Questions :
1. Executive Summary with key findings and recommendations.
2. Clear and concise description of the market in which the organization operates.
3. Summary of the marketing environment (both micro and macro-environmental forces and trends).
4. Detailed description of how the market is (or may be) segmented and a statement of the segment(s) that the organization is targeting.
5. Brief discussion of the behaviour of customers in the segment(s) identified above.
6. A description of the marketing mix being used by the organization to target these segments.
7. A recommendation for improvements to the organization’s marketing effort.
In the modern era the purpose of the hybrid cars, Honda Civic Hybrid in this case is unknown to many common people around the world. The promotion of these cars needs to be done extensively in order to create more sales. The environment is measured or assessed through the SWOT analysis and the Porter’s Five Forces Model. It has been seen that Honda as a company has excelled but the product needs more push in order to gain sales in the contemporary market. The marketing Mix has also been discussed and the prices, the places, then promotions and the people that are understood. It is highly important to keep these four factors in marketing for a better marketing campaign that can see success in the near future.
This report will be discussing on the hybrid cars that are manufactured worldwide. This will also be discussing on the marketing and the management areas of these companies at the same time. In the modern era, the world is getting concerned about the levels of the pollution and at the same time working on initiatives that will make the globe eco friendly. This has raised the companies to manufacture hybrid cars that run on both the fuel and electricity at the same time. This has lead to produce lesser pollution in comparison to the non – hybrid cars of the company. This will be dealing with Honda as far as the company is concerned and Civic Hybrid as far as the car is concerned. This car was launched in the year of 2001 as a compact car worldwide. These cars run on both the fuel and the electricity as well as produce less pollution.
In general, these types of hybrid cars operate in the automobile industry markets related to the automobiles. The automobile industry deals with cars, busses, trucks etc and the fuel that is used for these products are diesel and petrol mostly. There are a very less percentage of cars that use both the fuel and the electricity. Hybrid cars are cars that are very rare and very costly in comparison to the others. There are many competitors to Honda that plays in the automobile industry. Due to high technological change, the competition levels have gone very high in the contemporary market (Aaker, 2011). There is a constant change in technology in this industry and the companies that can adopt these changes will have or will see success in the near future. The market constitutes of cars which are hybrid and non – hybrid at the same time.
The automobile industry is a booming industry and there has been a little or gradual increase in sales of the hybrid cars compared to the previous sales reports. The demand and the supply should be considered in this market. It has been seen in the recent times that the demands for the cars have increased where the supply is not equal. The market in which the company operates have a lot of competitors both for hybrid and non – hybrid cars. The automobile market gives a lot of revenues to the world economy. This market is immensely involved in competition and in the recent times many local companies are coming up that are manufacturing cars. In the globalised world, the nature has become an important aspect and therefore emphasis is given on eco friendly vehicles and less pollution that will help this world be become healthier in relation to the atmosphere (Berry, 2007). There are many initiatives that are taken do the same out of which the evolution of the hybrid cars.
The marketing environment should be analysed through the SWOT analysis and the Porter’s five forces model in relation to the micro and macro levels respectively. Discussing the SWOT analysis will give a closer view to the environment internally (Buckingham, 2011).
The SWOT Analysis (Micro)
Strengths: The strengths of the hybrid cars are that they produce less pollution compared to the others. This helps to keep the environment healthy. The emission of the Carbon is highly reduces in these cars. These cars are highly designed both external and internal. The comfort levels are high. These cars provide more mileage and excellent fuel efficiencies. The cars remain smooth and less noisy as far as the performance is concerned. These cars are established in the market and more than twenty – five lacks of cars have been sold in a lot of countries worldwide. The advertisement and the branding that is done for these types of cars are very innovative and catchy.
Weaknesses: The weakness is that these cars are high in cost as compared to the petrol and the diesel variants. The common people do not tend to buy cars of the same types with higher prices (Davis, 2010). Another weakness is that the parts of these cars are not readily available in the outlets and the repairing takes a lot of time. The cost of maintenance is very high as these cars run on both the fuel and electricity.
Opportunities: To create and spread the awareness of the importance of these types of cars in a global context. Move on in doing alliances and collaboration with other automobile companies. To enhance the services that the customers can find whenever they want. Proper distribution channels will also help the companies in creating sales of the cars.
Threats: As the maintenance cost is very high, the customer may have thinking in their minds in not buying the car. This serious issue is related to the hybrid cars. Competitor companies may launch hybrid cars that are innovative in nature and lower in cost. There may be competitors who are new entrants that are coming up with hybrid cars with much better features and specifications but with a lower price. These are the basic threats that the company manufacturing hybrid cars face in today’s global market (Gunelius, 2009).
The Five Forces Model (Macro)
Bargaining Power of Customers: This Company is an established company and therefore the bargaining power of the consumers is not high but at the same time, it is not too low. The competitors may be exposed to different hybrid cars with fewer prices.
