We must first emphasize that the web presence is not merely for product sales before we can analyze the BMW marketing approach. It serves as a “vehicle” to position the brand and elegantly accomplishes their objectives.
For many years, BMW has been regarded as one of the top manufacturers of premium and cutting-edge automobiles. The company is thought to be the top auto manufacturer in the world by a sizable number of people. Munich-based German automaker establishes itself as outstanding in both aesthetic and comfort control.
Business managers of the brand should comprehend the many components of the marketing mix and pinpoint the specific market segmentation in order to establish a well-organized and effective marketing strategy. In order to increase sales inside the premium market sector, BMW started the process of segmenting the market. To do this, it optimized the correct match between consumer purchasing behavior and the marketing mix.
BMW is fortunate in that we don’t face a significant naming difficulty for our vehicles. – Jim McDowell, BMW’s Vice President of Marketing
BMW’s marketing strategy is successful because it continuously defines premium brand identity while focusing on high-end categories on a worldwide basis. The automaker’s innovative and alluring product line successfully targets wealthy consumers and exemplifies the effectiveness of its international marketing approach.
BMW was able to go above and beyond its expected performance by delicately responding to the distinctive values and purchasing behavior. In order to precisely present, here are 6 excellent examples of BMW advertisements that have been published in recent years, along with the marketing strategies that went into each of them.
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BMW’s marketing strategy includes segmentation, targeting, and positioning.
The premium car maker divides its selection into categories based on behavioral, psychographic, and demographic characteristics.
A typical BMW consumer is between the ages of 35 and 50, is doing well in his or her job, enjoys aspirational products, and places a high value on his or her own social standing. These folks look for advantages like supremacy, performance, dependability, and quality.
BMW aims to attract clients from upper class socioeconomic groups since they are the ones who can buy a BMW and will also value the work of art. As the leader in the world, BMW has established a reputation as a premium, technologically cutting-edge, high-performance, and exclusive automaker.
Radio and TV Commercials
BMW frequently uses long- and mid-range television and radio advertising to broaden brand awareness. Customers are urged to take advantage of limited-time offers for specific models by means of special promotions like the BMW Road Home Sales Event. Here, BMW’s advertising spend assisted in flooding the airwaves with advertisements that garnered impressions. Local marketing has clear advantages. Dealers don’t even need to do any promotion to already be ahead of the competition with customers thanks to increased ad impressions about BMW’s fantastic car portfolio.
BMW’s marketing and advertising plan:
The following describes the BMW marketing strategy’s promotional and advertising approach:
For nearly 50 years, BMW has been a well-known brand worldwide. The business has done a good job of promoting its goods and other services. In order to continuously build brand awareness, the promotional strategy, which is a component of its marketing mix, relies on aggressive advertising through media channels including TV, web ads, billboards, print ads, etc. For a number of rally racing competitions and other sporting events, BMW has been a close sponsor. The business also supports numerous renowned sports groups and rally drivers. For a long period, BMW has consistently competed in numerous international rally races. On multiple instances, they have had success in the F1 races.
BMW has been a prominent competitor in Superbike racing in addition to Formula 1. The business has been actively competing in numerous racing events ever since it started producing motorcycles in 1923. In addition to participating, the firm has played a significant global organizing role in such events. These incidents have contributed to BMW’s reputation as a quick and dependable car over the years. Furthermore, BMW has discovered an efficient approach to penetrate newer markets thanks to the enormous fan following that such racing events enjoy across the globe. In addition to these sponsorships, BMW has developed a cutting-edge technique for advertising. Every year, BMW pulls pranks on April 1 that are warmly received by the public, serving as yet another effective marketing push for the company. Thus, the BMW marketing mix is complete.
Regarding BMW
German luxury car maker Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, or BMW as it is often known worldwide. The business was founded in 1916 and has its German headquarters in Munich. The business initially produced motorcycles and heavy duty aircraft engines before expanding into the automobile industry. BMW is currently a well-known premium automobile company with operations all over the world. The goods stand for sophistication, good taste, luxury, and dependability.
The company started out making airplane engines during World War 1, but after the Versailles Armistice Treaty, it was compelled to shut down operations. This ultimately pushed the company to focus solely on passenger cars.
With a total sales of EUR 99 billion and profits of roughly EUR 4 billion, the BMW Group employs over 122,000 people worldwide. In addition to these other car brands, BMW is also the parent company of Rolls-Royce and the sports coupe manufacturer Mini Cooper.
View the marketing plans and 4Ps analyses of additional brands that are comparable to BMW. The 4Ps and 7Ps of more than 800 brands across two categories are covered in the Marketing Strategy & Mix section.
What marketing tactics does BMW use well to reach each segment group and where may it make improvements?
Instead of merely producing 1 Series vehicles, BMW can also produce more elaborate vehicles at lower prices for the “modern mainstream” group market. Therefore, this category of customers will have additional options, and this may also draw in new customers who have never driven a BMW. BMW built their vehicles with superior engines for incredible performance.
Instead of merely 1 Series automobiles, BMW can also produce more elaborate vehicles at lower prices for the “modern mainstream” group market. Therefore, BMW created their cars with superior engines for fantastic performance despite this segment of customers who never use BMW automobiles.
