Why automotive brands should do away with test drive experiences

Automobile brands thrive on selling experiences. While some brands in the market sell themselves by offering their prospective customers dreamy experiences that they will have, a majority others market themselves by offering free test drives. And even though the last two decades have noticed a phenomenal shift in the innovations seen on the technological front of the automobiles, what has remained unchanged all these years is the same marketing strategy of offering free test drives.

It is indeed true that almost all automobile brands follow the same marketing strategy these days. They invest heavily in ATL campaigns but when it comes to BTL engagements the only options available are either mall activations or test drives. What brand marketers of the industry do not realize today is the fact that since all brands follow the same strategy to cater to the same target audiences; they are not even giving their brands a reason to stand out differently from their competition.

Thus it is high time that automobile brand marketers do away with the conventional test drive experience offering and rather innovate on the BTL front to spell success and establish a distinguished identity for their brands. Citing an example from a truly immersive and successful automobile engagement, In New York in 2011, Fiat hosted an event to reintroduce its brand in America after nearly three decades. The brand hosted a pop-up gallery during the New York International Auto Show, and then, months later, the car maker organized a large consumer campaign that brought a fleet of cars to Times Square and used an enormous screen to create an urban drive-in movie experience. The concept for the activation combined American culture of theaters and Times Square and the campaign was a huge success and brought Fiat as a brand back in the minds and hearts of consumers.



Similarly, in 2013, Lincoln Motor Company hosted an 11-city Hello Again marketing tour centered on its new product MKZ. The program included a series of experiences for drivers to see their home cities from behind the wheel of the cars. In each city, guests signed up online for a tour time, then checked in at a venue known as the Hello Again Hub. They could then choose a car to drive or be chauffeured for a tour, led by a brand rep in a front car that provided directions by way of walkie-talkies in each car.



In india too, Tata Motors took an initiative of organizing the T1 Truck Racing Championship. The experiential event  not only garnered high sales figures but it has also resulted in Tata Motors successfully establishing itself as the most reputed automobile brand in the country.  However such initiatives are a rare sight in the country as marketers of the domain today are hesitant to truly go all out in the race of experiential.

Yes, it is an understandable fact that no car purchases are ever made without a hands on experience but automobile marketers today should also realize that there are more innovative and creative ways to showcase the features of their products. As it is often said, one cannot expect to be a winner among the dogs if they are running in the rat race similarly to establish their brand as the most successful ones brand marketers need to experience and engage their potential customers in more unique ways than the conventional methods.