Marketing Mix For Volkswagen Brand Marketing Essay

Marketing Mix For Volkswagen Brand Marketing Essay The Volkswagen Group is one of the worlds leading automobile manufacturers and the largest carmakers in Europe. Company owns ten car brands from seven European countries : Volkswagen, Audi, SEAT, SKODA, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Scania and MAN. Besides automotive industry, company operates also in financial sector. Every car brand operates as independent unit with unique portfolio. Products are differentiated from low-consumption small cars to luxury one. Commercial vehicle sector offers ranges from pick-ups to buses made by Volkswagen and heavy trucks made by MAN and Scania. Firm has 94 production plants around entire Europe and 8 in the Americas, Africa and Asia. Labour power is estimated to 501,956 workers worldwide and production to 34,500 vehicles every single day. The Volkswagen Group exists in 153 countries so far. TASK 1 A  business  strategy  typically is a document that clearly articulates the direction a  business  will pursue and the steps it will take to achieve its goals. In a standard  business  plan, the  business strategy  results from goals established to support the stated mission of the  business. A typical business  strategy  is developed in three steps: analysis, integration and implementation. In the analysis step of  business  strategy  development, one of several methods is used to analyze a firms market, resources, obstacles to success and specific advantages. The goal of strategic analysis  is to identify what a  business  wants to accomplish, the strengths it can bring to bear on accomplishing the goal and weaknesses that need to be addressed prior to integration and implementation. Strategic assessment methodologies can include evaluating the  business  environment, gaming various competitive scenarios, determining what market forces are at work and rating competitors, among others. Integrating a  business  strategy  usually is one of many steps in a larger  business planning process. A  business  plan begins with an overall vision. From the vision, a  mission statement for the  business  is constructed, usually the shorter and more precise the better. A mission leads to specific goals the  business  will achieve to accomplish its mission and that in turn leads to  strategy  to achieve goals. Specific tactics are usually then developed to support the business  strategy. Porters five forces model illustrated in Figure below helps to measure the industrys attractiveness by examining the threat of new competitors and substitutes, the 13 bargaining power of buyers and suppliers and the degree of rivalry between existing competitors. (Porter 1984, 24) Porters five forces emphasizes the external scanning which indicates the opportunities and threats in the markets.(Wheeler Hunger 2006) An opportunity or threat could be events or trends that may affect the company in a positive or negative way when certain strategic actions are followed. (Aaker 1995, 21) These five forces shape the attractiveness of an industry and particularly that the company can make use of these five forces to gain sustainable competitive advantage in the market of competition. This influences the barriers of entry in the industry which includes issue like companys economic size, the product differentiation, demand for capital, and access to supply chain etc. (Porter 1984, 25-48). The first force of the model is the threat of entry of new competitors. This threat decreases the attractiveness of the industry by increasing the level. The industry structure analyses also the threat of substitute products. According to Aaker (1995) substitutes are manufactured by parties identified as competitors but with less concentration on the main industry. And these manufactures have strong 14influence over the profitability of market. The substitutes are able to provide the same requirement as the main competitors. As the substitutes can help a company to improve its price strategy and performance, the customer could choose their product without making any loss in costs. (Porter 1984, 44-46) The bargain power from buyer provide the possibility of the customer to press down price and ask more service which will decrease the profitability of a company and influence the overall business. The characteristics of an industry dominated by customers are through high volume purchase and compared lowest prices. (Porter1984, 46-48) The bargaining power of suppliers exists in markets which are highly concentrated on selling in different segments and customers. The supplier may dominate markets by increase the price level or decrease the products or service quality. The supplier can also affect the profitability of an industry where the cost level cant be covered by increasing prices by using this technique. The suppliers have dominance in the market with opposite circumstance to industry dominated by buyers. (Porter 1984, 49-50) The last element in Porters model is the degree of rivalry between existing competitors. This consists of forms of rivalry such as price competition, new product development, improved customer service and better guarantees. The defending actions against competitors are results of being threatened. The intensity of rivalry is due to various structural factors, such as the number of competitors in an industry, or whether the industry is declining or growing, or companys strategic contributions. (Porter 1984, 38-44) P5F.JPG Figure shows Porters Five Force Model (Porter 1984, 24) Pest analysis stands for Political, Economic, Sociocultural and Technological analysis. It describes a framework of macro-environmental factors for environmental scanning. It is a useful strategic tool for understanding market growth or decline, business position, potential and direction for operation. (Wheelen Hunger 2006, 73-79) Political Volkswagen outsources a great deal of their manufacturing outside the Europe in continents such as Asia, Africa and South America. Due to these countries being considered as booming economies, government may encourage local residents to try minimizing purchasing products from abroad, but instead use locally produced products in order to maintain the situation of the home market and make a higher value of the