This project aims at discussing the marketing strategies, problems, analysis of the macro and microenvironment, and solutions for Nissan Company and its new product, Nissan Patrol, being launched in the market of the United Arab Emirates. In addition to the evaluation of the market, it is expected to develop a situational analysis and identify the threats, strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for the organization to introduce a powerful marketing strategy in terms of which such issues as price, goals, promotion, distribution, and product are mentioned.
Current Situation: Macro Environment Analysis
Economy
The auto industry has become one of the main elements of the successful economy in almost every country in the world, and the UAE market remains to be one of the fastest-growing examples. The affordability of cars and the necessity to choose credible organizations that focus on quality and guarantees have improved.
Legal Issues
Nissan Company follows the requirements of the Federal Labor Law according to which all employees are provided with certain rights and opportunities and the Consumer Rights in UAE Law No. 24 (2006) on Consumer Protection according to which all UAE customers remain to be protected against the products and services that could cause harm (United Arab Emirates: The Cabinet 8).
Government
The government of the UAE supports the investors to promote their business in the country because such kind of activity might attract the attention of various car producers and use the products that could be offered from the UAE auto market.
Technology
The current technological improvements and developments influence the auto industry of the UAE. Certain changes occur in manufacturing, cleaning, and tuning of cars. The fast production of cars is a key point of the industry. Internet technologies have changed the marketing conditions.
Ecology
From the ecological point of view, Nissan Company aims at promoting a safe environment and meeting all major ecological issues.
Socio-Cultural Issues
Though the UAE is the country with strong cultural and religious opinions, several contradictions and opinions in terms of socio-cultural relations occur. The majority of consumers are concerned with public opinions. Still, they are always eager to choose quality and comfort regardless of price set.
Supply Chain
The UAE is the country that relies on its import. There is a considerable gap between car demand and supply in the country, and Nissan Company has to deal with the challenges of introducing itself as a powerful organization in the market.
Current Situation: Market Analysis
Market Definition
A lot of international companies are ready to invest in the UAE industry and evaluate the market to understand what people want from the auto manufacturers. The investigations show that in summer, 2014, “Nissan recorded a monthly record for sales of its Patrol models” (The National Staff par. 1). Besides, Nissan’s overall sales continue increasing (72% during one month) (The National Staff par. 8).
Market size
The market size for cars is about AED 23 to 36 billion in the UAE. People understand the main priorities of the Nissan Patrol model and enjoy its reliability on the off-roads and comfort under any weather conditions with about eight people in one car. The annual report of the company in 2015 shows that more than 230000 sales occurred in the Middle East (“Annual Report 2015: Nissan Motor Corporation 12).
Market Segmentation
The geographic segmentation: the Gulf region, and the UAE in particular.
The demographic segmentation: males of 30-50 years, who have big families and like traveling or who prefer comfort and quality of travel the most.
The psychographic segmentation: the middle to high social classes, who have enough income to buy a car.
The behavioral segmentation: people, who choose Nissan Patrol, focus on such aspects as capability regardless the severity of driving conditions, advanced safety with a world-renowned Safety Shield concept that helps to protect people in a vehicle, and comfort that makes Nissan Patrol attractive and appropriate for vacations with several family members or business partners (“Patrol” par. 3).
Industry Structure and Strategic Groupings
During the last years, Nissan in the UAE has re-evaluated the role of buyers and the conditions of product development. The contemporary industry structure of Nissan Company includes considerable specialization and the possibility to shorten the product life in comparison to its competitors such as Toyota, Audi, and Honda.
Porter 5 Forces Analysis
Competition and Market Share
Nissan maintains the second position (after Toyota) and sells more than 63000 units annually. It means that 2015 has better financial results in comparison to the results of 2013: 2013 – 10%, and 2015 15.3% of market share (“Motoring: Nissan Sales Grew by 141% in KSA” par. 3).
Competitors’ Strengths and Weaknesses
In the UAE, the main competition occurs between Toyota, Honda, and Nissan. These companies introduce powerful vehicles addressing such aspects as quality, comfort, and speed. The strengths of competitors lie in the possibility to create the products that meet the current market trend, and the main weakness is the impossibility to neglect the presence of competitors
Market Trends
The main market trends defined by the UAE customers have nothing to do with price. Citizens want to be sure that they get high-quality products that are safe and comfortable for everyday usage. People expect to know more about the products they are going to buy. Besides, people focus on the electronics and software content of their cars. Finally, the UAE auto market aims at satisfying customer’s requirements such as domestic assembly quotas and gas/diesel preferences (“2016 Auto Industry Trends” par. 10). The only task Nissan has is to react quickly to the existing market trends to meet the expectations of its customers.
Current Situation: Consumer Analysis
Nature of the buying decision
- The desire to have a car with an original style;
- The intention to protect the environment and the fact that some Nissan vehicles decrease CO2 emissions and reduce the necessity to buy fuel frequently;
- The awareness of the fact that Nissan is the company that listens to its consumers and considers their opinions.
As soon as customers investigate the options offered by Nissan, they compare the alternatives, underline the pros and cons of their favorite models, and make their decisions in regards to the standards used, the quality offered, and value recognized.
Participants
There is no direct relation between the company that introduces a new model and its consumers. Therefore, the role of dealers and has to be underlined. Nissan introduces products to its consumers through dealers and advertisers, who investigate the current economic and financial situation of the country, set prices, and make propositions.
Demographics
Nissan Patrol is offered to all customers. Still, the main auditory for this type of car are men between 25-40 years with middle or even high income.
