Marketing Strategy of Viet Nam Toyota Inc

TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION1 1. Overview Toyota motor Corporation1 2. Overview Toyota motor Viet Nam2 3. Literature review2 4. Purpose of this research paper2 II. METHOD3 III. MATERIAL4 IV. RESULT5 1. Personal information5 2. Research information6 V. REFERENCE 13 VI. APPENDIX15 * Questionnaire15 INTRODUCTION Toyota motor Corporation, abbreviated TMC, is a multinational automobile manufacturers headquartered in Toyota, Aichi, Japan. The company was founded by  Kiichiro Toyoda  in 1937 as a spinoff from  his father's  company  Toyota Industries  to create automobiles.Toyota Motor Corporation  (TMC) is the world’s largest automobile manufacturers, selling over 8. 4 million vehicles in 2010 on all five continents. Toyota today has 77 manufacturing companies in 27 countries and markets vehicles in more than 170 countries worldwide, supported by a consolidated workforce of approximately 320,000 people. A very efficient management style that the company uses has b een one of the reasons for the firm’s good performance. There are many other salient factors that have made the company achieve the niche of market leader. The market structure the company operates in cannot be definitely stated.Some may consider it to be a monopoly. This is due to the fact that the company is a dominant market player in car exportation. In fact, its differentiation strategy has made it enjoy an almost monopolistic presence especially in the developing nations of the world. On the other hand, the market structure can be seen as an oligopoly. This is due to the fact that there are other key players like GM who are peer competitors. Toyota is keen to see what these competitors are doing and make sure it reacts to their actions in a way that will guarantee its market leadershipWith their consistency in innovating designs and over a billion dollars spent in advertisement a year, Toyota has become an attraction in the eyes of many auto consumers worldwide. Toyota has built its reputation not only by producing high quality vehicles at affordable prices, but the brand and marketing skills they use through tactful pricing strategies. Toyota has differentiated their prices from the traditional pricing set up of many of the other automobile makers. However, it is their effectiveness in targeting consumers' needs and wants that has pushed them to the top.Toyota motor Viet Nam ( TMV) was established on September 5,1995 ( official opening in October 1996 ) . In Viet Nam, Toyota is one of the most famous car brands, accounting for a large market share in the market, with many kinds of car that meet the needs of Vietnamese consumers. Joining the automobile market since its initial days, up to now, TMV has incessantly developed both in sales, production scale and labor force. According to Forture magazine’s (Published global business magazine). The key to success of Toyota corporations is not only style quality but also due to many reasons.One o f the main reason for success of TMV is that they concentrate on marketing and promotion plan for their products. This is a sound strategy that brings TMV to success. This study will show the importance of marketing strategy of Viet Nam Toyota Inc. METHOD Our 5-year research of Toyota Marketing Strategies in Viet Nam began in the summer of 2005 and ended in the fall of 2010. The subjects were selected from Toyota Ben Thanh, known as the best-selling and the largest agent of Toyota in southern region. This research surveyed 100 people.The major subjects were sales representatives of the agent, staffs of the marketing department and customers. In which, 30 sales representatives were chosen on the following criteria: having good achievement in the agent and receiving good feedback from customers. 70 selected customers were those who had demand of buying car and those who were the agent’s close customers or potential customers. The instrument employed in this study was interviews and survey (questionnaire). A set of 20 questions closely linked to the study was given to each subject. The interview with some random questions was based on subject’s characteristics (e. . job, department, product evaluation, income, etc). This survey took one week to get the feedback for evaluating and judgment. The questionnaire was also performed in online version under the help of Google Docs (https://docs. google. com/) and shared on social network Google+â„ ¢. All collected data was digitalized and statistics were made using Microsoft ® Excel and IBM ® SPSS ® Statistics software. MATERIAL Observations were made at customers shopping at the Toyota Company in order to learn the consumers’ attentions on products and their final decisions.The opinions of customers were collected by questionnaire and interview. In the questionnaire, there are two main parts that are personal information section and research information section separated. The personal infor mation part was designed to collect some private information of participants, particularly age, gender, and job. And the research information part which consisted of 20 research questions is divided into 4 main groups as follows: Group 1 (question 1 to 3) was designed to collect some private information of participants. Besides, it is used to define the customer’s demand and finance.From this we can find latent customers of the company. Group 2: (question 4 to 7) was to identify how customers get information about the product of Toyota companies. And we can know the marketing method Toyota company has used that brings the most effective result Group 3: (question 7 to 12) aimed at the opinions of customers after using Toyota