Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Towards partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Post Graduate Diploma in Software
Enterprise Management of the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore
Table of Contents
1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 6
2 Methodology ........................................................................................................................... 6
3.4.4 Environment-friendly................................................................................................ 9
3.7 Nano Art in Motion and the Art Nano campaign ........................................................... 15
4 Brand Exploratory................................................................................................................. 30
4.2.2 Creating & communicating brand mantra for Tata Nano ....................................... 31
8.1.2 Branding strategy did not align with 2012 relaunch & repositioning ..................... 57
8.1.3 Ratan Tata as brand ambassador not aligned with 2012 positioning ...................... 58
8.3.6 Cultivate distinct positioning for multibrands and improve brand equity .............. 62
8.3.7 Increase focus on experiential marketing to wipe out scooter episode ................ 62
9 Conclusions ........................................................................................................................... 63
10 Appendices ............................................................................................................................ 63
10.1 References .................................................................................................................. 63
Table of Figures
Figure 1Price of the different variants of the Tata Nano car in Kolkatta ..................................... 20
Figure 2 Tata Nano mental map.................................................................................................... 31
Figure 4 Captures as on 30-Apr-2013 ........................................................................................... 38
Figure 5 Ratan Tata's Nano vision - Source: tatanano.com .......................................................... 40
Figure 6 Survey Q32. Which of the following words would you most associate TATA NANO
with? .............................................................................................................................................. 43
1 Introduction
A brand audit is a comprehensive examination of a brand, involving activities to assess the health
of a brand, uncover its sources of equity, and suggest ways to improve and leverage that equity.
While Tata Nano was originally launched in 2009 as a family-oriented peoples car for semi-
urban locations, the company repositioned Tata Nano late 2012 towards the youth segment in
urban cities.
We would like to check the health of the Tata Nano brand through an audit, analyze if the
branding strategy is appropriate for the current environment and desirable for the target segment
and brand positioning, and arrive at a viable and sustainable brand strategy based on the insights
gained through this brand audit exercise.
2 Methodology
The project has been executed with data from primary and secondary sources. Secondary source
data was used to study company centric or internal brand management elements and primary
source data was mainly used to explore external or customer centric brand management
elements.
The brand audit was performed through quantitative surveys of Tata Nano and Nano brand
names. The survey questionnaire was circulated to a total of 250 people in the age group of 20-
40 years. A total of 73 responses were obtained across the two surveys, with 33 responses for
Nano survey and 40 responses for Tata Nano survey.
Chi square and ANOVA statistical tests were performed on the data collected from the survey.
The Chi square test was used to analyze the relationship between two variables and to compare
two or more populations (e.g. effect of age, gender, lifestage and income on recall, customer
purchase preference etc.) for nominal data. ANOVA (i.e. one-way analysis of variance)
parametric test allowed us to test whether there is a difference between the means of two or more
normal populations using interval data (e.g. comparison of brand judgment, performance
measures across the 2 different samples from Tata Nano and Nano survey).
The significance level for all tests was 0.05, which indicates that if the tests are considered
statistically significant, there is less than a five percent chance that the test result, or one more
extreme, occurs by chance alone.
3 Brand Inventory
3.2 Ownership1
The Tata group comprises over 100 operating companies in seven business sectors:
communications and information technology, engineering, materials, services, energy, consumer
products and chemicals. The group has operations in more than 80 countries across six
1
http://tata.in/aboutus/sub_index.aspx?sectid=8hOk5Qq3EfQ=
continents, and its companies export products and services to 85 countries. The total revenue of
Tata companies, taken together, was $100.09 billion (around Rs475,721 crore) in 2011-12, with
58 percent of this coming from business outside India. Tata companies employ over 450,000
people worldwide. The Tata name has been respected in India for more than 140 years for its
adherence to strong values and business ethics.
Every Tata company or enterprise operates independently. Each of these companies has its own
board of directors and shareholders, to whom it is answerable. There are 32 publicly listed Tata
enterprises and they have a combined market capitalization of about $93.42 billion (as on May 2,
2013), and a shareholder base of 3.8 million. The major Tata companies are Tata Steel, Tata
Motors, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Tata Power, Tata Chemicals, Tata Global Beverages,
Tata Teleservices, Titan, Tata Communications and Indian Hotels.
