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Acer, the third largest PC brand globally today announced the launch of two global PC brands into the Indian market as part of its worldwide multibrand strategy kickstarted with the acquisition of Gateway in the US in late 2007. Acer India today announced that it would be launching the two brands into the Indian PC market targeted at distinct segments. The style conscious Gateway brand targeted at the premium segment of the market and eMachines targeting the core value customer with Acer rounding off the portfolio by focussing on the mainstream and tech savvy consumer. All Gateway models will be 100% preloaded with original Microsoft windows operating system.

“In a market in which consumer goods offer increasingly advanced and standardized technologies, a new generation of users is changing consumer rules: emotional consumers. A PC brand aimed at gaining share in today’s market must respond to end users’ requests. The answer lies we believe in a new multi-brand strategy, Acer has been able to set user targets and identify the ideals these users aspire to, and then develop products & brands that reflect their desires and needs,” said Mr W S Mukund, Managing Director, Acer India. He unveiled the new offerings at the event.

“Microsoft is delighted to partner with Acer to facilitate the development of their multibrand strategy – set in action in India with the launch of the premium Gateway brand. With Gateway, Acer and Microsoft will now be able to deliver to the requirements of the growing high – end customer segment looking for powerful computing solutions that blend seamlessly into their lifestyles. Gateway represents powerful haute couture in the world of personal computing – underscored by performance, utility, security and style.’ stated Mr. Rajan Anandan, Managing Director, Microsoft India, speaking at the event.

“With the availability of Gateway in India, Acer will now be able to deliver tailored products for different customer segments in India – closely complementing Microsoft’s own approach to the Indian market.”

Emotional users take the technical qualities of their electronic goods for granted. They expect an LCD television, once plugged in, to be able to find available channels and transmit them instantly with bright, vivid colours. Instead, what they don’t take for granted is the affinity between the product and their own aspirations, between the product brand and what they want to be, or how they want to be considered by owning it. Above all, what they buy is the idea that rotates around the product, conjured up by the brand and the visual details they manage to identify themselves with.

While the technical information is essential for rational consumers – such as the engineering of the product's performance and parts – for emotional consumers’ values, history and experience are the plus points that distinguish the goods from other standardized and standardizing ones.

The device’s technical quality is now taken for granted and is not the distinguishing element when making purchase choices. The dynamics that regulate the purchase are increasingly similar to those of any consumer product. The search for affinities between one’s own identity and the identity expressed by the brand is more important than technical information.

“Acer has known how to interpret this evolution in the purchasing process from rational to emotional ahead of time, and therefore has introduced a strategy that can generate market growth from the change; identifying the ideals the various user targets aspire to and then developing products that reflect desires and needs.” Said Mr S Rajendran, Chief Marketing Officer, Acer India.

The first stage of this strategy was based on extensive research and analysis throughout Europe, U.S, Asia and Australia designed to identify various user segments, understand the reasons that generate consumer purchases, key technology drivers and identifying what the current brand perceptions were.

This study has determined six distinctive user segments that exist in the PC market:
Techno-leaders :
Techno-rationals
Both the above consumer profiles look for innovation and the best performance. They have complete mastery of technology and are always up-to-date; their primary source for information is the web, which is also their favorite purchase channel. The major difference between a Techno rationale and Techno leaders is that the former has less purchasing power than the latter.
Conventionals – Is a follower. This consumer profile looks at what his/her neighbors have and buy the same as long as the brand is known and fulfils basic design criteria. Is young and uses the computers more than others for online meeting portals.
Simple & Easy - Archetype is “helpless”. This segment needs computers but has very limited knowledge of technology and PCs. Computers should be easy to use, no extras are required. Trusted brands give them some reassurance .Is much older than the average PC user and females make up a majority of this segment.
Trendy - Values simplicity and cares a lot about the brand he/she purchases. Is also younger and more sensitive to design than the Simple & Easy segment
Value for Money” segment doesn‘t care about brand or design. Technology has to be simple and cheap, with a good price/performance proposition.

The classification of users purchase attitudes took Acer into the second stage of its multi-brand strategy: the definition of the brand value propositions, preserving each brand’s identity and personality therefore avoiding any overlap or cannibalization between them.

Acer has found its natural position in the range of Techno-leader and Techno-rational users that identify with a state-of-the-art, innovative brand that can “simplify life through technology.” Gateway in the U.S. and Packard Bell in EMEA, synonyms of style and trends, have found more affinity with a user group that looks for a reliable brand that can offer simple, easy-to-use devices, with which they can identify and acknowledge their own personality. Trends and Lifestyles are the reference segments. Lastly, eMachines is aimed at those who adopt a strictly pragmatic approach and expect that a PC is predominantly an efficient and worthwhile instrument: the Simplicity & Value for Money users.

The definition of the brand identities found in the relative user segments has allowed Acer to complete its multi-brand strategy, revolutionizing the development of its products thus presenting a new product line up with a distinctive look and feel for each brand. The user will be able to associate a memory to each line, to each curve on the casing, an emotion that will allow him or her to establish an exclusive and unique relationship with the brand and the product itself.