Great Wall Motors in Australia - Case Study Example

Great Wall Motors in Australia (Insert Name) (Institution Affiliation) Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 1.0 Introduction 3 2.0 The Marketing Environment 4 2.1 Company Background 4 2.2 Micro Environmental forces 4 2.2.1 Customers 5 2.2.2 Clients 5 2.2.3 Partners 6 2.2.4 Competitors 6 2.3 Macro-environmental trends 7 2.3.1Political Factors 7 2.3.2 Economic factors 8 2.2.3 Technological Factors 8 3.0 Conclusion 9 References 10 1.0 Introduction Great wall has its origin in china where it stands as the second largest car exporter and the largest privately owned motor company in china. Since its launch in Australia in 2009, the company enjoys a large customer base with more than 80 dealerships network. The nationwide network of dealers has seen continuous expansion over the years, reporting nothing else but praises from car owners all over the country who enjoy the safety, reliable, technology and above all the great value offered by the Great walls. Also, the great has a well-earned reputation for playing loose and fast with other carmakers designs and is desperate to tap into the heart of the lucrative American and western car markets. This paper critically analyses how Great Wall Motors might influence various factors in the microenvironment in Australia. In addition, it identifies several macro - environment trends from the PESTL analysis that are believed will affect Great Wall Motors over the next 12 months in Australia and also explains ways in which Great Wall Motors can cope with the various trends in the macro environmental setting. The marketing environment in which the Great Walls motor company operates in Australia is classified as the macro-environmental, internal environment and micro-environmental factors. The macro - environment comprises the large -scale societal forces that influence the motor industry in which the marketer operates as well as all other industries (Elliott, Rundle-Thiele, & Waller, 2009). These factors include but not limited to the political, socio- cultural, economic, legal and technological frameworks which are commonly referred to as PESTEL forces. On the other hand, the micro environment is concerned with the forces and factors at play inside the industry in which the marketer operates. Both the macro and micro environmental forces lies outside the company’s reach. The company can only influence them but cannot directly control them. The paper will also discuss the internal factors affecting the Great wall motor company in Australia. The internal environmental factors refers to the parts of the organisation, the individuals and the process involved in creating, communicating, delivering and exchanging offerings that are valuable. The internal environments can be directly controlled by the company and understanding them will help the management in discovering the company weakness and strengths. 2.0 The Marketing Environment 2.1 Company Background The Great wall motor company is owned by Chinese investors but also has a public shareholding. The company was founded back in 1984 and its vision is becoming a major player in the car business across the globe. The company claims export to more than 120 countries. The great wall motors in Australia supports the submission by the FCAI but does not support access to information beyond what is already available and brand specific tools related to safety, security and environmental servicing and repairs. 2.2 Micro Environmental forces The micro environment consists of competitors, customers, clients and partners (Palmer, 2012). The Great wall motor company can only influence these factors but can never be able to control them. For instance, a company can advertise its products and educate the consumer in order to create awareness and attract more customers but the ultimate decision of purchasing the product or service depends on the customer himself. Here, we analyze the micro factor in details and outline how the Great Wall motors can influence each of them. 2.2.1 Customers The Great Wall motor company of Australia understands the needs of its customers. For many years, the company has enjoyed a good reputation, not only in Australia but in other parts of the world, for building reliable, tough and value for customer money vehicle. The company has sold more than thirty thousand vehicles in Australia alone since its launch in the country back in 2009. This shows that Great Motor Company enjoys a wide customer base. The popularity of the Great 4WD, X series SUV and V series Great Utes continues to grow among company’s customers. Customers of Great Wall motors in Australia have an opportunity of choosing where they want to have their vehicle repaired from a highly competitive repair market which includes strong price competition. Where there is no detriment flowing from the existing circumstances, it is not appropriate for the commonwealth to intervene in a market to distort the competitive nature of the market in order to benefit one set of market participants over another in any way that will have significant flow on effect. For example, the implication of the Australian consumer law on the re- birth of motor vehicles. 2.2.2 Clients The major clients of the great motor company include the customers who bring their vehicle for servicing and repairs. Constant quality improvement and introduction of new models are some of the key reasons that Great Wall motors in Australia is able to maintain a large client base and at the same time continue to post an increase in profits. 2.2.3 Partners Partners include logistic firms that help in describing all the processes involved in marketing of the GWM vehicles, the financiers, advertising agents and dealers. The Great Wall motors company has an extensive nationwide dealer network with more than 80 dealerships. The network continues to expand with the increase in demand of the Chinese vehicles due to the safety, reliability, technology in play and the great value offered to the consumer money. Furthermore, the Great Wall Motor is well equipped in terms of technology. The company’s partnership with tech firms such as BorgWarner, Bosch and Delphi puts it in a better place to further enhance its reputation around the globe. 