Going forward, Tata is focusing on new technologies and innovation to drive its business in India
and internationally. The Nano car is one example, as is the Eka supercomputer (developed by
another Tata company), which in 2008 was ranked the worlds fourth fastest. Anchored in India
and wedded to traditional values and strong ethics, Tata companies are building multinational
businesses that will achieve growth through excellence and innovation, while balancing the
interests of shareholders, employees and civil society.
3.4.4 Environment-friendly
Nanos tailpipe emission performance exceeds regulatory requirements. In terms of overall
pollutants, it has a lower pollution level than two-wheelers being manufactured. The high
efficiency also ensures that the car has low carbon dioxide emissions, thereby providing the twin
benefits of an affordable transportation solution with a low carbon footprint.
Some of the other innovative features:
- No boot in the traditional sense. The access to boot is via the (folded) rear seat
- Single windscreen wiper, instead of two
- Only driver side view mirror
Thus on Nano, Tata Motors give a warranty of 4 years/ 60,000 km, the highest in its category.
2
http://pd.cpim.org/2008/0120_pd/01202008_nano.htm
3.5.4 Slogans and Jingles
Tata Nano is associated with the tag line of Khushiyon Ki Chabi (Key to Happiness) indicating
that the small dream car would open the door to happiness and bliss. The messaging is well
aligned with its target audience of middle class Indian families who consider car purchase to be a
family event and a distant dream that would bring in great happiness.
3
http://www.infibeam.com/static/tata-nano.html
.
4
http://www.mbaskool.com/business-articles/marketing/152-tata-nano-khushiyon-ki-chaabi.html
3.6 Brand Portfolio
To analyze the brand portfolio we have to look at the parent brand of Tata Nano, the Tata Motors
umbrella under which all automotive products of Tata house are sold. We will only look at the
car segments of the Tata Motor family and not the commercial & heavy vehicles arm that Tata
Motors has.
In this hierarchy we can see that the Tata Nano stands at the lowest end of the spectrum as the
economy brand offering and aria at the other end as a luxury brand. Within the Car & Utility
vehicle umbrella, we can group the brands with respect to the category membership mainly as
Small car - Nano
Medium hatchback - Vista, Indica
Sedan - Manza , Indigo
SUV - Safari , Sumo , Aria
Other Utility - Xenon , Venture
Its clear that with the introduction of the Nano brand, Tata was seeking to address a segment of
the market that was previously unaddressed and hence possibly creating a new category by itself.
The nearest competing brand at that time was the Maruti 800 and was probably priced 1.5L
higher than the Nano. But feature wise like engine size, it was the closest logical competitor. The
800 has now been discontinued by Maruti. Pressures from the introduction of Nano were
probably one factor apart from internal cannibalization by the Alto brand.
3.6.1 Line extensions
The Tata Nano brand has line extensions which are essentially used for the 4 different product
variants of the Nano as listed below. These product variant brand extensions form the brand
portfolio for the Tata Nano brand. These extensions serve to target specific segments in the
intended market for the Nano. With ex-showroom prices ranging from INR 1.5 Lakhs to 2.1
Lakhs we observe that the brand extensions and the products they represent serve a price range
of INR 60,000. This is a small range but given the extremely price sensitive market that the Tata
Nano is catering to this range of prices and the brand extensions associated makes some sense.
Nano BS
Nano CX
Nano LX
Nano Special Edition
3.8 Communication
Not many cars in automotive history have generated the pre-launch hysteria that the so called
INR 1 lakh-car has generated. The Google search of Nano throws up close to two million
entries and two million images in Nano seconds! A fact that left even the Chairman of the Tata
group, Ratan Tata, rather nonplussed. At the launch of the Nano in Mumbai, Tata said as much
on the global attention the car has drawn, We had no idea that we would attract so much
attention in India and abroad.
Those in the communications agency of Tata Motors say that since the unveiling of the car at the
Auto Expo in Delhi in January 2008 to the actual launch this week, more than 50,000 articles
have been written about Nano in newspapers worldwide. Thanks to an engineering revolution
that the Nano sparked within its large base of suppliers of components, the publicity for the Nano
was, by and large, fuelled by the media. Nano is hot not only on traditional media but also on the
Web as evidenced by 378 Nano communities on Orkut and their tens of thousands of members.