GDP. However, these or any other legal or political constraints should not be a significant barricade to continue outsourcing and/or sales in foreign markets. In certain countries such as Denmark and Norway car insurance and registration alone can amount to the price of the car itself. These rules and regulations are becoming ever-increasingly popular and pose a threat to sales of cars in other Scandinavian markets and places which seek to follow such a trend. Almost all of the regulations come from consumers increasing concerns for the environment and the concern for safer automobiles. (Highfill, Copus, Smith, 2004) Economic As an advantage to Volkswagen few markets which proved to show a decline in salesmainly in Spain, which proved to show a decline of 16.8 %. Taken as a whole, sales of VW however, were on the increase- despite overall motor industry taking a dive. VW sales increased in W. Europe by 8.6 % improved sales figures. The main brands which contributed to the sales were Audi, Skoda, Bentley and the VW commercial vehicles. Sales of the VW passenger cars, such as the VW Sharan van grow tremendously in regions/ markets such as Central and Eastern Europe, Asia Pacific and North America. The percentage growth of the following markets is as follows: Asia Pacific with 17.4 % North America had a significant growth of 21.4 % Central and Eastern Europe with a larger 29.7 % Although the most part of the growth came from the Central and Eastern European markets, there proved a decline within the Polish market. As the following figures will indicate, the Polish appear to have opted for the more cost-focused car brand, from the Volkswagen Group- the Skoda. This goes to prove that the Polish customers are evidently beginning to become more cost-focused. This is the strategy the Volkswagen Group use, to aim cost-focused clients with the Skoda and for those seeking more luxury at an affordable cost it offers the clients the range from the Volkswagen product portfolio. Social Poland is doing fine during economic crisis compare to other European countries. There are few reasons for this situation. Firstly, it is a big country with huge and cheap labor power. There are almost 40 million of habitants in Poland, so it is attractive market for foreign companies. Secondly, taxation rate is relative low comparing it to for instance Denmark. Finally, location of Poland makes this country competitive. Poland is settled up between Germany and Russia, two powerful markets but in the same time close to Scandinavia due to sea connection. Poles perceive Volkswagen brand as a car maker which produces stable, affordable and reliable cars. It is based on German hard-working spirit and precision, that is why Volkswagen cars are very popular nowadays also in aftermarket. Another advantage of having car from German manufacturer is the slowest ratio of value loss among other automotive companies. (Business in Poland Law, tax and banking, 2006) Technological Volkswagen has 94 production plants worldwide and additional 8 in Americas, Asia and South Africa. There are two production facilities in Poland. One is responsible for making parts for various models, while the other one makes commercial vehicle called Transporter. Main materials that company uses to produce cars are. Company intensively focuses on developing new technologies and innovation to become the most economical and ecological car producer in the world. Directly quoting words of board chairman, Martin Winterkorn it seems that company is aiming for the leader position within automotive industry. Till 2016 we would like to invest 62,4 mld Euro for Research Development to become number one. . Moreover, company aim also for renewable energy sources like water, wind and sun. German car manufacturer brings practical assistance service for example Park Lane, which make car seeking for space and park afterwards. Another example could be a Temporary Auto Pilot which control car under 130 km per hour. Together with Lane Assist car stays on same lane, so driver can do something else in same time. Above sentences proof that Volkswagen is consequently developing new technologies to make cars better, more ecological, more economical, more technology advanced and remaining affordable to every customer. Without doubts firm is one of the most leading if it comes to innovation in industry. (Volkswagen Technology). TASK 2 Inbound logistics: In general automotive industry right now is mainly using materials like steel, plastic, copper etc . By time going and constant innovation process and ecology care make this materials gets slowly substitute by other materials like aluminum, lithium and even cobalt. Volkswagen do not owe any mining subsidiaries therefore is addicted to suppliers. To secure production continuity company has to secure process of getting raw materials. That is why German manufacturer come up with raw materials strategy. This includes IT system called Central Procurement and Treasury System. Operations: An operation is the process of putting raw materials together and producing the final product. In this case Volkswagen operations process takes place in factories that company possesses. There are 94 production facilities in different locations. Company believes in systematic localization so productions plants can handle themselves the value added process. This process of international outsourcing allows reducing currency risks, transport and duties. Outbound logistics: This section focuses on delivering product to the retailers, outlets, stores or DTC. Firstly it is important to state that company has own logistics department called Volkswagen Logistics which deliver products to Volkswagen outlets. As it was stated before different productions facilities produces various parts and models. From those facilities cars are ready to be transported into outlets. Volkswagen Logistics uses mainly road transport and big trucks to transport ready to use products. Marketing and Sales: This section describes pricing, promotion and selling the final product within value chain. Volkswagen makes adverts spots independently. Usually spots describe specific product or new technology invented to the car. They are played on TV stations, Internet websites, YouTube. Social services where Volkswagen exists like Facebook and Twitter