Hyundai to spend $80 million on Genesis marketing
27 May, 2008
19 Comments 
Hyundai is set to spend USD $80 million on a marketing campaign to launch its new Genesis luxury sedan in the United States. This makes it the most expensive marketing campaign the Korean manufacturer has undertaken to date.
The $80 million dollar tag is enormous, considering Hyundai only expects to sell roughly 30,000 units of the rear-drive Genesis in the first year in the U.S. However the plan is simple, by giving the brand an upmarket image, it will help improve sales of all models. The Genesis will become the Halo car for the brand.
The Genesis should start from around USD $30,000 and go all the way to USD $40,000, it will be offered with V8 and V6 powerplants and come in a range of variants.
Hyundai CEO Kim Dong-Jin, is still concerned that the Hyundai brand name remains weak in the United States, hence the need for a large marketing campaign. So far 4 million dollars was spent just on commercials during the 2008 Super Bowl.
The company plans to provide 100 cars in a 15-city ride and drive event across the States, expected to reach 150,000 potential customers.
“This car will allow us to reach new customers and talk up quality like we never have. They’ve given us enough resources, and we will spend the money over a short period of time — over the summer. We have to make every cent count. We will be talking to a broad audience to use this as a brand lift.” ,” said Joel Ewanick, vice president of marketing for Hyundai Motor America.
So far nearly 20,000 customers have expressed interest in the car with 700 already presold.
The Genesis sedan is not expected in Australia or Europe for some time, Hyundai is tempting the Asian/Middle Eastern and American market first to gauge public reaction before embarking on a global invasion.
The Korean company is also banking on the Genesis sedan as a platform to launch its own Luxury brand to compete with Lexus. More on that here.
Does Hyundai also suffer from a weak brand image in Australia? Will the company need to take similar actions to launch the Genesis down under?
Location: Home / Hyundai, marketing, Car News / ...
Rate Post: 
(3 votes, average: 2.33 out of 5)
Loading ...
-
Print it:
May 27th, 2008 at 1:25 pm
It’s actually only US$2667 per car, which isn’t all that extravagant when you remember that this is Hyundai’s take-no-prisoners attempt to position themselves as a credible builder of luxury cars. Given the image job Genesis will be expected to do for the rest of the lineup they’ll probably amortise much of the marketing cost over all the other models they sell worldwide, making it about $28.95 per car.
Those journos who’ve driven the Genesis say it’s a very good effort, but as it won’t have any snob value they will have a job on their hands.
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 1:38 pm
Hyundai Australia has revealed previously how the ‘driveaway deals’ they did on the Excel in the late ’90s has been both a blessing and a curse for the company.
It established them as a brand name against rivals that had been here for much longer (i.e. ‘The Big Three’; Holden, Ford and Toyota) but it also established the brand as a maker of cheap cars.
I suspect they’ll have a hard time pitching a third luxury car to the Australian public (remember we already have the Sonata and the Granduer), especially if they expect it to compete with Lexus and BMW.
The biggest hurdle is, as Proton discovered with the Waja, pricing your car against its competitor won’t necessarily make it seem like it’s in the same league, and pricing it too low will draw comparissons with cheaper cars.
The question is, do you take the Genesis as a low-rent BMW or an overpriced Camry? My instincts tell me that most of the Aussie public will see it as the latter.
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
I’d rather buy an overpriced Camry than an overpriced Hyundai Excel.
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
They are obviuosly going undercut the Germans by a significant margin in the US. eg The C class starts at 32K and the E class at 42K. But will they be as good or better in any area? Lexus in 1990 was both less expensive and better equiped than the 300E here by 10 to 20K and set new bechmarks for NVH. And there was not a Toyota badge to be seen. Unfortunately the Genesis still wears the big H and the benchmarks are a lot higher.
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 3:02 pm
According to Hyundai USA, Genesis is 7 series size (questionable), 5 series performance and 3 series price, but the target is Lexus.
