German car giant BMW has outraged motorists with a controversial “bull *** t” online marketing video that critics say mocks its biggest baby boomers and denigrates one of the flagship limousines most successful of the firm: the classic series 7.
It can also reach sales, as motorists turn to social media to say they took the insults “personally” and would not buy any other BMWs.
One commented, “It’s like they really HATE people who have one of their oldest cars. And by ‘older,’ I mean done before 2017.”
The offensive video, created to highlight the high-tech BMW iDrive smart system in its new iX electric sports utility vehicle, has infuriated and baffled consumers who have questioned what the engine giant wants to achieve by undermining its proud attack. a legendary car that helped consolidate the company’s success.
He also seems to provoke intergenerational conflicts, portraying baby boomers (born 1946 to 1964) as an angry, narrow-minded, unheard-of mud generation, condemning modern ideas as a “bull.” *** t ‘, and evokes the answer: “It’s almost impossible to talk to your generation.”
The video was posted on BMW’s website and shared on social media, including Twitter and YouTube, as part of its participation in the high-profile Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2021) currently taking place in line.
But it has been dismissed as a cruelly condescending and “awakened” message that has motivated some to go on social media to say they would not buy another BMW.
It even caused an owner to wonder if “everyone in Munich’s marketing department is hopelessly hooked on crack?”
Critics point out that the history of the baby boomer generation, with advances made since the ‘permissive’ 1960s in all areas of social, political, cultural and technological life, show that this interpretation cannot be further from the truth. the truth.
Some longtime BMW customers turned to social media to proclaim that as a result of these attitudes, they would be looking elsewhere to buy their next car, with one saying bluntly, “We’re out “.
The video clip, designed to promote the latest version of iDrive that will appear on the upcoming iX electric SUV, has been posted on YouTube and the BMW website and shared on social media
In a statement, Munich-based BMW said: “This film was created by BMW AG to highlight the evolution of iDrive over the last 20 years, as the next-generation system will be unveiled in the spring.
“However, this clip is intended for certain global markets and is not available in the UK or the US.”
However, the statement seems to fly in the face of the facts.
Ignore the fact that BMW uses Twitter is eagerly read around the world and especially in the UK and US.
It also raises the question of why the characters in the car involved spoke English and with American accents.
He also disagrees with the fact that BMW explicitly states on its website and in its publications that the clip is directly connected to the Consumer Electronics Show organized by the United States.
BMW later confirmed that the offensive video had been posted on BMW’s global Twitter account, @BMW, managed by parent company BMW AG in Munich and accessible to users anywhere in the world, including the UK and the United States.
However, it appears that BMW weapons in the UK and US were trying to distance themselves from the move, as the video was not broadcast by national Twitter accounts (@BMW_UK and @BMWUSA) specifically for customers of these places.
The line follows a previous BMW controversy in November, when the company’s marketing gurus posted a tweet in response to an individual’s criticism of the iX style on YouTube, denigrating alleged older customers with the “OK, boomer” button, causing a big reaction.
Commentators questioned the reasons behind the tweet, especially considering that baby boomers account for about half of BMW’s sales, mostly in the key U.S. market.
On three occasions, the old “grumpy” BMW repeats the same explosive in the fantastic conversation between the two cars
BMW’s latest video promotion uses over-explanation
In the center of the new row is an online video that aims to show a fantastic argument between two rival BMWs in one of the company’s car parks: a new iX electric utility vehicle, electric and newly launched, and a historic gasoline-powered one. -2001 limousine series – making face-to-face bumpers. Both have American accents.
The implication seems to be that the iX represents the present and the future, while the 7 series – and its customer base – should be confined to the past.
As if to reinforce this point, the voice of the 7 Series is portrayed as an old, greyish, grumpy, naughty man with old-fashioned, fixed, inflexible attitudes who only likes “real cars,” repeatedly rejecting modern technology. as a “bull” *** t ‘, and describes 21st century electric vehicles as “toy cars.”
In stark contrast, the iX’s character is of a “smarter, better” and seemingly enlightened young female voice who refers to the older car as a “grandfather” who has been sniffing the bomb. of gas for too long ”and that he says without concessions. : “Your time is up.”
The award-winning BMW 7 series has for decades been the flagship of the BMW range, loved by industry captains and successful businessmen, and with armored versions even used by Downing Street and the Metropolitan Police during the Blair years in the government and beyond.
But everyone who expects a gesture respectful of the past is surprised.
At one point, the female-voiced iX tells the older male car, “Of course you don’t understand. It’s almost impossible to talk to your generation. With me, anyone can talk.
He adds: ‘I am the smart personal assistant. Do you know what I mean? Intelligent. ‘
The older generation’s grumpy car can only respond angrily with “bull *** t” and “bull bull t ***”.
The best thing you can offer in response is “I can drive very fast.”
Then the new car emits more turns, such as “just don’t listen.”
The tone and content of the short film has infuriated BMW motorists and customers of all ages, who also claim that the BMW 7 Series classic is, in any case, a much more elegant proposition than the naughty new iX with its giant cartoon-like grate.
Hilton Holloway, the motoring leader, who writes in Autocar, the world’s oldest automotive magazine, bluntly said of BMW, “All the old people aren’t up to date is amazing.”
A Twitter user, Matt Robinson, asked, “WHAT are you trying to convey? That BMW’s new and horrible products are nice, self-satisfied asshats? That their old cars are all GAMMON ?! It’s just AWESOME. And yet I’m makes you want an E65 760Li.
He added: “It’s like they really hate people who own one of their oldest cars. And by ‘older,’ I mean done before 2017. Honestly, I take this video personally. I was a BMW man for YEARS. Never month.’
He later asked if the reason for the bizarre video marketing was because “everyone in Munich’s marketing department is hopelessly hooked on crack?”.
Richard Aucock, president of the respected UK Automobile Writers Guild, also highlighted BMW’s “bull *** t” video, calling it “crazy”, and added: “With the hope that some marketing experts can correct me and explain to me why this is really key. breaking genius “.
Another Twitter user, “Bahnstormer Tom,” said, “What do BMWs do? Don’t dial a 760Li and your assets like that and get out of it. I’ve owned more BMWs than any other brand and I feel like they’ve completely alienated people like me. “I’ll never buy a new BMW. Strange marketing strategy. That said, it made us talk.”
Simon Charlesworth, in an allusive reference to businessman Gerald Ratner, who saw his business disregard after dismissing the jewels his company sold to gullible customers as “shit,” said: and it would all be incredible for Gerald Ratner. “
Another, Colin Isaac, said, “One wonders if they hired Gerald Ratner as a brand consultant …?”
A critic posted on Twitter the last BMW slogan – “The ultimate driving machine” – disassembled and rewritten to read: “The ultimate WOKE machine”.
Andy Sherrat posted, “I’m starting to think Mercedes or Audi are paying for BMW’s social content right now. I can’t find an alternative justification!
Automotive industry chief executive Philip Hale said, “If BMW were a person, I would be convinced it was in the middle of a half-life crisis.”
Alan Bradley replied, “If BMW were a person, I would think I would have spent too much time in the White House.”
Private rental car chief James R. Williams said, “My 1460-year-old 760 Li drives very well and can take me to the south of France with a few minutes on a petrol pump. The rookie has a lot to go through. before you can offer this performance “.
Ananda Roy said: “After 15 years of owning several BMWs, almost all of them, from the specified new ones to our needs and usually 2/3 cars at home, are out. It happened organically. M ‘I love driving dynamics, but others have also come a long way and the interiors and exterior design are weird.’
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