Cedia Spirit relaunched as cedia sports basic at Rs. 9,30,000

sidindica · 12th February 2010, 17:18

Here are the reasons why.

jkdas · 12th February 2010, 17:25

That's why the GPS things is missing as was reported by some.

What's the price difference? Why can't they bring in a diesel engine?

narayan · 12th February 2010, 18:16

This only points to one thing -
some new fellow has joined in the marketing department and this must be his maiden project !!

this Basic pack will AGAIN DO NOTHING FOR THE SALES

HM - please wake up. there is so much action in the auto industry that you can't come up with a mere Momo to MMC change and expect sales to go up !!

What did the CEDIA marketing campaign do to the sales - NOTHING..

people simply have SHUT their minds as far as this car is concerned.
time to move on and launch ATLEAST the 9th gen Lancer if not the 10th

and yes a diesel engine option will help immensely

SkyWalker · 12th February 2010, 18:31

@narayan - bingo!

Best thing Mitsu can do now is to admit Cedia was a Sales dud and move on. They can just waste some more marketing money but its not gonna help them in any sales.

here's what they can do:

Spend that money to accelerate bringing in the new Lancer
Spend money on bringing in Diesel engines

sabynag · 12th February 2010, 18:47

There is a fundamental difference between selling a 4-seater car in the US and that in India. In US, for most part of a car's lifetime, only one out of the 4 seats will be occupied and hence the purchase decision is largely one person's decision. In India, the situation is different - most of the time two or more seats will be occupied in any car on the road. So, it is natural that any buying decision will not be a driver's call alone. 2 or more people will influence the purchase decision in most cases and every single of them will try to find something for himself/herself in the car even when he/she is not driving.

As long as you have something for every seat in a car, the sales chart will continue to rock. But if you focus too much only on the driver and keep nothing for others, you are left with a small minority of buyers - you can't expect much sales whether steering is branded or not, whether GPS is there or not.

A person who didn't buy Cedia at 9.9L, is unlikely to buy it at 9.3L even if no feature-stripping is done. It was not rejected because it was over-priced, but because someone in the family put a strong objection - google through all Cedia TD threads and this story will resonate everywhere.

The right marketing strategy would be to wow the driver and ensure that there is no objection from other three seats (or atleast the front passenger seat).

rjalihal · 12th February 2010, 19:45

@Sabynag: I agree with you. They are marketing the Cedia as a 'Sport' trim sedan. That by itself is a very niche market. Bulk of sedan buyers are family people and like what you mentioned look for features which do good to the other 3 members in the car apart from the driver alone. Perhaps if they minimize the driver centric features and add a few passenger comfort features, it MAY sell. However, Mitsubishi as most folks know is good in making performance cars and have an amazing rally track record. Its a car for the 'young at heart'. Such cars will never sell well in India. Mitsubishi is better off bringing in their MPVs and small cars.

GTO · 13th February 2010, 10:44

Jeez, they still haven't figured out WHY the Cedia doesn't sell? Is this the solution? God help HM-Mitsubishi in India. I mean, when your 60 year old product outsells (in a 20:1 ratio) one that's 6 years old, it's got to be mayhem.

akas_chauhan · 13th February 2010, 10:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by GTO

Jeez, they still haven't figured out WHY the Cedia doesn't sell? Is this the solution? God help HM-Mitsubishi in India. I mean, when your 60 year old product outsells (in a 20:1 ratio) one that's 6 years old, it's got to be mayhem.

What's the reason you think lancer sell outnumbered Cedia.

It's pity to see such good cars do not sell much.

vkochar · 13th February 2010, 10:52

Marketing !! HM sucks at marketing !!

The car is great BUT they really need a substantial price drop for it to start selling real well.

The car needs to be noticed. Half the people do not even know what a Cedia is.

Quote:

Originally Posted by akas_chauhan

What's the reason you think lancer sell outnumbered Cedia.

It's pity to see such good cars do not sell much.

