Detroit & Michigan have lost the business PR battle

[lilpup]

There was a quote used in a NPR news report about GM today that made me realize how badly Detroit and Michigan have lost the PR battle in the business world. An IHS Global Insight analyst used the phrase "Detroitcentric thinking" pejoratively when commenting on GM's current corporate culture, saying that is still needs more change. I realize NPR news in general is not friendly toward American auto manufacturers but their negativity seems to be getting presented more frequently and less subtly and that's got to have an impact on their nationwide audience that doesn't have other experience to counter it.

Detroit and Michigan need a Pure Michigan style campaign to tout what's been done here and what's still going on in terms of tech, education, opportunity, etc. I'm so tired of hearing other places and business sectors presented as the be all and end all of success as if nothing else matters. If they're all so great why is the patent office coming here?

[Don K]

I worked at Ford for 29 years, and I saw the Detroitcentric thinking first hand so many times I can't count them all, and I'm sure the attitude was the same at GM and Chrysler. For a long time after the Detroit companies lost the interest of a large number of American car buyers, we pretended we had nothing to learn from Stuttgart, Munich, Tokyo, Nagoya, Hiroshima, and now Seoul. Then when we did some innovative designs [[e.g., the '86 Taurus), we hung onto them too long and drove them into the ground, turning them into cars only fit for giving away to rental companies. Then we gave up on cars and turned to SUV's, pretending that gas would always be $1/gallon, and that no foreign company could ever design an SUV that Americans would buy. For a long time the Detroit companies had themselves convinced that they really understood what American buyers wanted, long after it was clear that the foreign companies had a combination of features that real Americans valued more.

I will always bleed Ford blue, and I really want the Detroit area and Michigan to find prosperity again, but in my mind the way to do that is to produce the best vehicles we can at a competitive price. Once we do that people will buy our Fiestas and Focuses and Cruzes and 200's and be bragging about how good they are.

[lilpup]

Did you see the NY Times piece the other day asking where the Chinese cars are - Why aren't they here yet? On the same day they ran a piece touting a BYD model - that just happens to run on battery power until depletion when a gas engine kicks in [["Chevy Volt with a Wal-Mart price tag").

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/20/au...ef=automobiles

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/20/au...ef=automobiles

[lilpup]

My point, though, is that "Detroit" is getting increasingly widely used [[not just locally) as "failure" no matter what the subject is and there seems to be active delight in the cutting down, as if NOTHING good or intelligent goes on here. That's what needs to be counteracted. Other places screw up left and right yet don't come anywhere near whipping boy status like Detroit does [[and Michigan, to a lesser extent).

[sirrealone]

I don't think we need an advertising campaign. We just need to keep our noses clean and do the right thing. This will get noticed. If the Detroit 3 can consistently produce high quality models that customers want and make money doing so, this will get noticed. If the mayor and city council members can show leadership and stay out of jail, this will get noticed. If areas of the city can show growth and innovation, this will get noticed. If Michigan as a whole [[which is interchangeable to Detroit for most people outside of the midwest) can stop being the only state in the country that loses population, stop having young people leave as soon as they get their degree, this will get noticed.

All of these things take time but I'm an eternal optimist when it comes to Detroit and Michigan [[I'm also an eternal optimist when it comes to the Lions and that seems to finally be headed in the right direction, maybe), but I think the can get done. An advertising campaign like Pure Michigan works because it shows the beauty that's already there. Before we can do a similar campaign we have to first make Detroit and Michigan appear beautiful and take away the underlying reasons that lead to this type of scorn. I believe it can get done and is getting done.

[iheartthed]

Is this about the Detroit business community or the auto industry? Because those are two different things.

[Lowell]

I worked at Ford for 29 years, and I saw the Detroitcentric thinking first hand so many times I can't count them all, and I'm sure the attitude was the same at GM and Chrysler. For a long time after the Detroit companies lost the interest of a large number of American car buyers, we pretended we had nothing to learn from Stuttgart, Munich, Tokyo, Nagoya, Hiroshima, and now Seoul. Then when we did some innovative designs [[e.g., the '86 Taurus), we hung onto them too long and drove them into the ground, turning them into cars only fit for giving away to rental companies. Then we gave up on cars and turned to SUV's, pretending that gas would always be $1/gallon, and that no foreign company could ever design an SUV that Americans would buy. For a long time the Detroit companies had themselves convinced that they really understood what American buyers wanted, long after it was clear that the foreign companies had a combination of features that real Americans valued more.

Don K nails it. These companies displayed a mix of hubris and complacency with contempt for the direction of the public mood and broader social trends. This was most egregious with GM and the poster child for this 'Detroitcentric' thinking was the Hummer. It exuded arrogance and was exactly the opposite direction from which the company needed to be going both for its survival and for its public image.

A dark-tint windowed Hummer became the picture of GM, a loud, over-weight, over-priced, "I-can-crush-you", road-hogging, gas-hogging monster that said, "I don't care what you think, want or need and it doesn't matter that our troops are dying in the Middle East to feed me or if CO2 emissions are leading to global warming."

Think of what might have been if the billions wasted on that fiasco were put into developing a quality, energy efficient and / or alternate fuel vehicles.

