Skip to main content
EVENT TRACKER
Keep track of rescheduled, canceled industry events with our COVID-affected event tracker - Powered by Snap Finance
Close
Sister Publication Links
  • Rubber & Plastics News
  • European Rubber Journal
tb-logo
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • OPINION
    • CORONAVIRUS
    • AUTO INDUSTRY
    • BUSINESS/FINANCIAL
    • COMMERCIAL TIRE
    • FACTORY FIXES
    • GOVERNMENT & LAW
    • INTERNATIONAL
    • MOTOR SPORTS
    • NEW PRODUCTS
    • RETAIL TIRES
    • SERVICE ZONE
    • SEMA/AAPEX
    • SMALL BUSINESS
    • TIRE MAKERS
    • SPONSORED CONTENT
    • COVID takes dealers for roller-coaster ride
      A year later, pandemic's full tire industry impact unclear
      Tire Cologne canceled; rescheduled until 2022
      New round of Paycheck Protection Program funding opens
    • DTM switches horses mid-stream; awards race tire contract to Michelin
      Icahn Auto trims fiscal 2020 operating loss despite 14% lower sales
      Oshkosh unit gets contract for new USPS local delivery vehicle
      Sumitomo adds treadwear-detection to 'Sensor Core' toolkit
    • F1 extends Pirelli's supply contract through 2024
      Titan eyes solid recovery in 2021 as ag sector rebounds
      4 Wheel Parts celebrates 60th anniversary with deals, promotions
      CarAdvise partnering with RepairSmith mobile repair services
    • Fisher: Commercial tire industries evolve during year of pandemic
      Goodyear joins connected mobility pilot program in Ohio
      Michelin launches high-scrub, weight-sensitive X One Multi T trailer tire
      TRAC Intermodal redirects retread biz 100% in-house
    • USTMA joins coalition supporting passage of Equality Act
      McMahon's Best-One increases its minimum wage to $15
      Oshkosh unit gets contract for new USPS local delivery vehicle
      Conti recalling 94,000 Conti-, General-, Barum-brand LT/SUV tires
    • F1 extends Pirelli's supply contract through 2024
      Maxam adding multipurpose radial, solid OTR tires
      Goodyear names Patterson to lead Cooper integration efforts
      DTM switches horses mid-stream; awards race tire contract to Michelin
    • F1 extends Pirelli's supply contract through 2024
      DTM switches horses mid-stream; awards race tire contract to Michelin
      Bridgestone World Solar Challenge canceled due to pandemic restrictions
      Pirelli, Goodyear ink sedan racing series contracts in Canada, Europe
    • Snap-on debuts Triton-D10 diagnostic tool with scan, lab scope capabilities
      Maxam adding multipurpose radial, solid OTR tires
      Michelin launches high-scrub, weight-sensitive X One Multi T trailer tire
      Giti rolling out range of GT Radial-brand urban/regional truck tires
    • COVID takes dealers for roller-coaster ride
      Investment groups to acquire Mavis Tire network
      Vogue Tyre offers $75 rebate on set of 4 tires during March
      4 Wheel Parts celebrates 60th anniversary with deals, promotions
    • Five tips for finding, retaining auto technicians
      Snap-on debuts Triton-D10 diagnostic tool with scan, lab scope capabilities
      Pennzoil offering carbon-neutral lubricants for passenger cars
      Washington dealership uses new-school solution for recruiting auto techs
    • TIA seeking nominations for Tire Industry Hall of Fame
      SEMA survey shows resilient auto aftermarket in 2020
      SEMA scholarships and loan forgiveness now available
      WTC hosting webinar Jan. 20 on load-capacity standards
    • SEMA survey shows resilient auto aftermarket in 2020
      Trade groups oppose minimum wage increase proposal
      New stimulus package fixes PPP loan confusion
      Vaccine may usher sense of normalcy
    • Goodyear joins connected mobility pilot program in Ohio
      Titan eyes solid recovery in 2021 as ag sector rebounds
      Michelin launches high-scrub, weight-sensitive X One Multi T trailer tire
      Goodyear names Patterson to lead Cooper integration efforts
    • Sponsored By Yokohama Tire Company
      7 questions to ask consumers when they need tires for a crossover SUV
      Sponsored By Yokohama Tire Company
      Stocking Tires for Crossover SUVs
      Sponsored By AppointmentPlus
      Three Important Lessons Learned for the Tire Business During a Pandemic
      Sponsored By Yokohama Tire Company
      7 questions to ask consumers when they need tires for a crossover SUV
  • SHOP FLOOR
    • BALANCING
    • DEMOUNTING
    • SAFETY
    • TIRE REPAIR
    • TPMS
    • TRAINING
    • VEHICLE LIFTING
    • WHEEL TORQUE
    • Video: Balancing Tire
      Choosing the right balancing equipment
      Safety tips for wheel balancing
      An introduction to wheel balancing
    • Video: Demounting
      Demounting Equipment
      Making rims ready for a tight seal
      Tire changer types, tips and trends
    • Video: Safety
      Making friends with OSHA
      Ergonomics on the shop floor
      Customers
    • Video: Tire Repair
      Tire repair: Shining a light on visual inspections
      Staying safe when repairing a tire
      Essential tools, materials and equipment for tire repair
    • Video: TMPS Service
      Decoding sensor data for TPMS diagnosis
      Replacement TPMS sensor overview
      The life-saving work of TPMS
    • Video: Training
      Advantages of apprentice program partnerships
      Options and resources for CE tech training
      Internship ideas to attract tech talent
    • Video:Vehicle Lifting
      All types of lifts for all types of work
      Tips and recommendations for lifting safety
      The gravity of proper lift points
    • Video: Wheel Torque
      Using torque sticks to speed service times
      The danger of too much, too little torque
      The importance of torque specifications
  • Multimedia
    • VIDEOS
    • PHOTOS
    • PODCASTS
  • Events
    • ASK THE EXPERT
    • LIVESTREAMS
    • WEBINARS
    • SEMA LIVESTREAMS
  • Data
    • DATA STORE
  • Resources
    • DIRECTORY
    • CLASSIFIEDS
  • ADVERTISE
  • DIGITAL EDITION
  • Awards
    • Tire Dealer Humanitarian Award
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
January 31, 2000 01:00 AM