allow users to share experiences with Volkswagen brand. It is a great tool to create a relationship or brand loyalty with actual customers and acquire new one. http://www.coursework4you.co.uk/essays-and-dissertations/images/value-chain-fig1.jpg Figure shows a Value Chain SWOT analysis provides the strengths and weaknesses as an internal factor of the company and Opportunities and Threats for the external environment of the company. Any company has to change its strategic planning according to the SWOT analysis. SWOT analysis will also help the company to analyze the prospects after the acquisition of a Chinese car company. Strengths Volkswagen has strong position in the Chinese market as it has a long experience in this market. Volkswagen has a strong brand portfolio; a good mix of luxury models are included in its portfolio and German engineering with competitive pricing will make a big difference. Volkswagen has a strong research and development department which continuously works for the improvement in the quality, functionality and environmental compatibility. Volkswagen design team can come up with the customize design which will suit the customers of China. Weakness Poor performance in Africa and North America can be issue for concern for Volkswagen. Operational inefficiency and weaker productivity are other reasons for concern for Volkswagen as it has relatively low employee productivity compared to its competitors. Opportunities There is encouraging rate of growth in the Chinese car market. Chinese car market has reached $98 million in 2008. Market consumption has reached to 7.4 million units in 2008 which is an increase of 17.8% compared to previous year. The volume of market is expected to reach 13 million by year 2013 (Datamonitor, 2010). Threats Increase in the production cost due to the increase in the raw material prices. Increase in the government rules regarding the labor may also increase the prices. Increase in the competition may cause price wars due to which there will be fall in prices. There is enormous growth potential in the automotive industry in China and in the coming few years, various factors will derive the demand. There are enormous growth prospects in Chinas car market, the rate of car ownership is low and financial industry for automobiles is immature. As China is a developing country, its economy is expected to increase rapidly, it is least expected that the car industry will grow in a steady or balanced way. The car registration rate rose in 2002 and 2003 was 63% and 70% which were not sustained and the growth rate was moderate in 2004 with 16% and further modest in 2005. This slowdown of growth coincided with the huge investment in the productive field which led to the decline in the prices. However a utomotive sector recovered very strongly with the growth rate of 30% in 2006 and 24% growth rate in 2007 respectively (Automotive Industry Report, 2009). TASK 3 Marketing Mix for Volkswagen Brand For brand strategy of Volkswagen there is involvement of first P according to marketing mix is Product as described in model. The product in this model is defined as that combination of services and goods sell to the customers by the company or organisation in target market (Armstrong Kotler, 2005). From analysis it is found that product is also a part of Brand name. Design and quality are the main product features that possess variety in them. Here an example can be quoted for a brand of Volkswagen Touareg that has been sold in India comprises of a package of seating, engine, breaks and engine etc. (Volkswagen India, 2009). Hence for product strategy the company is equipped with variety and design in their products including warrant for them which in turn results in good response from the customers and make them satisfied and bring loyalty in them. The second P in this model if marketing mix is price. Price is of a product or service is defined as that amount which is paid by customer to the organisation or company for buying their products or services offered to them (Armstrong Kotler, 2005). While discussing the price strategy it has been found that there are 61 dealership offers high prices for the products to sell in India as compared to their rivals like Honda city and Ford, but there is variation that the company charge interest rate by 4.5 5.0 % instead of other rivals make with 8% or more as a loans given by banks or building societies of other rival car makers. This facility is attributed by the Volkswagen financial Services that aided to support the sales of the company to their customers. There is next P for the marketing mix is Place that is also very crucial in Brand management. The place usually referred to that place where there is availability of products of company to their customers. As in concerned to Volkswagen the company involved in using dealers and distributors for the purpose of the sales of their products. There are two modes for the dealers to get authorised either through franchised or direct ownership of company. For the company their network related to their dealers is very important and is maintained in a proper way because the product of the company are introduced through them to the customers, hence it is very important. In the views of Kotler 2005 the company usually share their losses and profits both with their dealers for purpose to maintain the quality of cost leadership. At present the Volkswagen has fine relationship with their dealers in India and also involve in the dealing of their products with Skoda with 61 leaders (Top News, 2010). The last and fourth one P is Promotion. The promotion has variance in their objectives that has to be achieved in market. The promotion is usually handled with the tool of advertisement. The promotions for customers are added through the advertisement that results in the excitement among them. The aim of promotion is to pull in target consumers. These promotions are based on the scheme of non profit but in turn results in the profit for the company (Bradley, 1993). For example the Volkswagen Company in year 2009 has launched a promotion named Pre Monsoon campaign published by Motor beam, 2009. This promotion is for the purpose to establish the brand of company India. In India the company offered a variety of range of services to their customers