Demand for used and small cars to increase as customers prefer personal transport amid Covid: Tarun Garg of Hyundai
Hyundai has made a positive beginning towards normalcy as it witnesses a strong demand from all regions, becoming the only car manufacturer to have exported over 5,000 units in May and maintaining SUV dominance in May and June
Car maker Hyundai has witnessed a steady growth in demand since Unlock 1.0. In an extremely challenging market, it has made a positive beginning towards normalcy—registering a cumulative sale of 26,820 units in the month of June itself.
“We were the only Indian automobile manufacturer to have exported over 5,000 units in May, maintained SUV dominance for the month of May and June this year,” Tarun Garg, Director (Sales, Marketing and Service), Hyundai Motor India, said in an interaction with BestMediaInfo.com.
Garg said that the company is confident that demand will continue to improve in the coming months and attributed the success to its commitment to offer technologically superior cars to the customers.
“We recently made three new launches in the past few months and received encouraging responses to the new models. As customers will prefer personal transportation over public modes of transportation due to the pandemic, that will be a big plus. The small car segment and used cars are likely to see an increase in traction going forward,” he said.
Its recently introduced all-new Creta has recorded over 45,000 bookings. Additionally, its other brands, including Venue, i20 and NIOS are getting high customer traction.
The company has been witnessing a strong demand from all regions in India where its dealerships are operational.
This unprecedented pandemic has brought out behavioural changes in everyone, including businesses and customers.
Garg believes customers will prefer personal mobility over public modes of transport keeping in mind health and hygiene factors. In addition, customers are reluctant to visit showrooms due to safety concerns. More than 30% of its customer sales queries are coming through digital sources, which is 2x over what it recorded last year.
And, therefore, he said that the company’s aim is to stand by its customers and offer them a safe and secure ecosystem for car buying, which is the need of the hour.
It has also launched the only end-to-end online car-buying platform Hyundai Click to Buy that enables customers to buy their favourite Hyundai car online from the comfort of their home.
Digital launches have taken centre stage in the light of the current restrictions on physical meetings.
Garg believes a lot of innovations are happening in the digital space and these digital launches definitely be the ‘new normal’ in the immediate future.
On July 14, it had introduced the industry’s first most advanced virtual-reality experience ‘The Next Dimension’ — an immersive expression of different culture with human-centric design while presenting three of its brand names.
It was conceptualised and executed in just four weeks. Perfectly harmonising the dynamics of physical and digital worlds, the entire 33-minute capsule (except the cars and presenters) was shot using advance level of CGI and VFX technologies, presenting a larger-than-life storytelling experience.
YouTube link to ‘The Next Dimension’:
Garg added, “We believe that the digital platform has the power to transform the world and with ‘The Next Dimension’, Hyundai has created a new benchmark by successfully positioning its three iconic brands in one unique frame. We received overwhelming response to this virtual event with 39 million views and counting and engagement of over 1.1 million.”
Hyundai has also achieved a major milestone by crossing seven lakh subscribers with one billion views on its official YouTube channel.
The Covid-19 pandemic is changing human attitudes and behaviours and brands are accordingly working to plan strategies, which will bring about new trends.
With this, he expects customers to prefer brands that will solve problems, focus on greener economics, and showcase the human side of enterprise where communities and people-focused social activities will take centre stage.
He added, “This unprecedented situation has taught us a lot. A few key learnings for us have been – sustained communication, enhance focus on digital mediums, and focus on customer relationship more than ever and transformation into a meaningful brand.”
To comprehend the concerns of the customers and take action that will address these concerns, under Hyundai Cares initiative, it has announced 24x7 roadside assistance in case of emergency, extending support of two months to all customers unable to avail vehicle warranty/ extended warranty/ free service due to health emergency or dealership shutdown.
Further, it has released relevant information through #WePledgeToBeSafe where the content was designed around staying home and safe, social distancing and had witnessed a massive engagement on this initiative.
“Also, we are now the most engaged auto brand in India,” Garg said.
Further emphasising on the customer relationship amid the pandemic, he said, “This was the time when relationships with our customers need to be strengthened further. We took several steps to bridge the communication gap between us and our customers. We ensured customers could reach us through our call centre during this time after seeking necessary approvals and compliance to government guidelines. The aim was to remain in touch with our customers in case they have any queries.”
Apart from this, it has also recently come up with the corporate brand anthem ‘Haq Hai Humara’, hoping to bring together the people of India and salute their resolve to stand united and stay strong in this unprecedented adverse situation. It is a tribute to the ‘Indomitable Spirit of India’.
“I believe in these adverse times, such campaigns bring hope and cheer among people and showcase the brand’s commitment and emotional connect with the country,” he said.
‘Haq Hai Humara’:
Garg said that for the company, its employees and partners are the key strengths. So while it ensured 100% payment of salaries on time every month to all employees, it also released 100% payment to all vendors and dealers, a move aimed at keeping the entire ecosystem consisting of about 2.5 lakh families part of its supply chain.
It has also planned to recruit 1600-1800 diploma holders and ITI-trained candidates as apprentices and trainees.
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