Consumer Buying Behaviour Automobile

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A Project Report

ON

A study on consumer behaviour & marketing strategies towards the products and services of Ti ford

motors in greater Guwahati market

SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT FOR THE AWARD OF THE DEGREE OF

BACHELOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION (BBA)

UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF

Project co-ordinator: Organization guide: Mr. Nayan Talukdar &

Mr. Manash Baruah MD. Dr. Sapna Dutta Hazarika Senior Sales

consultant, (GATE Institute, Guwahati) (TI Ford motors, Guwahati)

SUBMITTED BY:

Monalisa Marak

BBA 6th semester, GATE Institute, Chandmari

Roll no:

STUDENT UNDERTAKING

This is to certify that I have completed the Project titled A study on consumer behavior & Marketing

strategies towards the products and services of Ti ford motors in greater Guwahati Market in Guwahati

Academy of Tertiary Education (GATE), Assam under the Guidance of Mr. Nayan Talukdar & MD Dr.

Sapna Dutta Hazarika in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of Degree of Bachelor of

Business Administration at Guwahati Academy of Tertiary Education (GATE), Assam. This is an original

piece of work & I have not submitted it earlier elsewhere.

Monalisa Marak

BBA 6th semester


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CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the project titled A study on consumer behavior & Marketing strategies towards

the products and services of Ti ford motors in greater Guwahati Market is an academic work done by

Monalisa Marak submitted in the partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of the degree of

Bachelor of Business Administration from Guwahati Academy of Tertiary Education (GATE), Assam under

my guidance & direction. To the best of my knowledge and belief the data & information presented by

her in the project has not been submitted earlier.

Mr. Nayan Talukdar Dr. Sapna Dutta Hazarika

Project co-ordinator Managing Director

GATE Institute, Guwahati

TO WHOMSOEVER IT MAY CONCERN

This is to certify that Miss Monalisa Marak BBA 6th semester, Student of Guwahati Academy of Tertiary

Education (GATE), Guwahati has successfully completed the Grand project on the topic A study on

Consumer behavior & marketing strategy towards the products and services of Ti ford motors in greater

Guwahati market in three months duration from .., 2012 to ., 2012 at Ti Ford, G uwahati Branch.

During her Grand Project, we have found her sincere and hard-working and wish him all the success in

her future endeavors.

Yours Faithfully,

For Ti Ford


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Dated, Guwahati

18th October, 2009

(Mr. Manash Baruah)

Organizational Guide & Senior sales consultant

TI Ford

Guwahati

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to thank my Project Guide Mr. Nayan Talukdar & MD Dr. Sapna Dutta Hazarika for their

immense guidance, valuable help and the opportunity provided to me to complete the project under

his/her guidance.

I would like to thank all faculty members of Guwahati Academy of Tertiary Education (GATE), Assam, for

guiding and supporting me in the completion of project from time to time.

Last but not the least, my gratitude to great almighty and my parents without their concerned and

devoted support the project would not have been the way it is today.

Monalisa Marak

BBA 6th semester

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

TITLE OF THE PROJECT:


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A STUDY ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR & MARKETING STRATEGY TOWARDS THE PRODUCTS AND

SERVICES OF TI FORD MOTORS IN GREATER GUWAHATI MARKET.

NAME OF THE ORGANISATION:

TI FORD MOTORS, GUWAHATI

PROJECT DURATION:

(2012 to 2012)

PLACE OF STUDY: GUWAHATI, ASSAM

ORGANIZATIONAL GUIDE: Mr. Manash Baruah

Senior sales consultant, North East

(Ti Ford motors, Guwahati)

INSTITUTIONAL GUIDE: Mr. Nayan Talukdar (Faculty)

GATE Institiute, Chandmari, Guwahati

INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION TO THE TOPIC


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Todays society is warm with urbanization and demonstration effect. With a view towards it, there

are drastic changes coming up in all sectors even in the automobile industries. The following information

gives an insight about it. In the present context the companies operate on the principle of natural

selectionSurvival of The Fittest. Only those companies will succeed which at best match to the

current environmental imperatives those who can deliver what people are ready to buy. But real

marketing does not involve the art of selling what the manufacturers make. Organizations gain marketleadership by understanding consumer needs and finding solutions that delight consumers. If customer

value and satisfaction are absent, no amount of promotion or selling can be compensating. Hence the

aim of marketing is to build and manage profitable customer relationship. This is a part of the strategic

marketing done by every company to achieve its objectives and goals. To maximize the profits and long

term plans every organization has to follow a strategic planning. Marketing is much more than just an

isolated business function it is a philosophy that guides the entire organization towards sensing, serving

and satisfying consumer needs. The marketing department cannot accomplish the companys customer

relationship-building goals by itself. It must partner closely with other departments in the company and

with other organization throughout its entire value delivery network to provide superior customer

value and satisfaction. Thus marketing calls upon everyone in the organization to think customer and

to do all they can to help build and manage profitable customer relationship. Marketing is all around us,

and we need to know that it is not only used by manufacturing companies, wholesaler and retailers, but

also by all kinds of individuals and organizations. There are four major, powerful themes that go to the

heart of modern marketing theory and practice, they are:

1. BUILDING AND MANAGING PORFITABLE CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS.

2. BUILDING AND MANAGING STRONG BRANDS.

3. HARNESSING NEW MARKETING TECHNOLOGIES IN THIS DIGITAL AGE.

4. MARKETING IN A SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE WAY AROUND THE GLOBE.

What marketing is what it does and what it offers?

Marketing is a social and managerial process whereby individual and groups obtain what they need and

want through creating and exchanging products and value with others.

Marketing management is the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion

and distribution of ideas, goods and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and

organizational goals.

Marketing offers some combination of products, services, information, or experiences offered to a

market to satisfy a need or want.

Marketing is an orderly and insightful process for thinking about and planning for markets. The process

starts with researching the market place to understand its dynamics. The marketer uses research

methodologies to identify opportunities, that is, to find individuals all groups of people with unmet

needs or latent interest in some products or service. The marketing process consists of the following:


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1. Analyzing marketing opportunities.

2. Developing marketing strategies.

3. Planning marketing programs

4. Managing the marketing efforts.

Before taking any decision and achieving the goals, it has to make analysis of what to do, how to do,

when to do, where to do and who is to do it. This is nothing but strategic planning. Goals indicate what

a business unit wants to achieve whereas strategy is how to get there. Marketing strategies in simple

terms are the complete and unbeatable plans designed specifically for attaining the marketing

objectives of the firm. Marketing can be called as a game plan for achieving its goals. Strategy choice will

depend on whether the firm or the marketer plays the following roles:

Market leader

A challenger

A follower

A niche

The identification of objectives, both in quantitative and qualitative terms, is an essential backdrop to

strategy formulation. Goals have a quality and time frame attached to them. These are typically spelt

out in terms of financial return, market share, market presence, etc. Thus, the concept of market

oriented strategic planning arises with the link between the products the link between the products the

manufacturer is dealing in and the market conditions. In this direction, our study deals only with the

marketing strategies i.e. promotional strategies of the Ford automobiles.

OBJECTIVES

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

Primary Objective: To know the influence of various marketing strategies, promotional activities towards

the customers of four wheelers (cars).

Secondary objective:

To know the effective factors for preferring 4 wheelers (CARS)

To know the factor of awareness of the cars.

To Study and analyze the Promotional Strategies of Ford

To know whether the customers are satisfied with the offers given by the dealer.


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To know which kind of offers can attract the new customers.

To find the area to be improved

To find out satisfaction of the customers.

To find the reasons for the dissatisfaction

To study the channel levels involved in the promotion of Ford

To study and analyze the customer's perception regarding the usefulness/utility of Ford cars.

To study and analyze the distributors perception regarding the promotional and distributional

strategies of Ford.

INTRODUCTION TO AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY

INTRODUCTION TO AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY

One of the fastest growing industries in the world is automobile industry. This automobile industry even

has its influence on the Indian market. Probably automobile industries occupy a large market share in

the worlds market as well as in the Indian market. Nearly 18% of the total national income is being

incurred from the automobile industry. From this we can estimate how important is automobile industry

in the improvement of GDP of a country. In India automobile industry has a growth rate is at the average

of 10-12%.

