thought and were not officially authorized or contractual in nature.

Edsel, a naming dilemna!(2/3)

At the behest of Ernest Breech, who was chairing a board meeting in the absence of Henry Ford II, the car was finally called "Edsel" in honor of Edsel Ford, former company president and son of Henry Ford. They launched 4 variants of it taking these 4 names from the 4 shortlisted names by Foote, Cone and Belding .

Outcome Edsel or Edson or Dead Cell

Marketing surveys later found the name was thought to sound like the name of a tractor (Edson) and therefore was unpopular with the public. Moreover, several consumer studies showed that people associated the name "Edsel" with "weasel" and "dead cell" (dead battery), drawing further unattractive comparisons.