Subaru do
Carsales Staff24 Jun 2016
NEWS

Subaru 'do'… where are you?

Pop-up stores and mobile servicing can place Subaru's sales and service resources anywhere

An unlikely sounding buzzword is helping improve Subaru's market penetration and brand image in Australia.

Subaru 'do' is the label for a new marketing strategy aimed at consolidating the brand's existing customer base and attracting new buyers as well – preferably from a younger demographic.

"It is important for us as a brand to attract these new customers to Subaru in order for us to reach our long-term business-plan goals," explained Subaru Australia MD, Nick Senior, during the local launch of the new Levorg.

"The desire to attract new customers to Subaru is the reason for our new brand positioning, Subaru 'do', which is in roll-out mode across the country. We are well represented in many key demographics, but we want to attract more younger people, particularly females and younger Australian families to Subaru, and those families with one or two young kids.

"To attract these people without alienating our existing customers we've got to inject more personality into the Subaru brand...

"Subaru 'do' is our promise to Subaru brand customers both new and old. It means we are a 'do' company; we stand for action and so do our cars, enabling our customers to do more and get more out of life.

"There is no ambiguity in Subaru 'do', no maybe, no possibly, no we will look into it… We will do it.

"Do is a simple yet incredibly strong and powerful verb; easy to say easy to remember and it's the ultimate commitment. And we, everyone in the Subaru family, can't hide from 'do'.

"The other key ingredient of Subaru 'do' is our desire to remove obstacles from the purchase and ownership experience, obstacles that are been around for years, obstacles that take enjoyment from what should be an enriching experience of purchasing and then owning a car, which after all is the second most valuable purchase most of us will ever make.

"So the process of removing those obstacles has already started."

It may sound like just so much hype, but the campaign is paying dividends. Senior went on to explain that the importer has been running a couple of 'pop-up' stores that have sold and delivered over 500 extra cars to date. Both stores are located in non-traditional Subaru PMAs, one west of Melbourne, at Hoppers Crossing, and the other at Northland shopping centre near the old Olympic Village in Heidelberg.

The decision to locate the two pop-up stores in those areas, Senior later informed motoring.com.au, was due to the entrenched view of residents in those areas that they couldn't afford a Subaru. Browsers are converting to buyers as they discover they can afford an Impreza or an XV after all.

Subaru plans to roll out two more 'Subaru Experience' pop-up stores before the end of this year, and six more in 2017.

Senior says that some of the pop-up stores will make the jump to permanent outlets in due course. In fact, the Hoppers Crossing outlet has already been earmarked for permanent status in the shopping mall where it is currently located.

Another element in the Subaru 'do' campaign is mobile servicing. Subaru rolled out a mobile servicing van last month, and it can typically attend to as many as six cars a day – provided they're grouped closely, geographically. The company will put another van on the road next month to service customers in Melbourne.

A third van will be used to promote the service to Subaru dealers around the country. Senior anticipates having between eight and 10 service vans on the road by the end of 2017.

"If you are not innovating in today's world you're probably falling behind, and as a brand known for innovation it's imperative for us to continue to roll out new ideas," Senior concluded.

"You'll see many more from us over the next five years, particularly as we try to remove obstacles from the purchase and ownership experience."

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Written byCarsales Staff
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