The official Nano Web site had received more than 30 million hits till the launch and hung
following the heavy traffic immediately after that!
Clearly, Nano has been a mega success in generating public interest. At present, an estimated 27
million people can afford a car while the actual number of car owners is nine million. With the
introduction of Nano, the number of potential customers will rise to 41 million, says Sachin
Mathur, Head of Research, Crisil.
Nano will capture share from the two-wheeler market. If it captures just five per cent of the
two-wheeler sales, which is 80 lakh per year, four lakh units will be the annual sales, explains
Vaishali Jajoo, auto analyst with Angel Broking Ltd. If it performs well, it can also cannibalize
from the small car market. Typical Maruti 800 and Alto customers are not looking for power or
performance. They are generally utility-oriented and Nano may fit the bill, she adds. Capturing
market needs marketing communication to be effective. There are a number of campaigns that
Tata group has launched for promoting Nano. One such is shown below.
All its communications are targeted towards potential two wheeler segment which can afford
Nano. The company has adopted a tagline Tata Nano: Now within Reach, indicating the
affordability of the car as well as the fact that its finally arrived. Tata Motors ad agency
Rediffusion Y&R and media agency Lodestar are responsible for Nanos communication
campaign and advertising. The emphasis is clearly on print media, especially the regional
language press, and radio to reach out to the masses.
Unlike a classical product launch, Nano has got so much unpaid coverage. In normal media
buying terms the unpaid coverage for the launch day would be worth INR 100 crore. Going
forward, we would be using different forms of communication at different stages. Online is a
fairly big medium for us, says Mahesh Chauhan, Group CEO, Rediffusion Y&R.
And, a more subtle strategy is to make Nano part of everyday lingo through word-of-mouth
publicity. Newspapers are now calling brief news items Nano news and news anchors on
television say We will come back after a Nano break, says Rajiv Dube, President, Passenger
Car, Tata Motors.
Nano is not just a disruptive innovation in manufacturing. The way it is marketed is equally
innovative. No other car might have generated such a huge customer interest online as well as
offline the way Nano has generated, says Mohit Dubey, Managing Director of the online car
portal Carwale.
Diesel and Motor Engineering PLC (DIMO) arranged a "Nano Mileage Rally" to consolidate the
TATA Nano as the most fuel- efficient family car in the market. Almost 50 Nano owners took
part in the rally, which covered a distance of 70km from Colombo to Negombo and back.
3.9 Pricing
Ratan Tata, the chairman of Tata Motors had announced to manufacture an affordable car for the
masses. Ironically though, he had never committed to delivering the car at the 1 lakh price point
and had only mentioned that it would be around this mark. However, when news spread like
wild-fire he decided to take this as a challenge and do whatever is required to lower the cost to
meet the price.
The Tata Nano car has 3 major variants - BS, CX, LX with each of these variants being either
compliant to the BSIII or BSIV emission norms. Additionally, the car is sold with metallic or
non-metallic bumpers. The price of the car varies based on each of these factors in addition to the
place from where it was bought.
Tata Motors launched Nano on 23rd March 2009 and received booking for 260000 cars. But
because of constraints of the production capacity it chose 100000 of those customers through a
computerized draw of lots. To these customers the car was sold at an ex-showroom price of 1L.
Tata Motors had however made it clear that the price of 100000 would hold good only for the
first 1L cars. In 2010, Tata Motors increased the price of the car by around 3% - 4% [1].
Given below are the price points for different variants of the Tata Nano models in major cities in
India. As on date, the most basic version of the car BS with non-metallic bumpers starts at
1.53L, while the most advanced version of the car LX with metallic bumpers costs as much as
2.1L [2].
Figure - Price of the different variants of the Tata Nano car in Delhi
Figure - Price of the different variants of the Tata Nano car in Bangalore
Figure - Price of the different variants of the Tata Nano car in Chennai
Figure - Price of the different variants of the Tata Nano car in Mumbai
Figure 1Price of the different variants of the Tata Nano car in Kolkata
3.10 Distribution
The key innovation bit in the design of the Tata Nano is its modular design. This incidentally
also has an impact on the way the car is distributed. Just like a bicycle, the Nano is sold in kits
that are distributed and serviced by local entrepreneurs who assemble it for the consumer. The
idea of doing so is to try and remove layers in distribution and service network to make Nano
available throughout India without a large dealership network [1].
