Imagine the confusion if identical twins had to share the same clothes, voice inflection, and mannerisms. Neither would have a unique identity to distinguish one from the other. This is the same issue that had plagued Acura since its inception; the luxury brand has always shared the same marketing department with its parent company Honda.
Honda has made a concerted effort to establish Acura as an upgrade, a luxury option to which consumers may turn. It has been done, though, with overstretched resources and shared minds – tasking the same people who develop advertising campaigns for the Civic to do the same for the RDX. That all finally changed this past spring with the Acura branding task force, revitalizing the brand through significant changes across the board from manufacturing and product development to purchase processes.
Erik Berkman, Honda North America’s Executive Vice President, now leads the Acura Business Planning Office (the aforementioned task force). The planning office, based in Ohio, was the result of unanimous consensus among top worldwide Honda executives that Acura needed far better direction and strategy to find its spot in the marketplace. While its blueprint is still a work-in-progress, the executives have been thus far impressed and granted Berkman’s team near complete autonomy.
“We may have some work to do to define what our brand value are, what we represent, and what we stand for – and make that crystal clear,” explained Berkman.
The most important factors in play as Acura discovers itself as a separate entity from Honda are coordination and organization. Once these are established within the planning office, the strategy will emerge as synergy grows among all members of the team.
This team is especially important since Acura has placed great emphasis on the all-new TLX to invigorate sales for its sedan lineup. The company even eliminated the TS and ILX, making room for its anticipated new midsize vehicle.
What do you think can distinguish Acura from its competitors in the luxury brand market? Leave us your comments and thoughts to develop a discussion!