You are what you drive: How are personalities from Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche perceived? - A comparison between China and Germany
Part 2
In our first article,we took a closer look at the car brands Audi and BMW and discussed how German and Chinese drivers perceive these cars.Now we will continue with Mercedes-Benz and Porsche and present the different points of view.
Mercedes-Benz
Germany
Image:Male,56-80 years old
Characteristics:Anaged,seriousman,withvery highself-confidence,thus,sometimesstubborn andnot open tonew things.Does not like sports, obeysall (traffic) rules, but sometimes does notpay attention to otherdriverswhenbeingin a badmood.
Financial situation and profession:Corporateexecutive, doctor, verywell-paidclass.
However, as the reputation of AMG grows fast in the last years, MB AMG became highly popular among young people because "the sound of the throttle at a red light attracts the attention of women". Thus,many young men in Germany take out loans to own an AMG.(7)
Cultural backgroundand history:
ThebrandMercedes-Benz has a longerhistorycomparedto other brands.The name of Mercedes-Benz contains two names: Mercedes and Benz.Carl Benz was the first inventor who created an engine-powered vehicle. Hedesigned, built,and tested one in 1886.He wanted to offer a “horseless carriage”for the market. (8)(Please note here: onlyawealthy family could afford a carriageand horses).
In1890,DaimlerMotorenGesellschaft (DMG) was founded by Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybachas an engineering company and lateranautomobile manufacturer.TheEuropean automobile entrepreneurEmilJellineksold cars fromDMG. Later he made a deal with DMG to name oneDMGmodel using his daughter’s name Mercedes- Mercedes 35 hp(Mercédèmeanselegant in French).Jellinekwas asmart marketing strategist, he promoted the “horseless” Daimler automobiles among the highest circles of societyin France and Europe, his customers included the Rothschild family and other well-known personalities. Later in 1901, he was also selling Mercedes cars in the New World as well, including US billionaires Rockefeller, Astor, Morgan and Taylor.(9)
Mercedes 35 hp
(VanoVasaio / Shutterstock.com)
Since peopleoftenwant to show their wealththroughcars, the elderly, who can also afford this brand, choose Mercedes that has already been catered towards wealthy people since its beginnings.But thisfactalso makespeople associate the brand image with “aged people”.
Anotherreason for the Mercedes preference of elderly people can be explained with theproduct design:while BMW and Audi are seen assportyandyouthful, Mercedes appears more sedate and solid and it used to be much easier to operate than a BMW or Audi.Moreover, there are still quite a few rear-wheel-drive fans, especially among elderly people, who have no use for Audi’s front-wheel-drive cars andQuattrosand the sporty BMW vehicles.(10)
However, Mercedes has triedeagerlyto changeits image ofthe “old people car”, a good example could be the update ofitsA-Class.Alongsidemore “aggressive”and vividTV spots,accompanied by“aggressive”music,shouldattract younger customers.
First generation oftheA-Class(W168)
(Best Auto Photo / Shutterstock.com)
Third generation oftheA-Class (W176)
(Art Konovalov / Shutterstock.com)
China
Image:Male,40-50years old
Characteristics:Elder-brother-like character,is more mature, has experienced a lot in his life. Likes golf, art, fishing, tea, reading, classical music, wine
Financial situation and occupation:Ownerof asuccessfulprivate company oralarge corporation, lawyer, banker, earns moneywithhisknowledge, issocial elite, career-minded.
Culturalbackgroundand history:
In 1986, Mercedes-Benz openedits firstoffice in Hong Kong.In1991, theseventh generation of the S-Class(W 126)entered the Chinese marketas imported carsand became thetop luxurycarbrandon the market atthattime, which only thewealthiestbusinessmen could afford.Thewell soldS-Class(W 126 and laterW140)educated the Chinese consumers about what is luxury.
