Marketing Plan For Ingogo: Segmentation, Targeting And Positioning
Situational Analysis
The marketing plan of an organization forms an essential part of the marketing strategy. A marketing plan goes a long way in helping the organization to plan for the future and to decide the manner in which the specific product will be launched in the specific market and which consumer group will it be targeting at large (Armstrong et al., 2015). The given report is based on the marketing plan of the company Ingogo. The assessment is a continuation of the previous assessment whereby the situational analysis of the service was done and the blue print for the marketing plan had been laid down.
Ingogo is an Australian company which has a specialization in online booking of taxi as well as payments. The system runs on an Android application on the smartphones. The application is customized for the riders as well as the drivers. The company has its services in different cities like Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Melbourne and Sydney. The report will lay down a recap of the Situational Analysis which will then be followed by a Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning Approach and the marketing as well as the financial objectives (McDonagh & Prothero, 2014). The third part of the report will lay down a detailed strategy mix and an action plan along with certain budget allocations based on the same (Kim & Mauborgne, 2014). The brand aims to make the service more popular throughout Australia in order to increase their market share.
In the previous assessment, the given situational analysis had been done.
Strengths:
Ingogo has the following strong aspects which makes it unique:
- Low fixed investment: The fixed investment which is required to be made is minimum.
- Emphasizes on customer satisfaction: The firm looks out to seek customer satisfaction which then assists in the achievement of various objectives.
- Dynamic pricing strategy: The pricing strategy of Ingogo is dynamic in nature which makes it competitive against its competitors (Coombes & Nicholson, 2013).
- Adaptive in nature: The business model is adaptable in nature and can be changed easily.
Weaknesses
The main drawbacks of the business are as follows:
- Dependency on Man power: The business is highly dependent on man power which might increase their power.
- Dependency on the Internet: The business is dependent on the internet connectivity which can stall the operations (Ingogo.com.au. ,2018).
- Caters to Tech Savvy target market only: The target market of the brand is quite limited in nature.
Opportunities
- International expansion: Ingogo can expand internationally.
- Alternate transport modes: It can come up with alternate modes of transportation.
- Poor government transport: The brand can take advantage of the poor government transportation system (Czinkota & Ronkainen, 2013).
Threats
- Brand switching: The customers can change their preferences easily as the brand switching cost is quite low
- Low profit margins: The profit margins of the company are comparatively low.
- Competition: Ingogo faces competition from various international players like Uber.
In order to form a well-developed marketing plan, it becomes extremely important for the business to have a strategic STP Approach. The Strategic STP Approach goes a long way in helping the firm to target the correct customers and use the correct positioning strategy for the firm. Ingogo currently operates in five different cities and hence, it would like to expand in more, for this reason it has to undergo a specific Segmentation, Targeting as well as a Positional approach (De Mooij, 2013).
The segmentation can be rightfully described as the procedure of segmenting the market into homogenous groups which share the same characteristic and the same features (Kotler, 2015). This goes a long way in making the entire procedure of business very easy and goes a long way in assisting the firm to concentrate on specific groups so that it becomes easy for them to carry out their marketing activities.
Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning Approach
The Ingogo taxi services segments the market based on the following:
- Based on geographical segmentation: Based on geographical segmentation, the Ingogo taxi company targets the metropolitan cities. This is because, it wants to cover the metropolitan areas first and then move forward towards the other areas. By using this technique, Ingogo will be successfully able to ensure that it covers all the crucial cities of Australia (Martelo Landroguez, Barroso Castro & Cepeda-Carrión, 2013).
- Based on needs: Based on the needs, Ingogo has segmented its market on the basis of those customers who commute to workplace or other destinations daily and would like to book a taxi and reach in a luxurious manner (Martelo Landroguez, Barroso Castro & Cepeda-Carrión, 2013).Moreover, in cases where the consumers will not be able to make use of Governmental transportation, they will be using Ingogo taxis for the same.
