FORE SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT

Automobile Brand
GENERAL MOTORS
Strategic Brand Management

Submitted to: Prof. Jayshree M. Sundar




Submitted BY:
Group 3
Karan Luthra (201064)
Milan Dhingra (201076)
Nainsi Mittal (201082)
Nikhil Dhawan (201087)
Paridhi Agarwal (201102)
Puneet Arora (201111)
Radha Mohan Giri (201113)


Table of Contents
Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 3
Brand Management Process ......................................................................................................................... 3
Identifying and Establishing Brand Positioning and Values ...................................................................... 3
Plan and Implement the Brand Marketing Programs ............................................................................... 4
Measuring and Interpreting Brand Performance ..................................................................................... 6
Growing and Sustaining Brand Equity....................................................................................................... 6
Brand Elements for General Motors ............................................................................................................. 7
Analysing an Advertising Medium .............................................................................................................. 10
Analysis of Print Media VOLT ............................................................................................................... 11
Competition ................................................................................................................................................ 15
General Motors India .................................................................................................................................. 15
Brand potential and Future Opportunities ................................................................................................. 16



Introduction
General Motor is the one of the best automobile company in the word. General Motors
manufacturing the cars and trucks in the international market. Consistently following the concept of a
car for every purse and purpose its strategy which during the 1920s for retaining buyers from their first
car to their last. Its extensive brand lineup has long been G.M.s primary weapon and what has helped it
maintain its leader share in the US market and keeping Ford its biggest competitor at bay. GM over the
last 5 years has gone from an 8 band strong firm filing for bankruptcy to going under brand re-
architecture and re-positioning the brand.
Brand Management Process
To understand the Strategic Brand Management process followed by GM and its effectiveness over the
year, let us have a look at each of the processes individually:
Identifying and Establishing Brand Positioning and Values
General Motors on a mental map level had gone from first car and a family car brand during the nineties
to a brand considered a dull, boring, gas guzzlers and dominating during the mid-2000. It was during this
time that a major market share was eroded by foreign competitors such as Ford, Toyota etc. Then due
to a change in strategy and focus as a result of brand re-architecture, GM today is known as a brand re-
inventing itself, innovative, exciting and persistent.
General Motors has brands that compete in all defined car segments through brand names like
Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC among others. Thus it faces stiff competition from car manufacturers
like Toyota, Honda, Damiler Chrysler; however, Ford is considered to be its biggest competitor.
Brand


Strategy
Strongest Brand
Present in all
segments
Value Driven
Luxury Car Brand
Stylish and
Performance
Crossover/SUV
Car Brand

From a stable of 8 well known brands in 2007-08, General Motors decided to trim brand names like
Pontiac, Hummer and Saturn and sold out Saab. GM now has decided to concentrate its efforts on their
four major brands with a differentiated and unique positioning for each brand and maintaining their
individuality which GM had lost following the concept of Badge Engineering during the latter half of
the twentieth century.
Additionally, the famous blue logo of GM is no longer available and its now replaced by an all text
branding, which highlights the sincerity in efforts of GM to revitalize and re-invent itself.
Old Branding New Branding



Reorganizing the companys the brand architecture makes sense for a number of reasons:
1) The GM name will always be associated with Government Motors
2) The individual brands appeal to very different clientele. The Cadillac buyer sees no benefit to being
associated in any way with the Chevrolet brand. The constant linking of GM with each brand did just
that.
3) No one actually bought the GM brand anywayit was always about the name platesyou bought a
Chevrolet, Buick, GMC or Cadillac not a GM.
4) Should General Motors seek to sell off any additional name plates (like Opel), distance from the
parent company gives the spun-off brand a better stand-alone chance.
5) Maybe, just maybe, the brand change will help change the companys highly bureaucratic corporate
culture.
Over the years GM has tried to position itself as a NEW RE-INVENTING BRAND through its
Communication strategy. Its communicating with people through various media like TV, Print and Social
Media.
Followed the new Mantra of RE-INVENT (EN-V, Premium Small Cars)
Fewer but stronger brands: Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac and GMC
New energy solutions, new designs, new technologies
A New GM Campaign
May the Best Car Win Campaign
Focus on brands, not the parent company
Formed General Motor Ventures to explore new technologies
GM LABs
Introduced Chevrolet Volt (electric car). Research still going on over new variants
Research in Bio Fuel and Flexible fuels

