Chrysler Dealers Ask for New Ads to Slow Sales Plunge (Update1)
Chrysler Group LLC dealers have asked the company to pull new television ads and restore regional
marketing budgets after U.S. sales declined 25 percent in November, people familiar with the matter said.
Members of Chrysler’s national dealer council, an advisory body to the automaker, called for the ads to be stopped in a phone call with the Auburn Hills, Michigan-based company’s sales leadership this week, said two people with knowledge of the request who asked not to be identified because the conversation was private.
Dealers, frustrated that narrower incentives and plunging sales are hurting their profits, are pushing back against Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne’s strategy. His five-year business plan, presented last month, aims to rebuild the company’s brands and reduce incentive spending. The transition could be “painful,” he said.
“It is a little difficult for us to understand because it is far different from what we were used to seeing,” said Larry Reid, owner of White Bear Dodge in White Bear Lake, Minnesota. Reid was not on the call with management. “The message to us is that it is branding, branding, branding, and maybe that will work.”
The advertisements, which began in September, focus on lifestyles, and dealers complained that some only briefly show vehicles. One that began running last month shows ticking clocks while a voice describes a Jeep owner’s desire to not be constrained by the daily grind. In the final moments, it shows a Wrangler along with the tagline “I live. I ride. I am. Jeep.”
Show Vehicles
The dealers would like to have Jeep, Chrysler and Dodge ads that show the vehicles more and highlight features, price and available bargains to counter marketing claims of other automakers, the people said.
“It’s always a tug of war,” said Gary Dilts, the senior vice president of consumer research firm J.D. Power & Associates and former sales chief at Chrysler. “You’ve got Marchionne trying to do a 5-year plan and build a brand, and a dealer trying to hit a 30-day number. The tension is good, and it’s necessary.”
Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy June 10 with Marchionne as CEO and Fiat SpA as owner of 20 percent. He holds the same post at the Turin, Italy-based carmaker.
“The new Chrysler Group LLC is putting the customer first and has a laser-like focus to ensure the tough but necessary decisions are made now, ensuring a strong, profitable company long-term,” the automaker said in an e-mailed statement.
Source: Chrysler Dealers Ask for New Ads to Slow Sales Plunge (Update1)
marketing budgets after U.S. sales declined 25 percent in November, people familiar with the matter said.
Members of Chrysler’s national dealer council, an advisory body to the automaker, called for the ads to be stopped in a phone call with the Auburn Hills, Michigan-based company’s sales leadership this week, said two people with knowledge of the request who asked not to be identified because the conversation was private.
Dealers, frustrated that narrower incentives and plunging sales are hurting their profits, are pushing back against Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne’s strategy. His five-year business plan, presented last month, aims to rebuild the company’s brands and reduce incentive spending. The transition could be “painful,” he said.
“It is a little difficult for us to understand because it is far different from what we were used to seeing,” said Larry Reid, owner of White Bear Dodge in White Bear Lake, Minnesota. Reid was not on the call with management. “The message to us is that it is branding, branding, branding, and maybe that will work.”
The advertisements, which began in September, focus on lifestyles, and dealers complained that some only briefly show vehicles. One that began running last month shows ticking clocks while a voice describes a Jeep owner’s desire to not be constrained by the daily grind. In the final moments, it shows a Wrangler along with the tagline “I live. I ride. I am. Jeep.”
Show Vehicles
The dealers would like to have Jeep, Chrysler and Dodge ads that show the vehicles more and highlight features, price and available bargains to counter marketing claims of other automakers, the people said.
“It’s always a tug of war,” said Gary Dilts, the senior vice president of consumer research firm J.D. Power & Associates and former sales chief at Chrysler. “You’ve got Marchionne trying to do a 5-year plan and build a brand, and a dealer trying to hit a 30-day number. The tension is good, and it’s necessary.”
Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy June 10 with Marchionne as CEO and Fiat SpA as owner of 20 percent. He holds the same post at the Turin, Italy-based carmaker.
“The new Chrysler Group LLC is putting the customer first and has a laser-like focus to ensure the tough but necessary decisions are made now, ensuring a strong, profitable company long-term,” the automaker said in an e-mailed statement.
Source: Chrysler Dealers Ask for New Ads to Slow Sales Plunge (Update1)
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