BMW’s use of direct marketing
BMW is no stranger to utilizing cutting-edge technology to attract clients who value luxury. To reach the brand’s desired demographic groups, carefully planned television and radio spots are combined with targeted internet ads, email campaigns, and a fully functional website. BMW has added an older technique to the mix by distributing a number of glossy photo-adorned direct mail postcards to consumers’ homes. These postcards cut through the typical marketing clutter to capture potential buyers in a calm, personal moment since they are made of a durable, practically indestructible substance.
Television and radio shows are regarded as entertainment, and viewers and listeners naturally use the downtime while commercials play to complete quick tasks or divert their attention elsewhere in order to avoid missing any of their programming. Similar to this, sidebar online advertising vanishes into the background, and spam filters prevent many marketing communications from effectively reaching the target customer. On the other hand, direct mail postcards like BMW’s penetrate consumer attention and support other marketing initiatives through a tangible object, making an impression on their own while also enhancing the message of brushed-off spots in other media.
Courtney Albert, a management consultant at Parker Avery Group in Atlanta, provided her perspective on the campaign’s strategy in an essay for Luxury Daily. Here are a few of our favorite passages from it:
Instead of sending them to the main BWM Web site or relying on them to find the closest location, the printed mailer can be used locally to drive traffic to specific dealerships.
“A consumer typically has to engage with a promotion or campaign more than once.”
Another advantage that direct mail provides to advertisers is that BMW uses both sides of their postcards to emphasize various features of their BMW 3 Series cars. Double-sided postcards are able to display two quite diverse feature sets in one imprint, but the extent of what is contained in an advertisement is typically limited to a single theme for the sake of cohesiveness. BMW’s postcard campaign is a case study in effective and targeted advertising, including photo collages, marketing language, and individualized calls to action that direct customers to a nearby dealership.
Leading the pack in consumer interest is difficult, even for a luxury brand like BMW. Their creative approach to promoting the characteristics of their BMW 3 Series may be seen in their use of direct mail postcard campaigns to contact buyers. BMW’s sturdy direct mail postcards capture consumers’ attention with glances from unexpected locations, even days after they first arrive, serving as a covert reminder of the beauty and grace of their product. BMW continues to pioneer luxury vehicle advertising, which is not surprising given their thoughtful direct mail marketing strategies.
How can marketing tactics be made better?
“Establishing a project pipeline between marketing and the rest of the company is the most crucial step in optimizing your marketing operations. How projects are requested from and/or expected to be completed by other departments can have a significant impact on how each team functions internally. Using a tool to assist with task allocations, set deadlines, and follow up is essential once your workflow has been created.”
What are the distinguishing qualities of BMW that give the company its competitive edge?
Technology, performance, quality, and exclusivity—the four pillars of BMW marketing—appear to be highly valued, according to research. One of these four values was present in every marketing tactic. Additionally, the brand’s consumer behavior was split into two groups: those who were inventive and non-materialistic and those who bought the goods to demonstrate their success and money. Additionally, there are many ways for customers to interact with businesses, but social media and online marketing have significantly increased this relationship. In the primary research, 37% of participants said they had a relationship with BMW, even though most relationships are initiated through dealerships or word-of-mouth. In the project, it was made clear that BMW put a lot of effort into cultivating relationships with customers for new products like the hatchback 1-series. Because this market is at the lower end of the price spectrum and has a younger target market, cultivating good relationships with customers is essential in the opinion of consumers who will return to the brand.
How does BMW adapt to market changes?
The coronavirus pandemic and clients’ demand for a minimally-contact sales process drove the BMW Group to move forward with digitalizing its sales and marketing last year: Sales agents can now advise consumers and sell vehicles from any manufacturer in more than 60 regions.
How does BMW divide up their clientele?
Geographic and demographic segmentation are used mostly by BMW. The business uses demographic market segmentation, allowing customers to choose products depending on their needs. Income, age, and gender are further broken down into the demographic segment.
How does BMW Millennial brand promotion work?
Every great campaign begins with an understanding of who its target audience is and how to best communicate with them. The Road to Coachella campaign by BMW is a fantastic illustration of this.
Millennials were the target audience for BMW’s Road to Coachella campaign, and what better place to reach them than at Coachella, the widely anticipated music and arts event. In order to be at the forefront of pop culture, BMW essentially injected themselves into the conversations among millennials. This gives BMW the chance to interact with and appeal to its target market for their new product, BMWi.
Celebrities including Paris Hilton and Dorothy Wang were invited to ride in the BMWi, which was designed and covered by BMW with occasion-specific artwork in the spirit of honoring art. BMW created an integrated ecosystem by executing a social media campaign since it recognized that millennials spend a lot of time online. This makes sure that discussions regarding both BMW and Coachella are ongoing and present from before to after the festival.
BMW was able to stay at the top of the thoughts of their target audience to appear relevant and trendy to them given that millennials are the most engaged on social media and involved in the Coachella scene. The outcomes of audience comprehension are self-evident:
Observation for brands:
In order to have a thorough grasp of your target audience, it is crucial to study as much as you can about them. Your marketing approach will be driven by this understanding to be in the right place at the right time. Keep in mind that crafting ads that resonate is essential to developing a true, sincere connection with your audience.