MAST's strategies for 2000—by brand

Chuck Slaybaugh Tire Business staff
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print

    PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas—Managers for each of Michelin Americas Small Tires flag brands—Michelin, Uniroyal and BFGoodrich—outlined sales goals, marketing plans, promotions and new product offerings in presentations Jan. 10 to dealers attending the company's annual customer meeting in the Bahamas. Michelin

    The Michelin brand in 2000 will receive national advertising during all 52 weeks of the year—and the accent definitely will be on what the company calls the "young and sporty" consumer, Michelin Brand Manager Alison Heiser told dealers.

    "We've worked diligently to find the most efficient television schedule that gives us continual exposure, so we are never off air when a consumer makes a buying decision," she said.

    Ms. Heiser said the brand also will have an expanded magazine advertising program reaching beyond the traditional car enthusiast publications, into titles such as Fast Company and Gear, in an effort to "take the Michelin message to a new generation."

    Included in the company's plans this year, she said, will be a new spring promotion for Michelin, structured after last year's highly successful "Buy 4 and Score" event that offered tire buyers a free roadside emergency kit valued at $100 and a chance to win one of 1,000 prizes, including a Dodge Viper.

    More than 15,000 retail locations took part in that event, which Ms. Heiser described as "the biggest promotion ever in the tire industry," generating over a billion advertising impressions in total.

    This year's promotion, titled "The Road to Adventure," will run in April and May and offer buyers a free car-cleaning kit, also valued at about $100. In an effort to maximize the promotion's appeal to "young and sporty" consumers, Michelin also will conduct a "Road to Adventure Sweepstakes," offering exciting trips to exotic locations.

    In terms of sheer numbers, youthful consumers constitute a large segment of the tire-buying public and account for a sizable portion of Michelin purchases, Ms. Heiser said. Therefore, it only makes sense to regenerate the Michelin franchise by increasing the brand's popularity among the younger set.

    "Any brand that sits on (its) franchise without finding ways to regenerate and appeal to an emerging set of consumers is going to find itself in a situation it doesn't want to be in," Ms. Heiser said. "So we're pre-empting that (possibility) before it can become a problem."

    BFGoodrich

    MAST plans five major initiatives for the BFGoodrich brand this year, BFG Brand Manager Mathew Aaron said. The first will be a 25-percent increase in the amount budgeted for BFGoodrich advertising. "We'll reach a broader target while increasing exposure against the brand's traditional enthusiast audience," Mr. Aaron said.

    The plan is aimed at reaching 90 percent of what MAST calls "extrinsic" male consumers aged 18 to 49. Extrinsic consumers, by the company's definition, are those highly motivated by status and product reputation and who purchase tires primarily on that basis.

    The year-long ad campaign, expected to generate more than 2 billion impressions among adult consumers, will include an expanded magazine schedule in publications such as Sports Illustrated, Popular Mechanics, Men's Health and Outdoor Life.

    The television portion of the campaign, he said, will deliver more continuous on-air presence than last year and be seen on telecasts of NFL Monday Night Football, the NCAA basketball tournament and National Hockey League, National Basketball Association and Major League Baseball games, as well as on ESPN and TNN cable network programs.