The same distribution model is being applied to the export market as well. For instance, in
Malaysia, the cars are assembled in predefined locations using these kits. Such assembly lines
have been established in Shah Alam and Pasir Gudang in Malaysia. [2]
It can therefore be said that Tata Nano is using the hub and spoke model for distribution. The
hubs mass manufacture the different components required for the car, while the spokes assemble
it for their customers in the local market. Tata Motors uses Clearing and Forwarding (C&F)
agents who collect these kits from the hubs and distribute it to the different assembly points (the
spokes) across the nation.
This phenomenon of distributing the car in easy-to-assemble-bits is being referred to as the
Open Distribution innovation. This approach mobilizes large number of third parties enabling
the firm to reach remote rural customers, tailor the product and services to more effectively meet
the target consumers needs and additionally add value over and above the core products and
services offered by the firm. This is touted to be a better approach than customer co-creation
since this approach enables the firm to establish long-term relationships with customers, enriched
by the specialized capabilities of the broad network of third parties that generate much deeper
insight into customer needs. This approach is quite in contrast with the strategy followed by
other automobile manufacturers given the tight integration and most of the functionality
embedded in electronics that more of less becomes a black-box to the customer. [3]
While Tata Motors had worked out their hub and spoke model to perfection, the same was not
true with the place element of the marketing mix. Tata Nanos was originally exclusively
displayed with other Tata cars in Tata Motors showrooms. However, the lower income
customers felt apprehensive and hesitant to walk into these large showrooms. The firm therefore
initially failed to bridge the last mile to the lower income customer group for whom the car was
originally built.
Realizing the issue with the distribution strategy Tata Motors formed a crack team under the
leadership of R Ramakrishnan. Under his leadership the company adopted a two pronged
strategy.
First up, the company set up F Class Showrooms in smaller towns. These showrooms were
only about 500 square feet in size and stocked a single car for display. Tata Nano dealers make
2.5% on the basic price of the car. In addition, Tata helps design these outlets and setup practices
to give customers a uniform experience across dealer outlets [4].
Secondly, it tied up with value retailer Big Bazaar to get in touch with the 150 million footfalls
that the store receives from value conscious customers each year.
Both these initiatives were done in addition to the 619 regular sales outlet that Tata Motors had
in various cities across the country, which greatly helped the firm get in touch with their target
customer base and helped establish the growth in the sales of the Tata Nano cars. As per Tata
Motors annual report, while the sales of the passenger segment declined year on year, sales of the
Tata Nano car followed the reverse trend. Sales of the Nano car increased to 74,521 units
representing a growth of 5.8% over the previous year. [5]
3.12 Competition
Today in the small car segment, we could see a number of different brands and its variants. The
market is divided among multiple players each taking a slice of pie. Market share of top
automobile manufacture in India by the end of year 2012 was as following:
Brand Market Share
Maruti Suzuki 40%
Hyundai Motors 14%
Tata Motors 13%
Mahindra &
8%
Mahindra
Toyota 6%
Honda Siel cars 4%
Ford 3%
Volkswagen India 3%
Nissan < 2%
Skoda < 2%
Others 5%
Tata with 13% market share has a greater chance of success if it comes up with an innovative car
in any category. When it comes to small cars, Nano has struggled to make its mark. Indica was a
hit but is perceived as a vehicle suitable for cab.
Nearest competition to Tata Nano is Maruti 800 which is now no more produced. Industry
analysts say that at the price range of Nano there is no competition. However, for analysis sake,
we could consider low end automobile from other companies.
When the specifications are compared, they are almost the same. However, Maruti 800
commands a premium over Tata Nano. It could also be said that Maruti was unable to re-
engineer 800 to bring down the cost to the level of Nano, something that Tata was successful in.
However due to various other issues, Tata never was successful in making a mark in passenger
vehicle segment. (Could it be because Tata is much known in the manufacture of commercial
vehicles and are perceived to be old fashioned?)
