Dealers to Benefit from Hercules Digital Marketing Push

July 20, 2021

American Tire Distributors Inc. (ATD) is making significant digital marketing investments on several fronts to help drive consumers to dealers who sell its Hercules brand products. 

“We’re trying to look at where we can get the most exposure and get Hercules’ brand awareness out there,” Josh Simpson, senior vice president, proprietary brands, ATD, recently told MTD.

The brand’s newest sponsorship “is with MotorTrend TV,” which Simpson said will “bring Hercules tires to hundreds of thousands of screens that are viewed by consumers, truck enthusiasts and automotive trade professionals. So we’re really excited about that.”

The MotorTrend TV deal kicked off in early-June.

“The second new initiative we have is Connected TV. We’ll be doing some advertising and the cool thing about that is not only do we get to make connections with viewers to get our image and message out there, it also allows us to track what consumers do after they see the Hercules tire ad. 

“We’ve seen an increase in customers going to the dealer locator on our website and when they go to that, they learn about specific Hercules dealers and where to buy products and that way we can track traffic (into) stores. That tracking mechanism is new this year. 

“We’ll continue to keep this as part of our portfolio as we launch new products later this year,” said Simpson.

ATD also is supplying Hercules tires to two TV shows, Truck U and Two Guys Garage.

“We’re vetting our tires into these shows, on vehicle builds and (are providing) tire tech tips. Hosts discuss features and benefits to drive home the message that Hercules offers selection, value and strength.”

And sports marketing will continue to play a role in Hercules’ marketing efforts. The Hercules brand recently partnered with the National Hockey League’s Winnipeg Jets franchise.

“I would say that from an association with a professional sporting team, this is the biggest thing we’ve done. And we’ve gotten really good feedback from our dealers in Canada about that. A lot of games aired in the U.S., too. So it has been a real positive. 

“Then we’ve talked about our multi-year sponsorship with the NCAA. Everything I’ve mentioned is in addition to various programs” at different sporting events.

Investing in products

ATD also continues to make major investments in Hercules products - most recently within the brand’s popular Terra Trac AT line, which last week was expanded to include two new tires.

The new Terra Trac AT X-Journey addresses the rapidly growing CUV segment, while the Terra Trac X-Venture targets SUVs and light trucks.

The tires - whose range will ultimately include 57 sizes for more than 80% coverage of the all-terrain tire segment - are manufactured in the United States and are now available for ordering. 

“The Terra Trac AT II had been our most popular tire and has been extremely successful,” Simpson said when the new products were launched. “But we see an opportunity to expand our brand by re-evaluating the ever-changing needs of the consumer, based on the vehicles they drive and the lives they lead."

The Terra Trac line extension is intended “to help our dealers capture new sales - particularly in light truck," noted Simpson.

"We positioned ourselves 18 to 24 months ago to capture sales in the light truck tire category. We continue to see our light truck and SUV (presence) grow. With people driving more SUVs and LTs, we expect growth to continue well into 2022." 

About the Author

Mike Manges | Editor

Mike Manges is Modern Tire Dealer’s editor. A 25-year tire industry veteran, he is a three-time International Automotive Media Association award winner and holds a Gold Award from the Association of Automotive Publication Editors. Mike has traveled the world in pursuit of stories that will help independent tire dealers move their businesses forward. Before rejoining MTD in September 2019, he held corporate communications positions at two Fortune 500 companies and served as MTD’s senior editor from 2000 to 2010.