INDIAN AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY SINCE 1947:

Its fascinating drive through history, which begins as a story of isolation and missed opportunities to

one of huge potential and phenomenal growth.

Indias fixation with socialism and planned economies had a crippling impact on the automotive industry

in its formative years. The goal at that time for independent India was self-sufficiency. Issues like

quality and efficiency were simply not considered.

Dependence of foreign technology was banned and manufacturers were forced to localize their

products; import substitution became the order of the day. Though we learnt to localize, the cars we

made were all outdated designs with little or no improvements for decades. The automotive industry

stagnated under the governments stifling restrictions and the Indian car buyer was saddled with cars of

appalling quality and even then there was a waiting list that at one point stretched to eight years!

This attempt at self-reliance failed miserably because of the industrys isolation from the best

technology. The Japanese and later Korean auto industries were also highly protected in their formative

years but they never shut the door on technology. Instead, they relentlessly tapped the best talent

pools in the world to absorb the know-how to produce good cars. One of the most important chapters in


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the Indian automotive industrys history was written by Maruti. It marked the Indian government

getting into the far business in the early 1980s, a radical shift in thinking after decades of treating cars

with disdain. The Maruti 800 went on to become the staple car of India and put a nation on wheels.

This little car set a benchmark for price, size and quality and structured India as small car market. It

wasnt till 1993 that things really started to change for the Indian car buyer. With the liberalization of

the economy, a host of international carmakers rushed in. But most of them were in for a shock asIndian customers rejected their product. Indian customers refused to allow the glitter of prestigious

brands blind them to the outdated and overpriced products they were offered. The Indian consumer

wanted super value, and rewarded the brands that delivered it, handsomely. Hyundai and Maruti

delivered, and profited. The period also saw the emergence of the Indian players like Tata Motors and

Mahindra & Mahindra. They rose to the challenge of the MNCs and responded brilliantly with the

Indica and the Scorpio. This was ironically due to the license raj that forced Indian carmakers to be

innovative and develop products frugally. Indias frugal engineering skill has now caught the worlds

imagination, and an increasing number of carmakers are preparing to setup major capacities here.

India is changing and changing fast. Its moving forward. Indias largest-selling car is not its cheapest car,

the 800. It is the Alto. Peoples aspirations are rising and so are their mistakes, have got their finger on

the pulse of the market. Get the right product and the rewards are handsome.

The Indian auto industry is today bubbling with promise and confidence. Its been a long journey but to

see where the Indian car industry is going. We have to see where it has been.

AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY IN PRE-INDEPENDENCE:

The first motorcar on the streets of India was seen in 1898, Bombay had it first taxicabs by the

turn of the century. In 1903, an American company began a public taxi service with a fleet of 50 cars.

For about 50 years after car arrived in India, cars were directly imported. Before World War I, around

40,000 motor vehicles were imported. During the years between the wars, a small start for an

automobile industry was made when assembly plant were established in Bombay, Calcutta and Madras.

The import/assembly of vehicles grew consistently after the 1920s, crossing 30,000 units by 1930. It was

during the end of the war that the importance of establishing an indigenous automobile in India was

realized. Premier Motors, Hindustan Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra set up factories in the 1940s

for progressive manufacture rather than assembly from imported components. The cars they chose to

make were the latest in the world when they were introduced in India in the formative years of the

industry.

POST- INDEPENDENCE:

The government clamped down on imports and foreign investments. Companies like GM and Ford

packed their bags and left. Indias clock, thereafter, stood still while the world raced on ahead. It would

take nearly 50 years before the Indian auto industry could catch up with the rest of the world again.

BROADBANDING ERA:


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In January 1985, the government announced its famous broad banding policy which gave new licenses

to brad groups of automotive products such as two and four-wheeled vehicles. Through a liberal move,

the licensing system was very much intact. A manufacturer had to submit a phased-manufacturing

programme to the Ministry of Industry specifying the indigenization progress and allowing for almost

complete indigenization within five to seven years. The biggest hurdle was the foreign-exchange

clearance required for these projects. Except for MUL, which had direct access to policy-makers, everyother manufacturer still faced a series of obstacles. Several new products were launched during

this period. All three traditional carmakers added new models to their ranges Standard Motors

returned to the car business after 10 years, when in 1985 it introduced the Standard 2000, a Rover SD1

body with the old two-litre Vanguard engine. HM bought in a 1972 Vauxhall Victor in 1985, transplanted

its ageing Ambassador engine into it and the Contessa was born.

THE BIRTH OF THE AMBASSADOR:

In 1957, a small tail fin was added on either side of the rear fenders, along with a new, dimpled hood,

and the car was re-christened the Ambassador Mark I. The car cost Rs.17, 000. In 1963, it underwent a

frontal facelift with a closely checkered grille and was named the Ambassador Mark II. It would be

another 12 years before the Ambassador got a facelift. In 1975, another minor facelift to the same grille

and a much bigger frontal facelift turned out as the Mark III. The Mark IV, launched in 1979, was the last

of the Mark cars. The Ambassador Nova was launched in 1990, followed by Ambassador 1800 ISZ three

years later. The Nova was the last Ambassador powered by the 1489cc petrol engine. In 2004, HM

launched the cosmetically revised Ambassador under the name Avigo. Designed by Mavendra Singh, the

retro look Avigo had classic touch internals like a centrally mounted console, beige-colored seats and

wood finish interiors.

THE CONTESSA YEARS:

The Hindustan Contessa, launched in 1982, was one of the few luxury cars manufactured in the country

in the 1980s and 1990s. It was based on the 1970s vintage Vauxhall victor. While it was initially launched

with the 1489cc engine found in the Ambassador, the Contessa was soon given the Isuzu engines. There

were three versions of this car - 1.8GLX (Isuzu petrol), 2.0DLX (Isuzu diesel) and the rare 2.0T (Isuzu

diesel, turbo). The last Contessa rolled out in 2002, phased out by the demand for cheap Japanese cars.

Some of the leading Indian auto players in Indian automobile industry are:

Premier,

Tata

Mahindra and Mahindra

Maruti

Hindustan motors


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Premier:

The story of premier is the story of one mans vision, Seth Walchand Hirachand. He not only give India

its first car factory but also the countrys first aircraft factory Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and the

countrys first modern ship yard, Hindustan Shipyard Limited

Building Indias first auto factory

Seth Walchand Hirachand has first started the trails to establish an Indian car manufacturing plant in

Indian for which he went to U.S.A. where three largest car manufacturing companies are located. He

wants Indian company to be completely independent, with Indian management capital and employees,

paying royalty or technology transfer payment to western countries. After approaching General Motors

they insisted on part ownership. Seth Walchand then moved to second largest automaker Ford; Henry

agreed, but delegated the project to Ford of Canada, which refused. Finally the third largest

automaker Chrysler agreed and singed in an agreement in Bombay in 1940.

The arrival of FIAT:

In 1951, PAL singed up with Fiat to assemble the Fiat 500 in India. In 1952, the tariff commission spelled

out future for the auto industry indigenize or get out. Companies like Ford and GM, which had

assembly operations in India, packed their bags and went home. But fiat decided to stick it out and

committed itself full-fledged manufacture of the Millicento in 1954. In September, 1964, PAL and FIAT

launched the Fiat 1100 DELITE in India. The biggest customers for PALs were Bombays taxi drivers. The

Padminies were easy for maintenance in terms of spares and labour cost, low on running cost, easy todrive and reasonably tough. It was everything that a taxi driver wants.

TATA Motors:

Established in 1945, Telco or the Tata Engineering and Locomotive Company, as its full name suggests,

started out making steam locomotives for the Indian Railways. Telcos tryst with vehicle manufacture

came in 1945 when it signed a 15-year agreement with Daimler-Benz AG of Germany to manufacture

commercial vehicle. The director in charge from the Tata side was Sumant Moolgaonkar.

This period was a shared birthing time for the Indian commercial vehicle industry -Premier Automobiles

in league with Chrysler, Hindustan Motors with General Motors and Ashok Leyland with British Leylandwhich all started truck production around the same time.

Telcos biggest triumph came in 1985 in the LCV segment. The Tata 407, a brand new product from

bumper to tail-light, was designed and marketed by Telco to take on the technically superior Japanese

products. The 407 immediately captured 70 per cent of the market.


