Hoping To Get 'Discovered,' Suzuki Boosts Ad Effort

In an attempt to resurrect a brand image a J.D. Power analyst said borders on "invisibility," American Suzuki Motor Corp. is set to boost ad spending by up to 20 percent behind work from Colby & Partners that targets a broader range of buyers than before, executives said.The car maker is touting its entire line in an attempt to make a mark in some of the industry's most competitive categories, dominated by models such as the Toyota Camry and the Honda Civic. Four 30-second TV spots that break this week individually tout Suzuki's Forenza compact sedan, Verona sedan, Reno five-door and XL-7 SUV. Each features actors portraying buyers who range from suburbanites in their 50s to twentysomething women at the beach. All are ecstatic that they got the cars they wanted at a good value.The work follows a brand spot for the entire line that broke in some regions last week. The year-old tagline, "Make the smart move," remains.Prior to this year, the Brea, Calif., automaker—whose sales in 2003 dropped about 15 percent to 58,000 units, according to Ward's Automotive—had focused most of its ad spending on the XL-7 and Forenza. Last fall, it launched the Verona, which received ad support through this spring and contributed to a 25 percent boost in unit sales through August—to 52,000—from the same period a year ago, according to Ward's."We're really trying to target a mindset, as opposed to a demographic," said Dave Weber, evp and general manager at Dentsu's Colby in Irvine, Calif. "We've been a niche marketer for the last two years, because we basically only [backed with TV] a small SUV and a small compact."Suzuki spending—which last year was about $90 million, according to Nielsen Monitor-Plus—will rise by 15-20 percent, said Ben Hilverda, advertising and promotions manager at the automaker.Suzuki is "becoming a broader, mainstream car company," said Carmen Dorr, Colby's creative director on the campaign. "Last year, the spots were more product-specific—great music, beautiful visuals. This year, we're making a brand statement: Here are people who have just discovered Suzuki for themselves. That's fresher; that's where Suzuki needs to be."Dorr added that because Suzuki awareness is low, ads showing people enthusiastically discovering the brand "can generate emotion authentically.""We're shaping the personality as approachable, adventurous and fun," said Weber. "We are being cross-shopped more with the two gold standards [Toyota and Honda] now and positioning against them so that we have relevancy. A large part of the market doesn't know what a Suzuki is."But Tom Healey, a partner at J.D. Power & Associates in Westlake Village, Calif., expressed skepticism about Suzuki's plan because the company has relied on price-driven dealer advertising for so long. "If Suzuki is going for invisibility, they've achieved it," said Healey. "There's not a strong image of it anywhere."

Brand Marketing

Hoping To Get 'Discovered,' Suzuki Boosts Ad Effort

Gregory Solman

About

Subscriptions

Events

Publications

WORK SMARTER - LEARN, GROW AND BE INSPIRED.

Subscribe today!

Gregory Solman