Tata Motors ropes in soccer superstar Lionel Messi as global brand ambassador

NEW DELHI: As per research, every customer evaluates 2.6 brands before buying a passenger car. Tata Motors, India's largest automobile company, is hoping to be in the considered set amongst its target group when they buy a passenger vehicle.

In order to facilitate this journey of pursuing aggressive market-share, and also to address the challenge of increasing its 'cool' quotient, Tata Motors has announced the soccer icon Lionel Messi as its global brand ambassador for its passenger vehicles for all its markets, said Mayank Pareek, president, passenger vehicle business unit, in an exclusive chat with ET.

The passenger vehicle segment, in which Tata Motors has a share of 5.72% (source: SIAM) has been a tough journey for the Indian conglomerate and it is hoping for a change in fortunes with a slew of customer-centric activities as well as aggressive marketing initiatives. The first campaign under this association #madeofgreat, filmed in Barcelona and directed by the renowned director Daniel Benmayor, is ready to be rolled out.


Tata Motors would be the first Indian brand endorsed by the Argentina-born Messi (28). This is also the first time ever that the passenger vehicle business will be undertaking an overall brand association campaign with a brand ambassador. Adds Pareek, "We chose football because all our research and surveys prove that football is the new 'cool' and the current generation connects better with football. Soccer has a huge following in India and Messi is in a different league, making him the apt choice with his unique ability to appeal globally, transcending geographies, to represent our brand, internationally."

Continuing with its launch of Zest, Bolt and GenX Nano this year, Tata Motors has lined up an aggressive roll-out strategy. "Every year starting from 2014, we have decided to launch two products right up to 2020,"says Delna Avari, head - marketing communication and services, passenger vehicle business unit, Tata Motors.

The campaign has been conceptualized by Ogilvy's agency Soho Square, under the creative charge of the two executive creative directors Anuraag Khandelwal and Satish deSa. Shares Kunal Jeswani, CEO - Ogilvy Group, India Board Member in charge of Soho Square, "Tata Motors was embarking on a brand transformation journey and the core task was to increase brand relevance amongst the under 35 consumer."

The creative rendition was conceptualised accordingly. According to Khandelwal, "The heart of the campaign was the thought that 'what drives us from within is what makes us great'. This idea allowed us to bring alive the core values of both Tata Motors and Lionel Messi, and show consumers how deeply they connect." Adds deSa, "This is a creative rendition that does complete justice in telling the Tata Motors story, and will resonate with Messi fans in India and across the globe."