[jwilk]

Last night I was playing poker at a local casino. I had earlier won a large sum of money, and someone asked what I was going to do with the money. I said "I bought a new car, a MINI". All I got were blank stares and a couple of "What's a MINI". I think BMW's marketing campaign needs a little work.

[seemunkee]

I was at the credit union today and asked about a home equity loan for buying a car. The loan officer who also handles their auto loans asked me what I was thinking of getting. I received a blank stare from her when I told her a Mini Cooper.

[jbkone]

"Nobody knows the trouble I see... nobody knows...." Enough singing. YES, yes. The MINI is severely under-publicised. I guess they don't need to spend their money on it since they are all sold already, but it would be nice if you didn't have to try to come up with a big explanation about who makes it. "Well, Rover made it, but BMW bought Rover, or at least the Mini part, so now BMW makes it, but not really cause it's made in England with Rover engineers and it's not a German car.... oh forget it!!"

[sdmidget]

But ... if it was over publicized ... we all wouldn't have to spend many minutes (hours?) every day telling all the "uninformed" what it is!

[Sejanus]

Hopefully this "guerrilla" ad campaign will continue to shroud the MINI in obscurity long enough for me to get mine at something approaching MSRP. After that they really might want to try running a TV spot or two, but only after that.

[Colorado "S"]

Quote:

Originally posted by jbkone
"Well, Rover made it, but BMW bought Rover, or at least the Mini part, so now BMW makes it, but not really cause it's made in England with Rover engineers and it's not a German car.... oh forget it!!"

I've lost track of how many times I've told that exact story.

[TBOB]

Same reaction here!!

I ask one of the largest tire dealers here in OKC about aftermarket wheel/tire combinations, you know the reaction, blank stares!! This store is owned by the local BMW dealer and one of the salesmen finally said, o'yeah that's the car that our BMW dealer will have for sale after the first of the year.

My car is on the JINGU MARU and scheduled to be in NY this Thursday, Getting close now!!!

Red/White, Premium, CWP, Fogs, Spoiler, Sport Seats, Leatherette.

TBOB

[jcnick]

I LOVE the fact that nobody know what it is.

[erazo]

Come on, you can't be complaining about the marketing effort (which I think is too effective, by the way). I couldn't care less if no one knows what a Mini is or was. Time will change the public perception anyhow.

You will get one of three responses when you say you're buying or driving a MINI:

1. Really?
2. What's a Mini?
3. Oh. That's nice.

Admit it, which response would you prefer?

[shark]

I think it's safe to say that many of us want a Mini at this time because it is unique and not well known. That's a big part of the attraction right now. I haven't taken delivery of mine yet and haven't experienced the "blank stare." I do enjoy telling others about the cool little boxy car from Britain--the next big thing to hit the US.

[Tracker]

Yeah, there are the blank stares, and the long, rambling history lessons (those can actually be fun if you make up the right details). But there's also that wonderful glazed look in people's eyes when they say:

"You have one of those? Cool! Can I see it? Can I drive it? I've read about those things, is it true that..."

What if they'd unleashed a huge media blitz? Yeah, everybody and his dog would know what a MINI is and want one. But that's not necessarily the right marketing strategy for this particular product. Instead of blasting the ads until everyone was sick of them, they've opened the door a crack and whispered "Hey, come look at this." Smart.

The MINI is targeted for a niche market, and they've successfully reached that niche. What's wrong with that?

[erazo]

It's not cultural as much as it is demographics. Quite a number of the people in my age group (geezers) are familiar with British cars (and I'm not talking about the Jags and Land Rovers driven by the plastic surgeons) and remember the Mini from their youth.

The younger crowd is a different story. I've been to vintage car shows and you can see the difference -- the thirty-somethings walk right by the Morgans, MGs, Austin Healeys, etc. and gather around the rods and exotics.

[stanMINI]

Part of the joy of owning a MINI right now is the exclusivity of the car. I hope this mystique is still in tact when I get my car in a couple of months. The Austin Powers movies will kill some of this. Of course, there are just that segment of the population that are car illiterate and won't know a MINI until it comes up and bites them in the arse.

[MINIjewel]

At this point, only 10 percent of the American public know that the MINI even exists, and I think it's great. You think the waiting lists are long now? Imagine what it would be like if 50% of the population knew.
These "back door" tactics and marketing strategies they are using are perfect for this car.
They said in the beginning they weren't going to flood the market like some other manufacturers have, and I for one, love it!!