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The TATA SUMO, launched in 1994, turned out to be the success story of the decade. The Sumo was

conceptually a brilliant vehicle. And it was also a product of the governments eccentric excise duty

regulations at that time.

1998 was a landmark year for Tata it launched the Tata Safari. Unlike the Sierra, Estate and Sumo that

were designed and developed using rudimentary manual methods, the Safari was made with modernmanufacturing and design processes to ensure new-found levels of quality and to take the company a

step closer to its ambition of becoming a global carmaker.

Yet, the most important landmark of 1998 was not the Safari. On 30 December 1998, Tata officially

launched the much-awaited Indica. 2001 also saw the company exit its joint venture with Daimler-Benz.

In 2002, Tata launched the Indigo saloon, based on the Indica platform. On 29 July 2003, JRD Tatas birth

anniversary, the company was renamed Tata Motors Limited. The Tata juggernaut continued to roll

across the Indian auto industry with the launch of the Indigo Marina in 2004.

MAHINDRA & MAHINDRA:

The story starts sometime in the 1940s. Pandit Nehru has a dream of building a modern, industrially

advanced nation. And inspired by Nehrus vision are two brothers, Kailash Chandra Mahindra and

Jagadish Chandra Mahindra. K.C. Mahindra during his tenure in the United States had met Berney

Roos. Roos was the inventor of rugged General Purpose vehicle or the Jeep. The Jeep had earned

reputation in the battle fields of World War II. On October 2nd 1945, the Mahindra brothers joined

hands with Ghulam Mohammed to set up a company to assemble American Willys Jeeps in India. The

collaboration between M&M and its original partner Kaiser Jeep Corporation and later American Motor

Corporation is for the phased manufacture of CJ3B Jeep. The company is named Mahindra andMohammed.

But after the Independence Ghulam Mohammed migrates to Pakistan. With his

departure Mahindra & Mohammed is renamed by Mahindra & Mahindra in 13th January 1948. The first

vehicles are assembled in Mazaogaon in Bombay.

The first M&M built Willys Overland Jeep rolled out of the Mazaogaon plant on 3 June 1949. Five years

later, in 1954, the first completely indigenous Jeep rolled out of the factory floor. At one point 70 per

cent of the sales were assured by army and government.

Vehicle Model Year of launching

Mahindra MM 540 1985

Commander 1991

Mahindra Armada 1993

Voyager van Escort (M&M-ford) 1996

Bolero 1996

Scorpio 2002


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Launched in 2002, a completely indigenous product that took Mahindra & Mahindra 6 long years to

design and develop. The Scorpio has played a critical role in changing the perception and brand image of

the country. The 2.6 litre turbo-diesel engine developed 109bhp. The Scorpio has been the vehicle of

M&Ms change, from a utility vehicle-maker to a lifestyle SUV manufacturer.

MARUTI:

It began with the promise of being the Peoples Car. The car never went into production and the

company went belly-up in 1977. Six years later, it rose like a phoenix from the ashes and changed the

Indian automotive sector forever. The companyMaruti Udyog Limited. The story of Maruti dates back

to the 1970s. Indira Gandhi was the prime minister of India. Her son, Sanjay Gandhi, envisioned the

manufactured of an indigenous cost-effective, low-maintenance compact car for the Indian middle-class.

The Cabinet passed a unanimous resolution for the development and production of a Peoples Car.

The name of the car was chosen as Maruti.

The Car that changed India:

The Maruti 800 was essentially a Suzuki SS80, which was called the Fronte in Japan and Alto in most of

the other markets. The 796cc, in-line, three-cylinder power plant produced 39.5bhp at

5500rpm. Maruti marked the beginning of a revolution in the Indian automobile industry. The Maruti

800, with its compact size, nimble handling and perky engine, offered the Indian motorist a cheaper,

friendlier alternative. On 14thDecember 1983, Harpal Singh became Marutis first customer as he

received the keys of his Maruti 800 car from Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The car cost Rs.48, 000. The

new Maruti, launched in June 1986, cost approximately Rs15, 000 more than the outgoing model.

The new Maruti:

In 2005, Maruti launched the Swift, for the first time in its 20-year history. The Swift signaled the

importance of the Indian market in the world. A team of engineers from Maruti worked on the design of

the Swift in Hamamatsu, Suzukis headquarters in Japan.

Model Year of launching

Maruti 800 1983


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Maruti Omni 1984

Maruti Gypsy 1985

Maruti 1000 1990

Maruti Zen 1993

Maruti Esteem 1994

Maruti Baleno 1999

Maruti Wagon R 1999

Maruti Alto 2000

Maruti Versa 2001

Maruti Swift 2005

Maruti Zen Estilo 2006

Maruti SX4 2007

Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara 2007

Maruti Ritz 2009

Maruti A star 2009

Maruti Swift Dzire 2009

Maruti Alto K10 2010

The other cars which have their share in the Indian Auto Mobile industry are:

The Indian auto industry has exploded in the last 14 years. And car marketers are learning some very

hard truths. While the economic reforms process was kicked off in 1991, it was only in 1993 that the

automobile industry was finally delicensed and the restrictions were removed. Between 1993 and 95,

government regulations limited a foreign companys stake to a maximum of 51 percent of the equity.

Hence the only method of entry for an MNC then was through a joint venture with a local partner. The

most preferred partner was an existing automaker. In 1994-95 saw the announcement of quite a fewJVs.

Premier and Peugeot to form PAL-Peugeot.

GM and CK Birla to form GM India.

Mercedes Benz and Tata Motors.


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M&M and Ford to form Mahindra-Ford India.

In 1995, the government announced its decision to allow foreign auto companies to enter with a 100%

stake or wholly-owned subsidiaries. This changed the dynamics of joint ventures in India. The other

automobile industries which play a crucial role in the Indian automobile industry are:

Daewood Motors India.

General Motors India

Mercedes-Benz

Hyundai Motors

Honda SIEL

Toyota

Skoda India

COMPANY PROFILE

Ford Motor Company

Type: Public

Founded: June 17, 1903

Founder: Henry Ford

Headquarters: Dearborn, Michigan, USA

Area served: Worldwide

William Clay Ford, Jr BILL, Chairperson

Key people: Alan R Mulally- President/CEO

Industry: Automotive

Products: Automotive goods and services


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Revenue: US$ 120.1 billion (2006)

Operating income: US$-15.0 billion (2006)

Net income: US$-12.6 billion (2006)

Employees: 283,000 (2007)

Divisions: Lincoln

Mercury

Premier Automotive Group

Automotive Components Holdings

Jaguar

Subsidiaries: Land Rover

Volvo (cars only)

Bold Moves

Have you driven a Ford lately?

Built Ford Tough

Slogan: Built for Life in Canada

Feel the difference

Make Ever- day Exciting

Website: www.ford.com

Ford Motor Company is an American multinational corporation and the world's third largest automaker

based on worldwide vehicle sales.

In 2006, Ford was the second-ranked automaker in the US with a 17.5% market share, behind General

Motors (24.6%) but ahead of Toyota (15.4%) and Daimler Chrysler (14.4%). Ford was also the seventh-

ranked American-based company in the 2007 Fortune 500 list, based on global revenues of $160.1billion. In 2006, Ford produced about 6.6 million automobiles, an employed about 280,000 employees

at about 100 plants and facilities worldwide. In 2007, Ford had more quality awards from J.D Power

than any other automaker.

Based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, the automaker was founded by Henry Ford

and incorporated in June 16, 1903. Ford now encompasses many global brands, including Lincoln and


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Mercury of the US, Jaguar and Land Rover of the UK, and Volvo of Sweden. Ford also owns a one-third

controlling interest in Mazda.

Ford has been one of the world's ten largest corporations by revenue and in 1999 ranked as one of the

world's most profitable corporations, and the number two automaker worldwide.

Ford introduced methods for large-scale manufacturing of cars and large-scale management of

an industrial workforce, especially elaborately engineered manufacturing sequences typified by moving

assembly lines. Henry Ford's combination of highly efficient factories, highly paid workers, and low

prices revolutionized manufacturing and came to be known around the world as Fordism by 1914.