and fro this company is getting profit from the promotions of the company brand. Market development According to Reiziger (et al, 2003) when a company took entrance into a new market and launch themselves by introducing existing products this is came to know as the development of market, and the main aim of the company is to lure the customers from the their existing competitors in that exiting market i.e. new market. The company Volkswagen has got the entry into Indian market in 2007 by launching their product Jetta, then after two years in 2009 the company has launched two new cars in market with their existing brand using the brand value in market these cars are ionic beetle and the Touarge sedans (Volkswagen India, 2010). Diversification Again in the views of Reizger (2003) this is the entrance of any new company with having the launch of their new product under its own brand is termed to be diversification. This strategy is commonly recognised as most risky one as there is introduction of two new entities one is market and other one is product. For the Volkswagen diversification is not so risky, as it has already successfully launched a variety of cars in the market with its own brand and in accordance with its brand image and with every brand it has inched higher and created sense of the demand in the market on every launch of new products. Most currently the company has as innovation there are four new car that has gone to be launched in 2012 and these new coming products are SUVW, Couple, Up and Blue Sport (Volkswagen, 2010). CONCLUSION Volkswagen is a successful company with long history and well-known brand name. Firm tries to continue tradition from decade as a people car with putting innovation to it. Such successful company like Volkswagen is can aim for the bigger goals. With power and support of the Volkswagen Group firm has a chance to dominate automotive sector. Carried internal marketing and external marketing audit proofed that it is really hard to find a weakness within company structure. To remain successful on the market company have to use winning strategy. No matter what are the circumstances Volkswagen still have to put additional resources for research and development of the newest technology and maintain current labor power and structures within Human Resource Management. Make their products better and better in order to compete with other automotive companies. And finally deal with long term issues like how to substitute petrol. APPENDIX http://www.seeklogo.com/images/V/Volkswagen-logo-F2A46D9A81-seeklogo.com.gif http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT4wE65k57GIDmexFeoF3r7IHdy2mhBUw7aiyb79vnjeeZwYnfkdw Figure shows the 1st model of Volkswagen http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/1st-Volkswagen-Jetta-Sedan.jpg http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR7JKyGkitlyAsnNvL7B_q5aF5goOl8utO5su5BRnzWOVuRC5JJ Latest model of volkswagen

History of Mcdonalds Essay

Mcdonald is the world famous fast food restaurant. The idea of mcdonald’s was introduced by two brothers Mac (Maurice) and Dick (Richard) Mcdonald in California. their father Patrick Mcdonald in 1937 was having a hot dog cottage called as Airdrome restaurant near the airport. In 1940 the restaurant was renamed as Mcdonald’s Famous Barbeque. In 1940 both brothers came to a conclusion that most of their profit comes from selling hamburger so they made their menu very simple by selling only Hamberger,cheeseburger,soft drinks French fries and apple pie. in 1954 a turning point came in mcdonald’s brother history. Ray kroc a seller of Multimixer milkshake visited mcdonald and he liked the idea of mcdonald. Mcdonalds corporation was build in those times and as a result kroc started expanding their business by opening franchises for mcdonalds. 1960 mcdonald’s advertising campaign â€Å"look for the golden arches† gave mcdonald’s sale a big boost. 1965 mcdonald corporation went public. in 1968 mcdonal open its 1000th restaurant. 1974 mcdonalds started their business in UK and Newzealand. in 1980 mcdonalds was facing very big competition from its rival Burger King and Wendy but mcdonald with its innovation was experiencing boost in its sales. in early and mid ninties mcdonalds was having decline in their sales and as a result they start improving their business. taste was improved and some new menu items were introduced. Mcdonald introduced first Kosher Mcdonald in Jurusalam and Halal mcdonalds in india(1995 and 1996 respectively). mcdonald start creating healthy image and invested heavily on refurbishment in 2000’s. today mcdonald’s has more than 33000 outlets and is operating in 125 countries. it is the world leading brand in fast food. Mcdonald started their business in india in 1996. they start their business in india’s capital New delhi. they choose a busy residential area Vasant Vihar. Mcdonald India is 50-50 partnership between Mcdonald USA corporation and Two Indians (Amit Jatia Hardcastle Restaurant ltd Mumbai and Vikram Bakshi Cannaught plaza restaurant Delhi). Mcdonald as of now has 210 stores in india. majority of Indians are hindu and cows are sacred to them. for mcdonalds to sell beef was almost impossible. the second majority population is muslim and they eat Halal food. It was a big challenge for mcdonald’s as there were many protest against mcdonalds. So Mcdonald changed their menu according to local community for example they introduce Maharaja Mac instead of Bic Mac. their menu is full of some spicy products as we know that Indians use spice in their dishes in abundance. About 75 % of the menu of mcdonald’s has been indianised and specially designed to woo Indians. Mcdonald’s passed through some tough times but eventually managed to survive in that different culture and different religious belief. Mcdonald by now has a big presence in India and are trying to extend this ahead. over all mcdonalds serve more than 47 million customers every day. MACRO INVIRONEMT PEST analysis: Now I am doing PEST analysis of Mcdonalds. PEST analysis will give us deatails about Political,Economical,Sociocultural and Technological analysis and effects of these analysis on Mcdonald’s. I will be comparing both environments in USA and India. POLITICAL INFLUENCES: These are some influences a company doesn’t have any control