…in this marketing case study.
Just back from a trip to the UK and came across a case that provides a useful example of the limitations of conventional “Image Advertising” and brand building…
…even when you have a great product.
On my trips back to the UK I usually hire a car, typically from Avis.
In the past, it’s been a Ford or a Peugeot but this time…
…my heart sank when I saw the car.
It was a Kia!
Now, I don’t know what your image of Kia is, but I wouldn’t be too surprised if it’s similar to my initial thoughts…
…cheap, Korean rubbish!
Now, I did think about asking for another car (especially when I saw that not only was it a Kia, but a diesel as well!)…
…but after a long flight I thought what the hell…how bad can this be…and let’s try something different.
So, I plunked my bags in the (roomy) boot and got in.
First impressions weren’t too bad. The layout was good and I could easily see where everything was.
The finish was a little “plastic” but not too unpleasant.
Started up and pulled out…
…and pretty soon was starting to get a whole new impression about the car.
It was an automatic and an absolute pleasure to drive.
The transmission was very smooth and responsive and, I have to say probably better than most of the other cars I’ve hired recently.
After driving for about an hour, my whole opinion had changed and I was getting very fond of “my” little Kia.
I was even more impressed later when I saw that the company provided a 7 year warranty.
No exaggeration to say that after a week my whole view of Kia had changed and I would very seriously consider buying one of their cars.
(Hey, I know you probably thought I was a Porsche, Maserati or BMW kind of dude…but when it comes to cars I’m more into practicality and value.)
So, what’s the marketing lesson in this?
Well, as I said, my guess is that most people’s view of Kia is fairly negative.
They’re in the same kind of position that the Japanese car makers were when they first introduced their products to western consumers.
And it took a long time for the Japanese to change the perception from “cheap rubbish” to “best quality”.
Conventional “image advertising” is going to take a long time to produce results…if it ever does.
To get a better idea of the scale of Kia’s marketing problem, I had a quick look at their Australian site (predictably terrible, with “Flash” graphics on the front page that take forever to load!).
According to the site Kia has been in Australia now for 10 years and sold around 120,000 vehicles.
Let’s put that in some context.
That’s around 12,000 vehicles a year.
In 2008, vehicle sales in Australia came to 1,012,164.
Toyota (the top selling brand) sold 238,983.
In other words, Kia has a tiny market share, so what they’ve been doing hasn’t worked very well.
And I shuddered when I saw that a big part of their marketing efforts involve sponsorship of the Australian Open Tennis Chamionship.
I can see it now.
All those well-heeled tennis fans thinking to themselves…
“Wow! I must test drive a Kia!”
…not.
So, what would be a more effective marketing strategy for Kia?
Well, step #1 is figure out what the positioning is.
The announcement of the tennis sponsorship waffles on about…
“Kia Motor Corporation, a maker of quality vehicles for the young-at-heart”.
That’s just not going to cut it in a very competitive market.
Of course, figuring out the right positioning is not a trivial task.
But I’d suggest that something to do with quality, value and reliability (spelled out very specifically) is going to be in the ball park.
The 7 year guaranty I mentioned earlier could form the core of the positioning, for example.
You know, Kia is quite an interesting company.
Established in 1944, a lot of their business in the past has been making cars for other manufacturers (for example, they’ve built cars for Ford, Peugeot and Fiat).
That tells me that they really do know how to make a high quality product at a competitive price.
That would seem to be their competitive edge and they need to turn that into a compelling offer to the consumer.
Once they do that, the best way to reach the consumer would be…
…through a compelling direct response marketing campaign.
My guess is that if you can get someone to test drive a Kia, their response is likely to be similar to mine…
…especially if there was a sensational value for money offer.
And if direct reponse marketing is the best approach for a fairly big corporation like Kia…
…it makes even more sense for the typical Australian business.