Marketing the new beetle assignment

Strengths and Weakness of launching in America according to Arnold Communication Interviews The heritage of German engineering In comparison to other European brands such as BMW and Mercedes, was perceived as the “ people’s car” due to its affordability. ; Uniqueness, and a pleasurable individualistic driving experience distinguished the brand form Japanese cars such as Honda and Toyota. The brand image was slowly eroding, because of people’s perception of poor quality and reliability. Nonuser’s characteristics Younger Slightly more affluent More educated tan the average car purchase Owners enjoyed a more active role when driving the car The idea that there’s more to the car than Just a medium to get form one place to another ; Unique attitude’s towards life Adventurous Creative Confident Self sufficient Experimenters Drivers who seize the day With this fresh insight about the target market, the Arnold team recommended a new product positioning and brand essence that would develop the foundation for the rivers wanted campaign.

The advertising campaign for the balance of 1995 and 1996 got back on the consumers shopping list, inviting new and different drivers. The new beetle… More than 10 years after the classic Beetle was first sold in the American market, the Wad staff began considering the idea of designing a new beetle as a way to offset slumping sales of the franchise. Geometry of the future.

Targeting the baby boomers with a value proposition of “ indulging in nostalgia” appeared to be the most appropriate strategy for The New Beetle. In addition to their personal history and emotional ties to the beetle brand, theses buyers could afford the $15, 000 plus price tag of the car. However consumer’s trends among the baby boomers revealed changing preferences to larger cars. On the other hand Wad had shifted its strategy, positioning the brand behind the tractability of its cars to target a younger generation of drives. Ad to maximize the impact of the brands limited advertising budget.

The competition had been spending over $100 million in advertising behind the launch of a single car. Had to compete with a budget that was less than 25% of a typical budget. Other issues surrounding the launch were the advertising strategy. Would it be a broad advertisement? If so, was the agency capable of allocating recourses to reach everyone with its message? A targeted strategy would allow the company focus itself to a specific audience more frequently. Wondered if television or print advertising would be the more effective in caching the target market?