Fiat : It is the Service, Stupid !

Corporate Brand : Fiat
Brand Analysis Count : 525

World's 7th largest automotive company, a company that markets iconic brands like Ferrari , a company whose diesel engine powers the best selling hatchback ( marketed by a competitor) is having a market share of ~0.3 % share in World's 5th largest automobile market. Isn't it ironic !

Fiat had so far three avatars  in the Indian market. In its first avatar , the company licensed its product to an Indian company Premier Automobile Ltd. Premier sold these cars under the brand name Premier Padmini and Premier 118 NE. That was in the early 1990s.

In the next avataar, Fiat came to India as Fiat India Automobile ltd ( FIAL) in 1997 . During those times, the company launched Fiat Uno in India. The product although  had a dream launch with over 30,000 booking , the dream went sour since Fiat's partner PAL couldn't deliver the orders. The lack of delivery created a backlash from the customer. 

Besides once the product was in the market, there was a feeling that Fiat bought an outdated model to India.

In 1997, Fiat formed a JV with Tata Motors to jointly manufacture and distribute cars in India. Under the JV, Tata Motors would allow Fiat to use its dealers for selling the Fiat models. The Fiat engines were inturn used in Tata Motors models like Indica, Manza etc.

Fiat launched Palio during these times. Palio initially gained lot of customer attention. The brand was endorsed by Sachin Tendulkar. The car earned a reputation for being a very sturdy car with a good engine. During this time a sedan brand Sienna was also launched. But yet again, Fiat was not able to build on the momentum generated by the initial launch of these cars. 

In the  early 2010, the company launched two modern models Fiat Punto and Fiat Linea. These cars had drop-dead gorgeous looks and like any other Fiat launches, gained lot of customer interest but again the take -off in sales never happened. 

In 2012, the Tata Motors -Fiat JV collapsed. According to newsreports, Fiat is now on its solo life in India and has incorporated Fiat Group Automobiles India Pvt Ltd as a fully owned subsidiary . 

It is interesting to note that India's best selling car brands run on Fiat's engines. The best sellers like Maruti Swift , Dzire, Indica, Manza all run on Fiat engines but how come Fiat is not able to produce a best-seller. 

Only one reason- commitment. Fiat so far was trying to avoid committing itself to Indian market. It never had a serious intention to build itself in the Indian market. When companies like Ford, Tata Motors, Maruti etc had took pains to establish dealerships and service centres all across the country, Fiat opted to take a short-cut by roping in partners who never delivered. 

Service is a very big component in the decision making process of a car buyer. Its common sense that Indian consumers who typically kept a car for more than five years ( earlier even 15 years) look for a trusted brand who offered good service back-up. That is why despite all short-comings, Maruti still rules the Indian market with more than 60% share
Fiat's biggest mistake was its lack of service support for the consumers. It had all the time to build a robust network atleast in the key markets. But rather than that Fiat outsourced a very critical component of a automobile brand's building block.
Fiat had realised this and is now building its own channels and it is not easy. Concurrently, the brand is trying to build its trust back through campaigns pitching its two models Punto and Linea.
Watch the ad here ; Fiat Corporate campaign
Fiat has taken the slogan " Make the Move" urging consumers to take the leap of faith and buy a Punto or a Linea. But Faith needs to be built in the mind of the consumers through actions and ads only serves to reinforce the faith.

Fiat, due to its lack of commitment  , was never in the choice list in the buying process of an average Indian consumer. The typical reaction was " the car is good but I am worried about service ". It takes lot of time and effort to change that. 

Brand Taglines : G to L

Brand Slogans and taglines ( G to L)

G

1. Gatorade : World's No 1 Sports Drink
2. Gariner : Take Care
3. Grasim Suitings  : For the self made
4. Graviera : Feel of Life
5. Gems ( Cadbury) : Rangeen Panda ka Rangeen Pasand
6. Gillette : The best a man can get
7. Go Cheese : 100 % Cow's Milk
8. Golgappa ( Parle) : Goli mein Golgappa
9. Getz ( Hyundai) : Getz You
10. Gold Winner : G For H, Gold Winner for Health

H

1. Horlicks : Taller Stronger Sharper/Family Nourisher
2. Hippo :Hippo Fights Hunger
3. Hero Motocorp : Hum Mein hain Hero
4. Hyundai : New Thinking , New Possibities
5. Honda  : The power of dreams
6. Happy Jam : Makes Everybody Happy 
7. Halls : Thandi Saans ka Blast
8. Hanes : America's No 1 Apparel Brand
9. HP : Computer is personal again
10. Harpic : Ready for Harpic Challenge ?
11. Havells' ECB : Shock Laga Kya ?

I

1. Idea : An Idea can change your life
2. ICICI Bank : Khayal Aapka
3. Indigo ( Tata) : A Class apart
4. Indica (Tata) : More car per car/ Sedan class ( Vista)
5. Indigo Airlines : On Time is a Wonderful Thing
6. Intel : Intel Inside / Sponsors of Tomorrow
7. Infosys : Building Tomorrow's Enterprise
8. Indigo Nation : Young Like That
9. IFB: Set Yourself Free 
10. Imperial Leather : Everyday Luxury
11. Inkfruit : Always On
12. ING Vysia Life : Mera Farz
13. IFFKO Tokyo : The life you desire