of. USA politically is well suited for business of Mcdonalds. Mcdonlad is very popular in USA. But government is trying to control marketing of fast food because of health concern such as cholesterol,cardiovascular and obesity issues. Good relations in terms of creating jobs and tax revenue for government is a must to succeed in any market. India is very rich country in terms of politics. The world largest democracy is present in India. But being nationalist country they create some difficulties for foreign entries. Bhatiya Janata party is one of the leading Hindu national party and they are against fast food chains as they want to see only vegetarian restaurants in their country. Their party members always protest against fast food using meat in their menu. Big risk for Mcdonald’s is BJP.good news is that trends in India are changing and young people like to eat fast food. second good news is that India is changing slowly from nationalistic society to liberal mind set up and Congress party in power is the main prove of liberal society. Mcdonalds expanded very fast in the last decade. ECONOMICAL INFLUENCE: Economical variables such as currency exchange,employment,Interest rate,tax ratio and need of international supply. Most of the organisations depend on foreign supply of raw metarials for their products making. Currency exchange also have a great impact on any organistion. USA has a High tax ratio,Low unemployment developed country,dealing in internatonal currency (Dollars). Business for Mcdonalds in USA is already established and low risked but for india high unemployment rate,dealing in Rupees as currency and millions of people living below poverty line is a concern for Mcdonalds. but India is having a booming economy,low tax rate and availability of labour in abundance and development of middle class society in India is a positive sign for Mcdonald’s future. Sociocultural influences: Culture and society has a big impact on any organisation sales. Mcdonals in USA is serving a liberal society.religion has not much effect on Mcdonald’s. culture is very much simple. But in India society is very versatile. though India is heavily populated but still Hindu’s don’t eat meat,Muslim only eat Halal and they don’t eat pork. In India religion has a very big impact on society. For Mcdonald it is a big concern. But in India life style is changing,earning power is increasing,middle class is getting bigger in its size and people like to eat outside in restaurants this has a very good impact on society. Technological influence: One positive benefit of globalisation was technological advancement. Althogh Mcdond’s doesn’t use too many complicated machines in their food production but still they need highly competitive technology. technology is needed for example in supply chain management,order taking,Inventory control,easy and quick payment procedures . Use of technology can make management more reliable,effective and cost saving in short term as well as long term. Customers happiness after getting what they are looking for on time and in a deciplinery way make them come over and over again. in USA Mcdonalds use very effective and expensive technology to be in a very competitive position to their rivals. In india as franchises they use high technology. they use very good till system,good and deciplined order taking and well managed staff who knows the proper use of technologies inside the store. MICRO ENVIRONMENTAl ISSUES: Competitive Intensity: Competitive intensity of Mcdonald’s can be determined with Porter’s five forces. Porter five forces is business strategy formed by Michael E. Porter of Haward business school in 1979. he determined five forces which actually determines attractiveness of the market and competitiveness. these five forces are 1)Threats of new entrants. 2)Threats of substitute 3)Bargaining power of customer 4)Bargaining power of supplier 5)Competitive rivalry with in organisation. 1)Threats of New Entrance: Entry to a restaurant Business is very difficult. It is hard to make a prominent brand name. there is high research and development costs and high cost of entry. Strong brands already in competition make it more difficult such as Mcdonald’s,Pizza Hutt,Domino’s etc. New entrants face a very high competition in the start of the business. In USA and India both Entrance of new organisation is very difficult as explained above. 2)Threats of Substitute: The substitutes in this industry are very high. people can choose variety of products they can either choose Burger King,KFC,Indian Cuisine,Indian local shops,Indian Vegetarian restaurants. the same situation is faced by Mcdonalds in USA and all over the world. 3)Bargaining power of customers: Bargaining power of customes refers to pressure a customer can exert on a business to get good quality of food,good customer service and low price. Bargaining power of customer in this industry is low. As Mcdonalds provide a standard service,one price strategy and quality of food. Customers have low bargaining power through out the world in food industry. 4)Bargaining power of supplier : Bargaining power of buyer in this industry is low. situation can change if the main ingredients are not available. But with Mcdonalds simple menu and working with many supplier,they are not facing a big threat. so the bargaining power is relatively low. 5)Rivalry with in the organisation: Fast food restaurant industry is very competitive. the competition is so high as all the organisations want to get hold of customer base. Food industy all over the world has the same criteria because there are many small businesses operating in abundance and also top brands. Mcdonald’s knows about the customers taste and preferences all over the world. so they started Mccafe (morning breakfast). so Mcdonald’s is providing quality food from early morning till late night in order to get competitive edge In the market. Customer Characteristic: India is the second most populated country in the world. It has 28 states and almost 4 times the population of USA. India has more than one billion population. Three fourth of indian population lives in Urban areas. though per capita income is very low in india but still people like to spend on costly products and eating out. out of millions of households in India 49% lives on low income,30% lower