Hankook Tire America Corp. brought its rolling classroom and driving experience to Akron in June, offering a unique opportunity for area media and the staff of one local tire dealer to learn more about the company’s products and put its popular Ventus V12 evo to the test.
For two days, the tiremaker set up shop and worked with Enger Auto Service & Tire staff to help spread the word about the quality Hankook offers at a lower price than its competitors, according to Bill Bainbridge, director of brand communications.
“We recognize that we don’t have the brand power of some of our competitors, so we have to rely on the point of sale,” he said. “If we can give dealers the chance to see how our technology competes, they’ll be able to educate their customers and save them money. The retail salesman’s job is to make customers feel like they’ve made a good choice.”
The rolling event, which will make 30 multi-day stops nationwide and see roughly 75 people each day, includes an educational session on the Hankook brand and its tires, time behind the wheel of 2007 Ford Mustang GTs fitted with the Venus V12 evo vs. a competitor’s tire, and a discussion session in which participants can talk about the differences they felt and how to relate the experience to customers.
“This event allows our employees to experience behind-the-wheel driving time with the tires we sell,” said Jim Enger, president and CEO of Enger Tire, the 2009 Tire Review Top Shop Award winner. “It offers all of our people that might interface with customers the opportunity to convey insight as to the performance and driving capabilities of one tire vs. another, which is a great selling advantage.”
Because this particular stop was an Enger Auto-only event, it also was a chance for employees to build company camaraderie, Enger said. “Our stores are a little short-handed while we’re at this event, so our in-store production is down. But the up side is the product knowledge we receive here is invaluable.
“Last year we hosted a ride-and-drive for consumers and it was a great event. However, this year we felt our company employees could get a great education and make a greater impact with our customers – and ultimately turn that into greater sales numbers.”
Hankook held a total of 6 driving sessions for 100 Enger employees, pitting the Ventus V12 evo tires against Bridgestone Potenza RE760s. The autocross course included high-speed lane changes, sweeping turns, a hairpin turn and a slalom.
Hankook, which will be celebrating its 70th anniversary in general – and its 30th anniversary in the U.S. – in 2011, has a goal of becoming the fifth largest tire manufacturer by 2012. Currently the seventh largest tiremaker, Hankook has gained sales, market share and profit for the past eight years, according to Bainbridge.
“The first 10 years Hankook was in the U.S. market, we were a commodity brand, a third or fourth tier brand,” he said. “We’ve really changed who we are and who we want to be by our investments in technology. With the Hankook brand, dealers can get a better profit margin and consumers can buy quality tires for less. Dealer confidence in us is growing; that’s been seen by our steadily increasing sales.”
Hankook will introduce new products and announce next year’s anniversary plans at the 2010 Global Tire Expo Powered by TIA, part of the upcoming SEMA Show. The company will also roll out a 2011 campaign to address driver education and responsibility when it comes to tire pressure and maintenance.