History

Henry Ford (ca. 1919)

Ford was launched in a converted factory in 1903 with $28,000 in cash from twelve investors, most

notably John Francis Dodge and Horace Elgin Dodge who would later found the Dodge Brothers Motor

Vehicle Company. During its early years, the company produced just a few Model T's a day at its factory

on Mack Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. Groups of two or three men worked on each car from

components made to order by other companies. Henry Ford was 40 years old when he founded the Ford

Motor Company, which would go on to become one of the largest and most profitable companies in the

world, as well as being one of the few to survive the Great Depression. The largest family-controlled

company in the world, the Ford Motor Company has been in continuous family control for over 100

years.

Corporate governance:

Members of the board as of early 2007 are: Chief Sir John Bond, Richard Manoogian, Stephen Butler,

Ellen Marram, Kimberly Casiano, Alan Mulally (President and CEO), Edsel Ford II, Homer Neal, William

Clay Ford, Jr., Jorma Ollila, Irvine Hockaday, Jr, John L. Thornton and William Clay Ford (Director

Emeritus)

The main corporate officers are: Lewis Booth (Executive Vice President, Chairman (PAG) and Ford

of Europe), Mark Fields (Executive Vice President, President [The Americas]), Donat Leclair (Executive

Vice President and CFO), Mark A. Schulz (Executive Vice President, President [International Operations])and Michael E. Bannister (Group Vice President; Chairman & CEO Ford Motor Credit). Paul Mascarenas

(Vice President of Engineering, the Americas Product Development)

FORD IN INDIA:


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Ford started its innings with the Mahindra-Ford joint venture formed in 1994, which produced the

Escort out of M&M Nasik plant. After meeting initial success, sales of the Escort was finally replaced by

the Ikon in 1999. The Ikon marked a new beginning for Ford in India. It rolled out of the

Marajmalaingar plant near Chennai and by now, the company had parted ways with M&M and was

renamed Ford India Ltd in 1998. The Ikon was the first model by a multinational to be developed

specifically for India. Though it was based on the Fiesta, it was a unique body style and was offered andwas offered with an option of three engines, including a diesel. The car was a big hit. The Ikon

underwent several face-lifts and price cuts to keep demand high. However, fresher competition and a

reputation for high-maintenance saw sales gradually decline. After the arrival of the modern and highly-

capable Fiesta, another made-for-India car, with state-of-the-art engines, the Ikon has been

marginalized. The Fiesta has picked up where the Ikon left and is selling well. Though the Ikon and

Fiesta have been the mainstays of Fords production in India, the company has had limited success with

other models. The Mondeo, launched in 2001, was a very talented car by was simply not suited to Indian

conditions and earned a reputation for being exorbitant to maintain. The Endeavour SUV was launched

in early 2004 and has sold well for its niche. The Endeavour has recently been upgraded in 2007 and this

has boosted the appeal of the big SUV. In 2004, Ford launched the Fusion, which has received a

lukewarm response though the recent diesel variant has perked up sales.

Ti Ford motors, Guwahati

It is an authorized dealer for Ford India Limited, who is one of the leading manufacturers of top quality

cars in India, with many variants in the offering. TI Ford is controlled and looked over by the board of

directors Mr. Ujjal Goswami, Mr. Prodip Rajkhowa, Mr. Moniraj Baruah, and Mr. Hemanta Sharma, the

set up by well reputed families. Ti Ford is a blend of experience and youth.

Ti Ford markets and services recently launched truly European New Ford Fiesta, the ever-popular Ford

Fiesta classic, the No non-sense car Ford Fusion and the macho SUV the Ford Endeavour through its

sales and service outlets at Silpukhuri. The sales outlet is located strategically at Silpukhuri near

Chandmari. They have one service centers, one at Bamunimaidan, which is also located a few distances

from the showroom. These centrally located outlets provide convenient and easy access to both the

proud owners as well as prospective buyers. The workforce at Ti Ford is committed to excellence in

serving all esteemed customers.

The Sales Team is made up of dedicated showroom and field executives who are professionally trained

by Ford India Limited. They are adept at guiding the customer through the entire sales process right

from assisting in the choice of model, color and features to lending a helping hand in providing attractive

buyback options and also arranging finance at competitive rates. The Service Centre is armed with thestate-of-the art equipment and is in-line with Ford's exacting Global standards. The service team is

technically qualified and trained to analyze and provide solutions adhering to Quality Care, in order to

satisfy even the most demanding customers.


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The Ti Ford dealership maintains a high standard of excellence in sales and services by sending its

personnel for training on a regular basis to Ford India Limited, to update them with the latest

technological advances in the automotive sphere.

SHOWROOM

We have 500sft centrally air conditioned showroom, located in the heart of the city in Silpukhuri,

adjacent to Axis bank and many other banks and showrooms. This makes convenient for almost every

one residing in and around Guwahati and other cities.

The facilities offered from the showroom are:

1. Very easy finance facility with in-house finance team to cater to your every car finance requirements.

All the leading finance counters are available like ICICI, HDFC, KOTAK, SUNDARAM, SBI, etc.

2. Exchange offer for any of your used car. Free spot evaluation for any used car.

3. Professionally trained and courteous sales staff to take care of every relevant need of the customers.

4. Ford preferred insurance for cashless transactions in the event of claims like Special offers on

insurance renewals.

5. Full range of Ford cars with all colors from and models to choose

6. A good stock accessories to make your Ford ownership more delightful and safe of Ford genuine

7. A well maintained fleet of test drive cars to give you the feel and experience the drive dynamics on

actual driving conditions before take the purchase decisions. You can call our sales help line for test

drive or fill the on-line test drive requisition form.

Significant milestones

The first Indian built Ford Escort rolled off the assembly line in 1996.

The Company was able to deliver Ford Escorts in seven major cities simultaneously, in just a month

after booking.

The Special Value Pack program was launched in 1997, with commemorative 'Freedom', followed by

the petrol and diesel driven 'Anniversary'. Recent SVPs have included the Orion, Alpha and Sport - E.

Ford Escort won the J D Power Award in India Quality Survey in 1997.

Ford topped the Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI) ratings in 1997 and 1998, in the Customer

Satisfaction Survey.


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Quality care, Ford's branded service initiative, provides car owners with superior services at its

dealership countrywide.

The new, integrated manufacturing plant was dedicated in March 1999, where FORD IKON is

manufactured.

Ford India launched Ford Assured on April 24 2000, a new initiative to buy and sell used cars of all

makes.

On September 11, 2000. Ford India launched the Ford IKON SXi the stylish josh machine

Ford India has started exporting Ford IKON 2001. Ford India launched the Ford Mondeo.

2002:

Ford India show cases a wide spectrum of exciting cars at the Auto Expo

Ford India Limited announced a strategic partnership with Hindustan Motors Limited (HML).

Certified QS 9000: 1998, 3rd edition on March 21, 2002 Ford India received the QS 9000 award from

TV Suddeutschland.

New Ikon Variant 1.6 EXi was launched

2003:

The New Ford Ikon NXT launched - The Next Level of Josh.

Adding Refinement to Josh- Ford India launches Ikon NXT Finesse.

Ford Celebrates Centennial in India.

Ford India launches Ikon NXT SXi.

Ford India Ranks Highest in J.D. Power India Sales Satisfaction Study.

Ford launches Ikon Flair at Rs. 4.95 Lakhs.

2004:

Auto-car SUV winner of the Year is Ford Endeavour.

2007:

FORD Motor Company of Southern Africa achieves three wins and two seconds on this year total

economy run

DOE AWARDS FORD two grants for vehicle fuel efficiency research


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FORD MONDEO IS AUTO EXPRESS car of the year

LAND ROVER DISCOVERY 3 scoops category win at TOWNCAR AWARDS 2007

FORD MONDEO is the Caravan Club TOWNCAR of the year 2008

2011:

Ford Figo is most awarded car ever by Auto-car, TopGear and Motoring.

.

MANAGEMENT PROFILE:

MICHAEL BONEHAM - President and Managing Director, Ford India

Michael Boneham is the President and Managing Director at Ford India since June 2008. He reportsdirectly to John Parker, executive vice president, Asia Pacific and Africa

LUCY MILLAR Vice President, Finance & IT, Ford India.

Lucy is the Vice President of Finance and IT at Ford India. She took up this position in May 2005. She

reports to Arvind Mathew, President and Managing Director, Ford India.

SCOTT McCORMACK Vice President, Marketing & Sales & Service.

Scott McCormack is the Vice President, Marketing, Sales and Service at Ford India. He took this position

in July 2006. Scott reports to Arvind Mathew, President and Managing Director, Ford India.