J

1. Jazz ( Honda)  : Why So Serious
2. J Hampstead : Nothing but the best
3. John Miller (readymades) : Good looking Rascal , Make it look easy
4. Johnny Walker : Keep Walking
5. Jeeva  : The complete Ayurvedic Soap
6. Jaguar : As Alive as you are
7. JK Tyre : Total Control
8. J&K bank : Serving to empower
9. Jumpin ( Godrej) : Peeke sub kahe mmmm/Sip sip mein boing boing
10. Joy Alukkas Jewellers : World's Favorite Jeweler

K

1. Kurlon : India's Largest selling mattress
2. Kamasutra : What do you want to be tonight
3. Kingfisher : The King of Good Times
4. Kohler : The Bold Look
5. Kara Skincare Wipes : At Your Best Always
6. Khaitan : Bas Naam hi Kaafi hain
7. Kinder Joy : Surprise Inside
8. KitKat : Have a break, Have a KitKat/ Kitkat break banta hain
9. Kelvinator : Its the coolest one
10. Kent Water purifier : Now Live a healthy life with Kent
11. Kangaro : Organizing documents world over
12. Kinley : Boond Boond Mein Vishwas
13. K-Series Engine : Leaner Meaner Fitter

L

1. Lux : Filmi sitaroan ka soundarya sabun
2. Lifebuoy : Lifebuoy hai jahan thandurusty hain vaham
3. Louis Philleppe : The Upper Crest
4. Lays : No one can eat just one/ har program ka main food/Dillogical/ make your moment magical
5. Limca : Lime'N'Lemoni/Doobo Taazgi Mein
6. LMN : LMN LMN LMN ( Emergency Lemon Refresher)
7. Lux innerwear :Apna luck pahenke chalo/ Comfort for everybody
8. La Opala : Adding style to your lifestyle
9. Lenovo : For those who do
10. Levi's : Go Forth
11. Lee : Sticks to you like it loves you

Brand Tagline A-F

Tata Manza : A Class Apart

Brand : Manza
Company : Tata Motors
Advertising Agency : Draft FCB Ulka

Brand Analysis Count : 473

Philip Kotler once famously said " Marketing is easy to understand and difficult to practice ". The concepts of marketing are no rocket science and hence we can see those concepts being casually treated.Marketing practitioners know the difficulties in cracking the marketing code and making the product successful in the market. It may be the simplicity of marketing concepts that make marketers to defy common sense and make marketing mistaks.

The same casual treatment of branding is visible in the case of branding of Manza and the brand is now investing heavily in undoing the mistake done in the past. Manza was launched as a sub-brand of Indigo in 2009. The Indigo Manza was the premium variant of the popular entry-level sedan brand Indigo. 

Indigo Manza was an effort of  Tata Motors for breaking Indigo from the perception of a Cab Car. Since Indigo was one of the most value for money diesel car in India, it was popular as a cab. Indigo Manza was styled differently and sported the state-of -the art engine from Fiat. 

Indigo Manza was positioned along the same lines of Tata Indigo. Indigo was positioned as a luxury + VFM brand and had sported the tagline " Spoil Yourself ". Indigo Manza had the tagline " Indulge in Style " . 

The brand was positioned as a stylish luxurious car and as usual Tata Motors added lot of goodies to the product to make it worth the price paid for. Another big leap for Manza was the engine. Tata Motors used the tested Fiat engines into the Manza and concentrated more on the style and product packaging . The variant was heavily promoted across the media.

Watch the TVC here : Indigo Manza

Interestingly the confusion regarding the brand started in early 2011. Tata Motors made that significant strategic decision to disassociate  Manza from Indigo. The company decided to make Manza an independent brand and dropped the Indigo endorsement from all communication. Indigo Manza became Tata Manza. Along with the decision came  the launch of Manza Elan which is the premium hatchback variant of Manza.In its independent avatar, Manza did not change the core brand DNA of luxury. Manza reinforced its " Luxury " positioning with the new tagline " A Class Apart ". 

Manza is now investing heavily in creating an independent image for Manza and also moving away from Indigo. Interestingly Indigo is now more associated with its Compact Sedan variant Indigo CS and has left the luxury + VFM positioning to Manza.

The important question here is why didn't Tata Motors think about Manza as an independent brand at the time of its launch itself. Why did the brand spend hell lot of money to promote itself as Indigo Manza for more than two years and then decide to go independent. 

Was it not a bad decision to launch Manza as a sub-brand of Indigo ? What may have prevented Tata Motors to hesitate from creating a new premium brand rather than trying to extend a VFM brand to premium segment.

It is this dilemma that makes marketing decisions difficult.One argument can be that the company wanted to establish Manza in the market first and then gradually make it independent.  My personal opinion is that Tata Motors did a branding mistake in launching Manza as a sub-brand of Indigo. Its common sense that it is always better to launch a new premium brand rather than extend a VFM brand to premium segment using a variant. The decision to sub-brand Manza also shows a lack of long-term strategic thinking on the Tata Motors part regarding the brand porfolio decisions. The company is little confused about how Indica, Indica Vista, Indigo, Manza are to be managed. There was a recent report which suggest that Vista will be disassociated from Indica and launched as a standalone brand. 

One of the reasons for disassociating Manza from Indigo is the threat from the launch of Toyota Etios. Etios  is being offered at a terrific price point and is a direct threat to Indigo's position in the market especially at the premium end . Tata Motors feel that potential Indigo Manza owners will move to Etios because of brand equity of Toyota. Indigo Manza may not be capable to fight Etios because of the baggage of Indigo association. That can be one of the reasons for such a decision.

It is easy to criticize the branding decisions as an observer because the brand managers are bound by lot of internal pressures which force them to take these kind of decisions. 

Regarding Manza, the road ahead is not going to be easy because the association with Indigo is still strong. It will take a lot of money to erase or at best reduce the level of association between Indigo and Manza. 