I think GTO is talking about Ambassador

Guna · 13th February 2010, 11:29

I think that good marketing or lack of it is NOT the main reason for the success/failure of a car in India. Lancer did extremey well but I dont think they did anything different with the marketing between then and now.
If the car is good, fits the need, people are smart enough to find that out despite bad marketing. Of course, the aftersales service play a big role.

varun.ppl · 13th February 2010, 12:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by vkochar

Marketing !! HM sucks at marketing !!

The car is great BUT they really need a substantial price drop for it to start selling real well.

The car needs to be noticed. Half the people do not even know what a Cedia is.

Well , Marketing plays a secondary part. To put it in Kotler's words, Marketing is the art of understanding the needs of consumers & then projecting your product like that. But in this case, the Product is simply not upto the mark.

No offences meant to anyone/owners. Its a good car nonetheless but it is not catering to the demands of the people

AirWind · 13th February 2010, 21:27

C'mon HM is this your best marketing shot? What makes you think renaming Spirit to Sports will translate into more sales?

rejeen · 13th February 2010, 21:48

Lancer sold since it was one of the best cars for the value at the time. Mitsu/HM should have better offerings for us in this highly cpmpetitive market where every manufacturer is trying to bring in their newer models.

Trying to revive a flop model is not going to help their sale/image. And this is the best time mitsu could bring in their newer gen models.

AyAn! · 13th February 2010, 22:04

HM's desperate to get the Cedia fly off shelves,but it ain't working! Only expanding the product portfolio will help HM/Mitsubishi.They should learn from Fiat.Invest more here,maybe develop an all new hatch for India.And of course get the new Lancer first.

nickatnite · 14th February 2010, 01:54

This is what i believe happened. HM made an earth chattering decision to replace the old Lancer with the current model and cannot understand why the Indian public isn't grateful and buying the car off the shelves.

I'm sure HM management must have fired the executive(s) who took the decision to upgrade as is evident by the continued sales of the old/old Lancer. I'm sure they must be scratching their heads to figure out how Indian car buyers can opt for the latest models when they offer such classics as the Amby and the old Lancers at competitive prices(sic). Shame on you HM. Do India a favor and stop making cars, please.

12th February 2010, 17:18	#1
sidindica Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Delhi Posts: 4,892 Thanked: 8,115 Times	Cedia Spirit relaunched as cedia sports basic at Rs. 9,30,000 Here are the reasons why. Attached Thumbnails
	(3) Thanks

12th February 2010, 17:25	#2
jkdas Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Thiruvananthapu Posts: 9,687 Thanked: 1,492 Times View My Garage	That's why the GPS things is missing as was reported by some. What's the price difference? Why can't they bring in a diesel engine?
	() Thanks

12th February 2010, 18:16	#3
narayan Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Singapore Posts: 3,114 Thanked: 2,372 Times View My Garage	This only points to one thing - some new fellow has joined in the marketing department and this must be his maiden project !! this Basic pack will AGAIN DO NOTHING FOR THE SALES HM - please wake up. there is so much action in the auto industry that you can't come up with a mere Momo to MMC change and expect sales to go up !! What did the CEDIA marketing campaign do to the sales - NOTHING.. people simply have SHUT their minds as far as this car is concerned. time to move on and launch ATLEAST the 9th gen Lancer if not the 10th and yes a diesel engine option will help immensely
	() Thanks

12th February 2010, 18:31	#4
SkyWalker Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,531 Thanked: 136 Times	@narayan - bingo! Best thing Mitsu can do now is to admit Cedia was a Sales dud and move on. They can just waste some more marketing money but its not gonna help them in any sales. here's what they can do: Spend that money to accelerate bringing in the new Lancer Spend money on bringing in Diesel engines
	() Thanks

