One idea or two?

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As you may know, I’m a big advocate of the “idea.” Most advertising usually goes way beyond one idea, trying to stuff 3 and 4 key take-aways into an ad, which invariably makes the advertising fail. 
 
Ford Motor Company is trying desperately to work its way out of a tail spin. Truck sales are still keeping Ford alive, but the new leadership has recognized they need to focus on cars to make a come back. The smartest thing I’ve read about Ford in the last twenty years I read today. All Ford advertising is charged now with doing two things. Not one. And though that makes me a little uneasy and will require great creative discipline, I like what I read. 
 
Ford ads must make drivers “feel something” about Ford and “do something” about Ford. These simple directives are important because they allow the ad makers and ad approvers to look at the work before it’s produced and ask those 2 questions: “What does this ad make me feel? And what does this ad make me do.” If the answer is unclear, the work should be killed. Not having written the brand plan for Ford, I can’t say what the “feel” planks are, but this directive is a great start. And, frankly, oh so simple.