Psychographics
Nissan Patrol is a car for men, who appreciate comfort, power, and quality. The UAE is the country, where the power of men and their role in society is underlined and explained. Therefore, Nissan Patrol can be offered to people, who understand the worth of family values, like traveling, and can investigate the auto market to identify the best options. Citizens of the UAE are ready to wait and spend huge money to get the required portion of quality and satisfaction.
Buyer motivation and expectations
Buyers are motivated by the necessity to have big and comfortable cars, avoid losses, and gain rewards. UAE buyers expect to get comfortable and safe cars at affordable prices. Still, the price is not a very significant point for UAE customers. What they want is to be confident that their purchases do not harm them.
Summary of Situation Analysis (S.W.O.T)
External threats
- Natural disasters and climate changes;
- Fuel price changes;
- Raw material price changes,
- Development of global competitions.
External opportunities
- Acquisition growth,
- The necessity to create environmentally safe vehicles.
Internal strengths
- Innovations;
- Brand;
- Partnership;
- Successful financial performance.
Internal weaknesses
- The possibility of product recalls in the UAE.
Critical success factors in the industry
- The development of internal business processes;
- Attention to innovation;
- Evaluation of stakeholder value;
- Increased consumer awareness;
- Improved quality consumer services.
Our sustainable competitive advantage
Nissan’s brand is one of the strongest sustainable competitive advantages of the company because it takes money, maturity, and time to be successfully developed.
Marketing Strategy: Product
Product mix
Nissan production varies and meets the expectations of different customers. The developers consider different segments when they introduce new models such as Micra (small cars), Sentra (sedan models), Tiida, X-Trail, sports cars, luxury cars, etc.
Product strengths and weaknesses
The main weakness of the product is the inability of Nissan to reach the product depth and make it unique among the same models of other companies. The main strength of the Nissan Patrol is the ability to predict what customers expect from the product and how to underline the main features.
Brand name, brand image, and brand equity
Nissan is a worldwide known brand with a powerful image and history. Many people recognize their brand and equity around the whole world. In other words, when people decide to choose Nissan, they understand the nature of their choice.
The augmented product
The value of the Nissan Patrol is improved by the presence of such augmented products as warranties and high-quality services offered to all buyers of this model.
Product portfolio analysis
Marketing Strategy: Price
Pricing objectives
It is necessary to attract customers by unique features of the product, and low prices can be one of the most attractive options in addition to good design and a comfortable environment.
Pricing strategy
The pricing strategy of Nissan works directly in regards to the correlation with its product function. This company is known for setting reasonable and logical prices to its products regardless of the country they offer its production.
Marketing Strategy: Promotion
Promotional goals
Nissan should focus on providing its consumers with credible information about the model, underline that the company’s activities affect customers and help to recognize their needs and make people believe that the company does everything possible to combine quality, comfort, and price to meet the expectations of its customers.
Promotional mix
In addition to several advertisement campaigns that are spread via television, the Internet, and various print media sources, Nissan should focus on charity events and direct contact with customers (e.g. multiple test drives and fun drives in cities).
Advertising reach, frequency, flights, theme, and media
The main goal of advertising the Nissan Patrol is to prove that the company understands the needs of the UAE consumers and is ready to introduce the product that meets the majority of their expectations.
Publicity and public relations
To introduce and promote its products, Nissan offers online newsrooms and official forms where customers can share their experience. Nissan has to focus on public opinion not to provide its competitors with a chance to use some facts against it.
Electronic promotion
Electronic promotion of Nissan Patrol occurs on the official site of the company. Besides, people create their blogs and forums to share their personal experience on what they know about the Nissan Patrol and what their results of the comparison between Patrol and some Toyota or Honda models are.
Marketing Strategy: Distribution
Geographical coverage
Nissan Patrol is one of the most popular models in the UAE. It is suggested to prove that Nissan Patrol is the best option for the citizens of the UAE, who want to enjoy comfort, space, and quality.
Distribution channels
Nissan Patrol’s main distribution channels are successful marketing campaigns, the development of trustful relations with dealers, and direct participation of consumers in test drives and other advertising activities.
Physical distribution and logistics
Nissan Patrol is a product that is developed according to several logical steps and decisions. For example, in the UAE, the first stage of physical distribution is the identification of raw material sources. Then the production process takes place. Finally, customers get access to the product using the company’s cooperation with dealers or other intermediates.
Electronic distribution
Nowadays, people can buy cars online and get them delivered right to the required place. It is also possible to learn more about the required model online. Portable technologies are used to find the necessary information about the product online from any part of the world and make a purchase anytime.
Conclusion
In general, the UAE, the automobile industry grows fast, and several well-known international companies are eager to enter this market to gain benefits and provide customers with the best products. The demand for cars in the UAE has increased considerably due to such factors as the country’s economic growth, the development of international relations, and the identification of the tourism industry as one of the main incomes of the country.
Several manufacturers have been already attracted to the country. Now, Nissan is going to launch a new product and prove that sufficient innovations offered in Nissan Patron may be defined as the best solution for people, who want to enjoy the quality and beauty of the Middle East.
Works Cited
2016 Auto Industry Trends. 2016. Web.
Annual Report 2015: Nissan Motor Corporation. 2015. Web.
“Motoring: Nissan Sales Grew by 141% in KSA.” 2016. Arab News. Web.
Patroln.d. Web.
The National Staff. “Nissan Patrol Powers Its Way to Record Sales in the UAE and Region.” The National. 2014. Web.
United Arab Emirates: The Cabinet. 2007. Web.