Porsche 2005 Annual Report Download - page 44

42 Vertrieb
Sales
Porsche Centers all over the world are
investing in a uniform brand image.
A refusal to go in for short-lived trends
ensures safety in planning.
In the 2005/06 fiscal year, Porsche once again impressively
succeeded in promoting a positive perception of the brand. The
model policy met the high expectations of Porsche customers in
terms of sportiness, dynamism and driving enjoyment coupled
with excellent everyday performance and value for money.
The great esteem which Porsche sports cars enjoy was con-
firmed in 2005 by achievements such as a first-place ranking
for the 911 Carrera in the sports car category in both the highly
respected best cars readers’ poll, carried out by the magazine
“auto motor & sport” as well as “Auto Trophy”. The 911’s time-
less design also received a special accolade in the review year.
The German Design Council presented the 911 Carrera with the
Gold Design Award of the Federal Republic of Germany for “the
judicious and sophisticated modernization of a unique style icon”.
The latest addition to the Porsche family has been greeted with
enthusiasm by both the public and the specialist press. The
Cayman S, launched in November 2005, successfully filled the
gap between the Boxster and the 911. Readers of “Auto Bild”
magazine spontaneously nominated it “Germany’s No. 1 car”.
And at the “New York International Auto Show”, the Cayman S
was selected by a jury of 46 specialist journalists as the “World
Performance Car” for 2006.
In the roadster segment, the new Boxster models continued
to arouse interest in the review year with their unique combina-
tion of driving fun, power and everyday performance. The
American “Automobile Magazine” honored the Boxster with
its “All-Star” award, while “Car and Driver” magazine included
the roadster in its list of the year’s top ten vehicles, the
“10 Best List”.
Porsche also came top in another, very significant category in
the 2005/06 fiscal year: namely quality. In the renowned and
internationally highly respected US J.D. Power quality study –
the “Initial Quality Study 2006” – the Porsche brand was not only
ranked first, but the Cayman S was named the best car across
all segments. The other Porsche models were also highly rank-
ed in their respective categories. An extensive survey of over
60,000 new vehicle purchasers, in which market research in-
stitute J.D. Power assessed quality defects and problems in
new vehicles from the customer’s perspective, took account
of product and design quality for the first time.
The result of the second study carried out by the J.D. Power
Institute in the review year was equally impressive. Porsche
also emerged as the overall winner in this further examination
of the attractiveness of cars. Meanwhile, in its “APEAL 2” study,
J.D. Power asked car purchasers what they particularly liked
and disliked about their automobiles. The Porsche customers
surveyed were happy with all aspects of their sports cars.
Speedy Implementation of Brand Architecture
The ongoing improvement of the brand’s global image has
continued apace. Many Porsche Centers again made invest-
ments in the 2005/06 fiscal year, with the result that, for the
first time, more than half of all dealerships were located in
buildings that comply with Porsche’s architectural design strat-
egy. Beginning in the review year, Porsche is now represented
by dealerships, many of them first-time dealerships, at numer-
ous locations in Russia and China in particular. By systema-
tically separating the Porsche showrooms from those of other
vehicle brands, over 90 percent of dealers now offer their
customers an exclusive brand presence.
The brand architecture has been whole-heartedly embraced
by customers and dealers alike as a result of its functionality.
By ignoring fashions and short-lived trends, it is entirely in
tune with Porsche’s overall values and allows dealers to make
long-term plans as well as secure investments in the brand.
In the review year, the brand architecture design was also
supplemented by a design for used car centers. The latter
ensures that used cars are presented at separate locations
in high-quality surroundings.
Selective New Car Dealer Network
Europe’s select dealer network, which reflects the quality of
the brand, was again expanded further in line with the agree-
ment reached with the EU Competition Commission in 2004.
The specimen contracts for the sales and service organization
that had been agreed upon with the Commission guarantee
that the sales process will be conducted exclusively in separate
showrooms by dedicated staff. Other sales subsidiaries at
non-contract locations may still only be set up with Porsche’s
approval.
In the 2005/06 fiscal year Porsche certified some workshops
as official members of the service network following a thor-
ough audit. These workshops meet the brand’s authorization
criteria and quality standards. This certification further guar-
antees that customers are assured of top-quality service in the
workshops concerned.