Middle income,12% Middle income group, 5% Upper Middle income group and 4% high income group. comparing this with USA where middle income group is very high. consumers in India are highly family oriented. Mcdonald’s targets high income earner,Middle income earner and lower middle income earner in India. Indian consumer are getting brand awareness through internet,TV,Newpaper,Radio,Megazine etc. Middle income group is getting bigger in size day by day as a result of economic boost in India and that is very good news for mcdonald’s. Indian consumers are now getting environmental awareness. They like to use Eco-friendly products and Mcdonalds is very helpful in terms of packaging,and recycling. Family system gives a big chance for Mcdonalds to get their sale rise as Indians are buying food in bulks. Indian consumers are becoming very open minded which is a positive sign for Mcdonalds. For Mcdonalds to succeed as they are now,they should go to expand in urban areas as well as rural areas and target middle and lower income earners and beside this they should introduce certain products which can be afforded by low income earners. customers like spicy foods and Mcdonald has introduced many products which are spicy and tasting according to the preference of Indians. COMPANY ISSUES: Competitive Strategies: As we know fast food industry proved to be very competitive industry. Mcdonald’s from its day first has always tried to have strong competitive advantage over its rival. This is the only way for Mcdonald’s to survive in globalised environment. Mcdonald’s strong rivals KFC,Dominos,Pizza Hut and Subway are also operating in India as well as USA. In the fast food most important thing for some customers is how quickly you take order and ready the meal for customer. KFC and Jumbo King are offering very quick service to customers and in this way taking customers from Mcdonald’s . Mcdonalds has tried very well to overcome this advantage by making and readying its food as quick as possible. Mcdonalds is trying to improve its graph for customer satisfaction and they are investing heavily through out the world including India.mcdonalds uses Wi-Fi and they are trying to emphasise on demographic characteristic of its customers in the area. Each month mcdonald’s add some thing special in its menu. To check Mcdonald’s quality and reliability administration has developed a very unique idea of Gapbuster visiting Mcdonalds as mystery customer. They are expertise who comes in the form of a customer and after serving give credits scoring to the store. Mcdonald has introduced McBreakfast from 6 am to 11 am. Mcdonald’s in its competitive strategies is emphasising to target customers in the new urban areas. Mcdonald’s Indian menu offers very competitive strategy for Mcdonald’s. Vegetarian products,Halal and non vegetarian foods for its customer is a unique and successful idea in India. Kids like mcdonald’s in India as they are giving free toys to customers who buy happy meal deals. Mcdonald’s has actively invested in Discount vouchers given as a leaflets,newspapers,Magazines certainly is a good business strategy and it has boosted Mcdonald’s customer number,Business and sales. Diversification: Mcdonald’s has diversified product range in India and all over the world. Due to diversified nature of products Mcdonald’s is famous among masses. They offer McBreakfast,Lunch and Dinner,Coffee and many more diversified products. Now if Mcdonalds move to fully new business for example Hotel (McHotel) will be a concern. According to guardian news moving to totally new business will damage the image of Mcdonalds. If they are really interested they should do a partnership with another company. As Burger King has done it. landor marketing Director said move like this will certainly change the fundamentals of the company. Diversification can be revealed from Indian market. 75 % menu has been Indianised. Halal food for Muslims has been introduced. Mcdonald’s happy price menu in India,the 5p’s and flexible operating platform all shows Mcdonalds to be a diversified organisation. Organisational Structure of Mcdonald’s: Mcdonald’s has a centralised organisational structure. Centralised structure means the decision making comes from top management in the hierarchy and people on the floor are not contributing to the decision making. The decision making system is very much Bureucratic. In centralised structure main decisions are made by top level management. Mcdonald’s all over the world has the same structure and they have to follow all the decisions from the parents company as they are working as a franchise. Most oof the fast food chains (for example KFC,Burger King etc) have the same centralised structure. Centralised structure has some advantages and disadvantages. Advantages like Common policy all over the world can easily be revealed and practised. other parts of the Business are stopped from being too independent. central control is easy to handle. it has great Economies of scales. specialisation can be used greatly. Disadvantages include some time too much bureaucratic organisation leads to extra layers in hierarchy. it can reduce motivation in staff as we go down the hierarchy because of lack of involvement in decision making process. Customers are not benefited some times as there is a need of quick decision making. Standardisation Vs Adaptation: Standardisation: Mcdonald’s has a slogan. † Think globally and act locally†. Mcdonald’s sell standardised product. the taste make up,ingredients,looks,weight etc will be similar In one part of the world to the other part of the world. Cheese Burger in United Kingdom will taste similar to a cheese burger in USA. Think globally and act locally can be proved in India as Mcdonald’s in India has changed its menu list. Halal Burger and McVeggie burgers have been introduced looking to the customers believes in India. Similar experience has been exercised in Middle east and Fiji. In Middle east eating of Bacon is banned by government. Halal food is served in Middle east. McVeggie Burger in India will taste the same in comparison to McVeggie burger in Fiji. Mcdonald’s sell standardised products. All the products should be looking,tasting,weighing and prepared in the same way across the globe. McVeggie burger was prepared in India after Research