NANCY REISIG Vice President, Human Resources.

Nancy Reisig is Vice President, Human Resources at Ford India. She took this position in March 2005.

Nancy reports to Arvind Mathew, President and Managing Director, Ford India.

SANDIP SANYALExecutive Director - Operations, Ford India, India.

Sandip Sanyal is the Executive Director, Operations, at Ford India. He took this position in

September 2005. Sandip reports to Arvind Mathew, President and Managing Director, Ford India.

NIGEL E. WARK - Executive Director, Marketing, Sales and Service, Ford India.

Nigel E. Wark is the Executive Director for Marketing, Sales and Service at Ford India

since March 2008. He has overall responsibility for Marketing, Sales and Customer Service Operations in

support of Ford India's expected rapid future growth in the market through capacity expansion and a

major shift into the high volume segment, work reports to Michael Boneham, President & Managing

Director of Ford India.


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Max Speed (Kmph) | 142 |

Mileage | 8.2 |

|

| |

| |

Fiesta Classic:

Models | LXi 1.6 | CLXi 1.6 | LXi 1.4 TDCi | CLXi 1.4 TDCi | SXi 1.6 | SXi 1.4 TDCi|

Price (lacs) | 5.67 | 6.34 | 6.89 | 7.32 | 7.69 | 8.59 |

Engine Type | 4 Cylinder in-Line, 16 Valve DOHC | 4 Cylinder in-Line, 8 Valve SOHC |

Construction | All aluminium Alloy |

Fuel system | SEFI | High pressure common rail |

Displacement(cc) | 1388 | 1596 | 1596 | 1399 | 1399 | 1399 |

Compression ratio | 9.75:1 | 9.75:1 | 9.75:1 | 18:1 | 18:1 | 18:1 |

Max power output(ps/rpm) | 82/6000 | 101/6500 | 101/6500 | 68/4000 |

68/4000 | 68/4000 |

Max(Nm/rp) | 127/400 | 146/340 | 146/340 | 160/200 | 160/200 |

160/200 |

Emission compliance | Bharat Stage III |

Transmission type | 5 speed manual |

Max. speed(Kmph) | 170/178 |

Mileage | 14.75/13.6 |

New Fiesta:


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Models | 1.5 Ambiente(P) | Titanium plus(P) | AT style(P) | AT titanium plus (P) | Diesel

style | Diesel titanium plus |

Price (lacs) | 7.48 | 9.16 | 9.30 | 10.04 | 9.30 | 10.34 |

Engine type | 1499cc

4 Cylinder 16 Valve | 1499cc





4 Cylinder 8 Valve |

Transmission | Manual | Automatic | Automatic | Manual | Manual |

Manual |

Power | 109PS @ 6450rpm | 109PS @ 6450rpm | 109PS @ 6450rpm | 109PS @ 6450rpm

| 90ps @ 3750rpm | 90ps @ 3750rpm |

Mileage | H | 17.0 | 17.0 | 16.5 | 16.5 | 23.5 | 23.5 |

| C | 14.0 | 14.5 | 13.5 | 13.5 | 17.5 | 17.5 |

Safety |

Anti-Lock Braking System, Brake Assist, Central Locking, Power Door Locks, Child Safety Locks, Anti-Theft

Alarm, Driver Airbag, Passenger Airbag, Day & Night Rear View Mirror , Passenger Side Rear View Mirror,

Xenon Headlamps, Rear Seat Belts, Seat Belt Warning, Door Ajar Warning, Side Impact Beams, Front

Impact Beams, Traction Control, Adjustable Seats, Keyless Entry, Engine Immobilizer, Crash Sensor,

Centrally Mounted Fuel Tank and Engine Check Warning |

|

| | |

| | |

Ford Figo:


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Models | LXi | EXi | ZXi | Titanium |

| Petrol | Diesel | Petrol | Diesel | Petrol | Diesel | Petrol | Diesel |

Price in lacs | 3.87 | 4.86 | 4.25 | 5.24 | 4.54 | 5.54 | 5.03 | 6.03 |

Engine | 1196cc








4 Cylinder 16 Valve |

Power | 71PS at 6,250 rpm | 69 PS at 4,000 rpm | 71PS at 6,250 rpm | 69 PS at 4,000 rpm

| 71PS at 6,250 rpm | 69 PS at 4,000 rpm | 71PS at 6,250 rpm | 69 PS at 4,000 rpm

|

Transmission | Manual | Manual | Manual | Manual | Manual |

Manual | Manual | Manual |

Mileage | H | 15.5 | 18.5 | 15.5 | 18.5 | 15.5 | 18.5 | 15.5 | 18.5 |

| C | 12.5 | 14.5 | 12.5 | 14.5 | 12.5 | 14.5 | 12.5 | 14.5 |

Safety | Dual front airbags, keyless entry feature that has been named as Smart Programmable Remote

Key, power door locks, power windows, day and night rear view mirror, passenger side rear view mirror

and central locking, Seat-belts are added at front and rear seat with seat belt warning and door Ajar

warning, fitted with Rapid Decelerating Warning system that starts working above the speed of 96

Kmph, Lane Change Indicators that blink three times when you change your lane. |

COMPARISIONS

FORD ENDEAVOUR vs. TATA SAFARI


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Features

Mileage Highway (km/liter) | 11.6 | 10.2 |

Seating Capacity (person) | 7 | 7 |

Fuel Tank Capacity (liter) | 71 | 60 |

Maximum Speed (Kmph) | 142 | 154 |

Engine Type/Model | Turbocharged, Intercooled | 486 PL Petrol |

Displacement (cc) | 2499 | 2092 |

Power (PS@rpm) | 116@3500 | 127@5630 |

Torque (Nm@rpm) | 285@2000 | 198@3750 |

Valve Mechanism | SOHC | DOHC |

Steering Type | Recirculating Ball with power assist | Rack & Pinion with Power Assist |

Minimum Turning Radius (meter) | 6.2 | 6 |

Brake Type | ABS with EBD | ABS |

Tyres | 265/70 R15 (Tubeless) | 235/70 R 16, 105 S |

NEW FORD FIESTA vs HYUNDAI VERNA FLUIDIC

Features

Overall Length (mm) | 4291 | 4370 |

Seating Capacity (person) | 5 | 5 |


Power (PS@rpm) | 109@6045 | 123@6300 |

Torque ( Nm@rpm) | 140@4500 | 158@4200 |

Transmission Type | Manual | Manual |

Gears | 5 | 5 |


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A marketing strategy is a process that can allow an organization to concentrate its limited resources on

the greatest opportunities to increase sales and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage. Any

organization that wants to exchange its products or services in the market place successfully should

have a Strategic Marketing plan to guide the allocation of its resources.

A strategic marketing plan usually evolves from an organizations overall corporate strategy and servesas a guide for specific marketing programs and policies. Marketing strategy is based on a situation

analysis- a detailed assessment of the current marketing conditions facing the company, its product

lines, or its individual brands. From this situation analysis, a firm develops an understanding of the

market and the various opportunities it offers, the competition and the market segments or target

markets the company wishes to pursue.

Marketing strategy is the complete and unbeatable plan, designed specifically for attaining the

marketing objectives of the firm/business unit. The marketing objectives indicate what the firm wants to

achieve; the marketing strategy provides the design for achieving them.

For example, if the marketing objectives of a business unit stipulate that next year, it should achieve a

sales revenue of Rs. 1,000 cr. and a net profit of 15 percent of sales revenue, it is the job of marketing

strategy to indicate how and wherefrom this sale and profit will come, which product

lines/products/brands will accomplish this task and how.

Marketing strategy forms an integral part of marketing planning. A marketing strategy is most effective

when it is an integral component of corporate strategy, defining how the organization will successfully

engage customers, prospects, and competitors in the market arena. It is partially derived from broader

corporate strategies, corporate missions, and corporate goals. As the customer constitutes the

source of a company's revenue, marketing strategy is closely linked with sales. A key component of

marketing strategy is often to keep marketing in line with a company's overarching mission statement.

MARKETING AND PROMOTIONS PROCESS MODEL:

Development of marketing program requires an in-depth analysis of the market. This analysis may make

extensive use of market research as an input into the planning process.

