This document analyzes Volkswagen India's digital marketing strategy and identifies three key issues: 1. VW India focused on online popularity and engagement metrics rather than personalizing customer relationships through effective e-CRM. 2. VW created innovative digital promotions but failed to develop strong brand loyalty and equity with customers. 3. VW applied the traditional 7P marketing mix but did not fully adopt the customer-centric 7C framework in their digital strategy.

1. Case Study Analysis
Volkswagen India:
Das Auto, Digitally
Julia Hughes (428657) BMA610 Digital and Direct Marketing
18 September, 2016
Case Study Analysis
Volkswagen India:
Das Auto, Digitally
Submitted by Julia Hughes (428657) BMA610 Digital and Direct Marketing
Image sourced from indiancarsbikes.com

2. Case Study Analysis
Volkswagen India:
Das Auto, Digitally
Julia Hughes (428657) BMA610 Digital and Direct Marketing
Foreign automotive industries entering the Indian car market face increasing competition from local car
manufacturers and other foreign car companys. Interestingly, since 2010, India has produced 3.7 million
cars, which accounts for it being the second fastest growing automobile industry after China (Gupta 2014).
In the current digital climate, most companies will need to include strategic, integrated and dynamic,
digital marketing initiatives for effective engagement of wealthy market segments in India. This will
be a crucial factor for VW India, Bhatia (2013, p. 5) provides an insight from Nagaraj (2008) into an
increasingly wealthy Indian market, resulting in a huge growth of individual vehicle ownership.
Importantly, India comprises of several emerging markets, in particular, regional areas of North West
India (Bhatia 2013). These regions will experience significant growth, especially in the automobile sector
(Atsmon, Kertesz & Vittal 2011). This paper will discuss how VW India can create opportunities to engage
more meaningfully with their target market via digital channels.
The issues of this case will be explored in detail in this paper. Firstly, VW India will need to be increas-
ingly innovative in implementing their existing digital communications strategy. This strategy will
need to be complemented by an e-CRM (electronic customer relationship management) and incorporate
personalised relationship marketing. Automotive companys will need to interact with the consumer in a
more impactful way on all channels (Stone & Woodcock 2013).
The second issue that this paper will address, is that VW India’s primary objective was to be the most
popular online brand in India, this was at the expense of a personalised customer relationship. E-CRM.
VW India can differentiate themselves in this way and provide them with a competitive advantage
(Zineldin 2006). Key factors in the success of these strategies will involve listening and responding to
customers and growing long-term, brand loyal customers (Grewal et al. 2015).
What are the issues?
Issue1: E-CRM is a vital component of any digital marketing strategy, the issue is
however, that German car manufacturer VW (Volkswagen) has focused primarily on
becoming the most popular (‘buzziest’) brand online in India and is interested only in
numbers of engaged customers and creating leads for the company.
1.1 VW India engaged with their customer on most digital channels, however it is evident that
they are only motivated by numbers for example, how many visits to their website and providing
incentives, like free accessories to gain higher click through rates and page impressions (PI’s).
Their motivation is illustrated by their search engine optimisation (SEO’s) strategies, such as search
engine results page (SERP) that link to VW’s display advertising. Gupta (2014 p. 7), states that “SEO

3. Case Study Analysis
Volkswagen India:
Das Auto, Digitally
Julia Hughes (428657) BMA610 Digital and Direct Marketing
involved the use of optimisation techniques to improve the position of the website in a SERP. The
higher the rank of the website on SERP’s, the greater was the chance that consumers would click on
the site”.
2.2 Failure to exploit the insight that digital media gives into customer’s needs and sentiments.
(Stone & Woodcock 2013)
VW India concentrated on brand building and driving the popularity of their digital channels, not
relationship marketing approaches that would increase meaningful engagement. Evidently, VW India
was primarily concerned with their next sale, rather than concern with the customer’s needs and wants.
2.3 VW gauged the performance of their campaign for the entire customer funnel - impressions,
clicks, leads, actual test-drives, purchase - it’s main goal being the cost per lead (CPL) (Gupta
2014). Again, the implications of focusing on performance indicators is apparent and offering only
short-term rewards, not long-term benefits that relationship marketing offers.
Solutions and recommendations:
Managing Business Intelligence (BI) combined with customer insight (CI) will provide an
important support for VW India’s digital marketing strategy.
Stone & Woodcock (2013 p. 4), states that, “Delivering an efficient B2C strategy that is a relevant,
personalised and an engaging experience for customers, increasingly relies on a deep knowledge of
the consumer; who they are, the devices they use to connect to the company and the content they
want to see.”
It is imperative that VW India’s Marketing team don’t place their full focus on their brand’s
popularity, but to initiate dynamic interaction with their customers in a digital context, They can do
this by responding, listening and providing empowerment to their customer through meaningful and
personal engagement on all digital channels.
The benefits of these interactions will be e-WOM (electronic word of mouth), “word of mouse”,
not solely through social media, but via all online and mobile channels. Online reviews have become
increasingly important in influencing buyer behaviour and motivation (Stone & Woodcock 2013).