Here is the comparison of Maruti 800 and Tata Nano in terms of the differences in specification:
Some other competitors for Tata Nano and their profiles are as follows:
Maruti Alto - Maruti alto is the next version of Maruti 800 which was a hit in 90s in Indian and
emerging markets. Maruti alto sells at 2.5 lakh to 3.5 lakhs in Indian market. This is a direct
competitor to Tata Nano when it comes to price, performance and affordability.
Maruti Alto 800 - Maruti Alto 800 Base seems to have extended the design language of its
predecessor. The new generation Alto 800, has an edge with the striking the design lineage of its
predecessors but also having that modernity essence in it. The simplicity factor has especially
taken care off, that is the signature aspect of Maruti, which ultimately turns out into
overwhelming sales response. The new Alto 800, has been an overall Indian development and
has been made specifically for emerging market. The car does not showcase all those smooth
character lines and finally mold body designing. The styling is much distinct with prominent
character line, and definite features.
Maruti Wagon R - The Maruti Suzuki Wagon R is a key car in which the R stands for Radical.
It is one of the first cars to use the "tall wagon or tall boy" design in which the car is designed to
be unusually tall with a short bonnet and almost vertical hatchback and sides in order to
maximize cabin space while staying within the key car dimension restrictions. Maruti Wagon R
LX is the base model for the new Wagon R, packed with 1.0L petrol engine and 5 Speed manual
transmission gearbox and many comfort features. Wagon R LX is an extremely reliable model
from Maruti Suzuki, one of the oldest and best car manufacturers of India. Despite slow car sales
when it was initially launched, Maruti Wagon R has found a market for itself now, especially
among young Indian urban professionals who don't mind its boxy slab-sided looks, but value its
Maruti lineage. The car is currently India's second largest selling car, after Maruti Alto.
Maruti A-Star - Maruti A-Star is one of the small cars from Marutis stable, which is
technically sound and is offered at a very reasonable price. Maruti A-Star LXi is the base variant,
which would not be heavy on your pocket. The car comes with the 998cc of K10B petrol motor
that delivers great power of 67 PS at 6200 rpm along with generating 90 Nm of peak torque at
3500 rpm. The flat torque comes in handy and facilitates a smooth drive in heavy traffic
conditions too. The engine has been smartly coupled with five speed manual transmission, which
allows the car to deliver impressive fuel economy of 19 km per liter.
Chevrolet spark - Chevrolet Spark facelift version an unchanged price of Rs.3.16 lakh. The
entry level car market is hot and to counter attack the Spark hatch has been adorned with a wide
array of changes. On the exteriors 2012 Chevrolet Spark gets all new front and rear bumpers,
roof rails, revised fog lamps and newfangled head and tail lamps. The front fascia look is
accentuated with all new split front grille with aggressive lines while the cabin area ambience
gets more modish with the new dual-tone finish, double -DIN audio system with AUX-in and
USB facility and refreshed fabric upholstery.
Chevrolet Beat - Chevrolet Beat diesel is now accorded the title of Most fuel efficient car by
delivering 25.44 kmpl, thus surpassing the Tata Indica eV2 which was until now claimed to be
the small car associated with highest mileage of 25 kmpl in the country. The body International
Center for Automotive Testing (ICAT) has acknowledged Beat diesel as the most fuel efficient
car in India after the auto major has endowed the car with a minor engine overhaul to see such a
huge improvement in the mileage numbers from the original 24 kmpl to 25.44 kmpl. It is more or
less the similar case as seen with Tata Indica eV2 which was later introduced with a similar
improvement in the 1.4 L diesel engine to emerge out to be the most fuel efficient car.
Reva - Reva Electric Car Co. is currently world's largest electric car manufacturing company.
Based in Bangalore, the company launched its first product on May 11, 2001 after 7 years of
R&D. The electric car Reva can accommodate two adults in the front and two children in the
rear. Of late the company has also exported electric cars to the UK and some other countries. The
company received ISO 9001:2000 Certification by the Det Norske Veritas (DNV) in 2002.