- Based on lifestyle: The third segment is the group which enjoys travelling conveniently and in style. These group of consumers do not want to go through the struggles of the governmental transportation services and for this reason, they choose to use travel
- Based on demographics: Based on the demographical segmentation, Ingogo will be targeting the audience which has an annual income more than $50000 because this is the target market who will be able to afford travelling in a taxi.
After the segmentation of the market has been done in the previous section, the following section of the paper will be stating down the target market of Ingogo.
- Middle to upper incomed professionals: The primary target market of the brand will be the middle to upper incomed professionals. These professionals want an easy mode of transportation which will take them to the offices and their workplace (Kiel, 2014).This relieves the burden of engaging in unnecessary car travels and lowers the pollution as well.
- University students: The next set of target market for Ingogo are the university students. The university students can make use of the easy options and offers available with the help of which they will be successfully able to reduce their costs and along with this they will also be able to save time (Wilson et al., 2016).
- Mid to Large sized organizations: The mid to large sized organizations can also be targeted. These firms often provide transportation facilities to the different employees and hence, through the marketing campaign, Ingogo can target this group and thereby ensure that they are successfully able to form a deal with these companies and then increase its target base (Hartley & Claycomb, 2013).
The firm wants to position itself as a customer friendly and cheap taxi option for the different users. Its primary motive is to provide the different customers with a comfortable yet affordable ride (Johnson, Christensen & Kagermann, 2018). For this reason, Ingogo wants to follow a differentiated positioning strategy whereby it aims to create a sustained demand for the product and thereby ensure that the firm is easily able to achieve its objectives.
The objectives in a marketing plan go a long way in assisting the business to achieve its target and thereby helps in laying down certain goals which will foster decision making in the long run.
The marketing objectives of the firm are as follows:
- To increase the brand popularity of Uber over the next 1 year
- To ensure maximum application downloads over the next 1 year
- To enhance customer relationships and offer them with loyalty programs.
The financial objectives of the firm are as follows:
- To ensure that the brand is able to make sales worth $ 2 million in the next year
- To serve around 50000 customers every month for the next one year
- To achieve an ROI of 20% in the coming year.
The marketing mix strategy can be rightfully defined as the strategy which is adopted by the firm in order to appeal to the designated target audience. The marketing mix strategy of Ingogo can be described as follows:
Product: The product which is being offered by Ingogo is the transportation service. The business provides the opportunity to ride a taxi using mobile applications or the desktop website. The cab service which is provided by Ingogo makes the transportation very easy. Moreover, various product options like Wifi enabled cars and pool car and other sharing options are also provided to the consumers (Baker & Saren, 2016). It is the aim of Ingogo to provide customer satisfaction to the users and provide them with a unique experience.
Price: The pricing strategy forms an essential part of any marketing strategy because the price forms the basis of the sales. The Ingogo application makes use of the Surge pricing policy along with other differential rates system based on different areas and different timings of the day. The primary purpose of Ingogo is to provide the different customers with a different experience which will enable them to perform well in the given segment (Hair Jr & Lukas, 2014). Moreover, Ingogo can make use of the Penetration pricing strategy in order to ensure that the customers are not exploited by the local transportation mediums (Kumar & Bhimasingu, 2015). In addition to this, the main aim of Ingogo is to provide a comfortable ride to the passengers at an affordable price.
Marketing and Financial Objectives
Place: The place aspect of the marketing mix is generally concerned with the geographic segmentation criteria. As it can be observed from the given analysis done, Ingogo operates in the metropolitan cities because this tends to increase the chances of the firm to increase the revenue base (Babin & Zikmund, 2015). Moreover, this also provides the brand with an opportunity to get more number of drivers as well as the passengers in order to provide a luxurious transportation facility to the customers.
Promotion: The Ingogo taxi services uses various promotional techniques in order to promote the product through various techniques like word of mouth technique, partnership with local hotels and local companies as well (McDaniel & Gates, 2013). In addition to this Ingogo makes use of a unique marketing paradigm by making the use of which the organization is easily able to provide discounted rides to the different consumers and allure them to make use of the chosen ride (Gummerus, 2013). Moreover, Ingogo will now make use of social media techniques and other related techniques to attract the desired target market.