4. Case Study Analysis
Volkswagen India:
Das Auto, Digitally
Julia Hughes (428657) BMA610 Digital and Direct Marketing
Issue 2. VW India has an existing, innovative digital communications strategy,
however the issue is that they need to encourage positive consumer perception of
their brand by developing brand equity which in turn will create brand loyalty with
their customers.
2.1 Volkswagen was a late-comer into the Indian car market. In 2009, when it began
manufacturing cars in India on a large scale, most other Western car brands entered the
Indian car market five years earlier. Japanese car brands for at least ten. (Scribd. 2013)
Head of Marketing & PR for VW said: “Our key performance indicator is engagement rate. This is an
investment for the future, as many people who are engaging may not buy new but will consider VW
when they buy in the future” (Gupta 2014).
Mistakenly, VW India, in their bid catch up to their competitors has misjudged the value of
developing a brand loyal customer base, they have focused on the value of creating innovative
promotions and instead have placed value on engagement rates.
The Volkswagen brand is defined globally using three words: Responsible, Valuable, and Innovative,
this drove their digital communications strategies. The following promotions illustrate this.
Arguably, their success in ‘Exciting’ the customer (‘Anything for Jetta’ became the No. 1 trending
topic on Twitter); ‘Educate’ the customer (Google Ad-words - VW advertised aggressively on brand
keywords from consumers actively seeking information about the brand) and ‘Experience’ the product
(Virtual experience, Test drives - YouTube), (Gupta 2014). VW India’s marketing team sacrificed the
opportunity these communication strategies offered at the expense of one of 4E’s - ‘Engage’ with
the customer. Grewal et al., (2015, p. 49), states “With engagement comes action, the potential for a
relationship, and possibly even loyalty and commitment”.
Solutions and recommendations:
Consumers are willing to pay more for a product or service, if they perceive it to be good
quality. A company in today’s digital world are challenged to glean as much knowledge and
understanding about their consumers as possible - and in turn, offer superior products and services,
(in this case VW automobiles), that far exceed their expectations (Kotler and Armstrong, 2008).
In today’s digital environment where the consumer has control, VW India needs to reach their
audience by creating a strong brand personality that the consumer can identify with, including
identifying through their lifestyle. (Vollmer & Precourt 2008).

5. Case Study Analysis
Volkswagen India:
Das Auto, Digitally
Julia Hughes (428657) BMA610 Digital and Direct Marketing
Stone & Woodcock (2013, p.6), states that “The locus of many companies’ brands has shifted from the
real to the virtual world, while the brands of many others are strongly affected by what is said about
them in the virtual world”.
Genuine brand resonance evokes a high degree of loyalty from customers and encourages them to
actively seek to interact with the brand and creates positive e-WOM. Providing VW India can follow
this example, it would offer substantial ROI (return on investment) for their company. (Keller 2001)
Issue 3. VW India has applied the 7P’s marketing mix but the 7C’s framework is
lacking in their digital communications strategy.
3.1 “The Marketing Mix Concept, 4P’s (7P’s) has been criticised for not being customer-centric
enough, it has been suggested that the 4C’s (7C’s) Framework should be used in conjunction
with the 4P’s (7P’s) from the viewpoint of the customer” (Chaffey & Ellis-Chadwick 2016).
Whatever channel the consumer is utilising, they can’t be bullied, controlled, nor can they be treated
like commodities. They should be engaged with clear dialogue by marketers, media companies and
advertising agencies alike. They need to develop methods to discover exactly what engages and what
disengages their potential prospects (Vollmer & Precourt 2008).
Solutions and recommendations:
Varying the application of the marketing mix, for example, the customer needs and wants from
the product; cost to the customer, the price; convenience, relative to place; communication in regard to
promotion, customisation, co-creation and finally personalisation.
Websites should be intelligent and encourage user generated content and co-creation. VW
India’s website should not be a static experience, rather it should excite the user with a dynamic and
easily navigable, interactive interface. Importantly, it should be monitored on a regular basis and
modified to provide relevant content that generates a two way UX (user experience) to the relevant
market segments of VW India. (Bevan, N 2009).

6. Case Study Analysis
Volkswagen India:
Das Auto, Digitally
Julia Hughes (428657) BMA610 Digital and Direct Marketing
In conclusion, it is crucial that the e-CRM strategies that VW India choose to implement, concerning
digital engagement are increasingly dependent on the acquiring of and analysis of consumer behaviour on
all digital channels, in particular social media. (Grewal et al. 2015).
Creating resonance with their brand and reflecting brand personality back to their customer in a relevant
way. will provide VW India with an important element of marketing - differentiation.
Creating, designing and delivering ICM strategies in a relevant, personalised and engaging way, instead of
focusing on the popularity and numbers of customers, would be a beneficial strategy for VW India. Stone
& Woodcock (2013, p. 9), shares this insight “This increasingly relies on a deep knowledge of: who they are;
the devices they use to connect with the company; the content they want to see”.
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