Global Relationship Marketing and Its Influence - Assignment Example

Global Relationship Marketing Contents Contents 2 Task 4 Introduction 4 Task 2 7 Introduction 7 Proposal of strategies that will enhance NCL position and achieve customer retention in Dubai market 8 Task 3 14 Introduction 14 Supplier & Alliance Markets 15 Influence Markets 15 References 18 Appendix 21 Task 1 Introduction For this task our choice company is Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL) which is a company that deals with the cruise of ships. Our company, having its headquarters in Florida, is part of the vast service with its operationsexpanded worldwide in places like Europe, Alaska, Hawaii, and Bermuda. The company started off its operations in the year 1966 under the brand name of Norwegian Caribbean Line. Norwegian cruise line is a private company which has captured almost 8% of the total market share of the cruise market. The Norwegian cruise line ships are divided into various classes such as Sun class, Leo class, Dawn class, Jewel class, Norwegian epic, Breakaway class, and NCL America. The existences of these classes grant the company the opportunity to explore the global market. The countries where the company can expand its business activity are Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Bahrain (the Arabian Gulf). This section of this paper outlines the strategic importance of NCL to adopt the stakeholders perspective of business as they explore the global market and expanding into Dubai. Strategic importance for adopting a stakeholder perspective for business activity in the global markets The stakeholder’s approach states that when the corporate decisions are taken it should not only focus on the interest of the shareholders but also other groups such as customers, suppliers, and employees or rather all those who have a stake in the decision of the corporate (Kahn, 2011, pp. 32-34). The stakeholder approach broadly classifies the stakeholder’s of the company into two parts – internal and external stakeholders as stated in Appendix 1. The main objective of this approach is that an organization should consider the interests of the stakeholders even if the management has to give up on some profit margins (Peng, 2009, pp. 120-121). The stakeholder approach provides the major benefit to the company in the form of effective trust building between the stakeholder and company (Dibb and Ferrell, 2011, pp. 74-75). The strategic importance for adopting such stakeholder perspective in their operations can be described through Porter’s five forces model (Hooley, Piercy and Nicoulaud, 2012, pp. 87-88). The model comprises of various entities that tend to explain the relationship and existence of rivalry between suppliers, buyers, substitute products, and other firms. See Appendix 2. The bargaining power of buyers is very high as the cruise is purchased through travel agents which give them a lot of influencing power on purchasing (Cranfield School of Management, 2000). There is a high threat of substitutes in the form of many other forms of vacations like people would prefer to go to a land resort by boarding an aircraft than take an expensive cruise for the vacation. The bargaining power of suppliers which includes furniture supplier, ship builder, ship maintenance, amenities suppliers, and food and alcohol suppliers is moderate because the availability of options is less and the suppliers would not be interested in keeping the built ships for themselves (Smith, 2011, pp. 117-119). If the suppliers do not deliver the products on time then it would be very difficult to maintain its operations with such a vast range of cruise ships operating in so many countries. The distributors or the travel agents are the essential stakeholders for the NCL, as they are the ones who would bring in business for the company. Customers form the most essential part in the stakeholder theory (Fifield, 2000, pp.101-102). NCL needs to deliver post sales service to the customer, in such an industry it is only possible through customer relation management. Such an approach would keep NCL attached with its existing passenger base so as to generate more business from them. This approach would even help the company to achieve sustainability in the highly competitive environment. According to the PESTEL framework, the social and technological conditions are also aligned with the business operations of the company. However the country has got some strict laws regarding environmental impact and labor laws. The company has to maintain flexible policies to enhance the interests of the employees and other stakeholders. They should even adopt some relationship marketing strategy so that they are able to sustain in the Dubai market. Additionally, develop a competitive edge, as the country selected is one of the emerging opportunities that the rivals of NCL would even attempt to exploit (Ardley, 2009, pp. 92-94). Conclusion The stakeholder’s contribution towards a company has direct relation with that of the sales revenue of the company. Companies such as NCL are highly dependent on its employees, suppliers, distributors and mainly customers for performing their business activities effectively. The high involvement of the stakeholders into the business operations increases the profitability and productivity of the firm. If the employees are satisfied in terms of above average wages, job security, fringe benefits then they would be highly productive and deliver the best of service levels to its customers. Task 2 Introduction To be successful in the global market a firm or company needs to stand out among others in the same field. A marketing strategy is a vital tool that can be used by a firm in order to capture clients who will contribute positively to the business. A good marketing strategy can be able to stimulate the development of a positive or lasting relationship between a customers and a company thus enhancing the