and Development was condcucted purely in India. Adaptation: Mcdonald’s follows strategy of product adaptation. Mcdonald’s slogan †think globally and act locally† is the best example. the best example for mcdonald’s adaptation strategy will be India. Mcdonald’s cannot use beef Tallow to fry the fries and burger cutlets (Cows are sacred due to religious belief of Hindu’s). Bacon cannot be used in Middle east as they are Muslim countries and it is against their religious belief to eat pork. products are tailored according to the personal taste of the country people where it operates. Due to adaptation Mcdonald’s menu in various countries is different. Motivation for Market entry: Parent company of Mcdonald’s USA was aware of some facts that motivated them to enter Indian market. some of them are given below. The worlds second largest country by population after china. India’s population is 4 times more then USA. India call itself the most democratic nation in the world so it means all the decisions are made by parliament and not one person or dictator who can freeze assets for a company in any kind of bad relations emerging. Brand awareness is improving day by day,literacy rate is improving,middle class is getting larger,econonomy of India is booming (now counted in BRIC ‘s nations which means Brasil,Russia,India and China they are the fastest developing countries and future economic power),Unemployment is reducing,Laws are flexible for foreign businesses. all these facts contributed to motivation of Mcdonald’s to enter Indian fast food Market. Modes of Market entry: There are different ways a company can start opening their business in another country. for example Franchising,licencing,Joint Venture,wholly owned subsidiary etc. But Mcdonalds entry to India involved join venture and Franchising technique. Franchising is the right a firm acquires from another firm that allows them to do particular business activities, such as service or selling the good , under the name of a specific firm, e. g. McDonalds. in Franchising a company follows strict rules from its parent company. mcdonald’s have 210 stores in India. Mcdonald’s all over the world has almost 85% of franchises. the benefit of franchising is that in short period a company expands its business. the risk involved for parent company to move into another country and invest heavily can some times be too risky but when local people start doing it by themselves,the risk level is minimised. quality control is difficult with franchising. Although Mcdonald’s indian is a 50-50 joint venture company managed by indian. Performance: Much of retail is struggling in India but Mcdonald’s has been seen unaffected and its planning on accelerating its expansion on the Indian subcontinent. Mr Jatia who is managing half of the indian franchises said number of customer is jumping 10% to 15 % each month compared to a year ahead. people of India are now relying on Mcdonald’s. Mcdonalds adaptation policy has boosted its sales. Mcdonald’s annual sale through out the world is $29 billion annually. Burger king is the second largest fast food organisation in terms of sales and is strong competitive rival. Due to company having a customised menu in India Mcdonald’s is getting popular day by day. performance can be measured in terms of outlets opened by Mcdonalds in the past years.in 2010 and 2011 Mcdonalds opened 80 stores in India. In 2010 mcdonald’s sale improved by 30%. Vikram Bakshi MD Mcdonald’s India said the total sale of $29 billion doller Mcdonald’s india just accounts for 0. 37% of the whole sale. but the potential is so high and are expecting to get higher in future. Although Mcdonald’s is facing certain problems like roads are not in very good condition for transport,power supply shortage etc but still sales rise and customer satisfaction shows that Mcdonald’s in India is performing very well. Short,Medium and long term strategies employed: Strategy is a planning that is used by an organisation to achieve its goal and objectives. short term strategy starts from a minute to 6 moths,medium account from 6 month to a year and long term mean 5 years or more strategy. In short term Mcdonalds is trying to bring in innovation and make customer satisfy. day to day issues are planned to satisfy customers. New products are introduced each month. in medium term they are trying to maximise its profit and sales. In long run Mcdonald’s is planning to open new branches across india and indian Mcdonald’s sale which accounts only 0. 37 % of overall sale of Mcdonald to be taken to 0. 50 percent and more in the coming years. SWOT ANALYSIS SWOT analysis is a strategic planning method used to evaluate strength weaknesses,opertunity and threats involved in a project or in Business. SWOT analysis will give us a quick review of an organisation current status. Swot analysis for Mcdonalds in India Strength: Mcdonald’s is a market leader in the fast food industry. Mcdonald’s has a very strong brand image. Mcdonald has expanded its business to more than 125 countries with more than 33000 outlets through out the world.mcdonalds has one competitive advantage and that is Strategic location. In India they are located in busy shopping malls,Airports and busy drive through. Weaknesses: Mcdonald’s has created very successful brand image but the market segment is too focused on Kids. Mcdonald’s is often related to unhealthy food and obesity. Employee turn over rate is so high. these all are weaknesses of mcdonald’s in the world and India in particular. Opportunity: Mcdonald’s can introduce healthy food consisting of low calories items. they should put more efforts in Reseach and Development. Management should try find ways to reduce food wastage which leads to cost control. new products with different variety should be introduced to capture the market. Threats: Mcdonald’s is facing major competition from its rivals KFC and Burger King all over the world. In India local curry shops are offering great challenge to mcdonalds. Company rapid growth has made mcdonalds very velnerable to other contries economic slowdown. Press associating Mcdonald’s with obesity destroys Mcdonald’s image. mcdonald’s in the past has been sued for its unhealthy products.mcdonald’s should try and solve these problems by investing heavily and effectively in research