OSAKA -- In an effort to increase sales opportunities, Mazda Motor Corp. plans to make all its passenger cars available over the Internet beginning this summer, company president Mark Fields said Wednesday. The move will follow last month's initial foray onto the Net in which Mazda offered only the remodeled Demio passenger car. Company officials say the Demio web page has received more than 10,000 hits, showing high customer interest. Mazda hopes to sell about 20,000 Demios in six months. "We will carefully monitor this pilot program in order to develop and accelerate Internet marketing and sales approaches," Fields told a press conference. "We are planning to launch Internet sales for all passenger cars in the summer in order to more effectively serve Internet-savvy customers with special specifications, making the Mazda brand more distinctive in the market." The 38-year-old president, who succeeded James Miller last December, also said that the company plans a mid-summer launch of a service that will enable customers with a navigation system to access locations of restaurants and parking, weather forecasts and personalized travel routes. As sales forecasts show a stagnant or declining car market in Japan, the U.S. and Europe, Fields emphasized the importance of accelerating opportunities by offering a strong product line with new models, further strengthening sales operations worldwide and developing innovative sales and marketing approaches.
