Austrian oil and gas player OMV and Vienna Insurance Group have launched a joint venture initiative that will see them co-operate on marketing in 10 central European countries and offer their respective customers joint offers and service packages.
The joint venture is due to start in mid-July 2007 with a summer promotion allowing 400,000 motorists at selected European border crossings in central and eastern Europe to receive free holiday packages with useful travel information from OMV filling stations.
The package includes a road map featuring all OMV filling stations and Vienna Insurance Group offices in central and eastern Europe, a voucher for a Vienna Insurance Group travel guide (redeemable at all OMV filling stations) and refreshments. The promotion will be carried out on weekends from mid-July to mid-September 2007.
In addition to the summer promotion, the companies are launching customized local collaborations, including information on insurance products at selected OMV filling stations in Romania and Bulgaria, loyalty schemes and raffles in Romania, Croatia and Bulgaria and joint direct mailings and promotions in all countries of co-operation.
The companies hope that their joint venture will allow them to leverage their significant regional synergies to the benefit of their customers. For example, Vienna Insurance Group is planning to launch a customized insurance service for OMV patrons.
Gunter Geyer, CEO of the Vienna Insurance Group, stated: Together, we offer our customers useful information across borders in 10 countries. The customers benefit doubly: OMV offers the service at its filling stations and Vienna Insurance Group offers information on insurance products.
OMV deputy CEO, Gerhard Roiss, added: OMV filling stations are increasingly turning into multifunctional service centers, they are filling stations for people. We offer the mobile customers whatever they need – now including information on insurance products.
OMV has a market share of 20% in central and eastern Europe. The group has a network of more than 2,500 filling stations in 13 countries with approximately two million customer contacts a day.