Ford Flex vs Mini Cooper

Here's the review of our test drive of the Ford Flex. I really enjoyed the Flex and its smooth, quiet, comfortable ride. The Sony sound system rocks, and the kids loved the sky windows and the build in refrigerator. But most importantly, here's how it compared to my Mini Cooper:

If you would like a more detailed view of some of the Flex's features, check out David Lee King's review of the exact same Flex.

Ford Flexing

This weekend we had the pleasure of test driving the new Ford Flex thanks to Social Media Group and Ford Motor Company.  I asked on Twitter if anyone had any clever suggestions for "special" tests we should run on the Flex.  That's when @erindowney introduced me to @davidleeking because he had just tested the exact same Flex (no lie) a few weeks before us.    

David wrote a nice overview of the process and listed several reasons why he accepted the Ford Flex challenge.  His were far more nobel than mine.  I just thought is sounded like fun.  And it was.  The car was delivered right to our house on Friday, so Gina and I could take it to Jazzoo.  

Then we spent the weekend comparing it to my Mini Cooper and shooting an American Idol Ford music video parody.  My goal this week is to get those videos edited as soon as possible as for my next few blog posts.  

Brand Alignment | Part II Some Examples

Here are a few follow-up examples to the recent Observation Paper on Brand Alignment. First, examples that are in perfect alignment:

• "The most dedicated and nicest drive through clerk I have ever met," says a customer describing a loyal Jack in Box Associate.
• Green Day just got their picture on the cover of the Rolling Stone for 15 years of brand alignment.
• The new Star Trek movie is a nicely aligned refresh of the Star Trek brand.

And now a couple of examples of behaviors that are out of alignment with the represented brand:

• Air Force One flyover in New York City - in fact it was so out of alignment, it resulted in the resignation of White House Military Office Director Louis Caldera.
• Carrie Prejean represents the brand of Miss California. As John Tantillo argues in his article, whether you agree with her or not, her strong political stance is not in alignment with the Miss California brand that stands for diplomacy and leadership.
• Jamie Lee Curtis (the winner of TWO Golden Globes) has become The Activia Lady.
• And according to The Onion, the new Star Trek movie which is fun and watchable and totally out of alignment with the Star Trek brand of dated and cornball.