Plan and Implement the Brand Marketing Programs
General Motors internationally markets the concept of A Brand for Every place now focuses on
maintaining each brands individuality along with a customer-centric approach.
Additionally, it has started with a new series of television advertising, which focused on the re-invented
GM and conveyed the same to public so that they dont lose faith in the brand. In one of its ads, the
chairman of GM himself talks about how they have evolved as a company and take pride in the fact that
GM Repaid all it loan with interest, 5 years ahead of schedule, back to government.
Additionally, the company recently announced it signed a deal to sponsor Manchester United, the
British soccer team, citing the teams large international fan base. The announcement came just weeks
after the company said it would opt out of advertising during next years Super Bowl for financial
reasons and stating Rather than reach 100 million Americans, they can reach 600 million globally.
Better late than never, General Motors finally understands the need of embracing Social Media as an
integral part of marketing program. Immerse and disperse is the how employees join GMs corporate
social media engagement team, are immersed in social media before employees are sent to work within
a General Motors division or brand. Employees stay on the social media team from one to one and half
years, and during their residence employees pick up the basics of corporate social media tactics and
social media communication strategies, including; building relationships with influencers, picking up best
practices, gaining social media ideas to implement and contacts with GMs social media agency
resources.
In any given year 20% of the automobile market is thinking of purchasing a car, 80% of customers are
not in the market to buy. Most marketing dollars are focused in any year on the 20% who are buying.
Christopher Bargers goal at General Motors is to aim his social media efforts at the 80% of customers
who are not in the market to purchase. The strategy is to engage with those 80% of non buyers,
understand what they want from the automobile manufacturer and drive innovation with products by
listening to customers and taking action on what is learned.
The balance that GM tried to strike was about 20/80. Twenty percent of the stuff we were putting out,
whether on Facebook or Twitter or anywhere else, was GM information. The other 80 percent was
responding to peoples questions, responding to what people were saying. Even if they were venting and
saying, We hate you, GM tried to respond. GM even put the CEO in twitter and tried to answer all
questions like a press conference.
Facebook: 4.18 Lakh likes
Twiter: 70,000 followers

The short points being conveyed by GM via their new brand marketing programs are:
o GM wants to be a company all Americans can be proud of.
o Exceed expectations of people
o Designing, building and selling the best cars in the world through investment in R&D.
o Unmatched quality, technology and fuel designs for tomorrows world
o Invite everyone to look at THE NEW GM
The success or failure of GM will not revolve around the GM brand. No one walks into a car dealership
and asks for a GM car. Their future depends on how well their remaining brands are positioned and how
well each strategy is executed.

Measuring and Interpreting Brand Performance
When it comes to measuring brand performance, one method could be the market share of GM in
American market. From over 55% market share in 1950s to around 22% in 2008 and 16.9% in 2012, GM
has had its share of fluctuating brand performance. Although it still maintains the leader position in the
American market. Of its share in the automotive segment more than half of sales come from Chevrolet
brand which is their strongest brand. So the brand performance in a way is linked with performance of
Chevrolet as a brand.


Taking Brand Value into account, GM as a brand was valued at US $ 1,884 Million in 2009 and ranked
356 on the list of Global 500 brands while in 2012, it is valued at US $ 3,888 Million and ranks 270 in
Global 500 list.
This shows an improvement in GM as a brand and the fact that its new face is finding favor with its
customers.
Growing and Sustaining Brand Equity
After the re-organization of brand portfolio by General Motors and the positive response it has received
to it over the last few years, it is imperative that the organization continues on its path to grow and
sustain the positive brand image it has built over the last 5 years.
Where once GM was known to dominate the market and dictate its customer on where to go, it has now
changed into customer-focus organization, where responding to customer needs and requirements are
of paramount importance.
The brand now stands for innovation and quality which they would like to continue by investing in their
processes and sharpening their focus on engaging their customers. Thats critical to ensuring that they
have the right features and technologies in their vehicles to win in a competitive marketplace.
With their hoped-for new focus on customers, cars, and culture, GM could be headed in the right
direction. They already have outlined their main priorities and their strategies for future. From a brand
that lost weight during 2008-09 to a brand which has lost the negativity attached to it, its time GM
capitalizes on it and moves forward to become one of the most prestigious automotive manufacturer
brand in the world.
0
10
20
30
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
GM
Ford
Brand Elements for General Motors
In general, there are six criteria for brand elements as listed below:
1. Memorability
Easily recognized
Easily recalled
2. Meaningful
Descriptive
Persuasive
3. Likeable
Fun and interesting
Rich visual and verbal imagery
Aesthetically pleasing
4. Transferable
Within and across product categories
Across geographic boundaries and cultures
5. Adaptable
Flexible
Updatable
6. Protectable
Legally
Competitively

