The Best or Nothing

I'm on record as absolutely hating Jon Hamm as the voice of Mercedes-Benz. He's awful. He sounds like a guy pretending to be a pitchman. His insincerity fills your ears in a way that makes you want to take a sledgehammer to Jon Hamm's Mercedes.

But let's look beyond the awfulness of Jon Hamm to the awfulness of the Mercedes campaign.

"THE BEST OR NOTHING."

Now I get that Mercedes is trying to position that statement as, "We will settle for nothing less than the best car we can build. We will not sacrifice quality or safety. We will build the best car on the road." To put it another way, "If you are asking for the best, it is Mercedes," or "If you would only settle for the best, you would only settle for a Mercedes." But the statement is two-fold, and Mercedes deliberately put it out there that way.


If I can't have a Mercedes, I'll take the bus. Or I'll walk. Or I'll ride my bike. I must have a Mercedes.

BMW?
No way.
Audi.
Nope.
OK, OK, I'll get you the Maserati.
NO! NO! NO! It's Mercedes - or NOTHING!.

Bridgestone Tires does this same thing. "It's Bridgestone or Nothing."

Really? You'd rather have no tires on your car if you can't have Bridgstone Tires?

May I say something here? You're an idiot.

Selling a luxury brand is not that hard. You don't need to resort to such childish declarations. Exclusivity is one thing, over-the-top hyperbole another thing entirely. This is lazy.