Bmw's Position in The North American Market

1. Assess BMWs position in the North American market? How healthy is the BMW brand relative to previous years? What are the weaknesses in the BMW brand? What is the growth strategy for BMW in the North American market?BMW is a relatively small company, and had small market share in the North American market, compared that in the Europe market. BMW runs in the premium category, luxury/performance segment, and focuses on quality, instead of volume. In North America, people considered BMW as a niche foreign car manufacturer, and associated it with Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar, and Cadillac, which convey more conservative and stodgier image, before mid-1970s. However, after BMW launch Ultimate Driving Machine campaign, which featured young urban professional driving BMW, and showed the high performance of the BMW along with superb handling and German engineering. This whole new campaign started to catch the eyes of young urban professionals, pursuing design, style, and affluent in North America.In the late 1980s and early 1990s, BMW sale suffered a significant decline due to its new competition, luxury brands from Japan. These new coming brands distinguish themselves by offering high quality, reliability and service at lower price points than BMW. Besides, they sell cars through a relatively small number of exclusive, high quality dealerships, providing better service, and ensuring customers satisfaction. In order to keep its lost market share, BMW started several new strategies. It introduced new design, engine in its core Series with premium price for retaining its high-end brand image. In addition, BMW reconceptualized its dealer operating system (DOS) to ensure consistency in the customer experience across dealerships with high satisfaction. Furthermore, BMW innovate new several Series, roadster, sports utility vehicle, for driving and reaching different needs of more extensive customers. In order to better satisfy North American market specifically, BMW make everything simple, like one touch windows which it never thought before. In order to increase its market share, BMW constantly innovate design, and technology for driving the needs of its target market. Besides, BMW continually conducts market research to track demographic profile of its target customers, and make its product better reach consumers niche need. The most important reason why BMW can be so successful in North America is its BMW Films, innovative IMC plan, integrating a marketing campaign with TV, print, and the internet to maximize audience reaching.

2. Analyze the BMW Films campaign giving attention to the motivation behind the idea and the target audience. Describe the typical BMW customer and analyze how well the BMW Films campaign might be in reaching and influencing them.In early 2000, both of BMW sales and brand are very strong without introduce of any new product, however, competitors with bigger marketing budget start to copy BMWs marketing strategy. BMW realize if it keeps marketing itself through traditional media, itself would become invisible among competitors. Therefore, for BMW, who has relatively small marketing budget, it needs to make sure it has a strong brand voice, premium image and high performance to differentiate its own product. In order to maximize the impact and exposure of the BMW brand to its target market, it started its non-traditional campaign with Z3 campaign along with traditional campaign. Z3 campaign was very successful, which give BMW confidence of keeping using creative leverage in the new media environment, BMW Films, to build brand awareness with consumers, and demonstrate the capabilities of its products. Furthermore, the marketing research, BMW conducted constantly, showed that its target market are increasingly using the internet to research their next car purchases and BMW was tops among car brands in terms of frequency of buyers using the internet. This trend makes BMW believe that its customers would be receptive and appreciated to this whole new advertising campaign for internet.Most of BMW customers work hard, and have little free time, so they are very particular about what they do in their little free time. At the same time, these people are very active, like sports, and enjoy driving experience, which gives them a good feeling of personal expression. They consider the driving time as the most pleasurable time in their day. In addition, these people are high educated, with a median income, and technology is very important for them. Though, a series of short Films through internet cannot reach as many people as ads through television, since television has mass coverage, attention getting and favorable image advantages. However, internet gives viewers higher selectivity, involvement, and interaction. Through internet, viewers can download Films, which allows people collect, and share the films they like with friends. For BMW target market, energetic, technology oriented, and enjoying excitement, this unprecedented new communication way would definitely engage them in expected, exciting, entertaining ways. Since BMW has the first mover advantage, which let viewers associate this new, creative, innovative, unbelievable adventure with BMW brand. Undoubtedly, the MBW Films for internet indeed catch its target market, BMW owners, luxury seekers and tech-savvy, enhance its brand awareness, and customer loyalty.