and development. MARKETING MIX OR 4 P’s: Price,Product,Place,Promotion are collectively called as product mix. In order to meet organisational objectives product mix is considered to be very vital. it should be viewed as coordinated and interated package of benefits that shows the characteristics of customers and and related place. Product: product is the physical product or service that is offered to a customer. as we know that Mcdonald’s is very customer oriented and all their products are customised according to the local community.in order to succeed in market research has suggested that customers are always looking for innovation and new products. Mcdonald is famous for its product innovation. Mcdonald’s has introduced new products,removed old products and always looking for the better products so that customers are satisfied. mcdonald’s india majority of products are vegetarian products. Price: Price is a very important tools which identifies how reliable and qualitative a product is. when a customer is buying some thing He/she first draw in his/her own mind of what the product is worth of. If the price of a product is very low customer think quality is being promised. price should really ‘reflect brand and its integrity. Mcdonald’s products are classified in two categories,BA (Branded affordability) and BCV (Branded Core Value products)an example of BA is McAllo tikka and chicken Mcgrill burgers which cost consumer 20-30 rupees. BCV products mainly include McVeggie and McChicken Burgers that cost 50-60 indian rupees. Promotion: Promotion is a way by which company tries to communicate with public and make them aware of what the company is offering. One of the method is Advertisement. Advertisement is conducted on TV,Cinema,Internet,magazines,Poster site,press and radio. other ways of promotion includes direct mail,loyalty scheme,door drops and merchandising. Mcdonald’s is unique in the way they do promotion. In order to capture the market Mcdonald’s india has promoted well to improve its sales. Although advertising is expensive but the return is so high. Mcdonalds spends big part of its budget on promotion. Place: Place plays very important role in launching a product and making it successful. Mcdonald’s has expanded through out in India Urban areas. Mcdonald is currently targeting urban areas as we know that big part of population is living in urban areas. place doesn’t only include physical location but it is includes all the processes that eventually leads to product ending in customers hand. Place plays very important role in getting priority over the rivals and place should be selected after research on the local demography,income level and customers preferences. Mcdonalds in india chooses a particular place after long research and checking local area’s demographic characteristics,income level etc.this is the reason Mcdonalds is very successful in india. CONCLUSION: Mcdonald’s is considered to be the King of the fast food. To achieve this greatness Mcdonald’s has tried hard for ages to prove itself in the competitive environment of Fast food. The key factors in success of Mcdonald’s in my view is innovation,customisation,good management and above all best Marketing strategies adopted by Mcdonald’s. Mcdonald’s in India has a very bright future because of the customers bank,customised approach from Mcdonalds towards its customers and above all the strong brand Image.

Confused and DazedConfused and Dazed Essay

At the risk of sounding â€Å"clichà ©-ish†, in answering the question of whether or not I thought the theme of the play was all about a man who could not make up his mind, my answer would be yes. If ever there was a man who contemplated life until it absolutely absorbed him into a pitiful peace-less mind it was Hamlet. The above mentioned clichà © is from the ever famous Act III Scene I: To be, or not to be: that is the question: Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them?   Ã¢â‚¬ËœTo be, or not to be’ has been quoted, misquoted, used out of context, and has been said enough that little children will know the line before they know who Hamlet is. However, to further support my answer to the above question, man has contemplated life in many different ways. For Hamlet to say ‘to be, or not to be: that is the question’ is to say he is conveying all that has him perplexed. In those ten words lies more depth of thought than can be demonstrated in the writing of this essay. But, there is hope for mankind in that some have dared to answer the question, rightly translated ‘to live or not to live?’ Is it nobler to think or act? Does the act of thinking, (in the mind to suffer), lessen the blows of life that wealth and fame can bring? Hamlet would say it makes no difference. Hamlet is not the first man to set out to perform a specific task and get side-tracked by so many distractions that grab at the mind like children in a candy store. Is it nobler? One would have to define ‘nobler.’ A good example of his more righteous (nobler) thought was trying to decide, within this same passage, if dying would be a copout to living. If he thought he could be considered a noble man by dying, then he would certainly be obliged to do so. However, there were all those other thoughts nagging at him. One such thought, sidetrack or interruption is found when he comes into the room where his mother is crying because Claudius is upset with her. The ill Claudius was feeling, though, could not be compared to what Hamlet was feeling. In a scene that can only be described as confusion trying to make sense of chaos, Hamlet manages to kill someone he suspects is Claudius hiding behind the tapestry. In the one moment he decides to act, he blows it royally (no pun intended). It is worth the mention that Hamlet does get around to doing both what he had revenged to do to Claudius and himself. But, in the end of the play there is the notion that he still could not make up his mind. Laertes forgives Hamlet for his and his father’s death and was also concerned that Hamlet would not blame him either. Hamlet does it as only Hamlet could; in his dying breath, after all the time he spent contemplating life and death he says: â€Å"Had I but time—â€Å".

Healthcare Human Resource Management Essay - 2643 Words

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