Ideally the brand owners should have charted the vision for every brand in their portfolio before launching to the public. This creating of brand vision is of extreme importance and should be undertaken for every variants and sub-brands. It should be this vision that will guide the brand's path to future and protect it from the short-term thinking of individuals. 

Related brand

Tata Indigo

Brand Update : Can Ambassador be saved ?

Recently the good old Ambassador was in the news that the brand owners - Hindustan Motors is planning to relaunch /rejuvenate this heritage brand. Both the brand and company is in deep crisis with HM posting losses of Rs 43 crore last year and its networth declining by about 50%.

The company plans to relaunch the Amby in a new look and is planning to entrust a design house with the task. The report also suggest that the new Amby will have a retro- look and will be in the price range of Rs 5- Rs 7 Lakhs. The new Amby will be a niche product.

The interesting question is can this brand be saved with the new strategy ?

From the report about the new Amby launch, it will be tough for the brand to regain its lost glory if the brand is going for a niche variant. According to Economic Times, Ambassador sells around 600 units per month in a market of 2 lakh cars/month.

Ambassador is now in a rut which is its own creation. The brand is the classic example of marketing myopia. The company took the customers for granted and refused to change when the entire market changed. The brand did nothing when faced with competition from Tatas and Maruti. Instead of changing its core DNA, the brand relied upon cosmetic changes. When the brand needed a drastic revolutionary change, HM decided to get stuck with the old product.

The current strategy of a niche Amby is again a patch-up . This brand cannot survive on patch-up strategies. I don't think that the core brand Ambassador will revive with the launch of a niche high priced Ambassador. With the brand equity in shambles, how can the brand expect consumers to pay a premium for the new Amby variant ?

The high priced Marquee variant will work for iconic brand which are facing a decline. But Ambassador was not an icon. It was a market leader and consumers bought the car because they did not had a choice. Not because they were a die-hard Amby fan. Hence a high priced niche variant may not revive the sale of Ambassador.

Secondly HM as a company is now relying its future on Ambassador which again is a flawed strategy. A weak brand cannot save a weak company. And a niche variant will at best give some life support and not survival.

Another way to look at the current strategy is the transformation of Amby from a mass market car to a niche product. So instead of trying to sell large volume of Ambassador, the company hopes to sell high-end variant and hence generate more cash. In that perspective, the launch of a high priced Amby make sense. But the question is whether the brand has enough equity to support such a variant. Brands like Beetle and Enfield revived because these brands had strong equity existing in the market even after its previous life. The relaunch re-ignited the existing goodwill . But such a goodwill does not exist for Ambassador. Ambassador is known for its space and rugged nature .The product is also infamous for nagging problems and poor build quality. Still people bought because there was no choice. For such a product, the hope of renewal from a niche product seems too optimistic.

Having said that, Indian market has seen consumers embracing products with exceptional quality and/or utility. So if the new variant is exceptional, there are chances of getting accepted by the market.

Another interesting aspect of this issue is about the reliance of HM on Ambassador brand for its survival. Why didn't it think about an entirely new brand ? The trend in the Indian auto market is that multiple brands from different companies sporting the same engine. The engine becoming commoditized and design gaining prominence. In such a market why not come out with an entirely new brand with a proven engine ? Although building new brand is expensive compared to rejuvenation of old brand, in Amby's case, Ambassador comes with a lot of baggage and perceptions which is difficult to change.

If Ambassador wants to stay relevant as a brand, what it need is disruption. Disruption should happen both internally and externally. The brand should go for radical redesign and more importantly it should disrupt the market. The current price to value proposition of Ambassador is negative compared to the competitors like Indica . So if Amby wants to play the volume game, it needs to offer consumer something they cannot refuse. A diesel car below Rs 4 lakh can ignite interest in the brand but given the cost scenario, such a task is virtually impossible.

HM is again going for short-term strategy in pursuit of long-term results. For Amby, it seems to be the end of road .

Related Brand

Ambassador

Brand Update : Tata Indica Brand Portfolio

Indica is a brand that is an epitome of persistence. Tata Motors through Indica has demonstrated how to manage product lifecycle effectively. The brand which was launched in 1998 has passed through many hurdles. The brand successfully transcended the initial flaws, bad customer /expert reviews and brickbats to become one of the largest selling cars in the Indian auto industry.

The brand survived and thrived because of the constant focus of Tata Motors to improve the product continuously. More than the product innovation, it was the value proposition that forced customers to choose Indica despite all those nagging troubles. You can see lot of Indica customers cribbing about the bad service and constant trip to the service centers but sticking to the brand because of the value proposition. You cannot get a diesel car with that much space at the price at which Indica is selling ( so far).

Tata Motors has been continuously tweaking the brand over these years sometimes making quantum leap in the quality and refinement of the product. A snapshot of the brand's evolution is given below

1998 - Indica announced
2001 - Indica V2
2004 - Rejuvenated Indica V2
2005- Indica V2 Turbo Diesel
2006- Indica Xeta
2008 - Indica Vista

The brand made a quantum leap in 2008 with the launch of Indica Vista. The entire brand personality changed with the launch of Vista. The product's looks and feel had changed completely and it was a rebirth for Indica.
The changes in the product was not limited to exteriors. Indica began sporting different types of engines from Fiat which gave a new perception of quality to the brand.

At the pricing also, Tata Motors consciously raised the Vista brand to a higher level . The Vista is pricier than the original V2 thus reducing the attractiveness of the brand to the Taxi segment. At a price range of Rs 4 - Rs 5 Lakh, Indica Vista is not a cheap diesel car. It was an upward stretch by the brand.

