The bottom has fallen out of the pickup truck market-bad news for domestic automakers, but especially for Ford Motor, which has the unfortunate task of trying to launch its next-generation F-150 pickup in the face of $4 gas and a stumbling economy. In May for the first time, the F series, once the bestselling vehicle in America, was outsold by a car, the compact Honda Civic. The redesigned F-150 won't be any easier to sell; it appears brawnier than ever and is offered only with a V-8 engine. So how do you market these things? Ford says it might tweak ads to stress value and fuel economy more (the 2009 gets lmpg better fuel economy than the current F-150). But it's sticking by its message-that the new F-150 makes workers more productive. We asked some advertising experts for their two cents.
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