Action plans form a crucial part of the Marketing Plan of an organization and thereby go a long way in helping a firm to form strategies as well as tactics which will assist the organization to achieve its objectives as well as carrying out successful implementation of its marketing mix elements and plans. The given plan has been formed for a period of one year.
|
Sr. No |
Activities |
Key Metrics |
Time frame |
Person Responsible |
Cost |
|
1 |
The first activity which will be performed will be that certain promotional videos and pictures will be uploaded from various social media platforms with the help of certain influencers. |
The increase in the number of follows on social media platforms. |
3 months |
Brand manager Social media manager. |
$ 22000 |
|
2 |
The next activity will be to create a buzz in the market using promotional techniques like print media along with internet and mobile advertising |
Increase in the number of bookings being made by the different consumers. |
2 months |
Marketing Manager Social media expert |
$17000 |
|
3 |
The third strategy or a tactic is to organize a context which will be linked to the social media. This will then go a long way in assisting the firm to attract new customers who can participate and then retain with the firm. |
The number of participants who will be engaging in the contest. |
1 month |
Brand manager Marketing Manager |
$12000 |
|
4 |
The next step of the strategy is to launch a digital advertisement clip which will be available on the television as well as the social media channels like YouTube and other movie channels. |
The increase in the number of bookings to be made. |
3 months |
Marketing manager Brand manager Event planner |
$11000 |
|
5 |
The company will be using trade partners and other related sponsorship techniques in order to make their presence felt in the chosen market. |
Increase in the number of customers and the bookings being made. |
3 months |
Marketing manager Brand manager Social media manager |
$16000 |
Refer to Appendix 2
The marketing plan serves as a blue print for the success of the organization and therefore, in order to measure whether the company is going on the right path or not, certain evaluation criteria’s will be required to be set down which shall then assist the organization in ensuring that the plan is successful or not (Gronroos, 2016).
The evaluation criteria which has been set for Ingogo can be given as follows:
- In the first six months around 25000-30000 customers per months should at least be served.
- Moreover, by six months the company should have earned 0.7-1 million $.
The financial indicators which shall assist in understanding the success of the investment will be as follows:
- Revenue generated: The revenue which shall be generated shall be an indicator of the success as achieved by the organization.
- Return on Investments: The Return on Investment can also be described as a useful method which can be used in order to understand the return which the firm earns on investments.
|
CAMPAIGN TYPE |
QTY |
PROJECTED COST PER UNIT |
PROJECTED SUBTOTAL |
|
|
National Marketing |
SUBTOTAL |
$ 4,800.00 |
||
|
Banner Ads |
6 |
$ 800.00 |
$ 4,800.00 |
|
|
$ – |
||||
|
$ – |
||||
|
Local Marketing |
SUBTOTAL |
$ 3,700.00 |
||
|
Newspaper |
3 |
$ 700.00 |
$ 2,100.00 |
|
|
In-Store Marketing |
4 |
$ 300.00 |
$ 1,200.00 |
|
|
POP |
2 |
$ 200.00 |