Bargaining Power of Suppliers: The companies that are dealing with new suppliers will face issues o0n the bargaining power of the suppliers. The ones who have established suppliers will not face issues related to the same. This company will not face problems as it deals with suppliers for a long time (Adair, 2011).
Threat from New Entrants: This threat from new entrants can take place any time. In the competitive world and due to enhanced technological up gradation the new companies are coming up that will manufacture hybrid cars. This is almost there in most of the industries operating in a global context.
Threat of Substitute Products: There are always threats from the substitute products. This company in relation to hybrid cars are facing threats from the companies that are related to or manufactures non hybrid cars. This company produces both the hybrid and the non hybrid cars and it faces threats from the non hybrid variant towards the sales of the hybrid cars.
Competitive Rivalry within the Industry: There is a high competition in relation to the company manufacturing the hybrid cars. Many companies are trying to innovate and cause negative effects on the sales of the hybrid car, which is the Honda Civic Hybrid. A lot of awareness should be spread in order to make the sales of the hybrids high (Adcock, 2010).
The STP process is very important aspect in marketing. The STP process includes the following.
Segmentation: The Company needs to segment the population into smaller groups in order to target them. The types of segmentation are Geographic, Demographic, Psychographic and Behavioural Segmentation. Geographic segmentation makes the market separated into various boundaries in the geographical context. Promotion in United States will be different from West Africa. Demographic segmentation deals with the ages, gender, educational qualification, income levels and the types of houses the common people stay. A highly priced product cannot be positioned in an area where the people are poor. The Psychographic segmentation usually separate markets by the life styles that the common people have, their beliefs and the values they attain. The behavioural segmentation involves the common people and their behaviours towards the market that is the style of shopping and buying products. These four ways are the ways through which the companies segment the market (Baker, 2007).
Targeting: Honda cars are generally high prices and at the same time, the hybrid ones will have a comparatively higher price than the non – hybrid ones. The company generally target the people within the age range of 25 to 50 years and at the same time the people who are highly paid and the ones who maintain the higher levels of shopping and buying styles. People who live a comfort – oriented lifestyle are also targeted (Barlow, 2009). As far as the hybrid car is concerned, apart from the above the people who are more in eco friendly or environment friendly should be targeted in order to get successful results. There is no point in targeting people who are least bothered and has no value within themselves, as it will lead to failure.
Positioning: The positioning is a very important step in marketing. The awareness should be well spread among the customers who are relevant. The positioning should be done with immense sincerity and dedication because if the positioning of the cars are done effectively the sales of the cars will grow rapidly. Innovation and creativity both should be considered in doing a good positioning. The market competitors should also be considered as they play a vital role as far as the sales are concerned (Blakeman, 2009). Honda does very strong and effective positioning in a global context though it has a high list of competitors. Honda is very successful in positioning the cars, which are of both the variants hybrid and non – hybrid. Positioning is very important for all the business organizations in order to see success in the future in relation to the products.
The consumer behaviour is something that goes on changing and as far as this project is concerned, the consumer behaviour will be discussed on the basis of the demographics, geographic and the psychographic. All the customers are not the same and their behaviour change from place to place, age to age and belief to belief. The customers belonging to different age groups think differently. The young generation has a tendency to force their parents to buy cars but not specifically hybrid cars. The parents decide which one is the most suitable and acts accordingly. Many customers that are working in big corporate companies have tendency to buy new cars that may be hybrid or non hybrid in nature but there are few who are environmental conscious and they have the tendency to buy the hybrid cars.
The customers of one country will not have the same behaviour in comparison to the other country due to a lot of factors like social, economical, cultural etc (Bose, 2010). There are countries that are poor financially and at the same time there are countries that are high in finance. Therefore, the countries that are richer will have more probability on the fact that they would buy the hybrid cars those are a bit higher in price that the non hybrid ones available in the market. There are places on Earth where people are not aware of the hybrid cars and therefore awareness should be spread first as under any circumstances they will not be buying the hybrid cars. Many small towns and county has people who can well invest on the hybrid cars and therefore these areas should be considered. In the same time, it has been seen that many urban areas also are not keen enough to buy the hybrid cars.
Values and beliefs that the customers have around the world are not the same at all. Many people are under the category ‘Resistance to change’ and therefore they will stick in buying cars that run on petrol and diesel (Bradley, 2008). At the same time, there are people who are ready to buy these hybrid cars with more money in order to make a difference within the community. Many people think that riding a hybrid car is classier and affects the status symbol. In such a competitive world, the common people are busy is showing what they have in terms of status and class. People belonging to this category will easily afford hybrid cars and show off to the community that they have an expensive car and along with that, they will show that they cause less harm to the atmosphere (Cant, 2009).
In general, the customers are segmented according to their income and then they are targeted. The Honda Civic Hybrid is costlier than the normal civic and therefore the customers feel that there is no need to buy the ones with costlier prices. It has been seen that the customers all around the world in the modern era look for high quality products. Indeed the hybrid cars have a purpose in the society in terms of pollution and atmospheric health but there are rare people who think this way and at the same time affect the sales of the cars. Many customers in the recent times are not bothered about what is going around and they tend to purchase the normal non hybrid ones. They do not even understand the importance of keeping the atmosphere healthy and out of danger. At the same time, many customers have taken initiatives to buy products that are hybrids no matter the prices are high. The companies should be aware of these factors and should go on for extensive promotions through ads in the television and Bill Boards.