    MAST's second major initiative for the BFG brand was the surprise launching of a new internet-based program in which consumers can design and order their own customized versions of the colored-tread Scorcher T/A tire direct from the company's highly automated C3M tire plant in Greenville, S.C.

    The customized tires will sell at a premium of $50 to $80 each and be available in more color combinations than the present red, blue and yellow stock versions.

    Delivery will be guaranteed within five to eight weeks, and local dealers will be compensated for installing and servicing the tires.

    Mr. Aaron told the gathering that the use of color in tires is bound to grow. "Scorcher T/A is great," he said, "but mark my words, Scorcher T/A is just the beginning."

    Also during 2000, Mr. Aaron said MAST will attempt to further expand the BFG brand's strength in the performance-tire market with the April introduction of the g-Force T/AKDWS, the latest addition to the company's g-Force T/A family.

    The g-Force T/AKDWS, he said, will be an ultra-high-performance tire designed for increased all-weather traction. "Compared to the Comp T/A ZR4 it replaces, the g-Force T/AKDWS will deliver much better wet and dry traction and way better wet handling," Mr. Aaron said. "It also will boast the highest treadwear grade for its class—a whopping 400, compared to 340 for its closest competitor." The new tire will be available in a range of 16- and 17-inch sizes.

    The BFG brand's fourth initiative during coming months will be its new involvement in short-track stock car racing in partnership with the American Speed Association.

    TNN, the Nashville Network, will carry telecasts of the ASA events into more than 75 million American homes this year, he said.

    Mr. Aaron said the series will serve as the showcase for BFG's next family of mid-range performance tires, the Traction T/A line, which is scheduled to debut next year. Also, beginning in 2003, BFG tires will be fitted as original equipment on the Pontiac Grand Prix, the official car of the ASA, he said.

    The brand's fifth initiative will be the introduction in March of the BFGoodrich Commercial T/A All-Season tire for class 1-5 light trucks.

    Mileage expectancy is the primary driver of sales in that business segment, Mr. Aaron said, and the Commercial T/A promises to deliver at least 15-percent more mileage than the segment leading Goodyear Workhorse.

    "We'll be backing the Commercial T/A with the highest mileage warranty we've ever offered on a commercial light truck tire—50,000 miles, even in commercial duty.

    "And we'll be offering two years of Take Control Roadwise Assistance with every tire sold, so you can sell the advantage of minimum down time," he told dealers.

    Uniroyal

    Uniroyal marketers will seek to build on the success of its popular NailGard product and recently restored light truck tire lines in the months to come.

    Meanwhile, the company will begin offering NailGard and other selected Uniroyal products to retail outlets other than independent dealerships in an effort to plug some geographical gaps in its distribution network, Brand Manager Joe Herget said.

    While Uniroyal enjoys a substantial share of market in about two-thirds of the U.S., the brand has "very poor presence" in the remaining third of the country, he said.

    "This situation makes our national marketing investments highly inefficient due to the big geographical gaps in product coverage," Mr. Herget told the gathering. "We're talking to a lot of people who simply can't find our products at retail."

    Specifically, Uniroyal's distribution network is underdeveloped on the West Coast, from the Pacific Northwest down through Texas, as well as in several key states in the Northeast, he said.

    "This year we will undertake an effort to maximize NailGard's distribution across the U.S.," he said. Not only will MAST seek to aggressively support dealers and others who carry all NailGard products, "we also will move to expand NailGard's presence into other channels where the expansion can fill major geographic distribution voids for the brand."

    Acknowledging the potential significance of this move to independent dealers, who account for 85 percent of Uniroyal's sales, Mr. Herget added: "We recognize the importance of the Uniroyal brand to our Alliance Partners' overall profitability, and we will do nothing to disturb this equation."

    The dealer channel, he said, will continue to receive the largest portion of MAST's marketing investment in Uniroyal, and the company will try to provide different products to competing channels whenever possible.

    The result, he predicted, will be a stronger Uniroyal brand able to command "a higher premium than its weak, second-tier competitors."

    Mr. Herget described Uniroyal as the "comeback kid" of the tire industry. "While many other brands are struggling to survive, Uniroyal is indeed thriving," he told the audience. But that's not to say there isn't room for improvement, he acknowledged.

    "While our Laredo AWP lines are doing well, the remainder of our light truck tire portfolio is underutilized," Mr. Herget said. "Our historically poor fill rates on these light truck lines help explain how we got to such a low level of distribution. But we now have an ample supply of all LT product lines, and we need to re-establish the Uniroyal Laredo in the marketplace."

    He said the company is adding 15 new sizes and styles to the existing Laredo line and will introduce two commercial light truck tire lines in March. Both will carry a 50,000-mile limited treadlife warranty.