2.2.4 Competitors While Great Wall Motor Company always reasons in terms of competing with the brand, a broader definition of competition can place the company in a strategic position to communicate, exchange create and deliver products that have great value (Wright, Clibborn & Lansbury, 2011). Chinese vehicles are not very popular in Australia. The Great Wall motors face fierce competition especially from the three largest vehicle manufacturers in Australia which includes: Ford Australia, which is a subsidiary of the Ford motor company, Holden limited which is a subsidiary of the General Motors Company and the Toyota motor corporation Australia. Other main competitors include Australia motor industry, Chrysler Australia, Mitsubishi Motors Australia, Nissan Australia, Renault Australia and Routes Australia among many others. The Great Wall Motor can gain a competitive advantage it its marketers focus on brand. The company has launched great cars which are capable of competing in the dynamic Australian market. Consumers often have alternative ways to accomplish their products and services needs. These same customer want or need can be satisfied by quite different products so it is up to the company to determine the best ways to attract the customers. 2.3 Macro-environmental trends The macro- environment factor could be basically considered at local setting, individual state, country or regional geographic level. There is a possibility a motor company to influence macro- environment factors. However, the macro factors will always remain beyond reach or control of the company (Palmer, 2012). The key macro environmental factors that the Great Wall motors will be required to consider in analysis of the market environment are: economic, political, socio- cultural, legal and technological forces. 2.3.1 Political Factors The political macro environment basically refers to the government policies that have an impact on the economy or a given industry in this case, the Great Wall motors. Various political decisions may have punitive consequences on the general operation in both local and international arena. Some political forces may influence the marketing decisions directly by forcing the company to: Lobby for favourable treatment at the government hands. Lobby for a light touch approach to industrial regulation. Generally, Australia enjoys a high political stability which provides an ample environment for the Great Wall Motors to market its brands freely. The Great wall motors only monitors the political issues in Australia but do not engage actively in politics. However, some automotive companies such as Ford Australia and Holden limited sometimes engage their massive resources in political affairs to try and influence the law makers. 2.3.2 Economic factors The economic forces refer to all the factors that influence the amount of resource organizations and people are willing to spend and the ways they deem right to spend it. This includes but not limited to changes in the taxation or its rates, regulation of interest rates, inflation changes, economic growth and changes in exchange rates. During the recent years, the volatile prices have been the most prevalent factor that has continued to affect major industries and shift the balance in the market (Cooney, 2010). There is also a fluctuation in the market returns which is highly expected to cause cylindrical price movement in the motor industry especially due to the recent global recession which majority of countries are in the process of recovering from its impact. As the global financial crisis continuously undermined various business investments since 2009, the demand for vehicle fell away dramatically since many people could not afford which was followed by ultimate economic slowdown in the major world economies such as china and the United States. Consequently the price of Chinese vehicle which were manufactured by Great Wall motors went up leading to a decrease in sales. 2.2.3 Technological Factors New processes that are effective, efficient and fast have emerged as a result of advancement in technological. Great Wall Motor Company has embraced the new technology in vehicle production and marketing. The marketers are able to frequently interact with the market, extensively and intimately than never before (Li, 2009). Use of new technology has also improved the efficiency of the production process. The advanced technology does not just change the behaviours and expectations of clients and customers but also has a huge effect on the way in which the dealers operate. This is mainly because the manufacturers, suppliers and the dealers are expected to be in constant electronic exchange with marketing organizations and agents on a daily basis. Despite the advances that are brought by the new technology, it can also pose a serious threat to the company if it lags behind. Toyota Motor Corporation has a reputation due to its lean production system and the cutting edge technology involved in its production process. To remain competitive, the Great Wall motor industry must ensure that it employs the latest production in the production process and also in the products themselves. 3.0 Conclusion In order to be able to influence the macro environmental forces, the Great Wall Motors must remain politically neutral but constantly monitor the Australian politics. The company should also shield itself from economic fluctuations and ensure it employees the latest technology in its production processes. The Great wall motors current level of shared information relevant to motor vehicle repair and maintenance is appropriate and adequate. The company has ensured that the necessary information that is required by independent repairers is available. This helps in increasing the customers’ trust and assurance since their vehicle need not to be repaired by the authorized dealers alone. Also, the company provides a wide range of repair and service manuals through a variety of distribution channels including online copies and suitable generic diagnostic equipment that can be purchased freely. This ensure that the services are reliable and available nationwide. References Cooney, R. (2010). Workplace training in a deregulated training system: Experiences from Australia’s automotive industry. Economic and Industrial Democracy, 31(3), 389-403. Elliott, G., Rundle-Thiele, S., & Waller, D. (2009). Marketing. Austria: John Wiley & Sons Australia, Limited. Li, Z. (2009). The role of international technology transfer in the Chinese automotive industry. Manufacturing Management Research Center, discussion paper series, (269). Palmer, A. (2012). Introduction to marketing: theory and practice. OUP Oxford. Wright, C. F., Clibborn, S., & Lansbury, R. D. (2011). Becoming an endangered species? The future viability of Australian automotive manufacturing. International Journal of Automotive Technology and Management, 11(2), 172-188. Read More