Target marketing process

Marketing planning program development

Target market

Marketing strategy and analysis


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Target marketing

Reseller

Ultimate consumer

Consumer business

Purchase

* Interactive marketing

* Direct marketing

* Sales promotion to final buyers

* Public relation

* Personal selling

* Promotion to trade

Target marketing

Competitive analysis

Opportunity

* Advertising

Distribution

Channel

Pricing strategies

Product

Promotional decision

Identifying markets

Market segmentation

Target marketing


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Positioning through marketing strategies

This input, in turn, provides the basis for the development of marketing strategies in

Regard to product, pricing, distribution and promotion decisions. Each of these steps requires a detailedanalysis, since this plan serves as the road map to follow in achieving marketing goals. Once the detailed

market analysis has been completed and marketing objectives have been established, each element in

the market mix must contribute to a comprehensive integrated marketing program. Of course, the

promotional program element must be combined with all other program elements in such a way as to

achieve maximum impact.

Formulating the marketing strategy:

Basically, formulation of marketing strategy consists of three main tasks:

1. Selecting the target market,

2. Positioning the offer,

3. Assembling the marketing mix.

This implies that the essence of the marketing strategy of a firm for a given product or brand can be

grasped from the target market chosen, the way it is positioned and how the marketing mix is

organized. The target market shows to whom the unit intends to sell the products; positioning and

marketing mix together show how and using what uniqueness or distinction, the unit intends to sell. The

three together constitute the marketing strategy platform of the given product.

SELECTING THE TARGET MARKET:

To say that target market selection is a part of marketing strategy development is just stating the

obvious. It does not fully bring out the import of the inseparable linkage between the two. When the

selection of the target market is over, an important part of the marketing strategy of the product is

determined, defined and expressed.

Marketing targeting simply means choosing ones target market. It needs to be clarified at the outset

that market targeting is not synonymous with market segmentation. Segmentation is actually tee

prelude to target market selection. One has to carry out several tasks besides segmentation before

choosing the target market.


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Through segmentation, a firm divides the market into many segments. But all these segments need not

form its target market. Target market signifies only those segments that it wants to adopt as its market.

A selection is thus involved in it.

Marketing segmentation is a process that throws up not one but several market segments. There may

be segments that are sizeable and the ones that are not so sizeable. There may be segments assuringimmediate profits and the ones that call for heavy investments in market development. There may also

be segments that show great potential, but display tough barriers to entry. As such, the question, which

segment/segments, the firm should select as its target market, assumes crucial importance.

STRATEGIC MARKET SEGMENTATION:

Market Segmentation is dividing up a market into distinct groups that

(1) Have common needs and

(2) Will respond similarly to a marketing action, which was said by Eric N. Berkowitz, Roger A. Kerin,

and William Redulius.

The Segmentation process involves five distinct steps:

Finding ways to group consumers according to their needs.

Finding ways to group the marketing actions usually the products offered available to the

organization.

Developing a market-product grid to relate the market segments to the firms products or actions.

Selecting the target segments toward which the firm directs its marketing actions.

Taking marketing actions to reach target segments.


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Markets can be segmented using several relevant bases. For example, demographic characteristics of

consumers, such as age, sex, income/purchasing capacity, education level etc. form one base for

segmentation. Geographic characteristics constitute another and buying behavior of the consumers

forms yet another base.

The various types of segmentations are:

* Geographic segmentation

* Demographic segmentation

* Psychographic segmentation

* Buyer behavior

* Benefits segmentation

* Volume of purchase segmentation

POSITIONING:

Positioning is a platform for the brand. It facilitates the brand to get through to the target consumers. It

is defined as the art and science of fitting the product or service to one or more segments of the broad

market in such a way as to set it meaningfully apart from competition. Positioning is the act of fixing

the locus of the product offer in the minds of the target consumers. In positioning, the firm decides how

and around what parameters, the product offer has to be placed before the target consumers. The

significance of product positioning can be easily understood from David Ogilvys words: The results of

your campaign depends less on how we write your advertising than on how your product is positioned.

Definitions of product positioning:

Sengupta, in his book Brand Positioning says, The aim of product positioning is to create a perception

for our brand in the prospects mind so that it stands apart from competingbrands we must cover that

space in the consumers mind as if we had won a long-term lease. We must find a strong position in that

mind and sit on it.

Michael Rothschild, in his book Marketing CommunicationsFrom Fundamentals to Strategies says,

Positioning refers to the place a brand occupies in the mind in relation to a given product class. This


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place was originally a product-related concept.Concerning market structure. The concept now refers

to the place that the brand holds in the consumers mind related to perceptions and preferences.

Developing a Positioning Strategy:

To create a position for a product or service, Trout and Ries suggest that managers ask themselves six

basic questions.

1. What position, if any, do we already have in the prospects mind?

2. What position do we want to own?

3. What companies must be outgunned if we are to establish that position?

4. Do we have enough marketing money to occupy and hold the position?

5. Do we have the guts to stick with one consistent positioning strategy?

6. Does our creative approach match our positioning strategy?

PRODUCT POSITIONING AND BRAND POSITIONING:

It is essential to understand the relationship between products positioning and brand positioning.

Though in discussions, the two terms are synonymously and interchangeable used, technically they are

different.

Product positioning denotes the specific product category/product class in which the given product is

opting to compete. And brand positioning denotes the positioning of the brand viz-a-viz the competingbrands in the chosen product category.

It is evident that for any product, before entering the market it has to sequentially carry out the two

exercises, product positioning and brand positioning. In the first step, the product category where the

new entrant should enter and compete, i.e. against what all products it has to compete, has to be

decided. In this step, it is the broad function that the product is trying to serve that matters. This choice

of product category will decide the nature of the competition the product is going to face. Once product

category positioning is decided, the position for the new entrant against competing brands in the chosen

product category has to be analyzed and fixed.

ISSUES IN PRODUCT POSITIONING:

* Where is the new offer going to compete? As what?


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* Which product function/customer need is it trying to meet?

* What other product categories serve this need?

* In other words, what are the substitute products that serve the same need?

* Where is the real gap, where is such a new offer most welcome and wanted by the market?

* What are companys competencies to fight here?

ISSUES IN BRAND POSITIONING:

In deciding the Brand positioning, the issues are:

* Which are the competing brands in the chosen product category?

* What are the unique claims/strengths of the various brands?

* What position do they enjoy in consumers evaluation and perception?

* What is the most favoured position? And yet vacant?

* Can the new brand claim the needed distinction and take the position and satisfy the need?

The major dimension of marketing strategy relates to positioning of the offer. The firm has already

selected the target market and decided its basic offer. Now, what is the conjunction between these two

entities? How do they get connected? What is the interface?

In other words

What is the locus the firm seeks among the customers in the chosen target market with its offering?

How would the firm want the consumer to view and receive the offer?

These are the issues the firm has to grapple with in positioning. And, while formulating the marketing

mix too, the firm will agitate over these issues. The Product Differentiation and Positioning discusses the

multifarious issues involved in the subject.

PRODUCT REPOSITIONING:

Products do undergo repositioning as they go along their life cycle. In some cases, even products that

are faring well are repositioned. This is done mainly to enlarge the reach of the product offer and to


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increase the sale of the product by appealing to a wider target market. The product is provided with

some new features or it is associated with some new target segments.

PROMOTIONAL DECISIONS:

Promotion has been defined as the coordination of all seller initiated efforts to set up channels of

information and persuasion in order to sell goods and services or promote an idea. While implicit

communication occurs through the various elements of the marketing mix, most of an organizations

communications with the market. The basic tools used to accomplish an organizations communication

objectives are often referred to as the promotional mix.

The promotional mix

Advertising

Personal selling

Direct marketing

Sales promotion

Publicity/ public relation

Interactive/ internet marketing

Advertising:

Advertising is defined as any paid form of non-personal communication about an organization, product,

service, or idea by an identified sponsor. The paid aspect of this definition reflects the fact that the

space or time for an advertising message generally must be bought. An occasional exception to this is

the public service announcement, whose advertising space or time is donated by the media. Advertising

is the best-known and most widely discussed form of promotion, probably because of its pervasiveness.

It is also very important promotional tool, particularly for companies, whose products and services are

targeted at mass consumer markets. It is a very cost-effective method for communicating with large

audiences. It can be used to create brand images and symbolic appeals for a company or brand.

