General 500 USA launch branded a failure
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General 500 USA launch branded a failure
Makes me laugh they're blaming JLo for the failure!
I think they have acheived quite good figures for the amount of dealers/price/new brand etc... . Just not what they wanted!
I am along way removed from American culture so why does the Jennifer Lopez deal adversely affect the sales of the car?
I guess the Abarth will get a more masculine advert.
I am along way removed from American culture so why does the Jennifer Lopez deal adversely affect the sales of the car?
I guess the Abarth will get a more masculine advert.
OP
OP
Makes me laugh they're blaming JLo for the failure!
Why?
When you choose a marmite figure like JHo, then it's going to have a negative effect overall. I'm sure there were some morons who saw JHo in her adverts and bought a 500, but there are far more that make a negative association with JHo's dire music. Choosing someone who is more or less universally loved or at least not hated would have been a far better move. Uma Thurman in the Giulietta adverts is a good example of choosing someone who masses of people aren't going to DISLIKE and be turned off by.
I can think of many celebs who would have been better than JHo
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If the J Lo ad is getting so much flak maybe Fiat show stopping 'airing' it. After seeing the ad last night it gave me desire to buy another one.
geeded
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Before everyone counts Fiat out in the States, you should know a couple of things.
The plant that builds for NA is also taken over supplying all exports of the 500 to South America and the Pacific Rim, including China (It's not just the NA market).
There is a two month backlog of orders in Canada due to inept dealers.
Fiat 500 sales in the US were up 44% in December. Check out the site below for the article concerning same (Wed, Jan 4) as well as the comments, and especially the graph one of the respondents attached showing the month by month sales of Fiat against MINI in the US during both marques launch year. You might be surprised especially since MINI had no NA competition in 2002 and that certainly is no longer the case.
www.fiat500usa.com
Oh, and a company being quoted as planning to sell 50,000 cars in their first year, when there were less than 30 dealers up and running, was the height of hubris. Perhaps there is a little more humility now present at corporate HQ.
With the Abarth, the 500T coming on line soon, Fiat should be OK. Right now they have the substantial profits of Chrysler for support.
Cheers
The plant that builds for NA is also taken over supplying all exports of the 500 to South America and the Pacific Rim, including China (It's not just the NA market).
There is a two month backlog of orders in Canada due to inept dealers.
Fiat 500 sales in the US were up 44% in December. Check out the site below for the article concerning same (Wed, Jan 4) as well as the comments, and especially the graph one of the respondents attached showing the month by month sales of Fiat against MINI in the US during both marques launch year. You might be surprised especially since MINI had no NA competition in 2002 and that certainly is no longer the case.
www.fiat500usa.com
Oh, and a company being quoted as planning to sell 50,000 cars in their first year, when there were less than 30 dealers up and running, was the height of hubris. Perhaps there is a little more humility now present at corporate HQ.
With the Abarth, the 500T coming on line soon, Fiat should be OK. Right now they have the substantial profits of Chrysler for support.
Cheers
I noticed the JLo 500 advert has made it onto our shores last night!
I'm unclear on why J-lo is a disastrous association. My having a job precludes me from following celebrities obsessively. Has J-lo eaten a child or raped or nun or something?
No, you're coming at this all wrong. The dealer ineptitude is all part of the brand. What they're managed to do there is perfectly replicate the European Fiat dealer experience.
I tend to regard any announcement on sales as pure fantasy. Having been involved in product development and launches before its my experience that the marketing people hype something to the point of it being unrealistic but everyone around the table is so keen to see it happen no one speaks sense and the press release goes out. Then reality kicks in. Some people are moved around and the product either goes on to sell in enough volume to make money or it's killed and the investment and effort written off when the customers vote against it by not buying it.
Assuming they don't do the retarded thing they did in the UK and only sell them at a dozen Abarth dealerships. It's a 500. With a t-jet engine. Sell them everywhere.
No, you're coming at this all wrong. The dealer ineptitude is all part of the brand. What they're managed to do there is perfectly replicate the European Fiat dealer experience.
I tend to regard any announcement on sales as pure fantasy. Having been involved in product development and launches before its my experience that the marketing people hype something to the point of it being unrealistic but everyone around the table is so keen to see it happen no one speaks sense and the press release goes out. Then reality kicks in. Some people are moved around and the product either goes on to sell in enough volume to make money or it's killed and the investment and effort written off when the customers vote against it by not buying it.
Assuming they don't do the retarded thing they did in the UK and only sell them at a dozen Abarth dealerships. It's a 500. With a t-jet engine. Sell them everywhere.
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You mean "the wireless".
OP
OP
Lucky you!
I can't help wondering if FIAT would sell more 500's if they simply spent their entire marketing budget on reducing the price of the car.
OP
OP
That might knock about 2p off each car in the UK. Do Fiat seem to really bother to do anything other than occasionally advertise the Punto and 500?
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The question is (and I'm not talking about the USA), is the factory in Poland running at full tilt?
Because if it is, they won't reduce the price of the car, as they wouldn't be able to make the things. Production engineering is a little bit more than just build a car and sell it, you have to manage the capacity of the line, the quality etc.
Because if it is, they won't reduce the price of the car, as they wouldn't be able to make the things. Production engineering is a little bit more than just build a car and sell it, you have to manage the capacity of the line, the quality etc.
OP
OP
I doubt it is. The 500 has dropped off in terms of sales as has the Panda, plus they've taken the 4x4 out of play in a few markets and the 100hp too. Panda is well long in the tooth. 500 will start to die off badly in terms of sales if they don't at least do a mild facelift and improve things like the interior.
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If you go into a supermarket and look at people buying detergent for washing their clothes in you will see a lot more people buying Bold, Persil, etc, than the own brand unmarketed cheaper products.
Also I recall being taught in an economics lesson (a long time ago) that one of the big pain killer manufacturers decided to stop advertising and lower their prices - and they nearly went bust.
Whether you like it or not, manufacturers in a competitive market need to market their products or risk dwindling sales.
Our resident marketing specialist Chrysa will beable to explain it all better than me I am sure.
OP
OP
Fiat neither advertises or has low prices. Hmmmmmmm
I've seen a fair bit of billboard & magazine coverage recently, especially for the Twinair. For the UK market, it wouldn't surprise me if FIAT's budget for the 500 is in the order of several hundred pounds per car sold.
Your 2p per car figure might not be so far off the mark for the Panda, though
. I can't remember ever seeing any advertising for it & the brochure looks like something you'd pick up at Lidl.Personally I hate shelling out for clever marketing & posh packaging & would much sooner see my money going on putting some real value into the finished product.
