Ron Burgundy Sells Durangos--Really

Ron Burgundy--the dim-witted 1970s anchorman from the 2004 movie Anchorman--is coming back to movie theaters just before Christmas.
And what better way to get publicity for his unique personal style than to have Ron endorse the Dodge Durango? Above, Ron delivers a pitch for the redesigned Durango's roomy glove box, a 1970s guy impressed by a 21st century vehicle.

Will Ferrell, appearing as Ron Burgundy, filmed dozens of such commercials as part of the publicity for his new Anchorman 2 movie. Check the YouTube channel to see more in the series.

The target market is Millennials--and this offbeat campaign, launched early in October, is making a real difference in awareness, brand preference, and sales. Within a few days, the Ron Burgundy videos were viral, viewed nearly 3 million times as they became a social media phenom.

Edmunds.com, the car shopping site, says searches for the Durango increased dramatically after Ron's commercials began airing. Dodge's online numbers are way up as well: "We've seen almost an 80 percent increase in Web traffic alone since the campaign launched," confirms the head of the Dodge brand. Dodge's Facebook page is drawing more attention, too.

Ron's lame attempts to sell are actually boosting Durango where it counts the most: Vehicle sales are up by 50% this year, in part because of the new commercials.

Although Chrysler didn't pay Ferrell, it did pay to air the commercials on TV. Everybody wins: Ferrell builds anticipation for his next film, Chrysler builds sales for Durango, and consumers laugh out loud at Ron's clueless commentary.