Hyundai fans a loyal lot

Hyundai tops the corporate loyalty list in the US which won't be surprising to New Zealand drivers. Photo / Supplied

News that Hyundai tops a list when it comes to corporate loyalty in the United States will come as no surprise to New Zealand drivers. You only need to look at the car pool at work to see the H badge taking a prominent place.

And it should be no surprise for Kiwis to see Ford making gains in the marketplace, especially with the impact its new Fiesta and Focus models have made.

The US survey came from Experian Automotive, a data service that tracks vehicle registration details as well as consumer attitudes.

It found that Hyundai had a loyalty rate of 49.6 per cent, edging out General Motors, Ford and Toyota.

It was the first time Hyundai has led the list, marking an important turnaround for the brand in America.

Hyundai's loyalty - translated as the repurchase rate of owners - has also helped drive the brand's US market share to record levels - 9.2 per cent during the second quarter of this year, up from 7.9 per cent a year earlier.

The carmaker's performance also reflected well on its sibling brand Kia, which outscored Hyundai with a 47.9 per cent loyalty rate.

General Motors, which came in second in the Experian study, had a loyalty rate of 48.1 per cent and saw its market share grow by 0.5 points to 19.6 per cent during the second quarter of this year.

Ford was third, at 47.6 per cent. But it also took six of the top 10 spots in terms of loyalty to specific products.

That included the Fiesta in third place with 63 per cent.

Brand loyalty is an important factor for the motoring industry. For some New Zealand car-buyers, the purchasing decision always come down to price.

For others, however, once a Toyota/Honda/Ford/Holden or whatever person, always one.

As car companies push to keep clients, they also realise the need to offer incentives to keep those customers.

Repeat business not only helps prop up sales and market share, but also helps hold down marketing costs.

The survey said it could cost as much as 11 times more to "conquest" a buyer from a competing brand as opposed to winning back one of your loyal owners.