Sunday, January 27, 2013

Brand Update : Tata Safari rejuvenates through Storme

Tata Safari  which is in a critical stage of its lifecycle has launched the much awaited Storme recently. The new Storme is a completely updated Safari and is expected to bring back the much desired consumer interest .
Tata Safari which is a true-blood Indian SUV failed to capitalize on its long innings and a hard-core fan following. The brand although came up with some wonderful brand campaigns however failed to address the quality issues that nagged the brand from its earlier days. Safari did not have any big mechanical issues but many customers opined that the brand failed to rise itself to the higher standards of quality that the competitors were delivering. But still there were lovers for the brand because Safari had a character which was unique and appealing to certain customers.

Despite the fact that Safari had a distinct brand character, the marketing minds of Tata Motors failed to address the quality issues which was creating a negative perception among the consumers. The laid-back approach of Tata Motors in addressing the nagging issues of Safari virtually put Safari in  to the sidelines .
Safari also failed to see the changes happening to the SUV market in India. The brand failed to see the rise of more compact SUVs and was less aggressive in addressing competition from Scorpio. The laid-back attitude of the brand owners has virtually made Safari a nominal player in a category which it once pioneered.
Although the brand tried to come out with newer versions, most of the changes were cosmetic rather than a radical one.

The new Safari Storme is reported to be a 100% new vehicle rather than a modified Safari. The entire product has been changed for the better. One can only hope that Storme will change the quality perception that is haunting Tata Motors ever since it ventured in to passenger segment.
What is sad about the new Safari is the promotion. Tata Motors has decided to do away with the " Reclaim Your Life " positioning of Safari. Instead, the brand has the tagline " The Real SUV" which I think has undone what ever brand equity which the earlier campaigns has built.
The new " Real SUV " campaign does not give any power to the brand.The promise should be believed by the consumers. In the new market where all global SUV brands are present, Safari's claim to be the Real SUV is only a joke. I don't understand why and how a brand can just discard a powerful story like " Reclaim your life " .
Watch the new campaign here : Safari Storme
The new tagline is big downer for the brand. The brand suddenly switched to a functional positioning from a highly abstract positioning . This sudden shift may confuse the brand's positioning in future.

Tata Motors should be appreciated for investing in Safari and making it survive for the last 15 years. The brand is now pinning its hope on Storme for delivering results. As a die-hard Safari admirer, I too hope the same.


10 comments:

  1. Anonymous3:40 PM

    Hello People the Beast has taken his roads to ride on…the latest TVC of the Safari Storme is just awesome. It is the True SUV the Real SUV. Check out the TVC here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mo9XKeYS–Y&list=UUwqj19GU5i17RXJ431nojWg&index=1

    Read more: http://indianautosblog.com/2013/01/the-tata-safari-storme-tvc-61688#ixzz2JGP7TYbJ

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  2. Anonymous4:29 PM

    The Safari Storme is the Real SUV...nothing can Beat the BEAST. check the new TVC http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mo9XKeYS--Y&list=UUwqj19GU5i17RXJ431nojWg&index=1

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  3. I am agree with your take on Tata Motors new SUV ad. They have dumped the strong brand equity it had created with the earlier ads Reclaimed your life. In fact I loved the earlier ads more and felt was much stronger than this new one The real SUV. Tata Motors should had somehow tried to squeeze in some connection with the Reclaim your life ad and take some leverage in the positioning the 15 year old brand.

    If we have to compare with the new Mahendra ad Live young live free. It's much more stronger appeal even though they are targeted towards the younger consumers.

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  4. Hey guys,
    Wanted to share some stuff with you. I used Vistaprint for some embroidered t-shirts with logo. Damn impressed. Check it out if you can.

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  5. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  6. Anonymous4:05 PM

    Thanks for sharing the information, but I still find original tata safari 2.2vtt dicor better.

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  7. I prefer old tata safari dicor over news one.

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  8. Thanks for sharing the information, but I still find original tata safari 2.2vtt dicor better.

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  9. Jinesh Damodaran4:58 PM

    There will be a tough competition for Storme. Apart from Scorpio, Duster by Renault will compete more in terms of pricing. Duster I assume starts from 7.8*-12* lakhs delivering a mileage it claims to deliver 20 kmpl in diesel. On the other hand Mahindra XUV 500 which costs more than Storme claims 12-14 kmpl which is similar to Storme. I would agree on your views about the new positioning. Generally an automobile brand move ahead to an abstractual based positioning once its existing functional based positioning is fully accepted in the market. Strangely Tata Motors has reversed the concept. 'Reclaim your life' was like a new avatar (Dicor) to old Safari but sadly couldn't raise to the next level. 'Reclaim your life' sounded macho and did gel well with its attributes. Comparing Storme and Duster's positioning,'Big, Beautiful.' sounds more sensible than 'A real SUV'.

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  10. Yes Harish
    I totally agree with you that 'Reclaim your life' was such a powerful story. Infact, I think it's one of the best ad lines ever. And it almost has a universal connect. Too bad it got replaced with such a drab liner like 'the real SUV' - absolutely bland and no story at all in it.

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