Marketing Plan for Easy Coach Bus Limited - Case Study Example

Executive summary The introduction of a new product is a hectic yet equally important activity for the profitability objective of any proprietor. This business plan therefore seeks to introduce and market a new company, Easy Coach bus limited. The company that boasts a fleet of long distance buses seeks to access the American market by offering alternative commuter bus services thereby linking various cities and states within the country. The marketing plan therefore outlines various marketing operations that will not only introduce the company in the particular market but also earn the company a substantial share of the market capable of sustaining the operations and earn the company desirable profits. The plan discusses the factors that are likely to influence the operations of the company in the particular industry and the company’s management of such factors. The marketing plan includes active marketing of both the company and its products for three consecutive years after which an assessment of the marketing will help determine the profits earned and the return to the shareholders. This will therefore help introduce changes to the marketing strategies. Introduction Easy Coach is a new company entering the transport industry. Headquartered in New York, the company seeks to ply various routes linking major cities within the country. The industry is already crowded with various operators including air travel, the commuter train among many others that have increased the accessibility of various regions within the country. Regardless of the current state of the market, Easy coach limited seeks to carry out extensive marketing in order to achieve a substantial share of the market thereby safeguarding the profitability objective desired by the stakeholders of the company. The marketing plan analyses the factors that are likely to affect the operations of the new company. This will include the activities the marketing department will employ in order to win a desirable market for the company thereby positioning it strategically. Environmental analysis The public transport industry in the United States is one of the busiest but equally potential. With a developed aviation industry and an equally busy road transport, Easy Coach is entering an already busy market. Competition is therefore likely to heighten with the introduction if the new company (Kent & Tara, 2011). Unlike other bus companies already operating in the marketing, Easy Coach will adopt a new market entry strategy. With the diversification of its services, the company will target a wider market thereby safeguarding its profitability. Long road journeys are adventurous in nature, the company therefore seeks to introduce the tourism aspect into road travel thereby target a specific section of the market that will sustain its profitability. In addition to this, the company promises comfortable, luxurious and spacious sitting cabins for its passengers while charging a competitive fee for such services. This way, the company will develop a name for itself within the first few days of operations. Among the factors that will affect the operations of the company, include political and legal factors. Movement across the states in the United States is guaranteed in the country with all the companies enjoying a similar tax regime throughout the states. The company will therefore comply with the government policies as stipulated in the company management act include compliance with the local taxation regimes. The company will also obtain licenses from the national transport safety board among other fundamental stakeholders in the industry. Insurance services are among other equally important legal policies that will influence the operations of the company. Besides the already discussed legal factors above, the company promises compliance with the successive policies that the dynamic political and legal sphere in the country may enact in the future. The law makers seek to protect the interests of the populace and compliances with such policies is therefore paramount. Economic factors will also affect the operations of the company. Development in the country’s economy will definitely affect the operations of the company. Among such may include economic crises that affect the liquidity of the economy. Additionally, economic policies in the country will also affect the profitability of the company, such policies as those affective the interest rates charged by financial institutions in the country will affect the company’s desire for growth and expansion. The same is the case with policies that affect the financial status of the population. These affect their purchasing power and may therefore influence their decision to seek the services of the company. The company will therefore vary the prices of its service bouquets in order to accommodate the fluctuating economic factors thus maintaining a steady flow of profits to the company. Technological and sociocultural factors are likely to affect the operations of the company. The buses will require specific technical features in order to safeguard the comfort and luxury standards the company envisions for its buses. The fact that technology changes regularly will therefore affect the type of busses the company purchase in order to sustain the company’s dedication to class, comfort and adventure. Social and cultural factors on the other hand will affect the demand for the company’s services. The American population demand high quality and safe transport services. The company will therefore tailor its operations to the changing social and cultural factors that may affect access for the company’s services. The primary target for the company’s marketing endeavors is a family member with a purchasing power. Such may include either of the parents who have an income and therefore makes purchasing decisions. As explained earlier, the company seeks to introduce an adventurous approach to road travel a feature that makes the company’s services appropriate for families visiting out of state. The target market will therefore help influence the profitability of the market. The marketing campaign should therefore employ appropriate media that will ensure that the company influences the target market. The secondary target for the company will include members of the public with travel needs. Such may include students travelling back to school or business executive traveling out of state to attend business meetings in other states within the country. The media selected by the marketing department should therefore reach both the primary and secondary market in order to improve the effectiveness of the marketing endeavors. Branding strategy Developing a brand is an equally important marketing role that will influence the profitability of the company. The company must position its services strategically in order to win over a substantial part of the market. This will include the name of the company, the company logo and a brand-positioning slogan. The name Easy Coach is marketable and tells more about the company. The name oozes comfort and class required by most travelers. The slogan “Getting you there in comfort” further supports the claim instigated by the name of the company. Adverts should therefore carry the two concurrently in order to make a lasting impression on the target market. The slogan, the name and even the logo must communicate specific features of the services the company promises. The three must also remain memorable thereby easily positioning the company in the market. Coupled with appropriate corporate colors, the company will easily develop a competitive brand. Performance analysis Analysis of the performance of the marketing plan will depend on the sale of the company’s services. An effective marketing campaign should reach the target audience effectively within the set time. An advert for example must reach a target audience and earn the marketer a feedback. On the internet, the marketing team should assess the traffic on the website as customers preview the services the company offers. The preview of a website should lead the customers to book the services of the company (Blackshaw, 2008). The website should also therefore market the services of the company and promises effectiveness of wooing customers for the company. This implies that the website should have a simple interface that does not lose the customers. The marketing team will therefore assess the number of customers the company receives on both the internet and the physical book systems to assess the effectiveness of the various marketing features the team will employ. SWOT analysis The company boasts diverse service bouquets. These will include busses that accommodate the middle class and those of higher classes targeting the wealth in the society. Coupled with numerous routes, the company will therefore have a wider market a feature that provides an effective platform for the company to carry out effective market research. The only weakness the company has is its late entry into a market with already established monopolies. The company enjoys numerous opportunities from the market key among which are the large population and the large country that provides the company with a large market and demand to meet. This gives the company an opportunity to develop a brand and therefore win a share of the market. The greatest challenge on the other hand is the competition that the company will face. From the fast jets and planes to the effective rail, transport that offers equally luxurious services the company will also compete against other bus companies throughout the region. The intense competition will therefore compel the company to introduce an effective and unique service in order to win over the target market (Kotler & Kevin, 2010). Finally, the marketing strategy for the company entails various campaigns each promising a substantial share of the market. Running for three years, the campaign will comprise of various media campaigns in radios and television both advertising the services of the company to the public. The company will also maintain a dedicated website through which it will not only advertise its services but also dispense its service. Through electronic booking, the company will promise greater convenience for its customers who will book without travelling to the headquarters. Coupled with the effectiveness of social networks, the company will carry out extensive marketing and carry out market researches. This way, the company will keep track of the investment in the marketing campaigns and compare such with the return to establish the rate growth of the company. References Blackshaw, P. (2008). Satisfied Customers Tell Three Friends, Angry Customers Tell 3,000: Running a Business in Today's Consumer Driven World. New York: Doubleday. Kent, P. & Tara, C. (2011). Poor Richard's Internet Marketing and Promotions: How to Promote Yourself, Your Business, Your Ideas Online. Lakewood, CO: Top Floor Pub. Kotler, P. & Kevin, K. (2010). Marketing Management. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Prentice Hall. Read More