The Indica Brand portfolio is given below.

















The Indica brand portfolio consists now of three sub-brands V2, Vista and Xeta.

V2 is the most economical of the lot and is the original Indica. This product is retained because there is still huge demand for V2 at that price point. Within the V2 range, there are three variants which includes the Indicab which is for the Taxi segment. Price of this sub-brand ranges from Rs 3,50,000 - Rs 3,95,000

Next sub-brand is the Vista. Vista is the new generation Indica and Tata Motors would like this brand to take over the leadership position from V2 in future. The brand is targeting the discerning Indian consumer with its value proposition and good looks.Vista has lot of variants satisfying the various needs of the customer. The Indica Vista Aura is the premium range that sports many goodies that premium brands claim like ABS, Airbags etc. Vista also comes in Petrol version sporting the Saphire engine. Prices range from Rs 3,90,000 - Rs 4,90,000 ( apprx). Within the Vista range, customers are given lot of engine option including engines from Fiat.

Xeta is the petrol variant of Indica V2. I am not sure about the future of Xeta since the petrol segment is heavily competitive and compared to Maruti and Hyundai, Indica Xeta's value proposition is not that attractive as the diesel option. Prices range from Rs 2,72,000- Rs 3,00,000).

The positioning across the brand portfolio remains the same. All the brands focus on the value proposition. But these sub- brands sports different taglines

Indica V2- More car per car
Indica Vista- Changes Everything ( Surprise Yourself is the new tagline)
Indica Xeta - Makes much more car sense.

Vista recently relaunched itself with Drivetech 4 technology and is now sporting a new tagline Surprise Yourself .

Indica in a way is an example of good marketing practice. The brand continues to evolve and is a pleasure to watch.

Brand Update : Tata Indica

Tata Motors recently launched the new generation Indica Vista. The best selling car from Tata Motors has become even better with a new look and a new positioning.

Tata Indica was launched in 1998 and has sold more than 9 lakh cars so far. It is the second largest selling car trailing Maruthi Alto. Indica is a classic example of managing product life cycle efficiently.

From a shaky start, Indica has come a long way. Written off by many skeptics as Ratan Tata's unachievable dream, Indica has proved skeptics wrong by selling huge numbers. The core strength of the brand being its value proposition.

To sustain in a highly competitive market for more than 9 years is no child's play. Tata Motors has invested heavily in both product and brand development over these years. The new launch is yet again another proof of the company's resilience.

Indica Vista is Tata's entry into the luxury hatchback segment. The segment is dominated by Maruthi Swift. Indica Vista replaces seven variants of the original Indica V2.
Over the last few months, the sales of Indica was showing a decline. A classic case where the product reaches the declining maturity stage. And as theory says one strategy is to go for product modification.

Vista comes with a new style, more space and a new set of engines. The car sports Quadrajet and Safire engines which was build jointly by Tata Motors and Fiat. The new Indica Vista comes in the price range of Rs 3.50 - 4.50 lakh price range.
The original Indica is also retained in the product line. Now Indica offers a wide choice to the customers from price points of Rs 2.80 lakh to Rs 5 Lakhs.

The brand Vista sports a refreshing next generation look . Indica had the weakness of not looking peppy or sexy. That put off many young customers. The new Indica Vista is more curvy and looks pretty cool . But not as sexy as its competitors like Swift or Getz.

The brand now sports a new tagline " Changes Everything ". The slogan is primarily telling the consumers that the brand has changed. The ads are also more tuned to attracting the new generation.
Watch the new tvc here : Indica Vista

More than looks , I feel that Vista will sell more because of value proposition. The acquisition of Land Rover and Jaguar and the Tata Nano has helped a quantum leap interms of brand equity for Tata Motors.

Logan : The answer is Here

Brand : Logan
Company : Mahindra Renault
Agency : Saatchi & Saatchi

Brand Analysis Count : 340

Logan was launched in India in 2007. With in a year's time, this brand has achieved reasonable success in the tough Indian auto market.

Logan is a brand from Mahindra Renault , the joint venture between Mahindra and the French auto major Renault. Renault is a global auto major known for innovation ,technology and racing. Mahindra is our very own company who hit a jackpot with the Scorpio.

When the Jv was announced, the entire auto enthusiasts were looking forward to a new experience to be delivered from these celebrated manufacturers. But soon the company made it clear that the product that they envision will be an affordable sedan rather than a premium one.

In 2007, Logan was launched. The brand was able to get good PR during the launch. The PR was there because of two reasons :
a. It was a launch from Mahindra who claimed lot of appreciation for the success of Scorpio. Hence every media was expecting a similar successful product.

b. The price of Logan was a major driver of the PR. Logan was to be sold at around Rs 4,50,000 which made it one of the cheapest sedan on road.


The initial hype created a huge flow of booking orders for Logan. There was 3000 bookings in the first three weeks itself.

Then came the commercials. In my personal experience, the campaign was a big let down. It was a meaningless ad which showed a foreign lady in some James Bond type plot and blah blah....
The car was initially positioned on the basis of the benefit of space. The slogan talked about Logan as a ' Wide Body ' car.

Although I did not understood what a wide bodied car is , commonsense told me that it is a more spacious car.

Logan has been a success so far . With in one year of launch, it has notched up 12% marketshare in the respective category . At one point of time, it surpassed the veterans like Honda City in sales.

Logan is yet another example of a brand understanding the value proposition of Indian consumers. When the brand was launched, many pundits decried the poor looks of the car. They wrote off the car saying that Indian consumers will vote out this ugly duckling.