The first three criteria are the marketers offensive strategy and build brand strategy. The latter three,
however, play a defensive role for leveraging and maintaining brand equity in the face of different
opportunities and constraints.
The various Brand Elements and their role in Brand Building
Brand Names: General Motors has dropped many of its marquee brands like Pontiac, Saturn,
Oldsmobile, Hummer, etc. to concentrate mainly on its four brands: Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and
Cadillac.
Chevrolet: The brand name has been derived from Louis Chevrolet, a race car driver, who was
the founder of Chevrolet Motor Car Company in 1911 and the name of the company used his
image and persona.
Buick: Buick originated as Buick Auto-Vim and Power Company in 1899 and is among the oldest
automobile brands in the world. It was named after David Buick who was an inventor and expert
on internal combustion engines.
GMC: GMC stands for General Motors Corporation. It is one of the several brands of General
Motors. The name General Motors was adopted by the founder William Durant after acquisition
of many different car companies including Buick and Chevrolet.
Cadillac: Cadillac brand name after Antoine Laumet de La Mothe, sieur de Cadillac, the founder
of Detroit. The name was in recognition of the founder of the city which is also known as Motor
City. So, this brand name directly connects it to the City of Detroit which once was the motor
capital of the world.
URLs: General Motors has been able to get very relevant domain names or URLs (Uniform
Resource Locators). All of its four major brands have their own websites and connected URLs.
The various URLs are:
GM.COM, CHEVROLET.COM, BUICK.COM, GMC.COM and CADILLAC.COM.
Also in India where only Chevrolet brand is currently in operation, its URL is CHEVROLET.CO.IN
Brand recall is critical for URLs because, at least initially, consumers must remember the URL to
be able to get to the site. We find that General Motors has got URLs which are high on
memorability and enhance brand recall and recognition.
Logos and Symbols: Logos and Symbols are useful for brand recognition and should provoke
visual appeal. The non-word mark logos are called Symbols.
A logo can be a valuable way to identify products. Since logos are non-verbal, they transfer well
across cultures and over a range of product categories.


Brand Logo Meaning and Role in
Brand Building
GM

Also known as
Mark of Excellence
Dropped use in
websites and cars
after reorganization
in 2009 to focus on
four core brands.
Chevrolet

Inspired from the
Swiss Cross
Also known as
Chevy Bowtie
The yellowish
golden colour
creates a feeling of
relaxation,
optimism and
sportsmanship
Buick

Rooted in the
ancestral Coat of
Arms of the
founders family
Keeps alive the
memories of the
founder
GMC

Used the verbal
acronym for the
company name
The font gives a
very strong image
to the major line of
mini trucks
Red colour used
shows vitality
Cadillac

The logo is loosely
based on the family
crest of the
namesake
New logo based on
the philosophy of
Art and Science
Refreshing design
with clean looking
lines and an
uncluttered
appearance which
reflects their latest
styling studies

Brand Personality: Brand personality is the way a brand speaks and behaves. It means assigning
human personality traits/characteristics to a brand so as to achieve differentiation. General
Motors is present in India only through its Chevrolet brand. Chevrolet has strong technical and
marketing resources. Chevrolets brand personality is: Trustworthy, intelligent, pragmatic,
friendly and full of vitality. Chevrolet in India is concentrating more in the small and medium size
car market and thus is trying to have an image of being a frugal car brand with advertisements
emphasizing on its high mileage and low maintenance. In India, Chevrolet is building up a brand
personality of Frugal, Smart, Up to date and modern car brand.

Slogans: Slogans are short phrases that communicate descriptive or persuasive information
about the brand. They are an extremely efficient, shorthand means to build brand equity.
Again, we will concentrate on the Chevrolet brand in India and taglines used by the various
offerings.

Chevrolet Aveo U-VA: Incredibly Spacious : It simply ad powerfully tells about a single quality
which is cherished by Indian consumers and that is spaciousness.

Chevrolet Captiva: Choose Your Turf: This tagline very smartly promotes the SUV offering of
Chevrolet and communicates to the customer about the ruggedness and all terrain suitability of
the car. It also banks on the traditional personality of Chevrolet as being a sturdy car brand.

Chevrolet Optra: Enjoy The Drive and Turn on Style: These two taglines for Optra very subtly tell
us about the qualities of this premium offering by Chevrolet in sedan segment. The taglines tell
about the comfortable drive provided by it the high style quotient of the product. The tagline
suitably targets the intended customer who is looking for comfort, elegance and an image of
being stylish.

Chevrolet Spark: Full of Life: this is the offering in the small car segment where new breed
customers are looking for low cost, high mileage and handling. The tagline goes well with the
target customer who is young and dynamic and wants a cool peppy car.