Then they get in trouble and what do they do? They fly to Washington in private jets to sidle up to the public tit for a bail-out when they should have been driving there in their most fuel efficient models.

They just didn't get it and there can be little wonder the tag Detroitcentric arose. [Unfair to smear on the rest of Detroit, but that is what happens when a few overpaid millionaire exectives with their heads up their backsides wreck a company. WallStreetcentric is actually a closer description.]

On the positive side, I do believe they have taken their spanking and learned. This was obvious at this year's autoshow and in other behavior. As for PR, the Eminem Chrysler 'imported from Detroit' ad is the new face and a good approach. It says 'We f***** up, we learned, we hear you and we are working hard.

Good topic lilpup.

[canuck]

What do you get when you cross a Beemer and a Hummer?

[canuck]

You are absolutely right DonK and Lowell about the arrogance these companies displayed. Although the Japanese and German makers have also turned their attention to bigger cars for a long time now. But it would have been good policy to make more and better small cars for the big three. If it werent for the regulatory aspects of auto manufacturing, we would be driving rolling coffins like in the sixties. But there is still space to regulate on wasteful cars and trucks. The same debate goes for wasted land in suburbs everywhere, the balance between the pursuit of liberty and social good that we cant quite achieve. And now we have exported our North American values to places like India and China... Wish us Good Luck...

[Mr. Houdini]

The difference between Detroit's failure and that of other cities is that Detroit has failed spectacularly on a grand scale for a very long time with no signs of not failing anytime soon. I was born in Detroit in 1967 and I cannot honestly say that detroit has ever been a successful city in my lifetime. 44 years! And it was failing before '67.

I left the Detroit area and Michigan two years ago when I realized the city/area most likely will not be improving to any relevant level for another 44 years. Seriously, what are the chances of an overnight success happening there even in 10 - 20 years? I want better for myself and my children. I don't want to spend my life wishing. You shouldn't either. Do something Detroiters and do it now, or else save yourselves and get out.

[detroittruth]

Agreed. Nobody is gonna stand up for us but us. Chrysler got the ball rolling, we need more publicity like that!

[canuck]

The difference between Detroit's failure and that of other cities is that Detroit has failed spectacularly on a grand scale for a very long time with no signs of not failing anytime soon. I was born in Detroit in 1967 and I cannot honestly say that detroit has ever been a successful city in my lifetime. 44 years! And it was failing before '67.

I left the Detroit area and Michigan two years ago when I realized the city/area most likely will not be improving to any relevant level for another 44 years. Seriously, what are the chances of an overnight success happening there even in 10 - 20 years? I want better for myself and my children. I don't want to spend my life wishing. You shouldn't either. Do something Detroiters and do it now, or else save yourselves and get out.

Well I have to agree about failure in terms of Detroit administrations not looking at opportunities outside the odd-o-motive industry. Maybe the civic and state leaders had a joined arrogance in defining what a city's success could be. There were many alarm bells ringing all along and what did urban planning schools propose?

[fryar]

I'm just chiming in real quick to support the idea that "Detroitcentric" is a reference to the auto industry in this article, with Detroit being used as a metronym for the Big 3.

And to join in the harping on, ahem, "Detroit." The metronym. I shudder to think of the positive driving experiences that will influence the future buying decision of some upwardly mobile city dweller whose occasional driving experience is limited by the Zipcars available in the neighborhood. Hardly a "Detroit" car amongst them. Which goes to the point about "Detroitcentric" group-think.

It does look like they have changed their tune, finally.

Anyway, nobody's talking about the city or metro proper, in my opinion.

[Richard]

Well lets look at this from an "outsiders " view of wanting to bring a factory to Detroit and this has been the results.

Governor = No reply
Medc = Half hearted reply
Mayor = No reply
City council members = no reply
City of Detroit= 2 Weeks of calling with no answer and full mailboxes so no message can be left no replies to emails.
UM = No reply , It is very common for joint venture relationships with university research and bringing new technology to market.
Wayne state = no reply
But an out of state university is interested in co joining forces .
Local structural engineers = We are to busy to look at this project, so an out of state structural engineer had to be flown in.

So other then the members on this forum and one young man within the city of Detroit named Timothy who was professional,courteous ,and could tell me exactly what I needed to do and sent me the required information via email with in minutes it is extremely tough for a business to even begin looking at locating within the state or even Detroit.

When compared to two other states this is a Michigan only thing,now what is the quality of life for potential employees? While Detroit has been eating her weak other states have been taking their weak and training them in the manufacturing and technology fields and have become a formable force.

So right now the positive things are.
New mayor in place to curb past corruption is in place but he is hanging onto a rung with no support under him.

There are a few holdouts within the city employ that are willing to go the extra mile to make things happen.

There are even if retired design engineers , highly experienced manufacturing mentors and hopefully a labor force that would take pride in their work that could be put in place to speed up production capabilities verses a trained but not experienced workforce.

Contrary to what is published in print this website does prove that there are still people that care dearly about the city they live in and that in it self shows there is still hope. But there is a serious lack of leadership going on that is hurting the city and state,what ever happened to working together to achieve a common goal ?

You could build an impressive and massive PR campaign but without being to be able to back it up what have you accomplished.

But there is positive progress happening albeit at a slow pace and there is still hope which helps to make a gamble a bit less risky.