Audi's Marketing Strategies in India

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The luxury car segment in India witnessed consistent growth from the turn of the century thanks to an improved economy which resulted in increasing the purchasing power of people. The growing demand for luxury vehicles attracted automobile manufacturers like Mercedes Benz and BMW to the country. Though Audi ventured formally into India only in 2004, the name and the brand had been familiar to Indians right from the 1980s, when one of the top cricketers of those days, Ravi Shastri, won an Audi in the Benson & Hedges World Championship cricket in Australia...

Audi's portfolio for India included models distributed worldwide with slight variations to suit the Indian road conditions. This included sedans and Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs) in petrol and diesel variants. Audi started selling one of its most successful models, the A6 sedan (completely built up), in 2006. The Audi A6 was built in two models – the 2.8 FSI V6 and the 2.7 TDI V6 – with different engine capacities. Both models were characterized by fuel efficiency. Audi started assembling the A6 in India in late 2007. By October 2008, the Audi A4 model was also being assembled at the Aurangabad assembly plant. ...

Audi's target group in India was a mix of professionals, businessmen, entrepreneurs, and celebrities. At the time of its entry, company officials were in a dilemma about Audi's positioning. They felt that Mercedes had a huge following among the older generation, while BMW was a hit with the younger generation. Then Tiers designed a strategy of creating a niche for the company in India.

Audi planned to bring its halo models to the Indian market initially and position them as the ultimate symbol of aspiration among potential customers. According to Perschke, "These cars build the dream, while customers started small with cars such as the A4 or even the Q5 to a certain extent however their target in terms of achievement would be the higher models and they work their way up the order."...

Audi India strongly believed that a strong dealership network was important to drive sales in the country. It wanted the showrooms to offer a luxurious experience that would reflect the brand values of the company – sportiness, progressiveness, and sophistication. The company strongly believed that it had expertise in designing and manufacturing premium luxury vehicles and for its marketing and sales, local people with well established connections and network would be ideal...

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