But Logan survived. Survived because the product delivered. It was a spacious large well built car which came at a mouth watering price of less than Rs 5,00,000. The surprise came when Logan delivered big on mileage. Consumers began to see beauty in the beast .
In India, consumers give weightage to functionality than design. Toyota showed to us with its Qualis.

In June 2008, the brand went for a repositioning. Infact the brand has took a serious take on the image aspect. Kunal Kapoor was roped in as the brand ambassador and new campaigns were aired.

The brand also has repositioned from a functional angle to a mix of functional and emotional framework.
While the presence of Kunal added some spice to the image, the brand still talked about the deliverables like more mileage , better handling and great value for money . The new campaigns are far better than the initial ones and Kunal Kapoor gives some push to the image aspect.

The brand now tales the slogan " The answer is here " . The brand also has an interactive interesting site butwhy.in where readers can post questions that usually does not have a typical answer. For example : Superman and Batman wears underwear outside. But Why ?.

The logic behind the new slogan is that Logan is the answer to most of the questions asked by the customers . For example : Why can't a sedan give more mileage than a small car ?


A typical issue that most of these value for money brands face is on tackling two segments : the tour taxi segment and the individual segments. Brands like Indica, Indigo , Qualis and now Logan face the issue of the use of these brands as Taxis.

Brands worry that the popularity of a car as a taxi will tarnish the image of the brand. Indica and Indigo have the issue of being popular as a taxi thus repelling some customers from owning it.

Logan also have the same issue , go to Hyderabad, you see a lot of Logan as taxi cars. But will it really hurt the brand ?
I think popularity as a taxi car will be helpful to the brand if its able to provide some distinction to the individual owners.
Being popular as a taxi car means that the car is good. As we know , the taxi's cannot afford to have a car which is expensive to run and maintain. So if taxi owners are buying it, it must be good.
Second, more number of taxi's the more affordable will be the spares.

The major downside is about the image of a taxi car. My question is whether image is a significant factor when one decides to buy an Indica or a Logan . My take is that although image is important for these customers, the main driving force will be on functionality and cost of ownership. People buy Indica because it is the most value for money car in that segment.

But bad image can act as a repellent. So what can a company do about it ? .

I think that the brand should bring some distinction to the non-commercial cars by adding some feature that makes Logan ( or Indica ) different from taxi car . Either it can restrict these commercial cars in to one color or add some thing like graphics so that private Logan is different from the Taxi Logan .

To give the brand a boost. Logan recently launched a limited edition Logan Edge for those who wanted more from Logan. Edge also is aimed at repositioning the brand as an aspirational product to all those who are looking for an upgrade to a sedan.

Logan is not without threats . Tatas are on a marketing offensive now and has launched Indigo CS to take on the price competition. The compact sedan from Indigo has been a success since it made the sedans more affordable.
Service is another area for concern. Although Mahindra has excellent network of dealers, whether it can give excellent service to Logan customers is something to wait for. From the market feedback, Mahindra is not known for excellent service delivery compared to peers like Maruti. Renault has to work closely on the service front .

Logan has yet again proved that there is always a space for a product that functions well and priced reasonably. The success of Logan has prompted the parent company to explore more categories in the Indian auto market. Logan also has raised the bar for most of the car marketers. Now consumers are truly pampered.

Related posts
Indigo CS

Ambassador : Marketing Myopia

Brand : Ambassador

Company : Hindustan Motors

Agency : Mudra/ Equus

Brand Analysis Count : 326

Ambassador can be called as the first Indian car. Although the car has a British legacy, it is considered as definitive Indian car. Ambassador was born in 1958. The car owes its design and technology to a British car model - Morris Oxford which was built by Morris Motor Co at Oxford UK. Hindustan Motors launched the Indianised version of Morris Oxford as Ambassador in 1958.

From 1958 to 1980's Ambassador ruled the Indian market. Infact there were only two cars in the Indian market - Premier Padmini and Ambassador. The licence raj, lack of capital and the unfriendly Indian economic policies ensured that no automobile manufacturers entered the Indian market.

1983 saw the emergence of a new era in the Indian car market. Maruti Udyog Ltd launched the Maruti 800. Soon Ambassador lost its leadership position to Maruti. The family segment which is the largest segment in the car market embraced Maruti. Ambassador was reduced to a marginal player within no time.

But Ambassador had some advantages over 800 which made it dearer to certain segments. It was the only Indian car with Diesel option. During those times, there was a significant difference in the prices between Diesel and Petrol. Second advantage was the space and sturdiness of the Amby. These two factors enabled the brand to become popular among big families and more importantly among the Taxi and tour operators.

Amby was perceived to be a sturdy car ideal for Indian roads. The brand also had a positive perception of being less expensive to maintain. These two were only perceptions . Infact Ambassador was expensive to maintain and even though the car looked sturdy and well built, the car lacked the quality and refinement. Rattling sounds and rusting was common complaints .

But consumers bought the car because of the significant economy of diesel cars which made consumers to compromise on other parameters.

Another significant market for Ambassador was the Government. Over 16 % of the brand sales came from the Government. Ambassador was the first choice for most bureaucrats . Ambassador used to be the Prime Minister's car till 2002. That status was lost when the PM of that time Mr Atal Bihari Vajpai replaced Ambassador with a BMW Limo.

Soon the officials also lost interest in the brand. With the emergence of new and better models from other auto-makers, there was a significant drop in the orders from the Government.

