“Astonishing!” - Ford

SaleS cOMMent
“Social Media
helps to create
brand awareness”
by Roelant de Waard, vice president,
Marketing, Sales & Service, Ford of Europe
our aggressive product launch programme
accelerated last month when we
celebrated the production start of two new
models – the high performance Focus ST
and the innovative B-MAX. These are
exciting new additions to our fresh and
expanding range.
We promised to introduce 10 all-new
models or new variants of existing models
this year, and we are on track with further
new vehicles and technologies in the
pipeline as part of that commitment.
The Focus ST is Ford’s first global performance
car and it will be sold in more than
40 countries around the world. In addition to
a 5-door hatchback, the model is also now
available as a wagon, which will enhance its
appeal in markets, like Germany and Italy,
where demand for wagons is strong.
And watch out for some great media
reviews on our fast Focus. Last month we
invited approximately 500 journalists and
broadcasters to test the Focus ST over 200
km of varied roads in the south of France,
and early feedback is extremely positive.
In the past, of course, we tended to focus
our launch activities at the point when a
new model became available. Not any more,
today we have a more innovative strategy
and start building expectation, and an order
bank, much earlier, many months before a
vehicle arrives in the showroom.
With the B-MAX, for example, we were
active in disseminating news about the new
model virtually from the start of the year.
The model was also one of the stars on our
extensive display at the Geneva Motor
Show and we maintained the news momentum
at the high-profile Mobile World Congress
in Barcelona, where Bill Ford was the
keynote speaker.
Prices and specifications are very important
for customers planning their purchase,
and, as part of our new strategy, we issued
those for the B-MAX at the start of April.
Similarly, with the Transit Custom we have
Sales
now issued prices and specs well in advance
of launch.
We build pre-launch excitement for our
new models in a number of ways, including
innovative pre-launch social and earned
media campaigns and product placements,
such as the Focus ST in the film The
Sweeney, which is due for UK release in
September.
FcSd-e
May sales were $246m, down $19m on
May objective. Year-to-date sales volumes
are $219m down versus prior year. Sales
support actions have been initiated to offset
challenging market conditions.
FCSD-E achieved Ford Protect new
contract sales year-to-date May of 335,000,
15,000 better than 2011. Service Activated
Roadside Assistance marked the highest
ever performance for a single month with
107,000 contracts in May. Customer satisfaction
continued with record scores for
sales and service.
@Ford Europe July/August 2012 17