corporations’ products. It is not only used to assess the quality, services but also the attitude of the staff. Group 4: (question 13 to 20) was used to get the complain from the customers and what they expect to the products and service in the futu re.From this we can identify the way to develop the company. RESULT * Part 1: Personal information Chart 1 – Gender Chart 1 indicates the participation of male and female in shopping through the Toyota system. It shows that not only women who have shopping habit but also men took a significant part of using toyota products (male accounts for 63% and female accounts for 37%). Chart 2 – Customers Besides, chart 2 displays the percentage of participants’ customers in shopping through the Toyota system in which business and office staffs are accounted for a large percentage (45% of business and 37% of office staffs).Meanwhile, other job also accounted for a considerable portion (18%), in which include singer ,actor, footballer,†¦ etc. * Part 2:Research information Why do more consumers choose Toyota? The same reasons the critics do. Toyota leads the pack in fuel efficiency, durability, popularity and safety. Toyota is the most fuel-efficient full line automaker in America. Plus, Toyota is the number 1 selling brand of hybrids – Toyota has more hybrids on the road than all other manufacturers combined. Moreover, Toyota has the greatest durability of any manufacturer.With the highest percentage of vehicles sold over the past 20 years still on the road among major manufacturers. And Toyota is the first manufacturer to include Star Safety System features standard on all vehicles. That's just part of the reason why Toyota has more vehicle listed on the top 10 of least expensive cars to insure than any other brand. Otherwise,  Toyota's received more 2010 JD Power & Associates Vehicle Dependability Awards than any other brand. Toyota has the largest number of vehicles on Cars. com's top 10 American Made Index.Seven Toyota vehicles have won IntelliChoice's Best Overall Value award for their segments. And Toyota is the highest-ranking auto company on Bloomberg Businessweeks' 2010 list of the 50 Most Innovative Companies. Chart 3 displays the customers’ criteria of choosing Toyota products which was divided into four main elements: benefit, price, companies’ reputation and quality. Over a half of them was preferred products’ quality (56. 25%) to price (21. 8%), companies’ reputation (12. 5%) and benefit (9. 37%). This finding shows that the consumers’ priority concern was products’ quality which conflicts with their experiences.Market Program This consists of the four marketing mix elements that are designed to fit the market in terms of their needs and ability to access such products and services. * Product Strategy The Company is believed to be moving with a strategy of mass production of which it has enabled it to sell widely in the global market. It has also included the strategy of hybrid product, where it can double the amount of production for the arising needs in the market. * Price Strategy The reputation of the Company has been developed by producing high quality ve hicles that can be bought at a reasonable price.The Company has also been using tactful pricing strategies through price differentiation so that they are different from other automobile producers. * Location Strategy Being a global producer and supplier of Toyota automobiles and their components, Toyota Company has positioned itself all over the world giving it a clear cut within the market. Within three years to come, it is working towards the achievement of about 35 percent of the market share, and this will make it to be best and top supplier of automobile products. * Promotion StrategyThe Company is determined to use a pricing mechanism that will give it a competitive edge over its main competitors. This is a mechanism that it is using to market itself so that it can get hold of market share that will see it better in achieving the highest level in the market. Marketing Implementation Analysis Toyotas main focus will be in reaching the new markets of China and Europe. It will al so be concerned about the competition from other firms like Ford and GM. An advantage the company has is the widely differentiated product range.Establishing new factories in these new markets as well as opening up new franchises will help the company in getting an ease of penetrating the new markets Human resource is one of the most important aspects in this plan. The company should always make sure they have highly motivated staff as this is directly proportional to good production both in the qualitative and quantitative aspects. Toyota can do this by coming up with schemes of rewarding their employees like helping them own cars subsidized rates. The company should also make sure the personnel are the best in terms of technical know-how.The company needs to carry out frequent training towards this end. Tactical Marketing Activities Toyota has taken a bold step in being a leader in sustainable development. This position will need some innovations which translate to expenditure. Th ey are however necessary as a way of staying ahead of competition. The activities the company will embark on are given in chart 4 Chart 4: Tactical Marketing activities Specific Tactical Activities| Person/DepartmentResponsible| RequiredBudget millions of yen| CompletionDate| Product Activities1. Car air conditioning compressor2.DC-DC converters for fuel efficiency 3. Low Exhaust Emission Engine | Production engineers and Product management| 30. 45| 2011| Pricing Activities1. New Technologies2. Compression of Production platforms3. Merger of Assembly points| Operations management| 15. 