12th February 2010, 18:47	#5
sabynag BHPian Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 218 Thanked: 2 Times	There is a fundamental difference between selling a 4-seater car in the US and that in India. In US, for most part of a car's lifetime, only one out of the 4 seats will be occupied and hence the purchase decision is largely one person's decision. In India, the situation is different - most of the time two or more seats will be occupied in any car on the road. So, it is natural that any buying decision will not be a driver's call alone. 2 or more people will influence the purchase decision in most cases and every single of them will try to find something for himself/herself in the car even when he/she is not driving. As long as you have something for every seat in a car, the sales chart will continue to rock. But if you focus too much only on the driver and keep nothing for others, you are left with a small minority of buyers - you can't expect much sales whether steering is branded or not, whether GPS is there or not. A person who didn't buy Cedia at 9.9L, is unlikely to buy it at 9.3L even if no feature-stripping is done. It was not rejected because it was over-priced, but because someone in the family put a strong objection - google through all Cedia TD threads and this story will resonate everywhere. The right marketing strategy would be to wow the driver and ensure that there is no objection from other three seats (or atleast the front passenger seat).
	() Thanks

12th February 2010, 19:45	#6
rjalihal BHPian Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 713 Thanked: 100 Times	@Sabynag: I agree with you. They are marketing the Cedia as a 'Sport' trim sedan. That by itself is a very niche market. Bulk of sedan buyers are family people and like what you mentioned look for features which do good to the other 3 members in the car apart from the driver alone. Perhaps if they minimize the driver centric features and add a few passenger comfort features, it MAY sell. However, Mitsubishi as most folks know is good in making performance cars and have an amazing rally track record. Its a car for the 'young at heart'. Such cars will never sell well in India. Mitsubishi is better off bringing in their MPVs and small cars.
	() Thanks

13th February 2010, 10:44	#7
GTO Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Bombay Posts: 70,546 Thanked: 300,788 Times View My Garage	Jeez, they still haven't figured out WHY the Cedia doesn't sell? Is this the solution? God help HM-Mitsubishi in India. I mean, when your 60 year old product outsells (in a 20:1 ratio) one that's 6 years old, it's got to be mayhem.
	() Thanks

13th February 2010, 11:29	#10
Guna Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 4,012 Thanked: 4,204 Times	I think that good marketing or lack of it is NOT the main reason for the success/failure of a car in India. Lancer did extremey well but I dont think they did anything different with the marketing between then and now. If the car is good, fits the need, people are smart enough to find that out despite bad marketing. Of course, the aftersales service play a big role.
	() Thanks

13th February 2010, 21:27	#12
AirWind BHPian Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 998 Thanked: 404 Times View My Garage	C'mon HM is this your best marketing shot? What makes you think renaming Spirit to Sports will translate into more sales?
	() Thanks

13th February 2010, 21:48	#13
rejeen BHPian Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 154 Thanked: 140 Times	Lancer sold since it was one of the best cars for the value at the time. Mitsu/HM should have better offerings for us in this highly cpmpetitive market where every manufacturer is trying to bring in their newer models. Trying to revive a flop model is not going to help their sale/image. And this is the best time mitsu could bring in their newer gen models.
	() Thanks

13th February 2010, 22:04	#14
AyAn! Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Durgapur/Calcutta/Pune Posts: 2,169 Thanked: 869 Times	HM's desperate to get the Cedia fly off shelves,but it ain't working! Only expanding the product portfolio will help HM/Mitsubishi.They should learn from Fiat.Invest more here,maybe develop an all new hatch for India.And of course get the new Lancer first.
	() Thanks

14th February 2010, 01:54	#15
nickatnite Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: NYC/MAA Posts: 1,430 Thanked: 603 Times	This is what i believe happened. HM made an earth chattering decision to replace the old Lancer with the current model and cannot understand why the Indian public isn't grateful and buying the car off the shelves. I'm sure HM management must have fired the executive(s) who took the decision to upgrade as is evident by the continued sales of the old/old Lancer. I'm sure they must be scratching their heads to figure out how Indian car buyers can opt for the latest models when they offer such classics as the Amby and the old Lancers at competitive prices(sic). Shame on you HM. Do India a favor and stop making cars, please.
	() Thanks