General Motors Co. in Detroit is debuting a new marketing campaign as part of the company’s drive to accelerate the mass adoption of electric vehicles. The “Everybody In” campaign is a call to action meant to reflect a movement that’s inclusive and accessible.
One major challenge GM and other automakers face is the lack of a national charging network for EVs. Batteries also can take hours to recharge.
During a presentation this morning, the company said it is debuting a revitalized brand identity designed for a digital-first environment. A new company logo, the fifth iteration since GM’s founding in 1908, features a color gradient of vibrant blue tones evoking the clean skies of a zero-emissions future and the energy of the Ultium platform.
The rounded edges and lower-case font create a more modern, inclusive feel. The underline of the “m” connects to the previous GM logos as well as visually representing the Ultium platform, the automaker’s battery system. And within the negative space of the “m” is a nod to the shape of an electrical plug.
The team of GM designers tasked with creating the new logo considered how to balance the history and trust inherent to the existing design with GM’s vision for the future.
According to Sharon Gauci, GM executive director of global industrial design: “This was a project our team took so personally, not just for ourselves but for the 164,000 employees this logo represents. At every step we wanted to be intentional and deliberate because this logo signifies creative and innovative thinking across the global General Motors family.”
To complement the “Everybody In” campaign and new GM brand identity, the company will launch a new GM.com site on Jan. 11 to share the latest information and stories about GM’s work across electrification, safety, citizenship, and the road to autonomous driving.
“There are moments in history when everything changes. Inflection points. We believe such a point is upon us for the mass adoption of electric vehicles,” says Deborah Wahl, GM global chief marketing officer. “Unlike ever before, we have the solutions, capability, technology, and scale to put everyone in an EV. Our new brand identity and campaign are designed to reflect this.”
The “Everybody In” campaign sets an optimistic and inclusive tone for the company’s EV future and focuses on three themes:
— Exciting a new generation of buyers and accelerating EV adoption;
— Demonstrating GM’s EV leadership, which includes the investment of $27 billion in EV and AV products through 2025 and the launches of 30 new EVs globally by the end of 2025; and
— Highlighting the range, performance, and flexibility of the Ultium platform.
Ultium is the foundation for GM’s next-generation EV lineup, powering everything from mass-market to high-performance vehicles, including the GMC HUMMER EV and Cadillac LYRIQ.
GM’s Ultium platform will be capable of delivering an EV that can go up to 450 miles on a full charge, will power EVs of many sizes, shapes, and price points, and is capable of 0-60 mph performance in as little as three seconds for some models.
“GM has the talent, technology and ambition to advance a safer world for all, help reduce emissions and accelerate toward our all-electric future,” says Wahl. “‘Everybody In’ demonstrates our intent to lead, while inviting others — policymakers, partners, individuals — to play an active role in moving society forward, whether that’s helping to expand infrastructure, advocating for progress in their communities, or simply taking an EV for a test drive to learn about the benefits of EV ownership.”
Influencers who are part of the campaign include Malcolm Gladwell, author of “The Tipping Point,” professional surfer and shark attack survivor Bethany Hamilton, fitness instructor Cody Rigsby, and gamer Erin A. Simon.
In related news, at CES 2021 next week Cadillac will showcase how it worked with companies from outside the automotive industry, including Territory Studio and Rightpoint, a Genpact company, to help reimagine the user interface inside vehicle.
“In designing the user interface for Cadillac, we started with a vision but recognized that we were going to need a fresh perspective and new ways of thinking to turn it into a reality,” says Bill Thompson, GM senior manager, User Interface Design. “That’s where Rightpoint and Territory Studio came into the picture. Both teams are incredibly talented and brought a new perspective that enabled us to design a personalized and elegant user-focused experience.”
Territory Studio brings a deep understanding of narrative design for film, games and brands. Their expertise in near future technology and creative design provided Cadillac with a fresh vision for the future.
“We are excited to be working with the visionary team at GM as technology and innovation bring disruptive changes to the automobile industry,” says Marti Romances, co-founder and creative director, Territory Studio. “As creative specialists, we thrive on future vision challenges, crafting experiences that help people access, understand and benefit from digital technology through intuitive design. Our deep expertise in 2D and 3D real-time graphics allows seamless access to all on-board technologies in safe and precise ways, transforming the in-car experience as connectivity becomes a central part of the experience.”
Rightpoint was brought in to question the expected. With roots in strategy, design and technology, they worked with the team to bring Cadillac’s vision for the future to life in completely new ways.
“Powered by technology new to the automotive industry, we had an opportunity to reimagine the user experience of the Cadillac brand and redefine what luxury is in a digitally enabled world,” says Gabriel Bridger, executive creative director, Rightpoint. “It started with a simple question: Why can’t things work better? With that as our mantra, we created an experience that at once feels intuitive, as well as entirely fresh. The finished product could only exist with tight collaboration with the Cadillac team and a willingness to challenge the expected.”
The recently unveiled Cadillac LYRIQ show car embodies this new direction for the brand. LYRIQ, the luxury brand’s first all-electric SUV, features a massive 33-inch diagonal advanced LED display and offers a customizable user interface designed to deliver a flexible, high-end user experience with display themes to fit the driver’s mood and personality. The large screen wraps toward the driver and information is intuitively displayed where it’s needed most.
Visit GMExhibitZero.com starting Jan. 12 to learn more about Cadillac’s next generation displays.