Hyundai Eon - Priced between 2.7 and 3.7 lakhs, Hyundai Eon is certainly the most stylish car
in its segment. Hyundai EON is certainly enjoying the response people are endowing it with. The
small and cute looking hatchback has literally switched ON the senses of Indian small car
buyers. The emotions deliberately attached with the car by Hyundai India, are striking a chord
with the aam aadmi of the country. Hyundai EON is a clear answer to those car makers who
think that a low cost car cannot look beautiful and spending on design is essentially luxury car
makers cup of tea.
Competitive advantage for Tata Nano over other competitors
Design is futuristic, best in class and low cost as compared to others in market.
Each car could be easily assembled, even in a normal workshop.
Price is the least compared to any other car in its segment which attracts the two wheeler
segment.
Some of the disadvantages of Tata Nano with respect to its competitors are as follows:
It is perceived as a cheap, low quality car and hence its very difficult to convince middle
class customers to buy the product. People perceive that buying this car is a shame (survey
depicted the same). Tata has to overcome this to make best of the innovation in Tata Nano.
4 Brand Exploratory
So the brand mantra for Tata Nano is Warm youthful value for money.
The current positioning of Tata Nano is for youths who care about money. Hence this brand
mantra would help them position the product and communicate to the target segment in the right
way.
Effective brand positioning relies on identifying which functional, emotional and self-expressive
benefits the target market values as important and then ensuring that the organization is able to
deliver (at least one of) these benefits to them.
Category membership forms the basis for any positioning exercise for a new brand. From the
inception of the Tata Nano project it was clear that the Nano belonged to the entry level small car
market. It can probably be even argued that it created a new target segment, one in price bracket
between the 2 wheelers and the cheapest comparable 4 wheeler at that time which was the Maruti
800.
If we analyze from the STP perspective for the initial two wheeler/bike target segment, the
survey data gives a very interesting picture. 44 survey respondents owned no bike or 1 bike and
the Brand Recall amongst that group is 4 i.e. a 9% Brand Awareness level. Whereas 6
respondents owned 2 or more bikes and all 6 were able to recall the Tata Nano brand i.e. a 100%
Brand Awareness.
Of the total responses, only 5 could recall the Tata Nano advertisement in some form which is
about 7.35% recall. If 64.7% of the respondents form the target market (0 or 1 bike) and the
advertisement Recall of the Nano is 7.35% for that segment, it makes us question the
effectiveness of earlier launch communication in reaching the target segment.
7.5.1.2 Brand Recognition
Brand Recognition reflects the ability of the consumer to confirm prior exposure to the brand.
We asked four aided and close ended questions (Q4-Q7 of the survey) to evaluate brand
recognition.
Tata Motors had run two campaigns with the tagline, first being Art in Motion and the second
one being Aapki Khushiyon Ki Chabi. 20.97% of the respondents were able to correctly
recognize the Art in Motion tagline and 30.65% had no idea about which brand this is
associated with. What is more interesting is 19.35% associated it with high end car like
Mercedes, Jaguar, Mini Cooper etc. However when Tata Motors ran the campaign with Aapki
Khushiyon Ki Chabi the Brand Recognition jumped to 54.10%.
Fortunately for Tata Motors, the brand recognition is distinct from competitors. When a cut out
of Nano was shown to the respondents, 57.81% were able to recognize it as Tata Nano with no
other Brand score greater than 6.25%.
One other dimension we measured was with respect to Competition (Q6 in the survey) on how
Tata Nano fares when it comes to competition in terms of Brand Recognition. Below table
summarizes the results:
From the responses to Q18 & Q19, we see that typical imagery that is formed of the Tata Nano is
- Small, Indian, Car, Autorickshaw, Cheap, Value-for-money etc. No surprises there. However
the eye popper was Potential.
Married
Married w/ kids
22%
22%
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
When we analyze this chart in conjunction with the words respondents used to describe the
Brand Personality like in the bar chart above, we clearly see that the Nano is a Family Oriented,
Sincerity, Genuine and Youthful (with Pretentious being the odd one out), the congruence is
striking. The Personality associated with Nano is predominately that of Sincerity. It is the vibrant
colors of the car body that has caused Youthful to get high marks, which indicates that Nano is
better aligned with the target segment and positioning atleast on certain attributes.
