The most recognized brand for premium car audio OEM systems is not Bose. If you poll buyers in the US and 3 other countries, the most recognized brands overall are Sony and Alpine, according to a new IHS study.
Alpine emerged as the most recognized brand for car audio specifically, while Sony was the most recognized brand by car buyers in general.
As IHS put it, “Sony… is the most recognized brand overall in all four countries [US, UK, China and Germany]…However, when respondents were asked how they recognize the brand – whether car audio, home audio or other sources – Alpine emerged as the most recognized car audio brand.”
Bose, on the other hand is ranked the “most influential” audio brand in three of the four countries (except China, where Sony leads).
BUT HERE’s THE IMPORTANT FINDING OF THE STUDY: People want name brand car audio and are willing to pay for it.
A full 95 percent of those surveyed want a name brand car audio system and among these, 70 percent said a branded car audio system would influence their purchase decision. As a result, premium audio systems continue to grow in new car sales.
More than 67 percent of those surveyed said they would pay for a premium car audio system and they are willing to spend from $2,200 to $2,800 on average. Those who are not willing to pay for a premium audio system said it should be standard equipment or that it is too expensive.
Premium audio systems are expected to grow from just over 8.6 million units globally last year to more than 11.6 million units by 2021. Branded speaker systems should grow from 8.7 million to 11.1 million units during the same period, said IHS.
US drivers are highly loyal to their current branded car audio system with 91 percent saying they would buy the same brand again.
“In essence, if consumers can be encouraged to buy a branded audio system, they tend to stick with that brand in the future,” said Celina Li, senior analyst, infotainment systems at IHS Automotive.
Among those choosing Bose as their preferred premium audio brand in the US, UK and Germany, primary reasons provided were reputation and good quality/sound. Other reasons included positive reviews and the fact that consumers use Bose products elsewhere.
The IHS findings were based on interviews with more than 4,000 car owners who plan to buy a new car in the next 3 years.
Source: IHS
Get the news before your competitors do. CEoutlook is the daily brief read by over 6,500 dealers, reps and manufacturers across the mobile electronics industry. Subscribe free.