Priceof a W140 in 1996:1.020.000Yuan(132.897Euro) (6)
Price of a W600 in 1997:1.600.000 Yuan (208.466Yuan) (6)
S-Class W126
(Rudiecast / Shutterstock.com)
S-Class W140
(Karolis Kavolelis / Shutterstock.com)
The S-Classback thenhada body length of 5.1 meters.The front oftheS-Class remindedpeople of the forehead of a tiger with a “王” pattern, which means“king” in Chineselanguage.People who could affordaS-Classalsosawthemselves as the king among wealthy people.
Thesetopwealthy peopleenjoysocializingand lookingafter their network.Expensive tea,goodwine,antiques and artaretheirfavorite small talk topics.Thesetopicsalso distinguish them fromtheBMWdrivers, who used to be associated with "people with money but no taste"(but thisprejudicehasslowly changed as we described earlier.)
Nowadays, Mercedes-Benz ismostlypreferred by young women from wealthy, butwell-educated and cultured families. Thismakes people associatetheMercedes brand withan image of an'intelligentsensual woman'.
Porsche
Germany
Image:Male, around 50-60years old, no children
Characteristics:Well-keptin shape, loves sports, playsgolf. Has very high self-confidenceand enjoys showingit. Does not always care about the interest of otherdrivers.Has little interest in the environment protection topic.(11)
Financial situation and occupation:Very successfulwith hiscareer,very high income,could be asenior doctor, lawyer, etc.
Culturalbackground and history:
The company "Dr. Ing. h. c. F. Porsche GmbH" was founded by Ferdinand Porschein 1913 as amotor vehicle development consulting firm.Its first assignment wasfrom the German government to design a “car for people” (Volkswagen)-andthis resultedinVolkswagen Beetle.(12)
Ferdinand "Ferry" Porsche, the son of Ferdinand Porscheenjoyed driving speedy cars. While he was driving a Volkswagen Cabriolet with a supercharged engine, he had the idea to createacar that didn’t existonthe marketat that time:A smaller, lighter car withevenmore horsepower.In 1948, Porsche 356was launchedas a sportscarwith 2 seats. The body designwasoriginal,while most of the mechanicals (including engine and suspension) were derived from the Volkswagen Beetle.(13)
Porsche 356also entered a race in Innsbruckthat year, where it won its class.In 1954, the four-cam racing "Carrera" engine, a totally new design and unique to Porsche sports cars, was introduced.The good performance of Porsche at racing eventshasmade theluxury sports car brandmore and more famous.Later, Porsche 901 was introduced asthe successor of Porsche 356.Later, 901 was renamed asthe Porsche911.(14)
The first Volkswagen Beetle
(Arcansel / Shutterstock.com)
Porsche 356/1
(Roman Belogorodov / Shutterstock.com)
Porsche 901
(Art Konovalov / Shutterstock.com)
Havinga sports carofthe luxury brand Porsche isadream of many (German) men. As we mentionedin the first part of the article, Germanstend to save money to purchase thingswith one single payment. Thus, menintheir40-60swill tell themselves: Now it is time to make my dream come true.I won’t waitanymore.(15)
German men are aware that a Porsche car will draw a lot of attention. Itdoesn’t fit into the mainstreamandis not suitable for the dailylife, such as going to work ordoing the groceries. But the purchase of a Porsche is neverimpulsive.Usually,Germen men arethinkinga very long time about itand decide at the end: “Once in my life, I want todo what I really want andIdon’t care what peoplemightthink.Iwillmakethe pilot's license, I want to purchase the car I have beendreaming of.”(15)
Cars are used to show the status and financial strength by German men (as it is in China). Thus,the brand Porsche with its positioning strategy as THE luxurysportscar fulfills people’s needs perfectly.Porsche drivers also want tobe differentfrom other drivers.
Porscheis believed to bedriven by men overthe age of50in Germany, but thereareconstantlynews reportingdrunk20years oldPorsche drivers havingseriouscar accidentsin the city centerin the middleof thenightwith very high speed.