Thus when we asked the question Which kind of people purchase Nano?, 31% said elderly and
44% said Married and Married with kids. The results were clearly not unanimously pointing to
the youth segment. This indicates that mixed concurrent campaigns such as Art in Motion
targeted towards the segment, and Aapki Khushiyon Ki Chabi for the family oriented segment
creates confused positioning in the minds of the customer. This also brings out that repositioning
is a costly and time consuming activity. The company should phase out the old campaigns of
family oriented positioning and use a consistent communication to target the youth core segment
only.
It is interesting to note that the parent brand Tata has mostly all positive emotions associated
with it whereas for the Tata Nano brand the negative emotions like disappointment, shame ,
irritation figure as well. The economy perception seems to be well inherited by the Tata Nano
brand from its parent Tata.
Word association results for both Tata Nano and Nano surveys show that the top 3 associations
made are for:
Family oriented
Youthful
Genuine
From the analysis of the responses to Q24-Q31 in the survey, we see that the brand does not
resonate with the target segment and the opinion is largely neutral to negative. 30%-42% of the
target segment has a neutral attitude towards Tata Nano in terms of loyalty, recommendation or
the likelihood of purchase and 37-59% has a negative to strongly negative attitude towards the
brand, which calls for immediate replaning of the branding and marketing strategy and consistent
execution over a period of time to realize the benefits.
Q24: I consider myself loyal to TATA NANO.
50%
41%
40%
30% 27%
22%
20%
10% 6%
3%
0%
Strongly Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly
disagree agree
20%
10% 5%
0%
0%
Strongly Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree
disagree
15%
10%
5%
0%
0%
Strongly Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree
disagree
To elaborate further, the disconcerting statistics for Tata Motor Brand Manager would be the
strong swing towards the negative territory (Strongly Disagree and Disagree) on key parameters
of:
Loyalty: with 49% respondents saying they Strongly Disagree/Disagree that they are loyal
towards Tata Nano
Purchase intent : with 48% respondents saying they Strongly Disagree/Disagree that they
are considering a purchase of Tata Nano
Pride : Even if they were to purchase, 49% respondents felt they Strongly Disagree/Disagree
that they would be proud to let other know they use Tata Nano
Given the above facts we can conclude that Tata Nano has a very weak Brand Equity in the
minds of the consumer.
The above needs to be evaluated in light of the pre-launch mania that the Tata Nano had
Consumer paying Application amount of Rs.500 to book the Nano
Consumers willing to wait 6 months and more for deliveries
Pride of ownership amongst the first few customers
It could be opined that there was considerable interest in the target segment. However, the
product quality and user experience did not match the target segment expectations and thus did
not aid in building brand equity.
8 Key Insights & Recommendations
8.1.2 Branding strategy did not align with 2012 relaunch & repositioning
Given the original affordability and family-oriented peoples car positioning, it was logical for
the company to leverage on the Tata parent brand associations given the branded house based
brand architecture.
Nano was repositioned in 2012 for the youth segment with an upgraded product that addressed
safety concerns and quality issues, due to 3 years of disappointing revenue performance and
growing gap between production and utilized car manufacturing capacity. The company had
failed to realign its branding strategy during this repositioning exercise. In our opinion, the
company could have attempted a Titan/Fastrack approach in branding Nano, given that the
parent brand associations do not align with the updated 2012 positioning strategy. However, we
also suspect that the brand was limited by the high brand awareness of Tata Nano and its
unique product design, though with low brand equity. Given the challenges involved in
repackaging i.e. redesigning the body design, the company could have been limited to retaining
the brand as a sub-brand with any extended identity changes.
8.1.3 Ratan Tata as brand ambassador not aligned with 2012 positioning
Ratan Tata as brand ambassador given his reference to peoples car and the scooter episode
does not chime well with the target segment, post Tata Nano 2012 repositioning.
