Bridgestone Americas used its 2013 Drive and Learn product introduction – held at the end of March in Las Vegas – to roll out four new tires to dealers and media, as well as recap both Bridgestone and Firestone brand strategies, accomplishments and promotions.

Introduced – and put to the test on the Las Vegas Motor Speedway – were the Bridgestone brand Dueler H/P Sport AS and Potenza RE97AS, while two more tires – the new Bridgestone Pot­enza RE-11A and Blizzak LM-32 – were unveiled but not tested.

The all-season Dueler H/P Sport AS, designed for a wide variety of pickups, SUVs and CUVs, “combines traction and toughness while also providing superior driving performance, comfort and reliability,” the tiremaker said. The new Dueler features a high silica compound for wet traction; high angle slots and circumferential grooves for water evacuation; and a high stiffness closed shoulder for cornering and handling.

The tire is available in 11 H-, V- and W-speed-rated sizes ranging from 17- to 20-inch wheel diameters, and features a 40,000-mile limited treadwear warranty.

The all-season Potenza RE97AS offers quick and responsive handling combined with a smooth, refined ride, according to the tiremaker. The tire also offers high silica content and circumferential grooves, in addition to a finely-tuned tread pattern for upgraded steering feel and responsiveness; stiffened shoulder blocks for improved cornering; and an optimized footprint that promotes even contact pressure for enhanced wear.

The tire, available in 25 sizes ranging from 16- to 19-inch wheel diameters, carries a 55,000-mile limited treadwear warranty for V-rated sizes and a 45,000-mile limited treadwear warranty for W-rated sizes.

Both the Dueler H/P Sport AS and Potenza RE97AS carry Bridgestone’s “Eco-Product Designation,” which signifies the tires offer imp­roved rolling resistance and reduced tire weight, in addition to using “environmentally-conscious” materials, such as non-aromatic oils and recycled materials.

The Blizzak LM-32, designed for luxury sedans and performance vehicles originally fitted with all-season or summer tires, will be available in July in 33 H-, V- and W-speed-rated sizes ranging from 16- to 20-inch wheel diameters. Bridgestone said the tire features specially designed polymers and tread pattern elements to help provide the extra grip and control needed on any winter road.

The new Potenza RE-11A, the tiremaker added, maintains the tread design of the current Potenza RE-11 while providing “an enhanced tread compound designed to provide faster lap times, higher speeds on the track and improved braking and cornering, while maintaining durability.” The tire is available in 10 V- and W-speed-rated sizes ranging from 15- to 18-inch wheel diameters – sizes that focus on sports-compact cars that are recognized favorites among autocross enthusiasts, Bridgestone said.

On the Track
For the launch event, the Dueler H/P Sport AS, fitted to 2013 Porsche Cayennes and 2013 Lexus RX350s, was pitted against the Michelin Latitude Tour HP and Yokohama Parada Spec X in a wet and dry road course. The Potenza RE970AS was put to the test in a wet autocross course, fitted to 2013 Acura TLs, and was compared to the Michelin Pilot HX MXM4.

In addition to the head-to-head comparisons against the competition, several Bridgestone tires – the Ecopia EP 422, Potenza RE97AS and Potenza RE­970AS Pole Position – were used for an “in-line category comparison,” giving participants the opportunity to compare the performance characteristics of all-season touring, performance/all-season touring and UHP all-season tires, respectively. A similar step-up exercise will be featured in the tiremaker’s 2013 Drive and Learn tour, which will make 19 stops in the U.S. and Canada this year.

Both the Vegas launch event and the Drive and Learn tour “are designed to give Bridgestone dealers the experience and credibility to make recommendations and talk about products with their customers,” said Phil Pacsi, vice president of customer marketing and training.
Brand Strategies

Trent Stoner, director of advertising and retail branding, recapped Bridgestone Americas’ new focus on “the boss” – a.k.a. the consumer – a focus the company first introduced at last year’s Consumer Tire Business Meeting in Nashville.

On the Bridgestone side, spring, summer and fall promotions are being paired with a strengthened digital effort and the brand’s continued sports marketing approach, Stoner explained. “We’ve integrated brand, promotional and sports efforts across our digital platforms to build brand awareness and familiarity,” he added.

The Result? Some 2.9 million vid­eo views, more than 585,000 sweepstakes entries, and more than one million website page views in 2012, according to Stoner.

In addition to the Bridgestone “Rethink Green” promotion – which ran April 1-30 and featured the brand’s Ecopia and “Eco Products” – two more promotions are on tap. The summer promo, “Drive 4 Performance,” slated for June 1-30, aims to drive golfers to Bridgestone retailers. Eligible tires include Bridgestone Potenza, Dueler H/P Sport and Dueler H/P Sport A/S lines. The program offers consumers a $70 Mast­er­Card reward card or two dozen Bridgestone Tour B330 golf balls, with a sweepstakes for a trip to the 2013 Bridgestone Invitational in Akron.

Bridgestone’s “Game On!” fall promo, set for Sept. 1-30, offers consumers a $70 Visa reward card or $100 GameStop gift card for eligible purchases of Potenza, Ecopia, Dueler and Turanza lines. The event includes a sweepstakes to win a trip to Super Bowl XLVIII. 

On the Firestone side, Stoner recapped the new “Firestone is a car company” ad campaign, for which the tiremaker partnered with ad firm Leo Burnett. “We told them we’re more than just a tire company and more than just a service company,” he said.

The campaign launched in September 2012 with three 30-second commercials. New for this year are three 15-second commercials. And in February, the company launched a new Firestone website, which includes an all-new online branded merchandise shop, the Firestone Drive Store.

The remaining aspect of the Firestone brand strategy for 2013 is Bridgestone Americas’ partnership with DreamWorks for the movie “Turbo,” about a garden snail who dreams of racing in the Indy 500. Firestone’s “Destination Turbo” promotion, set for May 19 through July 19, offers consumers a $50 MasterCard Reward Card and “Turbo” movie pack. Also tied in with the partnership is a multi-part sweepstakes, with an earlier segment (March 1 through April 31) that awarded a trip to the 2013 Indy 500, and a still-running segment (through Aug. 31) that awards a DreamWorks Royal Cari­bbean Cruise.

“It’s a fully-integrated plan with events, sports, trucks, PR, a nine-week promotion and a five-month sweepstakes,” Stoner said, adding that when it comes to the company as a whole, “At the end of the day, everything we do is to make us matter more than every other brand.”