The fall of Ambassador from a leadership position to a marginal player is a classic case of marketing myopia. For four decades, the brand has been taking its customers for granted. There are many reasons that can be attributed to this brand's failure. The fundamental issue was with the product and price.

If we look at the product, Ambassador never changed with times. The brand made many cosmetic changes from 1958-2000 and three upgrades was made which was named as Mark II, Mark III and Mark IV . There was no significant value addition between these upgrades. The look and the built quality remained the same. A major change happened when the brand introduced a 1800 Isuzu engine. The Amby with Isuzu again lifted the sales of the brand. But the euphoria was short lived.

The apathy of HM to offer product changes in tune with the times made the brand stale. Second factor that failed Amby was the price. HM never bothered to rationalize the price of the brand. Even now Ambassador costs more than Rs 4,80,000. At that price one could afford a more luxurious Indigo sedan.

According to reports, the HM plant had achieved full depreciation in 2000. But the company did not thought of passing on the reduced cost to the consumer. Had the company rationalised the price of Amby in 2000, the brand could have survived the competition.

The nail in the coffin came with the launch of Indica. Indica took away the taxi car market from Ambassador. Again the diesel loving individual consumers had a better affordable modern car as compared to the ageing Ambassador.

In order to lift the sagging sales of the brand, HM launched a radically designed Ambassador variant Avigo in 2004. Although the styling was radical, the customer response was lukewarm.

Indian consumer is now spoilt with choices. The competition is immense and the quality of cars has also gone up. Consumers now have new set of purchase considerations like quality, brand, drivability, luxury ,cost of maintanence etc

In the value proposition domain, Ambassador is never in the radar of the consumers. The narrowing price difference between petrol and diesel also eroded the value in investing in an old dated Ambassador.

The company also has never invested in the brand. Without investing in either brand or product, HM had sealed the fate of this brand .

The question that arise is could a brand like Ambassador maintain its position Indian market despite all the competition?

In the brand management perspective, its suicidal not to continuosly invest in a brand .Often heritage brands wait till it becomes dated. Once the brand becomes dated, its virtually impossible to rejuvenate the brand. The task is to prevent the brand to become dated. For that the brand has to go to the consumer for ideas. Changes in product or promotions can sustain the brand even in the light of emerging competition. Brands like Lux , lifebuoy, Surf has been successful because of continuous investment in branding and product development.

Ambassador should have learned from Maruti 800. The brand is still surviving because it made changes along with the changing consumer values. Also the brand rationalised its price in the light of emerging competition which made Maruti 800 relevant even in the current market.

I am not saying that Amby had the potential to become an Iconic brand like Volkswagen Beetle. But the brand could have been relevant to Indian market as a basic family car. It is a herculean task to bring Ambassador back to life. A price below the price of Indica is the only option for the brand to keep its fortunes alive.

Brand Update : Tata Indigo

One should admire the engineering team of Tata Motors for their path breaking efforts. Ofcourse the Tata Nano was the ultimate display of their talent but here I am talking about the new variant of Indigo . i.e Indigo CS..... CS means compact sedan.

Indigo has become smaller. The engineers in Tata tweaked the boot of Indigo and squeezed the length of the sedan within 4 meters. The cars which have less than 4 meters length qualifies for an excise rebate. Thus Indigo CS comes with a mouthwatering price of Rs 3.80 + ( ex-showroom) making it one of the cheapest sedans on the Indian roads.
The logic behind the launch of compact Indigo is to pre-empt competition and also to make the sedan more affordable to the consumers.
Recent launch of Logan had the potential to threaten the Indigo's position in the market. Logan - with its low price and good package had met with a good response both from consumers and auto-experts. Indigo CS variant will act as an effective Flanker brand for Indigo. Another reason is the huge potential space between a hatchback and a sedan.

Typically for a middleclass customer Sedan upgrade usually was a difficult dream. The entry level sedan costs anywhere from Rs 5 lakh + ( before the launch of Logan ) .The withdrawal of Esteem from the market also opened up a new opportunity for an entry level sedan. Even now for Indian consumers Sedan is preferred more than a hatchback ( preferences are changing) . Hence these customers opted for a luxury hatchback. Many marketers has used this opportunity to create the luxury hatchback segment which is now growing very fast.
This has affected Indigo verymuch. On one side , the competition from players within the segment and then competition from luxury hatchbacks. With the launch of Compact Indigo, Tata Motors is taking the fight into the hatchback's camp.
Indigo CS is launched with the slogan ' Class starts early '. The brand is eying the first time car buyers to stretch their budget a little and own a sedan rather than a small car. Now a potential Santro buyer have an option.
A usual question that comes to mind is whether the new variant cannibalize the original Indigo. I feel that to a certain extent it will cannibalize . But its better that the customer stays with the Tata models rather than go for a Logan or a i10. By launching this variant, Tata's sedan product range is now complete . In the entry level, there is CS, there are Indigo variants at the middle level and the lengthier Indigo XL at the higher end. Tata has ensured that in all these levels , customers get maximum value for money.
Will Indigo CS cannibalize Indica. The answer is Yes, but Tata will be happy since customers are paying more .