performance of the company in the long run. A lasting relation between firm and client can be fostered through the use of a relationship marketing strategy. The relationship marketing is performed through various customer relationship marketing software’s, customer retention and different customer loyalty programs (Payne, Christopher and Peck, 1995, pp. 61-62). The importance of such relationship marketing is that it helps the company to analyze which are the areas of improvement on which they should focus so as to effectively meet the demands of the customers. The changing consumer market trend can also be analyzed through this marketing tool. Often when the company builds a strong relationship with its customer base even after the product or service sales it initiates a strong brand loyalty from the customer perspective.See appendix 3. This paper section will explore the strategies that can be implemented by NCL as they expand into the Dubai market to ensure that they establish a good position in the market and retain key clients who will allow the performance of the business to be enhanced. Proposal of strategies that will enhance NCL position and achieve customer retention in Dubai market Dubai is the home port for five major global cruise liners such as Royal Caribbean, Costa, TUI, Aida, and MSC (Vance, 2008, pp. 66-67). However, the fact that this is the status of the port does not mean that the market if fully occupies. Vast opportunities exist in Dubai in the cruise industry as cruise liners have their own dedicated port. The Dubai government has further sent invitations to 20 global cruise liners to invest in the cruise business here. This is evidence that there exists a viable market where investment have high likely hood to be followed by positive returns. Dubai’s tourism industry is greatly contributed by the cruise ships and enhancement in this industry will see the country welcome a vast number of cruise liners in the coming years.The favorable conditions of this place should see NCL adopt a strategy to expand its business activity in this market. Dubai poses very good opportunities to cruise liners; thishowever makes the cruise ship industry highly competitive in nature (Richter, 2012, pp. 143-144). To survive in this highly competitive market it is essential that a company not only focuses of attracting customers to use their facilities but also strategies of retaining these customers must be put in place. Some of the strategies that will assist in the establishment of the relationship marketing strategies are discusses bellow. Strategic development Strategic development involves directing the developments of changes that are made by a firm to change in line with changes of the client’s wants and needs. This kind of marketing tool is important as it creates personal bonds between the business and the stakeholders, in this case mainly the customers. The importance of relationship marketing is that it helps in generating a trust factor between the customers and the company (Chaffey and Smith, 2012, pp. 143-146). If the customers are satisfied with the services and the CRM activities of the company they would provide positive word of mouth advertisement which would help the company to earn more referrals from these highly satisfied customers (Baines, Fill and Page, 2010, pp. 76-77). Personal connection creates a much more long lasting impression on the minds of the customers. This positive impression helps in generating more business opportunities for the company in the form of friends and family of the retained customers. Market Strategic Services In today’s high competitive market, it is essential for each company to stand out from the crowd (Tielmann, 2010, pp. 121-122). The relationship marketing helps in providing the company to obtain competitive edge. Based on the relationship marketing there are various strategies that can be adopted by NCL so as to retain customers in Dubai market. The consumer market of Dubai has high disposable income but less time for vacations. The cruise liners aim to provide added advantage to these consumers by offering a relaxed vacation at their doorstep. Such consumers can be retained by reducing the attrition rate (Hollensen, 2003, p. 49). The freestyle cruising approach that the company follows is a very important factor in giving them a competitive edge and even retention of the employee base. This can be extended by providing extraordinary customer service, by offering the customers customized meals and even organizing special events for the kids (Gronross, 2007, p.87). The consumer market of Dubai would mainly focus on spending a relaxed holiday with their family so such special events like magic shows or game shows for kids would make them enjoy more on the cruise ships as in majority families the kids are the driving force in selection of these holiday destinations and even in this case the type of cruise ships. These events would help NCL to retain the passengers for future business (Cheverton, 2005, pp. 56-57). Strategic System Automation NCL deals with millions of people over the years so it is a problem for the company to keep a track of all the consumers on a manual basis. In order to stay in the competitive market place of Dubai, it is essential for CRM to havesoftware’s for its business activities that will keep record of all customers (Little and Marandi, 2004, pp. 49-50). A periodic activity of getting in touch with the cruise passengers so as to record their experience with the NCL and to gather their opinions related to further improvement of the cruise services would be very beneficial for the company (Christopher, Payne and Ballantyne, 2002, pp. 59-60). This track record would help NCL to retain the customers and even bring back the ‘lost sheep’, by asking the passengers who do not take the voyage on why they have shifted away from their cruise liners. This would benefit the company to analyze the areas they can focus on