Scooter episode and Ratan Tatas vision of a safer form of transport - Two-wheelers with the
father driving, the elder child standing in front and the wife behind holding a baby is very
much the norm in this country. In that form, two-wheelers are a relatively unsafe mode of
transporting a family. The two-wheeler image is what got me thinking that we needed to create a
safer form of transport.5
5
http://tata.in/article.aspx?artid=Sd75BUBmzSM=
8.2 SWOT Analysis for Tata Nano
STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES
OPPORTUNITIES THREATS
8.3.6 Cultivate distinct positioning for multibrands and improve brand equity
While Tata Motors has been good at identifying market segments in terms of size and growth
potential to target, we see that the company has taken a shortcut in leveraging its parent brand
house association, and not identified distinct positioning for various brands in the car product
category. This could be attributed to either an overpowering corporate brand, given its branded
house based brand architecture, or the lack of sufficient brand focused teams within the
organizational division. We recommend that clear brand performance goals be set for internal
branding teams to reap the benefits of investments made towards creating such varied multi-
brands. The company would do best in trying to arrive at distinct positioning for these multi-
brands, though they are technically sub-brands for the corporate brand.
The company currently seems to demarcate the various customer segments solely based on the
price range of the product. The original reliability and quality based positioning of the parent
brand are no longer relevant differentiators as these are now hygiene factors as against key
success factors in the car industry, given the global nature of competition, improving urban road
conditions and technological improvements that provide top notch quality.
6
http://pitchonnet.com/blog/2012/05/14/tata-nano-kickstarts-experiential-drive-for-revival/
9 Conclusions
Our analysis indicates that Tatas flanking strategy for the compact car segment is relevant in the
given market conditions. Given the wide price difference between Tata Nano and the entry level
car of competing brands, Tata Nano would do better if it could slightly move up the price
spectrum and allow for improved product quality within its operating range, to better position
itself to the youth target segment through a eco-friendly green car positioning. The low brand
equity of Tata Nano should not deter its top management, branding strategy formulation and
implementation teams from investing to turnaround this brand by changing unfavorable brand
associations, given the existing high brand awareness of Tata Nano, considerable market
potential and increasing revenue performance as witnessed post 2012 repositioning.
10 Appendices
10.1 References
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tata_Nano
2. http://www.tatanano.com/news.htm
3. http://www.rediff.com/money/2008/may/14tata.htm
4. http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2009-03-24/news/27649428_1_tata-nano-nano-buyer-
motors-md-ravi-kant
5. http://www.deccanherald.com/content/162053/a-big-u-turn-small.html
6. http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/NussbaumOnDesign/archives/2008/01/new_distribution_syst
em_for_indias_nano_car_from_tata.html
7. http://www.srmuniv.ac.in/downloads/marketing-plan-for-tata-nano.pdf
8. http://www.businessweek.com/stories/2008-02-27/learning-from-tatas-nanobusinessweek-business-
news-stock-market-and-financial-advice
9. http://wardsauto.com/ar/tata_nano_innovations
10. http://tatamotors.com/investors/financials/67-ar-flipbook/index.html
11. http://www.livemint.com/Companies/r4YRuhZjMNhggGI2e981GN/Tata-hikes-Nano-price-to-begin-
second-phase-of-delivery.html
12. http://www.tatanano.com/price_list.php
13. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/opinion/rough-ride-for-tata-
motors/article4610740.ece#.UWkHzWeZr8A.gmail
14. http://www.sundayobserver.lk/2012/05/27/fin33.asp
15. http://pitchonnet.com/blog/2012/05/14/tata-nano-kickstarts-experiential-drive-for-revival/
16. Hierarchy of effects - Robert J Lavidge and Gary A. Steinerg
17. Http://profit.ndtv.com/news/corporates/article-did-not-get-nano-marketing-strategy-right-ratan-tata-
295402
18. http://mktg.uni-svishtov.bg/ivm/resources/CustomerBasedbrandEquityModel.pdf - Building
Customer-Based Brand Equity: A Blueprint for creating strong brands by Kevin Lane Keller
Demographics Q33-Q37
Q33. Gender?
Q34. Age?
Q35. Marital Status?
Q36. How many children do you have?
Q37. Income range?
Misc Q38-Q45
Q38. How many cars do you own?
Q39. How many 2 wheelers do you own?
Q40. Which car brand do you own?
Q41. Do you own a Tata Nano?
Q42. In which year did you buy the Tata Nano car?
Q43. Why did you buy the Nano?
Q44. If you could go back in time, would you buy Nano again?
Q45. If the answer to the above question was NO, which other brand would you have bought?