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      01-03-2014, 07:44 AM   #85
Alex_bm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kayani_1
OK, Scott26 fair enough I understand what you are saying about BMW's new direction. But lets set few things straight.

When you claim that BMW adapts to customer needs and it will not exist without meeting their demands, I am with you 100%.

Now lets get few things straight. There will be no BMW today if there were no loyal customers who bought BMW cars year after year all based on BMW core beliefs of making exciting and fun cars with great driving dynamics.

If BMW even exists today it is because people desired the BMW vehicles with a DNA that carried the core ideas. To abandon these customers in hope of new ones is a bad business. A good business model will never lose its core customers. Instead it will build upon them. You know BMW in past was really good at that, as sales each year climbed higher and higher. The BMW name immediately was recognized as a performance luxury power house by all in automotive industry, the accolades and awards came so easy because you bucked the trend in a good way.

Sure BMW sales were no where near that of Toyota, nor BMW reliability, nor fuel economy, and nor price. But people who wanted BMW knew they had a choice of Toyota all day every day and passed up on it to deal with a car that was more finicky with reliability, expensive to maintain, and cost far more. In other words these BMW buyers used to pass up on a car that is 6/10th to 7/10th all around for practicality & daily use and instead paid more to jump into a BMW that was 5/10th in most categories except for 9/10th to 10/10th in performance, excitement, fun do to drive ratio, and grin inducting factors.

No one says you should not improve on 5/10th areas to bring more customers via innovations. However, do not sacrifice the 9/10th to 10/10th in performance, excitement, fun to drive ratio, and grin inducting factors in the name of attracting masses to buy a new BMW. Since BMW is independent company it should stick to core beliefs and then make sure all innovations, updates and improvements improve the breed in more evolutionary fashion. No need to reinvent the wheel in terms of making mundane and boring appliances.

For some reason you do not realize that most older customers have no problems with innovation. The problem we have is with boring products in name of greater sales. These boring mundane products might give BMW a slight boost in sale for now in hopes of pleasing different markets but in long term it will tarnish the brand name, as people will start to associate the brand with mediocrity.

Please do not introduce half baked products that are rushed in a copy cat way to meet industry trends....point in case the half baked EPS steering setups just to follow the trend. Make the product worthy of being in a BMW then introduce it. Do not give us a car that lacks excitement, fun to drive factor, robbed of grin induction that used to come standard with most all BMW's of past.....all just to follow a fad or industry trend in name of temporary greater sales under the false pretense of innovation that take away excitement.


If BMW wants long term success then it needs to keep the core beliefs of brand intact. Which start by making the first priority to build excitement, great driving dynamics, high grin inducing factors, into all cars while using latest and greatest invocations just like in the past. Then next most important step is to improve reliability to the level and likes of Toyota's and Honda's, and last but not least undercut the competition slightly on prices while offering more (page out of Hyundai/Kia or yester year original Lexus brand)......the sales will follow the BMW brand for years to come in droves. This can be done without making boring and less exciting products with just so so driving dynamics.


As of right now BMW is making cars less exciting and more boring to drive, all in name of industry trend, by convincing themselves that this is what the BMW customer wants. No this is what a Toyota, Honda, Kia/Hyundai customer wants not BMW customer. Soon you might have Chinese drivers who never owned a BMW excited to own a BMW based on past glory. However, as BMW product becomes just another bland product, what is to say they will not move to some other brand, once they realize that the BMW product is no better then X or Y brand. Because BMW was following the same boring industry trend. Because it is not like you offer something so much different and unique anymore by catering to the same masses that desire more mundane product cause they know no better.

BMW lets make truly exciting products and you will sell a lot and people will crave your product like no other. Even today check out the desirability of a E36 M3, E46 M3, E39 M5, E60 M5, 1M and E9x M3 they are considered the pinnacle of BMW M division. I am not so sure one can say the same about current M5 or M6. Lets bring back the all new glory days with cars that make the competitors look like just a boring appliance.





Quote:
Originally Posted by SCOTT26 View Post
NO M SUV.

There is customers waiting for a vehicle like the Active Tourer and there will be customers that want the Active Tourer.

PROGRESS
I have previously mentioned all this before but people still refuse to accept that it is not the company that defines these choices but the customer. BMW is a progressive brand because they accept responsibility and they set out to find solutions for the issues that matter and are urgent.
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