25| 2012| Distribution Activities1. Opening up of new factory in America and china2. Machine handling3. Logistical operations| Logistics management| 21. 40| 2010| IMC (Promotion) Activities1. Concerts2. Volunteer3Youth Invention club| Marketing manager| 9. 20| 2012| Implementation PlanThere are a number of activities that have been projected within a life span of three years and the following represent ation shows the aspects that have been targeted and within what strategic period of time. Year| To be Achieved| New Targeted Markets (millions)| Cumulative Targeted Markets (millions)| Today (2010)| Working towards hybrid products| 250| 250| 1st Year (2011)| Introduction of pricing mechanism and price differentiation strategies. | 320| 600| 2nd Year (2012)| Enhancing hybrid products by use of new technologies| 370| 970| 3rd Year (2013)| Product differentiation to meet the needs of the market| 420| 1320|REFERENCE 1. Armstrong, G. , ; Kotler, P. (2002). Marketing: an introduction (International edition). New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Retrieved October 7, 2010 from http://www. pearsonhighered. com/educator/product/Marketing-An-Introduction-7E/9780131424104. page 2. Armstrong, G. , ; Kotler, P. (2003). Marketing: an introduction. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Retrieved October 7, 2010 from http://html-pdf-converter. com/en/convert? u=search-pdf-books. com/philip-kotler,-and-gary-armstrong. -m arketing-management. -prentice-hall,-2003-download-pdf-free-pdf/ 3. Chamberlin, P. (2009).Customer service complaint handling. New York: The Gurdian. Retrieved October 7, 2010 from http://www. impactfactory. com/p/customer_service_skills_training_development/issues_936-2103-87287. html 4. Hiroshu O. (2003). Chairman’s message. Retrieved September 30th 2010, from the Toyota company website. http://www. toyota. co. jp/en/ir/library/annual/pdf/2003/chairmans_message_e. pdf 5. Levitt, T. (1975). Marketing myopia. Harvard business review , 26-40. Retrieved   October 7, 2010 from http://www. casadogalo. com/marketingmyopia. pdf 6. Johannes, G. , Bill, K. , ; Plenert. (2000).Finite capacity scheduling: management selection and implementation. New York: John wiley ; sons Inc. Retrieved October 7, 2010 from http://search. barnesandnoble. com/Finite-Capacity-Scheduling/Gerhard-Plenert/e/9780471352648 7. Porter, M. (1996). What is strayegy? Harvad business review , 61-69. Retrieved Oc tober 7, 2010 from http://www. ipocongress. ru/download/guide/article/what_is_strategy. pdf 8. Shaffer, J. (2003). Communicating for business results: how to choose and execute communication projects that dramatically help company. Journal of employee communication management , 34-36. . Thomas, J. G. (2001). Business planning: long range and strategic management. Dublin: Black Hall Publishers Ltd. Retrieved October 7, 2010 from http://books. google. co. ke/books? id=MiR2ls7Uyo8C;dq=Business+planning:;source=gbs_navlinks_s APPENDIX QUESTIONNAIRE Name of the consumer: ________________________________ Age: ______ Sex: _______ Address: ______________________________________ City: ________________ State: ___________________ Zip: _________________ Telephone: ____________________ Fax: ____________________________ Email: _________________________ 1.In what type of business, industry or profession do you work? (Please check one. ) 0 Agriculture/forestry/construction 1 Data processing/compute rs 2 Finance/banking/insurance 3 Health care (medical, dental, etc. ) 4 Real estate 5 Wholesale trade 6 Retail trade 7 Other: ______________ (please specify) 8 Communications/publishing/advertising 9 Education 10 Government/public administration 11 Manufacturing 12 Personal/business services (consultant, CPA, lawyer, etc. ) 13 Transportation/public utilities 2. What is your position? (Please check only one. ) 14 Chairman of the Board 15 Owner/Partner 6 Other Company Officer (V. P. , Treasurer, etc. ) 17 Manager 18 Scientist or Engineer 19 Sales 20 Clerical 21 Other: _______________ (please specify) 22 President/CEO 23 Director 24 Department Head 25 Supervisor/Foreman 26 Other administrative position not mentioned 27 Technical Specialist 28 Retired 3. What is your total annual household income? (Include income from all family members and all sources—salary, bonuses, investment income, rents, royalties, et 29 Less than $30,000 30 $40,000 – $49,999 31 $60,000 – $74 ,999 32 $100,000 – $149,999 33 $250,000 – $499,999 34 $1 million or more 4.How often do you see the advertisement of Toyota Corporation ? * Once in a day * More than 5 times * Not even once 5. Please state where you first heard about companies. * Infomercial: ________  Radio ad: _______  Newspaper ad: _______ * Internet: ________  Sales agent: ________  Company rep: ________ * A friend: ________  Family member: ________  Other (specify): ________ 6. Did the ad provide relevant information about the product? * Excellent * Very good * Not appealing at all 7. Are the claims made in this advertisement believable? * Very believable * Not believable * Can't say 8. How is our customer service? Very good * Average * Poor 9. Does the marketing team act like professionals? * Yes * No 10. Please rate your satisfaction with the quality of our products. * Excellent * Very good * Average * Poor 11. Please rate your satisfaction with the delivery system of our products. * Excellent * Very good * Average * Poor 12. Please state the best aspects of our products ______________________________ 13. Please state the worst aspects of our products ______________________________ 14. List any other features that you would like to see in our services or products ______________________________