The Marketing Mix is a chapter in the marketing subject and this includes the following.
Product: As far as the product is concerned the design of the cars are very attractive and classy which plays an important role in sales of the cars. The car is available in more than four different colours that suit the customer’s expectations. The interior is very comfortable and at the same time very good looking and classy. The latest technology is used as far as the hybrid cars are concerned. The cars are very convenient to use and the quality that is used by the company is very high that catches the minds of the customers. A lot of accessories are provided with the car that acts as a competitive advantage to both the company and the car. Honda provides extensive warranties that help the customers in having the tendency to purchase Honda cars. These hybrid cars have a lot of utility and the customers through the people who are in sales understand these.
Price: The company always focus on the price when launching any car may it be hybrid or non – hybrid cars. The cars have different prices in different countries. If the price made by the company is too high then it will affects the sales of the cars and at the same time the competitors will win through huge margins. Price is one of the most important factor in business marketing in today’s competitive world. Most of the companies play on the cost leadership techniques in order to increase the sales and therefore Honda being aware of this does some strategies before launching the product (Baker, 2007).
Promotion: The Company is very famous throughout the world in providing the most innovative cars and high quality at the same time. The company did not work on its advertisement in an aggressive manner but at the same time provided high quality products through which the image of the brand ahs enhanced a lot. The Honda Civic has received many awards being one of the best in its class of luxury sedan. The company works on advertisements through many strategies and is very careful about it. The company knows that the ads are best tools used for successful promotions. The company has promoted itself to show that they are highly reliable, use latest and the best technology evolved and eco and atmospheric friendly cars. As far as the Honda Civic Hybrid is concerned, the company placed ads in the television that the car produces water as emission. The company has developed a competitive advantage over the others through advertisings that focused on the eco friendliness of the cars and high technological advancements. The common people in the market know that the company remodels its cars frequently that help in improving the looks, designs and the technologies of the cars. This affects the minds of the customers and helps them to buy the car which results in sales of the company.
Place: The place is also an important factor in the marketing mix. The company before working on the promotions look after the areas where they will be promoting it. The places should also have relevant areas where the outlets can be established along with the service centres. The company looks on the political, cultural and social factors that are involved in the place and once these are all met, the company starts with the promotions. The sales and distribution networks are also given huge importance by the company as the sales and distribution affects the sales and profits of the company (Barlow, 2009).
It can be recommended that the company in order to promote sales of the hybrid cars should work on some areas discussed below. The awareness of the problems with the pollution should be spread. The actual issues that are leading to atmospheric damage should be clearly explained through advertisements or other methods that will make the common people understand the actual purpose of the hybrid cars. The company should work on the effective strategies to reduce price and play with the cost leadership qualities. The company should go through the strategies used by the other competitors in the market and analyse what needs to be done through effective measures. The company should get into more and more promotions through TV ads, billboards etc that will spread the information about the hybrid cars and this will surely fetch in more and more customers increasing the sales and profits for the company. The company is undoubtedly working hard on ads but needs to work more efficiently and effectively in order to convince the consumers in buying the car. These were a few recommendations through which the company may perform better in the future.
References
Aaker, D.A. (2011) Building Strong Brands, 2nd ed. London: Simon & Schuster.
Berry, L. L. (2007) Cultivating service brand equity. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 28 (1), 128-137.
Buckingham, I. P. (2011) Brand Champions: How Superheroes Bring Brands to Life. 3rd ed. London: Harvester Wheatsheaf. Page 120
Davis, J. A. (2010) Competitive Success, How Branding Adds Value. 5th ed. London: Kogan Page. Page 89
Gunelius, S. (2009) Building Brand Value the Playboy Way. 4th ed. London: Palgrave Macmillan. Page 121
Adair, J. (2011) Effective Communication: The Most Important Management Skill of All. 5th ed. London: Prentice Hall.
Adcock, D. (2010) Marketing: Principles and practice. 4th ed. London, Thousand Oaks CA: Sage Publication.
Baker, M. (2007) Marketing strategy and management. 6th ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Barlow, J. (2009) Excel models for business and operations management. 6th ed. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons Inc.
Blakeman, R. (2009). The bare bones introduction to integrated marketing communication. 4th ed. Boston: Unwin-Everyman.
Bose, C. (2010) Modern Marketing – Principles & Practice. . 5th ed. Mason: South-Western Cengage Learning.
Bradley, F. (2008) International marketing strategy. 6th ed. London: Financial Times, Prentice Hall.
Cant, M. (2009) Marketing Management. 3rd ed. New York: Free Press.
Baker, M. (2007) Marketing strategy and management. 6th ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Barlow, J. (2009) Excel models for business and operations management. 6th ed. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons Inc.
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