MINI’s Brand Ranking Falls

Dave Feb 17th, 2006 Link

Considering we’re in the fifth model year of the MINI in the U.S. and they are still able to sell most of the MINIs imported at MSRP or MSRP with a mark-up, I doubt they are too worried.

MINI only has 6-8 months before they start selling the R56, in which case there should be a demand surge for the “latest and greatest” (I use that term loosely, substitute “newest” if you’re not a fan of the R56). Effectively that will make for at least another 2-3 years that MINI can continue to sell at MSRP or MSRP + mark-up.

The real concern for MINI isn’t low brand recognition. Living below the radar is just fine as long as you’re selling vehicles at MSRP. The real concern is that with the substantial rise in production capability in Oxford that is due to come online with the R56, that MINI dealers may start to develop a substantial inventory and then (gasp) actually have to start selling the cars for $500 over invoice, instead of having the car sell itself.

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Doug Feb 17th, 2006 Link

In the USA, there are so many brands that are part of our lives, like Coke and Pepsi.. You GOOGLE info now instead of looking it up anymore, we’re assaulted by THE KING, etc. . MINI is short in Media, which keeps them under the radar of sorts. It’s almost hard for us as enthusiasts to think otherwise. To us, MINI is near if not a #1 Brand. . I like the idea of prices being Driven down to near invoice. Maybe (I hope it’s soon) we will eventually see Inventory closeout type pricing. :) That is when you will know MINI has settled into it’s footprint on our patch of dirt here.

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Zach Feb 17th, 2006 Link

I kind of like the fact that MINI isn’t a very recognizable brand. How else could owners feel like they did something original by purchasing one? If MINI was so recognizable we all wouldn’t feel the sense of community that comes with MINI ownership.

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GSKChicago Feb 17th, 2006 Link

“This begs the question for MINI North America – Do they care that the MINI brand isn’t even as recognizable as SalesForce.com, FreshDirect or even the womens’ fitness centers Curves? Is it ok that the MINI brand remains relatively obscure in the U.S. and Canada? Maybe “obscure” is a harsh word but take a look at the list and draw your own conclusions.”

Unless I missed it on the list, the first car company on the list for 2005 is Ford. They are number 57. Chrysler is 71 and GM isn’t even on the list. Considering the performance of Ford, et al, as of late, being on the list hasn’t done them much good.

While it’s always nice to make a list, I don’t think MINI has anything to be concerned nor embarrassed about.

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Trick Feb 17th, 2006 Link

See where BMW and Lotus are? I think we’re in good company.

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Aurel Feb 17th, 2006 Link

I just find it funny that Corona and Bacardi are on top for Latin America :)

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meb Feb 17th, 2006 Link

Where does the Mini fall with repspect to the auto industry…to its competition?

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Josh Wardell Feb 17th, 2006 Link

It doesn’t help that MINIusa lost its excellent advertising agency. It remains to be seen if the new one lives up.

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Doug Feb 17th, 2006 Link

Of course Breand recognition is a priority for any company. But when pitted against a variety of business, who provide a variety of goods and services, those who market less, have less “face”, etc… they will fall in recognition rank.

Starbucks for example… We may not all drink it, but we pass 3 or 4 Starbucks outlets daily. Depending on where you live, you might pass 3 or 4 MINI’s per week or even per month knowingly.

The charm and uniqueness of the MINI faded to the genral public. The first year out, it was an eye magnet on any road… “HOW CUTE” or “WTF is that THING?”.

As one questioned before me “How does the MINI Rank amongst it’s peers?”

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Nathaniel Salzman Feb 17th, 2006 Link

Wait a second, folks, this isn’t a study of brand recognition,, it’s a study of brand impact. That’s an important difference.

Brandchannel conducts the study each year under the following conditions: • Readers are instructed to vote for the brands that had the most impact on them that year. • Impact is defined as good or bad. (Bad impact might be a brand like Enron.) •The study runs online and is open to the public during November and December. • Votes can be cast for up to five brands per region; respondents can only vote once per region but no section is mandatory.

This is not a study of top-of-mind awareness, which would be a main criteria of measuring a brand’s recognition. Respondents were not asked “when you think of the auto industry, who comes to mind?” – they were asked what five brands had the biggest impact on their lives that year. So of the 2500 global respondents, MINI ranked 22nd in terms of brand impact. That’s still a very impressive spot to hold in the grand scheme of things and is probably more indicative of the group that responded than of any actual place the MINI brand holds in the market and culture at large. And in that light, it doesn’t surprise me that a service like Skype that’s given us a whole new way to communicate would rank higher than our favorite little car. It further doesn’t surprise me that Apple and Google are fighting back and forth for top honors on this list because as almost any Apple user will tell you, their Apple changed the way they use a computer in a significant and positive way. And like Doug said, Google is our instant access to the cumulative knowledge of mankind – now that’s an impact.

So don’t fret about MINI’s brand recognition, as that’s not what this study is about. Furthermore, there’s much more to a brand than simple recognizability. Target isn’t competitive with Wal Mart simply because they’re equally known. Target has a different set of values, a separate way of interacting with it’s customers and that relationship is where the brand lives.

The MINI brand has strengths-a-plenty and the biggest of those is its drivers and enthusiast community – the forefront of their interaction with people.

So everybody take a deep breath. The MINI brand is alive and well. Anybody wondering what makes a brand a brand can click here to read my post from last March when we first started hearing about the Clubman/Traveler and a lot of people were worried about MINI’s brand.

Gabe, you’re “post of the month” comment after what I posted that day still makes me chuckle.

Viva la MINI!

NS in NE

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Nathaniel Salzman Feb 17th, 2006 Link

oops, forgot to close an em tag!

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Nathaniel Salzman Feb 17th, 2006 Link

Thanks for the fix, Gabe.

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