for further improvement so that the customers who are no longer taking their cruise ships can come back to their services (Batey, 2012, pp. 56-57). Enhancing company client communication Communication with clients is very vital in maintaining a long-term relationship with clients. Thus it is essential that a way is device on how the NCL customers can get access to information about the developments, calendars schedules, and new services or additions that are made to the cruiser. This relates to a programmed sequence of emails, letters, mobile messages, phone calls, thank you, special offers, special moments snapshots, cards etc. that adds an emotional touch to the post sales service. This would give the consumers a feeling that are being valued by NCL and that the company promises to deliver the best of services to them if they decide on taking again a voyage through NCL cruise ships (Bruhn, 2003, pp. 120-122). Loyalty programs/benefits The company can further implement certain loyalty programs by giving special discounts and welcome gifts to those passengers who are taking the voyage for a second time or rather those who are brand loyal customers of NCL. In order to track this effective customer relationship management software is required. These loyalty programs can also be implemented in the form of gifts on birthdays and anniversaries of the ex-passengers of the cruise liner (Walker, 2008, pp. 75-76). This would help in building a stronger bond between the customers and NCL. The company should focus on delivering the best of services in the Dubai market as it provides a huge opportunity for the company if it can retain its customer base. Further suggestions on service improvement The company can further conduct surveys in the consumer market of Dubai to analyze where their competitors are outperforming and where they require performing well so as to overcome any complaints that the passengers have towards their cruise ships. Finally another option that NCL have is to design a lucky draw program between its ex passengers (Direct Marketing Association, 2013). This would make the customers feel valued and they would be determined to take the cruise ships of NCL over and over again. This lucky draw would reveal the name of a couple or a family who are a part of the existing traveler’s list of NCL. The name selected can be offered a free trip in their voyage for few days. This would increase more of brand loyalty and would help the company to achieve a more retained customer base. Customer Markets Customers are the major players for every market. In this case the company needs to attract new customers and also build good relation with them by providing good service so that they become loyal to the brand and the company can retain their customers instead of losing them to the competitors (Ford, 2011, pp. 156-162).Through offering of better services at a client accepted cost the company should look into offering incentives to clients in the clients with the target of establishing a good position in Dubai’s cruise market. The firm should also concentrate in their brand elevation by offering other products or investing in other businesses in Dubai that will carry the same brand name. Such businesses may include running of tourist hotels clothing lines or casinos. To remain functional and rather to attain a sustainable position in the cruise industry of Dubai it is very essential that NCL remains in constant touch with its passengers (Buttle, 2010, pp. 156-157). The value added services to the customers would make them feel satisfied and even help in increasing loyalty for the brand. Conclusion The expansion of Norwegian Cruise Lines to their operations expanded to Dubai is a positive development on the company’s business since it will be exposed to a young market with tremendous opportunities. Provision of its services in Dubai through the new strategies of customer retention may shift the general operations of NCL to a whole new level as the success may lead to their embracement through their operation system. Though NCL has been providing high quality services at an affordable price range for its target customers it has not focused well on the advertising or on the customer relationship programs. The target market of the company now is Dubai which creates a lot of opportunities for the cruise liners with its home port but at the same time would even result into intense competition. In order to survive into this intense competitive market place it is very essential that the company develop innovative tools to retain the existing passengers and focus on acquiring new customers. This can only be done through various retention programs such as loyalty programs, surveys, welcome book, blogs, awards, special discounts, gifts, messages, phone calls etc. This would help the customers always be reminded of the company and its exceptional services. This would in turn help the company to offer sustainability and develop a competitive advantage over its strong competitors. Task 3 Introduction Dubai is a tourist hub which receives many tourists annually thus it creates a market that can create high returns on investment. Thus, it is evident that expanding a Cruise business into Dubai is a viable business opportunity. For the expansion in NCL thiscompany needs to build strong relations with the customers for various reasons to capture the Dubai market. The company having its presence in other countries looking to target the Dubai market needs to analyze the customer’s needs and wants and also find the correct locations where the company can launch its cruise facility. In this task the reasons which are responsible for building the relations are been analyzed and the reasons for selecting Dubai as the country for opening its service is also been analyzed. Who influence the market and network relationship There are majorly 6 commodities that influence the market they also are important for building the