Direct Marketing:


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One of the fastest-growing sectors of the U.S. economy is direct marketing, in which organizations

communicate directly with target customers to generate a response and a transaction. It has become

such an integral part of the IMC program of many organizations and often involves separate objectives,

budgets, and strategies; we view direct marketing as a component of the promotional mix. Direct

Marketing is much more than direct mail and mail order catalogs. It involves a variety of activities,

including database management, direct selling, telemarketing and direct response ads through directmail, the Internet, and various broadcast and print media.

One of the major tools of direct marketing is direct response advertising, whereby a product is

promoted through an ad that encourages the consumer to purchase directly from the manufacturer.

Interactive/Internet Marketing:

Interactive media allow for the back-and-forth flow of information whereby users can participate in and

modify the form and content of the information they receive in real time. Unlike traditional forms ofmarketing communications such as advertising, which are one-way in nature, the new media allow users

to perform a variety of functions such as receive and alter information and images, make inquiries,

respond to questions and of course make purchases. In addition to the Internet, other forms of

interactive media include CD-ROMs, Kiosks, and interactive television.

Sales Promotion:

The next variable in the promotional mix is sales promotion, which is generally defined as those

marketing activities that provide extra value or incentives to the sales force, the distributors, or theultimate consumer and can stimulate immediate sales, sales promotion is generally broken into two

major categories: Consumer-oriented and Trade-oriented activities Consumer-oriented sales promotion

is targeted to the ultimate user of a product or service and includes couponing, sampling, premiums,

rebates, contests, sweepstakes, and various point-of-purchase materials. Trade-oriented sales

promotions are targeted towards marketing intermediaries such as wholesalers, distributors and

retailers.

Publicity/Public Relations:

Publicity refers to non-personal communications regarding an organization, product, service, or idea not

directly paid for or run under identified sponsorship. It usually comes in the form of a news story,

editorial or announcement about an organization and its products and services. Like advertising,

publicity is not directly paid for by the company. An advantage of publicity over other forms of

promotion is its credibility. Another advantage of publicity is its low cost, since the company is not

paying its time or space in a mass medium such as TV, radio or newspapers. Public relations are defined


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as the management function which evaluates public attitudes, identifies the policies and procedures of

an individual or organization with the public interests and executes a program of action to earn public

understanding and acceptance. Public relations generally have a broader objective than publicity, as

its purpose is to establish and maintain a positive image of the company among its various publics.

Personal selling:

It is a form of person-to-person communication in which a seller attempts to assist and persuade

prospective buyers to purchase the companys product or service or to act on an idea. Unlike

advertising, personal selling involves direct contact between buyer and seller, either face-to-face or

through some form of telecommunications such as telephone sales. Personal selling involves more

immediate and precise feedback because the impact of the sales presentation can generally be assessed

from the customers reactions.

ASSEMBLING THE MARKETING MIX:

Assembling the marketing mix means assembling the four Ps of marketing in the best possible

combination. Involved in this process are the choice of the appropriate marketing activities and the

allocation of the appropriate marketing effort/resources to each one of them. The firm has to find out

how it can generate the targeted sales and profit. It considers different marketing mixes with varying

levels of expenditure on each marketing activity and tries to figure out the effectiveness of different

combinations in terms of the possible sales and profits. It then chooses the combination/mix ofproducts, price, place and promotion that is best according to its judgment.

Since marketing is essentially an interaction between the marketing mix and environmental variable,

and since the latter and non-controllable, marketing becomes synonymous with assembling and

managing the marketing mix. Of course, while assembling the marketing mix, the marketing manager

will take due note of the environmental variables. Not only will he take due not of them, he will ensure

that his marketing mix suits the environmental variables. And, its it factor that renders the task much

more complex.

The Four Ps of Marketing:

It was James Culliton, a noted marketing expert, who coined the expression marketing mix and

described the marketing manager as a mixer of ingredients. To quote him, `The marketing man is a

decider and an artist a mixer of ingredients, who sometimes follows a recipe developed by others and


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sometimes prepare his own recipe. And, sometimes he adapts his recipe to the ingredients that are

readily available and sometimes invents some new ingredients, or, experiments with ingredients as no

one else has tried before. Subsequently, Niel H.Borden, another noted marketing expert, popularized

the concept of marketing mix. It was Jerome McCarthy, the well-known American professor of

marketing, who first described the marketing mix in terms of the four Ps. He classified the marketing mix

variables under four heads, each beginning with the alphabet P.

* Product

* Place

* Price

* Promotion

McCarthy has provided an easy-to-remember description of the marketing mix variables. Over the years,

the terms Marketing mix and Four Ps of marketing have come to be used synonymously. Assembling

and managing the marketing mix is the crux of the marketing task. And, it is through the marketing mix

that the marketing manager achieves the marketing objectives.

MARKETING STRATEGIES FALL UNDER TWO CATEGORIES:

We have seen that target market selection, positioning and marketing mix formulation togetherconstitute marketing strategy. We have also seen that a firm can assemble the marketing mix elements

in many different ways, depending on the relative weightage it assigns to the different elements. The

scope to carve out different combinations is, in fact immense. As a result, business firms are able to

employ an abundance of strategies and strategy stances in their relentless race to stay ahead

of competition. However, a close scrutiny will reveal that all these strategies can be fitted into two

broad categories

1. PRICE ORIENTED MARKETING STRATEGY

2. DIFFERENTIATION ORIENTED MARKETING STRATEGY.

In other words, there are only two broad routes available for forging marketing strategies: any strategy

has to be ultimately either a price-oriented strategy or a differentiation-oriented strategy.

PRICE ORIENTED MARKETING STRATEGY:


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Firms taking to the price route in marketing strategy compete on the strength of pricing. They use price

as their competitive lever. They juggle the price of their product to suit the prevailing competitive

reality. They can afford to offer lower prices and still make the targeted profits. They elbow out

competition with the cushion they enjoy in the matter of pricing. Price route requires cost leadership;

evidently, a firm opting for the price route will have to have a substantial cost advantage in their

operations. It should be enjoying an overall cost leadership in the given industry and its lower costshould enable it to secure above average returns inspite of strong competition. The cost advantage can

emanate from different factors like, scale economies, early entry, a large market share built over a

period of time, locational advantage, or synergy among the different businesses. The firms whole

strategy, in fact will revolve around building such cost advantage. To successfully practice a price-led

strategy, a firm should have consciously taken to the idea sufficiently early in its evolutionary process

and prepared itself for adopting such a strategy.

DIFFERENTIATION ORIENTED MARKETING STRATEGY:

The differentiation route of strategy revolves around aspects other than price. It works on the principle

that a firm can make its offer distinctive from all competing offers and win through the distinctiveness.

And, a firm adopting such route can price its product on the perceived value of the attributes of the

offer and not necessarily on competition-parity basis.

Maximum scope for exploiting differentiation remains with the product. While all the 4Ps of marketing

are important elements from the point of view of strategy, the other Ps normally go as elaborations of

the offer, while the product forms its core.

Product differentiation is of vital importance in product management and has great potential inforgoing successful marketing strategies.

The product can be differentiated along two major planks:

1. Tangible product attributes and functions,

2. Intangible characteristics and emotional associations.

The tangible product attributes and functions are:

* Differentiation based on ingredients,

* Differentiation based on functional value,

* Differentiation based on additional features,

* Packaging contributing to differentiation,


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* Differentiation based on Quality, Operational Efficiency, Technology, Service.

DIGITAL MARKETING:

Digital Marketing is the practice of promoting products and services using digital distribution channels toreach consumers in a timely, relevant, personal and cost-effective manner. Whilst digital marketing does

include many of the techniques and practices contained within the category of Internet Marketing, it

extends beyond this by including other channels with which to reach people that do not require the use

of The Internet. As a result of this non-reliance on the Internet, the field of digital marketing includes a

whole host of elements such as mobile phones, sms/mms, display / banner ads and digital outdoor.

BUZZ MARKETING (WORD OF MOUTH):

Word of mouth is a reference to the passing of information by verbal means, especially

recommendations, but also general information, in an informal, person-to-person manner. Word of

mouth is typically considered a face-to-face spoken communication, although phone conversations, text

messages sent via SMS and web dialogue, such as online profile pages, blog posts, message board

threads, instant messages and emails are often now included in the definition of word of mouth. There

is some overlap in meaning between word of mouth and the following: rumor, gossip, innuendo, and

hearsay; however word of mouth is more commonly used to describe positive information being spread

rather than

negative, although this is not always the case.