Chevrolet Beat: Gets Your Heart Racing and Plan Ahead: The two taglines target two very
different target customers. The first one targets the young customer who is looking for high
performance and acceleration. The tagline describes about the peppy and high performance
engine of the car. The second one targets the young customer who is planning to start a family.
This tagline tries to drive home the image of the cars long life and spaciousness.

We see that GM and especially Chevrolet in India have used their Brand elements very
consistently and effectively. It has not changed the logo of Chevrolet ever in its long history and
the same is true for its other marquee brands to a large extent. This plays a n important role in
enhancing the memorability of the brand. When we analyze the advertisements, especially the
print ads of the company they convey a lot of information about the products superiority which
is very important for such a high involvement purchase item. All the advertisements, especially
the TV ads show the fun and interesting part of the cars and use a lot of visual imagery and
specific information about particular attributes to give persuasive meaning. The use of logos
help in increasing the transferability of the brands across product categories and geographies.
Analysing an Advertising Medium
General Motors communicates with its potential customers through Social Media, Tele Media and Print
Media. Here we will analyze its Print Media Strategy via its Brand Chevrolet Volt.
Chevrolet- VOLT
First Electric. Then Gas.
The Chevy Volt.
Tag Line: Take the lead and Leave the following to others.
The Chevy Volt is one of the most innovative cars on the market and the start of a new trend, of
combining an electric car with capabilities of a traditional gas vehicle.
The unique selling premise is that the Chevy Volt, as an elite vehicle, embodies the sophistication of
the target market, which takes pride in being the first of its social group to take part in the latest
trend, or start one of their own. The idea is that they are not just keeping up with Joneses they
are the Joneses.
Analysis of Print Media VOLT
The trendsetting people like Jackie Robinson, Steve Jobs & Marilyn featured in the ads are appealing
because the target market relates to the achievements and calibre of these chosen icons.
Each of these people has promoted individualism and is thought of as a cultural trendsetter, which
highlights the goal for the brand positioning of the Chevy Volt. The innovations of the Volt are tied to
these famous trendsetters, which frames the Volt as the up-and-coming cultural trend for the informed
and curious target market.
The big idea is that the Volt is the first of its kind. It is one of the most advanced and innovative electric
vehicles on the market, leaving other car companies to do the following. The campaign slogan, leave
the following to others emphasizes all aspects of being a trendsetter. The target market follows no
one, and they are the members of society who take charge and lead in setting social and product
standards. Like the Volt, they have unique characteristics that set them apart from the people who
surround them.
Magazine Advertisement


