Global Shared Feature: The Marketing Concept
The resounding success of Tata Ace, a mini-truck with an engine capacity of less than one ton launched by Tata Motors, was due to a deep understanding of the market needs and customer requirements. The vehicle was designed after extensive market research, which reflected customers’ requirement for a smaller vehicle that had low maintenance costs, higher driver safety, better driving comfort, and also one that reflected the social status of the owner and the user. Ace was a roaring success in a market that was earlier dominated by three-wheeler load carriers, and was also awarded the BBC-Top Gear Design of the Year 2006.
Feature Copy

The resounding success of Tata Ace, a mini-truck with an engine capacity of less than one ton launched by Tata Motors in 2005, was due to a deep understanding of the market needs and customer requirements. The company realized that with the booming Indian economy there would be a demand for large multi-axle trucks which could transport materials more efficiently. At the same time, this would also necessitate a demand for smaller vehicles on feeder routes for the hub-and-spoke type of arrangement. This would require smaller vehicles, which are capable of navigating through the narrow roads and by-lanes of cities, small towns, and villages, to service the feeder routes. At that time, the market for transporting small loads over short distances had been cornered by the three-wheeler majors like Bajaj and Piaggio. In order to compete effectively with the three-wheeler majors who dominated the market for small payload vehicles, the company needed to offer a better solution to the customers. The solution was in the market, and that is where the engineers went—to talk to the transporters, the small traders, and the farmers—to understand their needs and requirements.

Discussions with potential