Word-of-mouth promotion, also known as buzz marketing and viral advertising, is highly valued by

advertisers. It is believed that this form of communication has valuable source credibility. Researchpoints to individuals being more inclined to believe WOMM than more formal forms of promotion

methods; the receiver of word-of-mouth referrals tends to believe that the communicator is speaking

honestly and is unlikely to have an ulterior motive (i.e. they are not receiving an incentive for their

referrals). In order to promote and manage word-of-mouth communications, marketers use publicity

techniques as well as viral marketing methods to achieve desired behavioral response.

Influencer marketing is increasingly used to seed WOMM by targeting key individuals that have

authority and a high number of personal connections.

EVANGELISM MARKETING:

It is an advanced form of word of mouth marketing (WOMM) in which companies develop customers

who believe so strongly in a particular product or service that they freely try to convince others to buy

and use it. The customers become voluntary advocates, actively spreading the word on behalf of the

company. Evangelism literally comes from the three words of 'bringing good news' and the marketing

term justly draws from the religious sense, as consumers are literally driven by their beliefs in a product

or service, which they preach in an attempt to convert others.


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EFFECTIVE SALES PROMOTION:

Sales promotion consists of diverse collection of incentive tools mostly short term, designed to stimulate

quicker and greater purchase of particular products of services by the consumer. Sales promotion is the

only method that makes use of incentives to complete the push-pull promotional strategy of motivating

the sale force, the dealer and the consumer in transacting a sale.

Price-Offs Offer:

Price-off offers refers to offering the product at lower than the normal price. This encourages immediate

sales, attracts non-users, induces product trail and counters competition.

Premium:

Premium refers to the offer of an article of merchandise as an incentive in or to sell the product.

Coupons:

In order to encourage product trail, stimulate re-purchase rate and build loyalty through newspapers.

Dealer stock display contests:

It is a type of point of purchase advertising which uses the show windows of the dealer for providing

exposure to the sponsors products. Dealer participating enthusiastically and creatively are awarded

DEFENDING MARKET SHARE:

While trying to expand total market size, the dominant firm must continuously defend it current

business against rival attacks. This step is very much essential for the market leader firm because the

challenger firms are constantly to exploit the weaknesses of the leader firms.

EXPANDING MARKET SHARE:

Market leaders can improve their profitability by increasing their market share. But for few market

leaders whose share in the total market is insignificantly high, the expansion of market share and the

total market may be proved both as expensive and risky. Therefore it is better for such leader firms in

spending their time in building up the market size rather than expanding the market share. The reason

for this action may be attributed to two

factors:

1. The market leader firms might attract the provisions of various anti-trust legislations. The rival

competitors will try to force the Government to bring legislations against the MONOPOLISATION

2. The second reason being the economic factors. The cost of making further gains in the market share

after a large share has been achieved may rise fast and reduce the profit margin.

HARASSMENT STRATEGY:


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The market leader firm will resort to a harassment strategy in order to promote its market share. As a

part of this strategy, the leader form might approach the suppliers and threaten to reduce its purchases.

If the latter supply the upstart firm, sometimes it might put pressure on distributors not to carry the

competitors product. The salesman of leader firm might speak negatively about competitors. It may

also try to hire away the better executives of an aggressive firm. Sometimes, the market leader firm will

try to restrain these competitions through legal devices. It might push legislation that would be moreunfavorable to the competitors than to it. The aim of defensive strategy is to reduce the profitability of

attack, divert attacks to less threatening areas, and lessen the intensity of attack. Any attack is likely to

hurt profits. But the defenders form and speed of response can make an important difference in

the profit consequences. There are 6 defense strategies that a dominant firm can use:

1. Position Defense:

The basic idea of defense is to build an impregnable fortification around ones territory.

2. Flank Defense:

The market leader should not only guard its territory but also erect outposts to protect a weak front or

possibly serve as an invasion base for counter attacking.

3. Preemptive Defense:

A more aggressive defense maneuver is to launch an attack on the enemy before the enemy starts its

offense against the leader. Preemptive defense assumes that an ounce of prevention is worth more than

a pound of cure.

4. Counteroffensive Defense:

Most market leaders, when attacked will respond counterattack. The leader cannot remain passive in

the face of a competitors price cut, promotion blitz, product improvement, or sales territory invasion.

The leader has the strategic choice of meeting the attacker frontally, maneuvering against the attackers

flank, or launching a princer movement to cutoff the attacking formation from their base operation.

5. Mobile Defense:

Mobile defense involves more than the leader aggressively defending it territory. In mobile defense, the

leader stretches it domain over new territories than serve as future centers for defense and offense.

6. Contraction defense:

Large companies recognize that they can no longer defend all the territory. Their focus is spread too

thin, and competitors are nibbling away on several funds. The best course of action then appears to be

planned contraction (also called strategic withdrawal).


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INNOVATION STRATEGY:

The market leader may produce several strategies in respect of new product ideas, customer services,

means of distribution, cost cutting discovery. In addition to these, a leader may discourage its

competition particularly challenge firm.

FORTIFICATION STRATEGY:

In order to protect its market share, the market leader may try to keep it product prices reasonable in

relation to the perceived valued of the offer and competitors offer. The leader produces it brand in a

variety of sizes and firms.

CONFRONTATION STRATEGY:

If leader firm faces an extremely aggressive challenger, whose actions demand a quick and direct

response. In such a situation, the market leader will engage any promotional war, engaging in a massive

promotional expenditure that the aggressive challenger cannot match. The leader firm may engage in

the price war whenever a new challenger is considering to enter in its market. This strategy will frighten

the potential competitions and make then to withdraw from entering the market.

MARKETING STRATEGIES OF FORD

MARKETING STRATEGIES OF FORD:

* Product differentiation based on operational efficiency:

FORD EXCELLING THROUGH SERVICE: Ford tries to differentiate its offer on the plank of service. It has

gone in for a new norm in customer service: fix it right-the first time-on time. Ford is also supplying

videotapes showing how repairs have to be done.


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* Adopting Offer to Suit Target Segment:

Ford modifies its models for India:

Ford modified its models for the Indian target segments as shown below:

Higher ground clearance to make the car more compatible to the rougher road surface in India.

Stiffer rear springs to enable negotiating the ubiquitous path holes on Indian roads.

Changes in cooling requirement, with greater airflow to the rear.

Higher resistance to dust.

Compatibility of engine with the quality of fuel available in India.

Location of horn buttons on the steering vehicles. (As the India motorist uses the horn more

frequently, for cars sold in India, the horn buttons are kept on the steering wheel and not on a lever onthe side as in the models sold in Europe)

* Strategic segmentation of cars:

The Ford in India has launched the car only for few segments of people. The segmentation of car buyers

based on price preferences is:

Family car segment: These cars form a reasonably sizeable segment of the market (around 15 percent).

Preferred price range is from 5 lakh to 6 lakh.

FORD FIGO, FORD IKON AND FORD FUSION come under this type of segment.

Premium car segment: This segment represents buyers who need a real world-class car and are willing

to pay the due price.

Preferred price range starts from 8 lakh to 12 lakh.

FORD FIESTA, FORD NEW FIESTA comes under this segment of cars.

SUV segment: The buyers of this segment like to have a big vehicle.

And these cars are also useful for sport riding and even on hill areas. Their body is designed similar to off

road vehicles, which can withstand to Indian roads.

FORD ENDEAVOUR occupies this segment.


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* Strategic Promotions by FORD:

Ford follows the promotions at two levels, they a

1) Promotions of product directly by the manufacturer.

2) Promotions at dealer level.

In the first step the products of vehicles manufactured by the Ford Automotive are directly promoted by

the manufacturer by himself. He follows many promotional strategies like

1. Advertising through television and newspaper.

2. Internet or interactive marketing.

3. Direct marketing.

In the second step the dealer of the vehicles promotes the vehicles. The various promotional strategies

followed by the Fortune Ford at dealer are

1. Advertising though newspapers, radios, palm plates. In this all the features of the product and its

prices are given in detail to the customer.

2. In televisions the scrolling ar

Consumer Buying Behaviour Automobile

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