$ 400.00 |
|
|
$ – |
||||
|
Public Relations |
SUBTOTAL |
$ 6,500.00 |
||
|
Public Events |
5 |
$ 1,000.00 |
$ 5,000.00 |
|
|
Sponsorships |
$ – |
|||
|
Press Releases |
10 |
$ 150.00 |
$ 1,500.00 |
|
|
Webinars |
$ – |
|||
|
Conferences |
$ – |
|||
|
Client Events |
$ – |
|||
|
$ – |
||||
|
Content Marketing |
SUBTOTAL |
$ 7,000.00 |
||
|
Sponsored Content |
$ – |
|||
|
Landing Page |
7 |
$ 1,000.00 |
$ 7,000.00 |
|
|
White Papers / eBooks |
$ – |
|||
|
$ – |
||||
|
Social Media |
SUBTOTAL |
$ 10,200.00 |
||
|
|
20 |
$ 150.00 |
$ 3,000.00 |
|
|
|
20 |
$ 150.00 |
$ 3,000.00 |
|
|
|
10 |
$ 150.00 |
$ 1,500.00 |
|
|
|
10 |
$ 150.00 |
$ 1,500.00 |
|
|
Google+ |
4 |
$ 150.00 |
$ 600.00 |
|
|
|
4 |
$ 150.00 |
$ 600.00 |
|
|
Online |
SUBTOTAL |
$ 2,000.00 |
||
|
Blog |
4 |
$ 500.00 |
$ 2,000.00 |
|
|
Website |
$ – |
|||
|
Mobile App |
$ – |
|||
|
Mobile Alerts |
$ – |
|||
|
Email Newsletter |
$ – |
|||
|
$ – |
||||
|
Advertising |
SUBTOTAL |
$ 12,200.00 |
||
|
Online |
3 |
$ 2,500.00 |
$ 7,500.00 |
|
|
|
2 |
$ 850.00 |
$ 1,700.00 |
|
|
Outdoor |
$ – |
|||
|
Radio |
$ – |
|||
|
Television |
2 |
$ 1,500.00 |
$ 3,000.00 |
|
|
$ – |
||||
|
$ – |
||||
|
Web |
SUBTOTAL |
$ 6,000.00 |
||
|
Development |
1 |
$ 6,000.00 |
$ 6,000.00 |
|
|
Pay-Per-Click Marketing |
$ – |
|||
|
SEO |
$ – |
|||
|
$ – |
||||
|
$ – |
||||
|
Market Research |
SUBTOTAL |
$ 3,200.00 |
||
|
Surveys |
4 |
$ 800.00 |
$ 3,200.00 |
|
|
Impact Studies |
$ – |
|||
|
$ – |
||||
|
Sales Campaigns |
SUBTOTAL |
$ 5,500.00 |
||
|
Campaign A |
1 |
$ 5,500.00 |
$ 5,500.00 |
|
|
Campaign B |
$ – |
|||
|
Campaign C |
$ – |
|||
|
Campaign D |
$ – |
|||
|
Campaign E |
$ – |
|||
|
$ – |
||||
|
Other |
SUBTOTAL |
$ 3,400.00 |
||
|
Premiums |
3 |
$ 800.00 |
$ 2,400.00 |
|
|
Corporate Branding |
$ – |
|||
|
Business Cards |
10 |
$ 100.00 |
$ 1,000.00 |
|
|
Signage |
$ – |
|||
|
$ – |
||||
|
Total |
$ 78,000.00 |
Conclusion
Therefore, from the given marketing plan it can be rightfully understood that the marketing strategy forms an essential strategy of an organization which can be used to increase the awareness of the brand among the consumers. The given marketing plan based on the Ingogo taxi service android application which is based in Australia. The plan follows a systematic format whereby the different marketing mix strategies which can be adopted by the organization have been laid down along with the appropriate STP Model. This is then followed by the objectives which have been set down and the budgetary implications along with the action plan.
References
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Babin, B.J. & Zikmund, W.G. (2015). Exploring marketing research. Cengage Learning.
Baker, M.J. & Saren, M. eds. (2016). Marketing theory: a student text. Sage.
Coombes, P.H. & Nicholson, J.D. (2013). Business models and their relationship with marketing: A systematic literature review. Industrial Marketing Management, 42(5), pp.656-664.
Czinkota, M.R. & Ronkainen, I.A., (2013). International marketing. Cengage Learning.
De Mooij, M. (2013). Global marketing and advertising: Understanding cultural paradoxes. Sage Publications.
Gronroos, C. (2016). Service Management and Marketing: Managing the Service Profit Logic. John Wiley & Sons.
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Kiel, I.H. (2014). Entrepreneurial marketing. Pearson.
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