About the topicofenvironmentalprotection: in the last 10 years, there are more and more discussionsaboutthe racing event.Eventhough thecarracing culturehas existed in Europefor more than 100 years,people start to questiontheseeventsasmarketingactivities because of theenvironmental impact.Due to the riskofa loss ofimage, the carmanufacturerssee themselves forcedto develop new technologies that arelessharmful to the environment.
China
Image:Female or male, about25 years old.Young people from wealthy families, or female partners ofrich men, orbeautifulfemaleinternet influencers (16)
Characteristics:Outgoing, enthusiastic, likes to try out new things. Enjoys hanging out with friends inveryexpensive locations,bars and nightclubs.Pays great attentionto the appearance, female drivers are very (young) and pretty. Active user of social media, likes to sharehis/herpersonal life andcommunicatesdirectly abouthis/herwealth (17), butmight not know much aboutcar/racing cultures
Economic situation and occupation:Doesnot need to work or only needs to work for a short period to earn a very high amount of money.
Culturalbackground:
Porsche entered the Chinesemarket in 2001 with itsimportedsports cars: a Boxster cost1.1 million Yuan, which is280.000 DM /143.161 Euro (18) (The price in Germany in 2001: 82.356DM/ 36.300 Euro (19)). ACarrerain Chinacost 1.78 million Yuanwhich is460.000 DM/235.194 Euro (18) (The price in Germany in 2001: 339.000 DM /173.327 Euro (20)).
Porsche Boxster(earlier generation)
(Heinsdorff Jularlak / Shutterstock.com)
There is no car racing culture in China, but Porschestill sells very wellonthis market.Its positioning in China is very clear from the beginning: importedluxury sports cars.We know from our various studies that Chineseconsumersautomatically associate “imported fromtheEU” with good quality and high prices.
Just like German men,theChinese also want to use cars to present their financial status.Porscheisalsotheonlycar brand toofferaconfiguration servicein China, which is a standard service for European customers but something very new for Chinese consumers, as99% of the cars in China are sold as pre-configurated models.Chinese consumers are used todrivingtheir newcarhomeright after the purchase.ButPorscheinsistsontheconfiguration service andalong waiting time (about6 months) is partly seenas “not suitable foranimpulsivepurchase”andpartly seen as“something very special, like purchasing a customized suit, which indicateswealth,luxury,and good taste”.
One of the reasons why Porsche has such a young personality image is because this brand isusedto “showoffpersonal wealth”which makes itnot suitable for businesscontexts.Only those who do not need to work with clients havea higher“chance” to drive this car aroundandtobe seen on the street. These young people also enjoy posting short videos or pictures on social media, which enhances the young driver's image of this brand.As in Germany, there is constantly news in China reporting car accidences caused by 20 years old Porsche drivers.
Atthe same time, there is also another brand personalitywhich isbeing perceivedmore and more: 30-40 years old men, withveryhighcareersuccesswhohavemoney, agood taste,a dominant character,ambition and see the bigger picture.
Conclusion
As we observedinthe firstandthe secondarticle, the brand personality imagessometimesvaryextremelyin Germany and China.
It has a lot to do with thebrand historyperceived by the consumers in these two countries: All of the four brands started their business in Germany/Europe and consumersthere aremore or lessfamiliar with its heritageand tradition as well asitsdevelopment.They grewup together with the brands. However,in China, thesefour brands entered the Chinese market in differenterasofthe rapid economic development, the political, economicand cultural background of each era wasverydifferent from each other.
We know that allfour brandsmentioned in this articleare working hard on their brand images,both in Germany and China. Meanwhile, wealsoobservethere are more and more Chinese car manufacturers trying to enter theGerman/ Europeanmarket, just like how the GermanbrandsdidinChina.
We arecloselytrackingthe brand personalityimageand looking forward togaining new insights.
