Whats in a name? Naming Volkswagen of Americas B-SUV

Naming Volkswagen of Americas B-SUVJohns Hopkins Carey Business School Marketing CapstoneMegan Benoy | Edie Burns | Sheela Cao | Ashley Cole | Sean ODonnell | Sangeeta Rao | Charren Shepherd | Stephanie Shih | Kate Vasko

What are people saying?

The Project

Objectives

1. Evaluate VWs Current Names and Conventions

2. Develop Long Term and Short Term Naming Strategies

3. Name the B-SUV

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Methods

Secondary research- We did a very broad sweep of available information. We looked at everything from how branding firms choose names to what VW enthusiasts said about VW names on message boards. We wanted to know what makes a brand name work or not work, and what both professionals and amateurs had to say about the way VW names its cars

Primary Research Surveys- We designed surveys to explore perceptions of VWs names more deeply. We wanted to know if VW names are memorable, understandable, and likeable. We used a convenience sample and utilized a snowballing technique to spread the survey. We had 426 respondents. 20 were current VW Owners. 99 were lapsed owners. 307 had never owned a VW.

The surveys gave us a great idea about memory and understanding but interviews were needed to more deeply explore peoples feelings about the car names. We did 7 intercept interviews of current customers at one of your dealerships. 4 very targeted interviews with people who specifically fit the target market for the B-SUV, 2 who were lapsed VW customers, and 2 that had never owned a VW. Then we did 9 additional general interviews that you saw in the videos.

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Current Names and Conventions

Overview

Most do not understand what they mean and once they have the pronunciation correct then they dont ask much more.

-Lindsay VW dealer

We asked general questions and here are the results but a general question cant tell the whole story because there are big differences among models.

We asked a couple questions on our survey about VW names in general. We asked do you know the story behind the majority of VW car names? and do you like the majority of VW car names? For the question about knowing the story behind the names, the results were pretty conclusive. Not only did Survey respondents overwhelming say that they did not know the name origins, our interviews and secondary research confirmed this. When we asked people interviews what they thought of when various names were mentioned, no one brought up wind. Your dealer said that respondents rarely know or ask what a name means, He said the only thing people ask is how to pronounce it but even people who do car dont know. I read a very fun thread on a VW enthusiast message board on the topic of VW name meanings. The Golf has its own mythology. Many of your evangelist customers thought that the Golf was named for the sport, apparently because the ball at the top of the stick shift looks like a golf ball. The one name origin that was most commonly known was actually the Touareg, which may not be a good thing.

We also asked people if they liked the majority of VW names, both the origin question and the liking question were triggered by the picture that includes the Jetta and Passat but also lesser known cars like the Eos, CC, and Tiguan. When we asked in genearl about liking the names the response was one of slightly unfavorable indifference. Most people didnt report a strong feeling reaction to the names. This came up in interviews too, when people were first asked about names, most told us they didnt think much about car names, however with probing we found that there were big differences in peoples reactions to different names, so while they dont feel strongly about names in general specific names do trigger reactions.

So Im going to go from the general here to the very specific. Id like to talk to you about sampling of VWs car names and what we learned about how effective they are because there is a big difference depending on the name in question. 7

Jetta

Sounds like a Jet.Makes me think its a sporty car.Jetta sounds kind of fast, racy. I would want to see what it looks like and what it is all about.

Top 5 most remembered sedans

Easy to pronounce and spell

Has an implied meaning

J name has an association effect

CVCV appealing word form

Well tied to the VW brand

-Jetta in top 5. 52 people listed it. 56 listed the Corolla. 148 listed Honda Accord-VW 3% us market share compared to Fords 16%, Toyotas 13% or Hondas 10%-Has good sounds-26% of respondents named this first when asked about VW. 112 people thought of it first, 258 people listed it - Many of the top sedan names had only implied meaning ex. Camry8

Beetle

A classic.It has 60s rock implications.

Synonymous with VW

Creates nostalgia

Real English word

First VW the B-SUV market thinks of

The benefit of using a word naming strategy over alphanumerics can be best summed up by simply saying the beetle. No one hears S-series and feels nostalgia or thinks of 60s rock

32% of respondents named this first-300 of 426 respondents listed the Beetle when asked to name a VW, 135 listed it first-B-SUV age range (75 of them) more likely to name the Beetle first)

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Passat

Sounds German.A unique name for a unique car.