relationships. These modules are been listed below. Internal Markets Internal market relates to the employees and the departments of the company. Norwegian Cruise Line needs to have a good relationship with these internal commodities as they are the ones which help the company to give a good quality service to the customers and also have a smooth operation in the company and maintain a good healthy environment in the cruise (Bridgewater and Egan, 2002, pp. 89-93). The staff should provide peaceful and conducive environment to customers through polite interaction with customers. The staff should stand at a position where they are able to respond to customers’ requests within minimal time while maintaining high standards of service quality. Supplier & Alliance Markets The suppliers and the alliance market are the people who provide the raw materials and the basic required equipment’s to the company from time to time. In case of Norwegian Cruise Line, the facilities in the cruise must be of high quality and also in good condition which can be obtained only when the company has a good relation with the suppliers and also the alliance markets (Donaldson and Toole, 2007, pp. 67-74). The alliance with the suppliers should be very good so that they can avail the best quality product in the right time. For example, the cruise line should form alliance with hotels that host tourists for them to always refer clients to them. In turn the liner will also refer passengers cruising with them to these hotels ones they hit the shores Referral Markets Referral markets are the groups which act as the intermediate marketers for the company. This means that the group which does the marketing of the organization in the local market. Norwegian Cruise Line needs to have a good relation with these marketers so that the company gets a good marketing campaign in Dubai and get good brand awareness among the customers and also get a good competitive advantage over the other competitors (Baron, 2010, pp. 34-37). Influence Markets The influence marketers are the people and the group who can befit the company like the friend groups, stake holders, corporate executives, board of directors and state legislatures. Having a good relation with them will help Norwegian Cruise Line to create a good brand image in the mind of customer as they will be able to perform, their operations legally without any penalties or any faults (Godson, 2009, pp. 123-127). The company needs to build good relations with the suppliers, the recruiting agents, the external marketing agents and also with the employees so that it can provide the best of facility to the customers and the service been provided to the customers is of the highest order. The company should ensure that it brings on board key staff that have significant experience in working similar fields in Dubai. This will be very vital for the elevation of the new business on that competitive market. Dynamics: steadily changes Unique method for the company Norwegian Cruise Line needs to have a steady approach towards building up its market in Dubai, which is completely a new market for the company. Before starting its operation in Dubai it needs to understand the various political, geographical, cultural, economical factors of the country so that it can launch its service in an effective way. It is very important to know the dynamics of the country before launching its service. Dubai is selected as the country for launching its new operations because of the number of visitors that come every year to Dubai and also because of the high currency rate of Dubai which will allow the company a lot of opportunity to grow its business (Harwood, Garry and Broderick, 2008, pp. 34-43). People in Dubai and also people visiting Dubai are generally one who have high level of income and have high spending power thus the cruise company can get a lot of profit from this country and people here by providing high quality services to the customers. The company needs to conduct a quality functional deployment to understand the exact needs and requirements of the customers in Dubai. This will help the company to know the exact requirements with regard to the needs, wants and wishes of the customers based on which if the company can launch its services it will get a lot of preference from the customers as they will prefer its service over the competitors because it will be able to provide the exact requirement that the customers is expecting to get (Egan, 2011, pp. 89-94). This will allow the company to gain maximum customer satisfaction and also retain the customers back getting maximum loyalty from the customers. Norwegian Cruise Line can look towards providing the facility of conducting marriages, corporate parties and other events in their cruise to gain more customers and also this will allow the company an indirect way of promoting them in the market of Dubais. The Company can look towards hiring a professional guide who can provide knowledge to the customers while travelling in the cruise to a new place. The company can also look to give various offers and discounts like discounts in the weekdays and off seasons to attract customers (Gummesson, 2008, pp. 134-137). Conclusion Thus analyzing this task with regards to Norwegian Cruise Line, opening its new branch in Dubai the reason for the maintaining a good relation with other commodities is been understood. These new unique techniques will allow the company to get more customers and also retain the customers getting a competitive advantage from the competitors. This will help Norwegian Cruise Line to build a good market in Dubai as with highly skilled staff it will be able to provide the best quality service to the customers. The company needs to have a steady approach towards entering the market of Dubai and also implement unique techniques for launching the service in Dubai. References Ardley, B. C. 2009. 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