The Ad focuses on the fact that Chevrolet is a trend setter

Newspaper Advertisement


Outdoor Advertisement




Competition
The main competitors for GM are: Ford, Chrysler, Toyota, Nissan , Honda, Peugeot
General Motors, Ford and Chrysler are often referred to as the "Big Three" or, more recently the
"Detroit Three being the largest automakers in the United States and Canada. They were for a while the
largest in the world and two of them are still a mainstay in the top five. Ford has held the position of
second-ranked automaker for the past 56 years, being relegated to third in North American sales, after
being overtaken by Toyota in 2007. That year, Toyota produced more vehicles than GM, though GM still
outsold Toyota that year, giving GM 77 consecutive calendar years of top sales. For the first quarter of
2008, however, Toyota overtook GM in sales as well. In the North American market, the Detroit
automakers retained the top three spots, though their market share is dwindling. Honda passed Chrysler
for the fourth spot in 2008 US sales. Since then, because of Toyota's woes with their recent unintended
acceleration recall, Toyota has fallen back to fourth place in sales, with Honda trailing in fifth place,
allowing the Detroit Three reclaim their Big Three title.
Each of these Competitors has a wide range of vehicles in various segments like: Cars, Crossovers, SUVs,
Trucks, Vans and Hybrids.
General Motors India
Although Chevrolet came to India in 1928, it was forced out in 1950s. After that General Motors, started
out in India in 1996 with Opel. It had launched three models, the Astra, Corsa and Vectra. In 2003, it
switched to Chevrolet. Apart from these two, General Motors had other brands like Buick, GMC and
Cadillac also in its stables. But the way the Indian market was shaping up buyers preferring small cars
because of their low cost, fuel efficiency and ease of parking the company decided to go ahead with
Chevrolet. There was some recall for the brand in India; many people remembered the Chevrolet Impala
in old films. In 2003 Chevrolet Sales India Private Limited was established and the Chevrolet brand was
re-launched in India. It replaced Opel as the only brand offering by General Motors India Private Limited.
Over the past 9 years, Chevrolet has launched many cars including the famous Beat. The price range
ranges from 3.15L (Spark) to Captiva (18.74L). Aiming for a double digit market share in India, the US
auto major General Motors is turning to small cars to shore up volumes in future. The most awaited
Chevrolet model in the Indian market is the premium hatchback Sail that is expected to debut in the
country in June/July 2012. Chevrolet is currently focussing on developing products that are tailored for
the local market
The problem with the switch to Chevrolet was that there was confusion in the mind of the consumers.
Was it General Motors? Or was it Opel? The first step was to remove everything from all communication
except Chevrolet. The General Motors logo was taken off all advertisements; it was Chevrolet all the
way. Business cards of the sales team sticks to Chevrolet, and so does the official website. The task for
the General Motors team was cut out. The first priority was to offer high fuel efficiency in all its cars.
Three Chevrolet cars have best-in-class mileage: The Spark (18.9 km per litre), Beat (18.2 km per litre)
and Tavera (16.4 km per litre). All the other Chevrolets the U-VA, Optra, Aveo, Cruze and Captiva
are in the top 25 per cent in their respective categories.
The second task was to keep the prices low. This required the company to have a small car in its
portfolio. Chevrolet went mass in 2007 with the Spark. The Chevrolet small car portfolio got
strengthened last year when it launched the Beat for Rs 3.42 lakh. The company also realised that apart
from the price of the car, buyers also spend a lot on service and maintenance. It devised a scheme
where the company gives free service for three years or 45,000 km, whichever comes early, for the
Spark. This includes spares, service, maintenance and labour. It also guarantees a maximum expenditure
on service for three years on any car
General Motors has tried to build the brand promise for Chevrolet as more a Chevrolet gives more
than rivals. The Cruze thus comes fitted with cruise control and push-button start. The Beat, though
prices under Rs 4 lakh, features automatic climate control, integrated stereo with USB port and stylised
wheels.
Chevrolet Currently has eight brands in India ranging from Spark (3.15L) to Optra (7.41L) to
Captiva(18.74L)
Brand potential and Future Opportunities
The company surpassed the bankruptcy phase and finally reached to the profit earning scenario which
clearly shows the brand potential not only in present but also in future. The company is not only
targeting new segments but is also planning to launch varieties in the available brands.
Targeting new segments
The company is focusing towards launching electric vehicle named Equinox Fuel Cell powered by
the GM fourth-generation fuel cell system.
They are also investing on the testing of hydrogen-powered Equinox Fuel Cell vehicles.
Their new innovation in lime light is P.U.M.A. (Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility). Its an
electrically powered personal-transporter with two-seat, two-wheeled, used for navigating city
streets. The vehicle runs on large-format lithium-ion batteries that the companies say produce
no emissions, making it environmentally friendly.
They are also working on a new project Windows of Opportunity (WOO). It would help rear seat
passengers, particularly children; have a richer experience on the road. The Windows of
Opportunity (WOO) Project was inspired by psychological studies indicating car passengers
often feel disconnected from their environment, thus the car windows would act as interactive
displays capable of stimulating awareness, nurturing curiosity and encouraging a stronger
connection with the world outside the vehicle.
They are targeting rural areas and farmers both in China and India.
New varieties in existing market
General Motor is expecting these launches in near future: 2012 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, 2012
Cadillac XTS, 2013 Chevrolet Malibu, 2013 Buick Crossover, 2014 Chevrolet Impala, 2014
Chevrolet PS
Indian Market
After the success from the two plants at Halol and Talegaon, GM is also looking at investing over
$200 million in a third plant in India that would be devoted to manufacturing engines,
transmissions and drivetrains. Engines manufactured at this plant would not only be used
domestically in India, but would be used to meet GMs needs around the world. GM has also
opened the GM India Design Studio in Bangalore, which employs 100 engineers for research and
development to provide enhanced technology products in India.
General Motors India has planned to spread their markets to the small towns and cities to boost
up their sales. They may introduce around 50 new outlets in small towns and cities across India
in future. Currently, they have 250 outlets in India. In the past, 60 per cent of the sales were
driven from metros and 40 per cent of the sales were driven from small cities. But, with this
strategy the sales share from small cities and towns is expected to rise upto 70 per cent.
It is planning to introduce three light commercial vehicles that would represent the company in
the commercial car segment in India. General Motors India has also mulled upon introducing
two passenger car vehicles by 2014. It is important to note that all the upcoming models would
be fresh in every sense and none of them would be related to any existing vehicles.