After recently launching their #BeTheBetterGuy campaign, Puneet Anand, Senior General Manager & Group Head, Marketing, Hyundai Motor India, tells us about the brand’s commitment to drive road safety awareness, and explains that while volume and market-share are important, quality remains their biggest priority
BY CHRISTINA MONIZ
Q] What was the insight behind your newly launched #BeTheBetterGuy campaign?
What kind of response have you seen towards the campaign? Hyundai has always been a responsible and caring brand globally. In the area of traffic safety, Hyundai has been integrating people, cars, and the traffic environment to educate and increase awareness and responsibility towards safe driving practices. Our #BeTheBetterGuy campaign is an integral part of our wider road safety initiative ‘Safe Move’. Through the campaign film, we aim to drive a positive change in society and draw attention to the importance of traffic rules and discipline. The recently launched Phase II of #BeTheBetterGuy film draws attention to critical issues surrounding road safety such as underage driving, drunk driving, usage of phones while driving, over-speeding and jumping traffic signals. We have seen a good response so far. Phase I of our campaign in 2016 was a big success too and has won prestigious awards. We had conducted on-ground road safety activities across schools and residential areas across 10 cities in the country. Now in Phase II, our endeavour is to drive greater awareness around road safety across the country. The initiative has an offline road safety activity in association with Ministry of Road Transport and Highways at 150 schools in 15 cities and 14 malls in six cities.
Q] Other auto brands have also previously worked to create road safety awareness. How confident are you of driving behaviour change through this campaign?
‘Safe Move’ is one of the key pillars of Hyundai Motor Group’s long-term road-safety CSR initiative across the globe. Our #BeTheBetterGuy Road Safety Awareness Films are an integral part of the Safe Move campaign. These films are unique in nature as they highlight various situations in our day-to-day life, highlighting actions which can prevent mishaps. These are situations anyone can relate to. The messages in the film revolve around creating innovative content, emphasizing the need to ‘Be The Better Guy’ in an adverse situation. We are confident that our audiences will be able to relate to these real-life situations and hence will consciously adhere to safe driving practices. It is also important to note that our long-term brand ambassador Shah Rukh Khan has also lent support towards this campaign, and going by the initial feedback, we are confident of making this initiative a success.
Q] What kind of amplification are we going to see for this campaign? What is the kind of media mix you are using?
The campaign takes a 360-degree approach with an on-ground and Digital leg. We launched the films on YouTube that crossed 10 million views in just a few days of its launch. We have also done tie-ups with cinema halls where this film will be played. The idea is to promote the message of safe driving to as many people as we can, on as many platforms as possible.
Q] Is there anything else you are currently doing in the Digital space to connect with consumers?
At Hyundai, we constantly work to reinvent the ways in which to reach out to our target audience and engage them to capture maximum mind share. Digital has always been an important part of our communication strategy. Earlier this year, we set the trend of unconventional marketing for the launch of the new Hyundai Grand i10. We created content that connected instantly with consumers with the ‘Wowsome Comeback’ campaign. We brought together leading artists to create fun video content around the most interesting comeback reactions shared by fans in the form of memes. Content marketing has become important, especially when you’re looking to break up the clutter.
Q] Earlier this year, you had launched your online booking facility for customers.
What kind of response have you seen from consumers? HyBuy is our most innovative initiative, offering customers a unique online buying experience. We have seen an encouraging response from consumers especially since they have now been given the power to incentivise their own purchase journey to get maximum benefits. We have seen that as many as 65% of the consumers today do their research online before making a purchase. This facility helps them take the next step and book their car at the click of a button. We expect the number of sales through online bookings to increase in the near future.
Q] Your market share has stayed at about 17% for the last one year. How do you plan to take on your largest competitor, Maruti Suzuki?
For now, Hyundai’s priority is to focus on making modern premium cars that add brilliant moments to our customers’ lives and are their companion for a lifetime. Volume is important, but quality is even more important.
Q] Hyundai is expected to introduce a new family car next year. How do you expect it to fare in the midst of some serious competition in the segment?
Well, Hyundai is a modern premium brand. We have been in the country now for nearly two decades and are pleased with our position and our achievements in the market. All our models are industry benchmarks and the next family car from us will be no different.
Q] What kind of growth have you seen in the smaller/nonmetro markets? Do you adopt a different strategy for those regions?
We have seen an unprecedented growth in the rural markets over the past few years. No auto manufacturer can ignore this segment of consumers with the way it is growing. Rural markets are a key part of our long-term strategy, in addition to the other 110 top cities. Our objective is to drive greater sales and growth for the brand by increasing the number of rural sales outlets.
Q] Which particular model or category are you betting big on in the upcoming year?
Small cars continue to be an important segment driving volumes. However, Indian customers are upgrading from entry level to far more advanced, feature-rich cars that have a distinctive presence on the roads. With a strong focus on both urban and rural markets, Hyundai will continue to strengthen our commitment to the market with additions in our portfolio at every segment.
Q] What are your thoughts on the auto industry in India currently? What factors do you think will drive greater growth for the segment?
The auto industry is going through a cusp of change, at both the policy and regulatory level, and also in terms of the changing consumer demands. I believe the increasing disposable incomes, especially in rural markets, will be a key factor that will drive growth for the industry. Additionally, new trends such as shared mobility, need for cleaner fuels, connected and autonomous cars will shape the industry’s future in the next few years to come.
@ FEEDBACK christina.moniz@exchange4media.com
