Week 5 Marketing Communication and Brand Strategy

BMW Company

BMW Group (n.d.) highlighted the origin of BMW trickles back Karl Rapp and Gustav Otto. In the year 1916, there was the merging of Flugmaschinenfabrik Gustav Otto Company to Bayerische Flugzeug-Werke (BFW) at government behest. Relatively, in the year 1917, the Rapp Motorenwerke had evolved to Bayerische Motoren Werke (BMW) GmbH before becoming an AG; Public Limited Company in the year 1918 (BMW Group, n.d.).

The Product Life Cycle

The Living Media (2017) highlighted that this cycle has four stages.

Introduction Stage

The source observed is the most expensive stage of a company that seeks to introduce a new product, and BMW is no exception. Before starting off this stage, it is worth determining the needs of the consumers to come up with a product that satisfies such desires. The Automotive Intelligence (2007) notified the efforts to ensure there are no mistakes made in the introduction stage, BMW had even set a location. Engineering Centre (FIZ) in Munich which serves as a site for all people brought together for the purpose of developing a product, suppliers included; this was a requirement to determine the characteristics of the target market.

Demographic -Characteristics

Abougomahh (2005) stated the demographic characteristics are the reflection of the elements, for example, the size of the population and its features. These features of the community may stand for the age, marital status and the education of the particular target market (Abougomahh 2005). In manufacturing a vehicle, BMW must take cognizance of these aspects concerning the market they target. Nica (2013) informed that the BMW's i8 targeted the consumers who were mostly men and of the age of 35 years old. On the other hand, if targeting families, there would be a replication of the same in the design of a vehicle.

Psychographic Segmentation

Lamb, Hair, ad McDaniel, (2009) opined that these characteristics stand for the aspects touching on the personalities, motives and even the lifestyles of the consumers. It is worth highlighting that when it comes to BMW, there is the reflection of the same with regards to the designs of their products. Getting back to the BMW's i8 the same vehicle targets the individuals who are tech-savvy; not only like to enjoy the experience of driving but also express caution concerning the responsible driving (Nica, 2013).

The analysis of the psychographic and the demographic aspects help in the better understanding of the consumer needs and the replication of the same in the modeled designs of vehicles.

The Growth Stage

One thing that stands out is that there is the aspect of the growth in the sales and the same on profits. The Living Better Media (2017) highlighted that the reason behind this growth is the ability of the company in question to consider economies of scale in production resulting in the profit margins. In the case of BMW, Stark (2016) highlighted that in less than a decade, there was the doubling of the sales posted by BMW.

Maturity and Decline Stage

Maturity stage is the establishment of the product, and the company in question aims at the maintenance of the created market share (Living Better Media, 2017). Kaser (2013) highlighted that there are no strategies for all stages of the product cycle on the part of BMW and the firm had eliminated the maturity stage in their product cycle.

Decline stage, stands out is the shrink in the market of the product as a result of the market saturation owing to an increase in competition; with the decline in sales and relatively in profits, the choice that BMW has for this stage is the removal of the product from the market (Kaser, 2013).

Product and Promotion

BMW is a globally known company, and in most cases, the consumers have a softer spot for the widely known firms and their products. The desire of association in the sales and profit margins, there is the need to provide a personal touch to the consumers. The best mode of promotion would be the direct marketing; this technique would entail the commercialization of the BMW product through visual, audio and print medias where the consumer would have a direct contact with such as the radios, televisions, and newspapers. It would also be crucial to use other methods such as the emails and personal messages to the existing customers.

Positioning Strategy

The strategy shall be in such a manner that it touches on at least one aspect of the target market in such a manner that it upholds differentiation from the other offerings in the market. One aspect is the use of the family while making adverts for the newly introduced BMW products, as a family it is an essential element of societies.

Conclusion

There shall be the offering of customer service at BMW the importance it deserves. Relatively, the addressing of the complaints shall be prompt and at the convenience of the consumer. The measure of how successful the method is would be through the reflection in the sales and profit margins. As a BMW customer, I am pleased not only with their product but also the service and outcomes from their business.

Comments:

Measurability is an important element of market segmentation. Though a new segment is identified, without knowing just how many potential consumers it encompasses, it may not be worth the risk. Commercial advertising, changes in product placement and jumbling price points all come with a price tag to the marketer. If the amount of consumers, and the potential purchasing power of those consumers, cannot be measured, the marketer cannot accurately create a marketing budget to target the segment. Reference: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/four-elements-market-segment-18554.html

References

Abougomaah, N. H. (2005). Marketing: Arab and foreign perspectives. Al-Horria: Arab Administrative Development Organization

Automotive Intelligence, (2007). " BMW: Product Development." Retrieved from http://www.autointell-news.com/european_companies/BMW/bmw-engineering/fiz.htm Accessed on 6/26/2017

BMW Group (year). "Establishment of BMW." Retrieved from https://www.bmwgroup.com/en/company.html Accessed on 6/26/2017

Kaser, K., & South-Western Cengage Learning. (2013). Advertising & sales promotion. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning

Lamb, C. W., Hair, J. F., & McDaniel, C. D. (2009). Essentials of marketing. Mason, Ohio: South-Western

Living Better Media, (2017). "Product Life Cycle Stages ." Retrieved from http://productlifecyclestages.com/ Accessed on 6/26/2017

Nica G., (2013). "BMW's i8 -now has a Target Demographic ." Retrieved from https://www.autoevolution.com/news/bmws-i8-now-has-a-target-demographic-64839.html Accessed on 06/26/2017

Stark, J. (2016). Product lifecycle management: Volume 2.

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�Consumer market characteristics can also be psychographic in nature. Psychographic characteristics of consumers include interests, activities, opinions, values and attitudes. Obviously, many magazines are geared toward a consumer's interest. For example, prenatal magazines target expectant mothers who are interested in learning more about caring for a baby. Additionally, consumer activities can include participation in martial arts or basket weaving. Opinions and attitudes can be either specific or general. A company may better understand consumer opinions and attitudes after conducting a focus group, and can use that information to tailor advertising or marketing campaigns. Consumer values can pertain to how a group of individuals feels about certain social issues, which can be of interest to nonprofit or charitable organizations. Reference: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/characteristics-consumer-markets-1418.html

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Introduction: Your primary goal during this stage is not to make a profit. Instead, you want to let customers know what your product does, and why it is special.

Growth: The growth stage is all about increasing sales and gaining consumer loyalty. Distribution should be intensive during this phase to get the product out to your entire consumer base.

Maturity: During the maturity stage, you will seek to maintain market share and extend your product's life cycle.

Decline: During the decline stage, demand for your product decreases along with both price and profit margin. Now, you have three choices: maintain the product and hope competitors do not, harvest the product and continue making profit as long as possible, or discontinue the product.

Reference: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/concept-product-life-cycle-1433.html

�A key part of product positioning is to associate the product with specific benefits that interest members of your target market. When consumers believe your product delivers these benefits, they're more likely to buy the product. For effective product positioning, the customer has to derive the promised benefits once he has purchased the product.

For example, you can promote a drink as refreshing and show people drinking your product after working hard. If your promotion is persuasive, consumers will buy your product and drink it when they have completed a difficult task. If the customers find that your product does in fact refresh, your positioning has been effective. Reference: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/impact-product-positioning-consumers-70000.html

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