A reader had earlier commented that I am too emotional about Tata Motors and often forget the fact that their products lacks refinement . I know of Indica/ Indigo owners who are delighted with the performance of their cars and even chosen their upgrades from Tata Stable. Also I have seen many owners who had complaints about their Tata cars. I prefer to say that luck plays a part in whether your Tata car's performance. As a marketer, I feel that this should be an area of concern for the brand. Time is now ripe for Tatas to make their brands perfect interms of their performance. If Tata's could deliver Maruti like performance ( in terms of product quality) , nothing can stop them to become global majors.
Related Brands
Tata Indigo

Santro : The Sunshine Car

Brand : Santro
Company : Hyundai Motors
Agency : Saatchi & Saatchi

Brand Analysis Count : 300

Santro is a fine example of successful branding. It is a classic example of successful marketing in Indian context. Santro was launched in India in 1998. When Hyundai was contemplating its foray into the Indian market, it was planning to launch a C segment car ( Accent) . But however, Hyundai changed its strategy and launched Santro in the tough small car market.

Santro is the Indian version of the successful Hyundai model Atos. Hyundai was faced with lot of perception issues prior to the launch of Santro. The issue was with regard to the country of origin. Indians were unsure about Korean products especially automobiles. Hence the first task was t o ensure that Indian consumers develop a positive association with Korean car makers.
Second issue was developing a corporate image for Hyundai. Since cars are high involvement product, customers will make a choice looking on the maker, service support, spares availability , quality etc. Hence the launch of Santro should also launch the corporate brand Hyundai.
Third issue was about the design of Santro. Santro was designed to be a tall boy car and initial product testing revealed that Indians didnot liked the tall boy design. So the unenviable task for Hyundai was to make Indian consumers like Santro.

The fourth issue was the grip of Maruti on the Indian car market. The B segment was dominated by Zen which has proved itself to be a reliable workhorse. Zen was the preferred and logical upgrade to 800 and the car was considered to be the most reliable and powerful in that segment. To convert the potential Zen users to Santro was really a nightmare for any marketer.
Hyundai marketers had a tough task ahead. A lot was dependent on Santro's success. For the brand launch, Hyundai roped in Saatchi & Saatchi as the ad agency.
Thus came the first commercial : Watch the first Santro commercial here : Santro 1
The ad introduced Kim and Shah Rukh and a glimpse of the car. Kim was the Hyundai official who wanted SRK to be the brand ambassador for Santro. The name Kim was chosen wisely because the only familiar Korean name known to Indians was KIM .The ad introduced the brand and the company with a subtle statement from Kim : We settle only for the best.
The first ad was followed by teaser ads where Kim tries to convince SRK that Hyundai is serious about India, the quality issue and the brand Santro.
Watch the two launch ads : Here & Here
These ads really created a hype in the market about Santro. Teaser ads are dangerous and expensive. Dangerous because if the teaser failed to click, the entire product launch will land up in trouble . Another issue is that the brand should follow up the hype built by teaser ads. In the case of Santro, the teasers were intelligently made and clicked.
Finally came the launch ad which showed Shah Rukh who represented the Indian consumer saying " I am Convinced" to Kim. Shah Rukh fitted perfectly to the promotional scheme of Santro.
Along with the launch came the criticism. Understandably the criticism was towards the tall boy design of Santro . There were reports which called Santro the Ugly car. Santro answered that through its performance. Indian consumers experienced a new way of driving comfort. More than the campaigns, it was the performance that made Santro a runaway success.
With in 4 years of launch , Santro became the second largest selling car in India displacing Zen. Those who wrote bad about the tall boy design began to write about the advantages of this tall boy design.
Santro was initially positioned on the design aspect. It turned its biggest disadvantage into an advantage. But later , Santro was positioned itself as a complete family car. The brand was targeting those 800 users who wanted to upgrade into the B segment. The target market was the 35-45 yrs middleclass Indians.
All through these years, Hyundai also came out with product improvements and upgrades. Santro Zipplus was launched focusing more on the zippy nature of the car. But then came the competition. Maruthi launched Alto and Wagon R and came Indica which displaced Santro from the second position. The brand was also facing the issue of looking dated. It was time for Hyundai to reposition the brand.
Hyundai changed Santro completely in 2003. The entire design was changed and new Santro was launched as Santro Xing. Santro Xing launch ad also featured SRK and Kim. Santro Xing gave a new life to Santro. The car looked more spacious and the looks was contemporary.
Santro along with the new looks also changed its TG from 35- 45 to 25 -30. The brand felt that Santro should be considered as the first car rather than the upgrade. The brand wanted to appeal to the first time car buyers . To catch the young buyers, the brand was positioned as "Sunshine car' . Santro roped in Priety Zinta also as the brand ambassador.
Watch the commercial here : Sunshine car
Sunshine was communicating two intangibles : Freshness and youthful attitude. The brand was moving to a " Change your life " positioning. Priety was the sunshine girl. The big idea was that Santro will bring sunshine to your life. A car that can change the life of a young Indian.
As usual the campaign and the new Santro was a big hit. Along with these campaigns, Santro also ran some ads focusing on promoting the brand as the first choice rather than as an upgrade.
The last campaign of Santro was highlighting the virtues of a Santro users.
Watch the campaign here : Santrowale
The campaign was to portray Santro users as smart and intelligent and the ad was pitted against a similar campaign of Wagon R

After nine years of launch, Santro is facing its maturity stage in its PLC . The sales have stagnated and price war from Maruti and a slew of launches like Chevy Spark , have hurt the sales of Santro. Santro is also banking on price cuts and sales promotions to stay afloat. Hyundai has recently launched a new brand i10 to take the place of Santro. With the imminent launch of Tata's 1 lakh car in 2009, Santro may be used as a low priced flanking brand for i10 in future.
Santro is the best example of managing a product lifecycle. Santro has managed to keep its market position by regular upgrades, product changes , relaunches and repositioning. It has been consistent in delivering excellent quality and functional performance through out its life. The brand is still a preferred upgrade for many middleclass car users.
On this context, I wish to cite a personal experience at the dealership experience I had while choosing my car. I inquired about Santro aswellas Alto at respective dealers in Cochin . While the Maruti dealers were constantly following up with offers and schemes, I was surprised to find that Santro dealer was least interested in making a sale. Complacency has already crept in at the dealer points ( my perception). Understandably so because sales were happening without much effort. As a marketing professional, I feel that Santro is losing some 10 % sale because of this laidback approach of its dealers.