3. Evaluate the success of the BMW Films campaign giving attention to the types of metrics that can be used in assessing its impact. What would you conclude about the success of the campaign?BMW consider BMW Film as a legitimate entertainment. In order to make them worth seeking out, the films must have high quality, and customer wouldnt consider it as a conventional ad, but a high budget Hollywood production, BMW partner with Anonymous Productions, well-connected within the Hollywood community, and give them complete freedom without any limitation, which are usually used in traditional ad campaign. The Hire includes five short films, feature action gunfights and chase scenes with its several newest BMW models, which attract not only its target market, but also action-movie fans who would seek out the movies and help spread it out. Each of these short films starred the British actor Clive Owen, accomplished and mysterious, as a professional driver who survives in every impossible scenario with few words and unbelievable motion. BMW films use the driver to personalize the performance of its product. Each film showed the high performance of vehicles through variety scenarios. In Ambush, Chosen, and Powder Keg films, the stories were about how Clive Owen committed his mission helping someone out of the dangerous situations. He reacted instantly to unexpected dangers by using BMW vehicle which he rely on and trust completely. These films show BMW is a prompt, unbeaten, easy handle vehicle compared to other brand vehicles, which always fell behind BMW in the films, through Clive Owens perfect manipulation. In Star, Clive Owen use more humorous way to show the high performance of BMW vehicle. Finally, The Follow shot in the slower pace, more mystery scenario instead of tight and nervous scenario. Compared to other movies, The Follow showed less technique of driving and high performance of vehicle. However, the mysterious, and mistrust disposition between actress and Clive Owen, and heavy city traffic make the express of luxury of BMW vehicles stand out instead. From six criteria for commercial evaluation stand point, including benefits, symbolism, resonance, story, product integration, and campaign extension, I would give every criterion high valuation except campaign extension because BMW Films was the first time for BMW to do advertising campaign for internet. By using different latest model in the movie and showing the driving experience by the drivers deft driving skill, BMW Film communicated the brand benefits, and brand value, the most exciting luxury and high performance car, with its target customers. These five short movies have the same basic framework of having a central character that helped people get through impossible situations, which give viewers the consistence, but 5 different stories, each of which is about 7 minutes. A 7 minutes message on computer would definitely engages viewers with its appealing well-knit plot more than a 30 seconds ad on TV does. Viewers would have emotional attachment to the story and give it big resonance. Furthermore, although the BMW logo weren’t showed up in the movie all the time, the vehicle was a star for sure by showing what amazing job it can do. I would say the BMW brand is indeed a central component of the campaign and integrated very well.

4. Where should BMW go from here? Evaluate the options being considered by Jim McDowell. For the next step, BMW has four options, including milking the existing five films by making them available to a wider audience, continuing to develop a series of short films, developing a feature-length movie that would air in theatres around the country, and doing nothing. Milking the existing five films by making them available to a wider audience.In order to reach wider viewers, BMW can air the films alongside trailers for other coming attractions, distribute the short films to theatres, or make the edited films the full-length version in the form of DVD, and distribute it through dealerships or selected magazines. This option can reach people, who might not have high-speed access to the internet for increasing brand awareness. However, if other competitors follow up and copy this advertising strategy or even have more creative leverage, BMW would have risk of losing first mover advantage. Continuing to develop a series of short filmsIf BMW continues to develop a series of short films, it could not only increase its brand awareness, but also consolidate its up to date, innovative, brand image which its target customers are desperate for. The con of this option is it needs another huge marketing budget. Developing a feature-length movie that would air in theatres around the country Since The Hire have huge impact on its viewers, millions of people have an emotional connection with the driver. If BMW develop a feature-length movie and air in theaters around the country, it could have an additional profit, and increase its brand awareness. However, it would have risk of diluting the focus, the performance of BMW vehicles, instead of the actor, the driver. The most important thing for BMW is to demonstrate the capability of its product and the difference between its product and competitors. Doing nothingIf BMW move on to another different marketing strategy, it can get rid of copycat efforts from other competitors. However, BMW would have risk of unpredicted result of doing other different strategies. Though, being a first mover would have bigger chance for having bigger market share and being a market leader, there is no precedent or lesson to follow, which would cost BMW a fortune if it fails. For customers, expecting BMW having another good job, would be very disappointed and have mistrust, low loyalty to BMW, if BMWs next strategy was not as good as or better than BMW Films. In order to maintain and generate market share, brand awareness, brand image, and drive customers needs, I would recommend BMW to continue to develop a second series of The Hire short films along with launching new model. Besides, before the second series of The Hire released, BMW can still work on making the first series of The Hire available to a wider audience. In that, it can keep BMW brand exposed to customers by making DVD and distribute it by dealerships, or magazines so that customers who hasnt watched it yet can have chance to collect and help spread it out before it become offline. Keeping reminding customers memories of the first series of The Hire, it would make the launch of the second series of The Hire easier. Launching the second series of The Hire with new model can strengthen the impact from the first series of The Hire, and definitely generate awareness among consumers for its new product, in that the viewers of the first series of The Hire already have deep emotional connection with the driver.