Introduction
The world is changing due to the changes brought about by technology. Business environment is increasingly getting competitive. Firms are finding it difficult to manage this competition due to a number of factors. According to Handlechner (2008), it is practically impossible to find the best strategy that would last a lifetime and will not need regular adjustment. The ability of a firm to adjust to changes within the environment will always determine its success or failure within that market.
Coming up with the right strategy should always be followed by swift implementation in order to achieve the desired result. Marketing planning can be a very challenging task, especially in new markets. The planning will also depend on the size of the firm and the product offered to the market. Marketing products of a hospital will be very different from electronic products.
Similarly, marketing of a Volvo will be different from the way bread is marketed. When developing a marketing plan, it is always important that the concerned individuals understand the nature of the product and the target customers. As McLaughlin and Aaker (2010) state, marketing planning and strategy development should not be left to the marketing department alone.
Success in this planning will benefit the entire firm. Organizational structure clearly stipulates people responsible for making various decisions at various levels. However, it should be appreciated that all members of the organization, irrespective of their position within the firm, have a role to play.
They can help come up with strategies that are able to meet the demands of the market. The research will be based on Volvo which has had massive success for the past one decade (Hooley 2008, p. 92). This research focuses on analysis of various strategies that can help the firm succeed in marketing a brand new car model with a capacity to drive itself for a few minutes as it sounds warning in case the driver falls asleep.
Analysis of Micro/Macro Factors
SWOT Analysis
SWOT analysis is one of the important tools that are very popular in analyzing a company. It helps in analyzing firms based on the existing internal and external factors. SWOT analysis would be very valuable in analyzing Volvo. It would help bring more insight to the opportunities and threats that this firm would face in the external environment. It would also help in understanding the strengths and weaknesses that the firm has.
Strength of this firm selling this car lies in the security it offers to the user. The world is increasingly becoming sensitive of the safety they get from the automotive they use due to the increasing number of accidents which occur regularly.
The concern is emanating from the fact that it has been confirmed beyond any reasonable doubt that most of the fatal accidents do occur due to lack of ability of the cars to alert users if there is any danger emanating from the driver’s actions (Gerber 2008, p. 67). The special feature that this car has will give it an edge in the market over other executive cars that are currently on demand.
Despite the above strengths, this strategy has some weakness. The market today is very sensitive on the pricing of products. This car will occupy a special niche in the market. The firm may decide to charge premium prices for the product as a way of positioning the product in the market. The problem with this attempt is that some of the potential customers will be locked out of the market for this product. Charging a low price for this product may make it be seen as an inferior car to the existing cars.
The firm has a number of opportunities in the external environment. In the local market, this firm has managed to build a large base of loyal customers, especially in the Europe and Middle East (Ferrell 2011, p. 116). Most of the markets where this firm operates have stable governments. This means that the business environment is free from any political unrest that may disrupt normal business operations within the market.
This has created a business environment that is very peaceful to various firms in the country. The firm also enjoys an economic growth in this world that has increased the purchasing power of the consumers. This increased purchasing power will help the firm to increase its operations to regions beyond its markets. The emerging technologies is also helped Volvo in its operational strategies (Hill & Jones 2010, p. 70). The firm may consider adapting the emerging technologies in its operations, a fact that will help it increase it efficiency.
This firm faces a number of threats in its operations. Threats may not be predictable in this industry, though the firm may try to reduce the possibility of occurrence. The first threat that this firm faces is price wars in the market. Other major competitors will keenly monitor the price that Volvo will charge on this unique product.
They will then consider adjusting their products price to try to gain a competitive edge in the market (Harper 2010, p. 11). Such price wars are always dangerous to the prosperity of a business. The initiative may fail to make any serious sense. However, this threat can be minimized by ensuring that the product acquires a special niche in the market.
Identification of and Rationale for Market Opportunity
In order to understand the rationale for the market opportunity for this unique Volvo car, it is important to understand the objectives of coming up with such a product in the first case. The following are some of the objectives of this strategy.
- To come up with a unique product in the current competitive market that will enable this firm tower above the market competitors.
- To create a market niche that other existing competitors have not thought of occupying in an attempt to make products of competitors be seen as mere substitutes of this product.
- To convince the market that this firm has their interest at heart. By developing this product, the firm aims at enhancing security on our roads.
Strategy
The strategy that this firm uses should be carefully being selected after taking into considerations a number of factors. This firm should come up with a strategy that will not make the market develop a perception that the firm’s interest is to generate more revenue. The firm should be able to convince customers that the move is to ensure that every driver is safe while on the road. The marketing strategy should therefore, emphasize on the security that this car offers (Chaston 2009, p. 89).
The marketing proposition should be based on the fact that users get to benefit from reduced road accidents, and other extra security measures that it may have. The rationale of this strategy is to convince the consumer that with this product, their lives is well taken care of, unless something extraordinary happens.
Market Opportunities
The current market highly appreciates unique products in the market. As Bissoondoyal (2006, p. 78) puts it, the society has become so dependent on technology that they would prefer to have most of the tasks performed by technology. Cars have become more and more comfortable.
However, there is yet to be a car that can safely drive itself on the road while the occupant is in it, relaxing. All the luxury cars available in the market need a human being to be behind the wheel to do the driving. This new brand of Volvo car offers something close to this dream. Given the fact that the products offers a level of security that none of the currently existing cars does, it stands the best chance to get a huge market globally.
Europe and the United States will make the largest market for this product. The European market comes second to the US market in the sale of cars (Gountas & Mavudo 2008, p. 112). These two markets will offer this product a massive opportunity to expand, and develop a market base that can support its operations.
The two markets are also attractive because of the fact that they are developed economies. The proportions of those who are willing to purchase the product are relatively high. The rich who are looking for maximum security when travelling will definitely accept the opportunity to use the car. They will be willing to pay premium prices in order to own such a car.
Conclusion
Volvo may not be in the same league as Mercedes Benz and BMW. However, it is important to note that what brings this difference is the decision of the two luxurious brands to add more value to their products. Volvo has the capacity to offer this added value to their products to make them unique in the market.
This firm can develop this unique product and avail it in the market in a unique way. This product will be outstanding in the market because there is yet to be a car that can parallel that capacity. With this unique product, this firm will need a unique marketing strategy that will make it acquire a unique position. The management of this firm should ensure that this product acquires its own unique niche in the market.
List of References
Bissoondoyal, U 2006, Total quality management: a practical approach, New Age International, London.
Chaston, I 2009, New Marketing Strategies: Evolving Flexible Processes to Fit Market Circumstance, Sage Publications, London.
Ferrell, C 2011, Marketing Strategy, Cengage Learning, New York.
Gerber, K 2008, Marketing communication, Pearson Education, Cape Town.
Gountas, J & Mavudo, F 2008, Marketing Strategy: A Decision-Focused Approach, McGraw-Hill, North Ryde.
Handlechner, M 2008, Marketing Strategy, GRIN Verlag GmbH, München.
Harper, M. (2010). Inclusive value chains: A pathway out of poverty. New Jersey: World Scientific.
Hill, C & Jones, G 2010, Strategic management theory: an integrated approach, Houghton Mifflin, Boston.
Hooley, G 2008, Marketing Strategy and Competitive Positioning, FT Prentice Hall, Harlow.
McLaughlin, D & Aaker, D 2010, Strategic market management: global perspective, Wiley, Chichester.