Guess they have to aim somewhere. Not surprised to hear that Honda Legend isn’t a target because that doesn’t attract much attention even with Acura branding, smick interior and tricky all wheel drive.
Maybe Genesis’s optional V8 will help, but the US market is rapidly going off V8s even in luxury cars.
Good luck Hyundai. Hope you haven’t got the right car at the wrong time with the wrong brand. It’s not just about product.
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
Well i think its a fantastic looking car, sure it’s got hints of merceedes and jaguar about it, but who really cares, all that matters is that its a really smart, upmarket and stylish car in my opinion. And i’m here to tell ya americans care more about how the car looks then how the car drives!
Plus you’ve also gotta keep in mind that the american car buyer, generally, is massively ignorant, and as such most of them won’t even make the link between genesis and hyundai. If you went up to a lexus owner in the US and told them that it’s made by toyota, more then half would have absolutely no idea what your talking about, same with honda and acura and it will be the same with hyundai and genesis
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
From the angle in the photo, it’s very good looking car.
First up, it’s a better looking car than any Lexus. It has proportion, balance and a lack of pretence. I can’t name a Lexus with all three qualities.
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 5:37 pm
Whoa there Richo, everything seen so far suggests that this will be called the ‘Hyundai Genesis’, as in ‘Hyundai Sonata.’
And this makes sense, because how on earth are they going to justify the investment in a stand-alone US-wide dealer network for one relatively low-volume model with a badge nobody’s heard of?
Does this change your view?
It’s Hyundai’s Cadillac, in the Chevy showroom. Hmmm…..
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
Is it me of the Genesis’s front looks/reminds you of the Mercedes-Benz S class?
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 7:23 pm
Duck Says:
May 27th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
Is it me of the Genesis’s front looks/reminds you of the Mercedes-Benz S class?
———————————————————————————
It’s not just you. That is a blatant ripoff of the old model Mercedes S-Class.
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
Hyundai have proven to be quicker learners than the Jap brands. Only ones keeping Toyota honest at present.
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 8:34 pm
Good luck Hyundai, as always theres the stigma of cheap cars around Hyundai how they going to get out of that who knows. Car and shows mags better talk this car up a bit, throw some money their way otherwise it’ll be overlooked.
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 8:52 pm
A rip off the the Benz S class + it’s just missing something (can’t work out what though!!)
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
Unreal flow of design, has real style and real class written all over it!
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 9:22 pm
A Lexus badge?
(Report)
May 27th, 2008 at 9:38 pm
Iam with Golfie.
REALCARS….see ebay and type in hydrogen and press enter and look at generator or ways to improve fuel economy? Improved mine and I doubted until I first fully witnessed friend do on his Ford Maverick LPG. I doubted until I saw positives!
(Report)
May 28th, 2008 at 12:23 am
Captain Mainwaring - research my friend! Yes the sedan is already on sale with a hyundai badge on it, however that is only in asia, in the US, the sedan and the upcoming coupe will not be sold as hyundai’s, they will be sold as Genesis’s. A quick search of this very site reveals an article (it won’t let me post it but do a seach on the word genesis and you’ll see it) which details how genesis is a brand, and not a single model. It even has its own spiffy logo! Why would hyundai design a logo for just one car? Does this change your mind captain?
(Report)
May 28th, 2008 at 12:30 am
Captain! I take it all back my friend.. my own further research has proven you to be correct and myself to be incorrect! It’s in asia that genesis is its own brand and yes your right, in the US it will be sold as the Hyundai Genesis. I can understand the logic i guess, hyundai trying to push the “genesis” to consumers under the hyundai badge in an attempt to change peoples perceptions about the brand. Will it work? Probably not i think toyota had it right when they made lexus an entirely seperate brand.
All of this does not change my core opinion however, that being that the genesis is a very good looking car, do a google search for more pics, looks even better from the back and the interior looks pretty smicko too! Only let down by the steering wheel which looks a bit cheap
(Report)
May 28th, 2008 at 7:23 am
Thank you Richo. For drive impressions, go to www.motortrend.com
(Report)