Scuderia Ferrari

Few people know that Fiat S.p.A. owns Ferrari. Fiat is not a brand well known for making sports cars, yet Ferrari brand lives on.

What Makes Ferrari Brand So Successful?

If you ever watch a Formula One race, you’d notice thousands of spectators wearing Rossa Corsa and waiving Ferrari flags. Most of these folks will never own or experience a Ferrari product, yet their emotional connection with the marquee is unparalleled. What Ferrari has accomplished in last 60 years is indeed a remarkable case of building strong emotional connections with its fans and customers.

How does Ferrari establish this common sense defying emotional connection with its fans? It is simple; we admire those who are good at things we enjoy most. Millions of motorsports and racing fans around the world adore Ferrari passion for speed, racing, and design.

Ferrari’s 60 years of very successful motorsports history, particularly through its racing exploits in Formula One, is a primary contributor to the legend. Ferrari brand is not only legendary, but it has also become synonymous with the success of Italian pride itself. In branding terms, the story-telling aspect is exceptionally strong, and Ferrari has done a remarkable job using its success in auto racing to build an emotional connection with its audience.

Ferrari has also used its brand equity very well. Ferrari no longer relies on merely selling sports cars or winning races to generate revenue. Ferrari has created new revenue streams that purely exist due to Ferrari brand. For example, Ferrari’s US$1.5 billion licensing and retail division has become the model for sports properties around the world. In fact, Ferrari acknowledges that about 50% of its profit comes from licensing its name, badge, and prancing Italian stallion logo. At Ferrari, they call it “solde trovati” – “found money.”

Ferrari’s success cannot be measured by revenues and sales, or by its market capitalization. Ferrari’s success has to be measured in terms of brand equity and brand value.

Key Takeaways

Building strong emotional connections with your customers is not an easy task, but there is a time-tested and proven blueprint to do this. A genuine emotional connection is all about capturing hearts and minds of those who admire your brand and here are few simple steps to do this:

• As a brand, identify your brand proposition and core values and stay true to them.
• Differentiate your business from your competitors. There are plenty of fast cars out there, but very few are hand-built like Ferraris.
• Continuous innovation and a laser-sharp focus on delivering your “brand promise.” There is a good reason why “Sempre Ferrari” means so much more to Ferrari fans.

Does your business need help with branding? Contact us online or give us a call at (515) 225-6438 to schedule a free, no-obligation initial consultation!