Mixed response

Sounds exotic but still easy to pronounce

Implied meaning problems

I honestly equate Passat with Passive, Passjust kind of Pshaw or bleh.

-memory comparable to the ford Taurus or Nissan Altima 43 people named it in the list of Sedans.206 people named this when asked to name VWs, number didnt shoot up with aided memory46 thought of it first10

Toureg..TouaragTouareg!

I dont want to explain to a potential customer that it is a fierce nomadic tribe in Africa.

Hard to spell

Controversial meaning

Not well remembered

Better remembered by age 56+

Something VW's marketing people would prefer you didn't know -The Tuareg tribe were heavily involved in the slave trade several hundred years ago.The Torque?

15 people listed this, compared to 118 Explorer, 93 CRV162 listed when asked to name VW30 age 56+ more likely to remember11

Tiguan

I think its a silly name.Its sort of nebulous, or unclear, vague, so I cant picture anything that would go with that word.Sounds like a Disney Character.

Almost no mind share

No implied meaning

Not well tied to VW

-When asked about SUVs less than 3 people listed the Tiguan from memory-When asked to list VWs 85 people listed it-When asked to identify the brand of the car 32% identified it (80% identified Explorer correctly, 60% Pilot, 54% Touareg)12

The SUV Family

VW priced too high for the market they are trying to compete in.-Lindsay VW Dealer

We dont think you priced to high but the names dont communicate the value. Tiguan is priced under the Pilot and Explorer. The Touareg is priced over the X3.13

Trims: The Differentiators

Misused & Misunderstood

Too many choices make it hard for the less informed buyers to make a decision.-Lindsay VW Dealer

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Lacking a Common Thread

TiguanTouaregS SportSELux SELTDIR-LineExecutive

Ford ExplorerLimitedSportXLT

Honda PilotEXEX-LLX

Toyota HighlanderLELE PlusXLELimited

VW Trims

Theres a lot of options and they seem like theyre all kind of the same.

The Competition

FiestaFocusFusionTaurusEscapeEdgeFlexExplorerExpeditionSSETitaniumSTLimitedSHOSportSELXLTKing Ranch

Accord CoupeAccordCivic CoupeCivicCrosstourCR-VPilotFitOdessey CR-ZLX-SEXEX-LEX-L V6Touring SportLXEX V6

Might change this slide to show fu18

TDI Clean Diesel

Its very disappointing that most potential customers have no idea what it means or what it can do.-Lindsay VW Dealer

TDI is a huge draw, once the consumer is educated on the benefits of clean diesel

Ranked as the most standard trim, while in fact it is more premium than the Sport option

Looking to the Future

Making a Connection

Each model name should focus on linking the car to its target audience

Doing so allows you to build a personaor dream personathat matches the driver

I buy brands that reflect my style.-B-SUV Target Audience, 2012 MRI

The Dream PersonaIn Leadership PositionsLeisure ActivitiesTravels for Work & FunCar Requirements

Active lifestyle

Mountain Biking

GolfingEvenings out

I consider myself sophisticated

Streamlining TrimsAllows for a better, less confusing decision-making process

S

SESEluxExecutive

The Standard ModelStarter LuxuryThe WorksAbove the Basics

The New Green

Making the connection between premium TDI and the cost efficiency of dieselTDIdiesel

The New Green

A subtle, but impactful way to connect the consumers knowledge of Hybrid with TDIdiesel

The Word

Easy to Pronounce

Have a Clear Meaning

Germanize ItTwo to Three SyllablesAvoid real people & events

The Naming ProcessSporty & ActiveDo-ersAnimalsNatureVelosVitnerAntilopeEtesianVeltosVintnerGazelleMeltemiRegeCultivateLoweBreezeWendigSpurtenBriseApproachAvatarElevationAnatzeAviatorKletternLiftPiratSteigenCoamReiterSturmLebendigWandern Bardo Vital WandernzenMorinoVitalitaReisePerle VitaelBolzenFohnRustigEntdeckenVollmondVikosValkerVitalaValkyrieWeiseSpryzen

Whats in a Name?Vitael-The new Volkswagen SUV

All in the FamilyValkerVollmondVitael

The Vitael

Thank you!