Marketing Microwave Oven To New Market Segment Case Study
BUS 340 International Business
I. Brief Statement:
White Appliances is an international company that manufactures and markets appliance globally. White Appliances has a line of microwave ovens manufactured in the United States and Asia, exported to Europe and the U.S. Their primary markets are the U.S. and Europe; however White Appliances has also entered the Indian market and their primary buyers, within India, are high income consumers.
II. Central Issue:
White Appliances wants to have a well established market within India. As such the main issue here is that, at the moment they are not able to expand the market, due to the Indian population having little to no knowledge on the use of microwave ovens, the oven not fitting the dishes required to cook traditional Indian dishes, and being expensive.
III. Alternative (or Potential) Solutions with SWOT Analysis
Solution I: Introducing the Microwave oven through the use of organized cookery classes, cooking contests, and in-house demonstrations.
Strengths: One of the main problem is that Indian customers do not know how to utilize the microwave to its full capacity, thus with this solution customers will be more informed which could possibly increases demand for Microwaves. Secondly, indian consumers are hesitant to buy microwaves because due to its limited uses. However, with the use of organized cookery classes and cooking contests, people perception could change and that could lead to higher sales.
Weaknesses: First, White Appliances is making the assumption that people will be interested in the events and will take part in them, so it might not work because people might not take part in it. Furthermore, it could be very costly as the potential market is very large in India, and to be able to reach the whole potential market. So White Appliances might not be making a profit for few quarters, which would be detrimental to the long-term sustainability of the company.
Opportunities: If this marketing strategy is successful and is well established in the indian market sales will go up as demand increases. Also, the business can launch different types of products after being well established in the market which means people will recognize the brand. This will could also lead the business to be more competitive in the market.
Threat: There are already well established competitors in the market such as Samsung and LG which could make it even more difficult for White Appliances to get into the market.
Solution II: Setting up a call service where customers can get their questions about the microwave oven answered.
Strengths: This will allow customers from across India to access the resources of the solution without the need to have been taught how to use the device beforehand. In addition there are a large number of companies that could be partnered with in order to achieve this strategy in a short time. Finally, this is a...