    The new Laredo HD/H, he said, will offer superior value compared with the competition, while its companion, the Laredo HD/H with NailGard, will provide the same performance along with added protection against flats. Fleet testing has shown a 70-percent reduction in customer downtime thanks to Uniroyal's sealant technology, he said.

    Another key to Uniroyal's success in 2000, Mr. Herget told dealers, will be an expanded television and print advertising program.

    Uniroyal's current "Test Track" TV spot, he said, has been quite effective in delivering NailGard's continued-mobility message to consumers and consistently has outperformed competitive commercials in regard to consumer awareness and recall.

    However, the new Uniroyal TV commercial for 2000 shifts attention away from the sterile environment of the test track, he said, to demonstrate how NailGard fits into the consumer's everyday life.

    One of Uniroyal's most successful promotional activities last year—and one the company plans to use extensively in 2000—is its support for local youth soccer programs.

    "The safety benefits of NailGard are very relevant to this audience, particularly Mom," he said. Soccer is the fastest-growing youth sport in North America and invites involvement on the part of the entire family. It also is consistent with the Uniroyal brand's marketing position and target audience: mainstream America.

    Sport-utility vehicles and minivans typically are the vehicles of choice for soccer families, Mr. Herget said. He added that the Uniroyal NailGard has been accepted for fitment on the new Ford Windstar and that widespread original equipment use of such sealant-protected tires is expected within the next two years.

    "Soccer also provides independent tire dealers an excellent opportunity to get more involved in their community to build equity, loyalty and sales for the long term," Mr. Herget told the audience.

    The company is producing a how-to handbook and merchandising materials for dealers to use in their own markets. MAST also will be conducting direct-mail advertising campaigns to attract soccer families to local Uniroyal outlets, he added.

    MAST also plans to hire a celebrity soccer spokesperson to promote these Uniroyal activities on TV programs such as Good Morning America, Rosie O'Donnell and Oprah, he said.

    Mr. Herget said Uniroyal's seasonal calendar also will be expanded to include three major national promotions in 2000.

    A spring Tiger Paw promotion will offer a $40 rebate on several "high-margin" Tiger Paw products. More than 2,500 points of sale already have signed up to take part, Mr. Herget said.

    A summer NailGard promotion will offer tire purchasers a $50-$75 Black & Decker Corp. product as a premium.

    The final seasonal promotion of the year, he said, will be Uniroyal's traditional fall light truck event. It will feature an as-yet-undetermined consumer offering along with a sales contest for retail tire sales associates.

    Officials said all three promotions will be supported with local media and run concurrently with Uniroyal's national advertising. When combined with local promotions, these efforts effectively will double Uniroyal's financial investment in local marketing during 2000, Mr. Herget said.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Tire Business would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor Don Detore at [email protected].

    SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Newsletter Center

    Staying current is easy with Tire Business delivered straight to your inbox.

    SUBSCRIBE TODAY

    Subscribe to Tire Business

    SUBSCRIBE
    Connect with Us
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Tire Business is an award-winning publication dedicated to providing the latest news, data and insights into the tire and automotive service industries.

    tb-logo
    Reader Services
    • Contact Us
    • About Us
    • Site Map
    • Industry Sites
    • Order Reprints
    • Customer Service: 877-320-1716
    Partner Sites
    • Rubber & Plastics News
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Automotive News
    • Plastics News
    • Plastics News China
    • Urethanes Technology
    RESOURCES
    • Advertise
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    • Terms of Service
    • Media Guide
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Classified Rates
    • Digital Edition
    • Careers
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    Copyright © 1996-2021. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • OPINION
      • CORONAVIRUS
      • AUTO INDUSTRY
      • BUSINESS/FINANCIAL
      • COMMERCIAL TIRE
      • FACTORY FIXES
      • GOVERNMENT & LAW
      • INTERNATIONAL
      • MOTOR SPORTS
      • NEW PRODUCTS
      • RETAIL TIRES
      • SERVICE ZONE
      • SEMA/AAPEX
      • SMALL BUSINESS
      • TIRE MAKERS
      • SPONSORED CONTENT
    • SHOP FLOOR
      • BALANCING
      • DEMOUNTING
      • SAFETY
      • TIRE REPAIR
      • TPMS
      • TRAINING
      • VEHICLE LIFTING
      • WHEEL TORQUE
    • Multimedia
      • VIDEOS
      • PHOTOS
      • PODCASTS
    • Events
      • ASK THE EXPERT
      • LIVESTREAMS
      • WEBINARS
      • SEMA LIVESTREAMS
    • Data
      • DATA STORE
    • Resources
      • DIRECTORY
      • CLASSIFIEDS
    • ADVERTISE
    • DIGITAL EDITION
    • Awards
      • Tire Dealer Humanitarian Award