Santro still has lot of fuel to keep itself going. But for that Hyundai may have to keep the price down so that potential Alto users can strech a bit and buy Santro. There is a chance that with the launch of i10, the focus on Santro will slowly decrease and that is a bad news for all those who love this brand.

Tata Indigo : Spoil Yourself

Brand : Indigo
Company: Tata Motors
Agency:FCB Ulka

Brand Count : 196

Tata Indigo is a super brand in the Indian car market. The brand is my choice as a Super brand not only because it was successful, but also because this is India's own brand. In a segment where the World's "Who is Who " is present luring the customers, Tata Indigo is the only truly indigenous presence. With the government exiting Maruti, Indigo and Indica represent the only domestic car manufacturers having their presence in the car market.

After the success of Tata Indica, Indigo was a riskybut bold move from Tata motors. Indigo is a sedan in the C-segment of the 600,000 new car market in India. C- segment represents around 20-25 % of the total cars sold that makes the c-segment market size around 1,50,000 units.

Indigo was launched in 2002.The car was developed on the highly successful Indica platform and was targeting the entry level C-segment. The brand was positioned as a truly value for money car in line with Indica.The brand from the launch itself wanted to pamper the customers. The car offered more space and comfort than even its high priced competitors.

The C-segment is one of the fastest growing and most competitive segment . The brand competition include Accent,Sienna,Esteem, Ikon,Corsa and the like.
Indigo did not compare itself with the immediate competition but wanted to offer what the premium brands in the D segment offered. The car was known for the space and the accessories it offered as a part of the standard equipment was seen only in premium segment cars. Indigo (like Indica) came out with different variants at different price points. One variant even had DVD player and Screen attached to the seat -a feature that you see not even in luxury cars.All these at a very affordable price.

The brand adopted the tagline " Spoil Yourself" and all the ads, highlighted the goodies that came with the product. Another series of ads promised the customers, business class experience. The basic focus of the brand was to drive home the fact that Indigo has more legroom and space compared to most of the C-class sedans.
This campaigns and the reasonable performance of the car with the tempting price tag ensured the brand's success in the market. Indigo has now 33% market share in the c-segment.

2004 saw the launch of a product variant of Indigo : Marina. Marina was the estate version of Indigo. The brand harped on the extra space that the Estate version offered and was promoted with the baseline " We like to carry our world with us".

In January 2007, Tata motors surprised everyone by launching India's first stretch limousine - the Indigo XL. Indigo XL marked the entry of Tata into the premium segment. Indigo XL has a longer wheel base that gives the rear passengers legroom comparable with the Limousines. Even the premium sedans in the E segment do not offer the leg space that XL offered. So Tata chose to call it a stretch Limousine. This straight comparison has irked some auto watchers who could not believe an Indian automaker calling their car a Limousine. XL has already created enough buzz in the market. Indigo XL as usual is positioned as a value for money car. The car offers comfort and accessories that is seen only in super luxury cars and comes with the price of a luxury sedan.

Despite all the right things that Tata Motors has done, the brand faces issues regarding its image. Whether be it Indica or Indigo, the brands does not carry the image of a Hyundai or a Honda. The main reason is that this brand does not get the support of the media. The media has only tried to degrade these brands and most of the time tried to find fault with these brands. I saw an Indian author berating the Indigo XL 's positioning as a stretch limousine by comparing Cadillac and the like with XL. But the comparison showed that Indigo has a comparable Wheel base with these super brands. Even in the auto shows, the anchors are blinded by the glamour of global brands. I am not stressing on being patriotic (am not a swadeshi jagron manch member) but Indica and Indigo should be treated at par with the global giants because they have proved their worth ?

Indigo is another classic example of Masstige product and is a proof that we also can make world class product.

Source: businessline,agencyfaqs

Tata Indica : Truly more car per car

Brand : Tata Indica
Agency : FCB Ulka
Company: Tata motors

Baseline : more car per car

India is a lucrative market for automobile manufacturers. If we believe the fancy numbers floating around regarding the industry size, this is a market no one can ignore.

Fighting with all the big names in the auto industry is our very own Tata Motors.

Let me be patriotic and say " we have done it". We have our own Indian Car: Indica.
Well You may say that the design was outsourced from IDEA ITALY so this is not 100% Indian. I would say that Tata's are smart so they outsourced it.....

Any way as hypocritic as we are by birth, although we say " sare jahan se acha " , we were ruthless towards Indica. Everyone looked down upon this car from Tata talking about all the negative points about the performance and writing off this dream of an Indian to build an Indian car.

Despite the initial setback with Indica, Tata motors reworked on the engine and relaunched Indica as Indica V2. Now indica is the second largest selling car in India.

Indica is positioned as a value for money car. I have said in my earlier blog that this is a proposition that will always work on Indian consumers, provided the promise is delivered.
Indica delivered its promise. It promised that it will give more car per car and delivered that.

The success of this proposition had an interesting side effect ( positive of course). Tatas have discovered its vision : deliver more value at a reasonable price. The recent launches prove that Tatas have imbibed this "value for money " proposition . The latest products like Safari Dicor and Indigo give many features which were seen only in premium cars.