Ford India to spend Rs 200 crore on multi-media brand campaign to boost sales

Ford India has lined up an over Rs 200 crore multi-media brand campaign to woo customers and strengthen its position in the domestic market where its best-selling SUV model EcoSport has been pushed out of the top-five list by Maruti's Vitara Brezza.

The automaker, which has also witnessed sluggish demand for its hatchback Figo and compact sedan Figo Aspire, is seeking to highlight its after-sales and service quality and customer friendly steps through the campaign.

Global Team Ford, a unit of WPP, is responsible for the campaign.

"The budget lined up for the campaign is over Rs 200 crore," a source said.

When contacted, Ford India spokesperson said, "Aligning with Ford's vision of 'Go Further', the new campaign encompasses the entire gamut of Ford portfolio of products and services, promising trust and transparency as experienced being part of a family."

Ford India had recently slashed prices of its compact SUV EcoSport by up to Rs 1.12 lakh, in order to compete with the likes of Maruti Suzuki's Vitara Brezza.

While Brezza has leaped to the second position in utility vehicle sales in April with 7,832 unit sales, EcoSport could not make it to the list of top five models. It stood fifth with 3,911 unit sales in same period of the previous year.

Similarly, sales of next-generation hatchback Figo and compact sedan Figo Aspire remained sluggish in the domestic market with a total of 2,211 units sold in April.

Under a new initiative, Ford has introduced a host of measures at its dealerships and service touch points to support on-ground delivery and to strengthen relationships with the customers.

To offer better services to its customers, the company has also introduced a service price calculator on its website.

"The price promise allows customers to know the cost of periodic maintenance even before booking the service at a Ford dealership. It enables customers to carry a print out of the calculated web quote, ensuring complete trust and transparency in their service experience at any Ford dealership," the spokesperson said.

Customers can also check the price of parts at Ford India website. The company is focusing on ensuring availability of its parts through a network of authorised parts distributors across the country, covering Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Delhi, Hyderabad, Telangana, Karnataka, among others.

"In the next phase, the expansion will see retail distribution getting launched in Gujarat, West Bengal, Rajasthan," the spokesperson said.

The company is facing enhanced competition in the domestic market.

For the last fiscal, the company's passenger vehicle (PV)  sales stood at 38,518 units, up 68.36% from  22,877 units in the 2014-15 financial year. In April this year, its PV sales grew by over two-fold to 2,211 units, from 1,020 units in the same month of 2014-15.