Bungy’s Beginning: A Case Study Analysis of Service Marketing

Running Head: Service marketing
Bungy’s Beginning
Service Marketing
Case Study Analysis

Service Marketing P a g e | 1
Table of Content
Background of the Case Study....................................................................................................................................... 2
Marketing Conditions and Positioning......................................................................................................................3
Key Aspects of the Case Study.......................................................................................................................................3
Best Practices or Problems in the case Study.........................................................................................................5
Recommendation................................................................................................................................................................ 6
References.............................................................................................................................................................................. 8

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Background of the Case Study
Bungy Jumping became a popular adventure sport when a New Zealander AJ Hackett saw a
video by Oxford club’s jump; he not only wanted to try the sport to have an adrenalin rush but
was quick to see it as a commercial opportunity (Cater, 2006). In the year 1986 AJ and his fellow
speed skier teamed up together with a bunch of scientist to develop techniques to ensure the
safety of the adventure enthusiasts (Cloke & Perkins, 1998). It was the year 1987 when AJ
experimented with the newly created Bungy jumping chords and jumped from the iconic
landmarks, the sport which gives the extreme adrenalin rush- Bungy Jumping was born. It was
just a matter of time that Queenstown had created its place in the world’s adventure tourism
map as the” Home of Bungy” (Bell & Lyall, 2002).
Target market is the group of people towards whom the marketing and promotional activities of
the company are directed, as they are the group of people who are most likely to consume these
services or product (Ferguson & Veer, 2015). In case of AJ Hackett Bungy, it was initially
believed that more and more western tourist will be inclined towards the sport, but as time
passed, it was the Asian customers who took over. Bungy Jumpy is not constrained to any
cultural barrier, and the high level of safety makes the adventure sport susceptible to people of
all ages. Keeping the age consideration in mind, the target for Bungy Jumping is people in the
age range of 10-45, irrespective of the gender (Cranefield & Prusak, 2016).
The purpose of the report here is to understand the marketing condition and the positioning of
the business and the key aspects of the case study with respect to the service marketing
principles. It would also be interesting to analyse the best practices as reflected in the case
study of Bungy jumping in relation to the theories of service marketing. A set of
recommendation will be used at the end to improve the further development of the
organization.

Service Marketing P a g e | 3
Marketing Conditions and Positioning
Market positioning is the ability to influence the perception of the consumer towards a brand or
a product relative to the competitors offering. The prime objective of market positioning is to
create a differentiation in the minds of the consumers. Initial condition related to Bungy
Jumping was considered to be more of a fad, than as a sustainable activity of tourism. However,
this perception was destroyed in less than a year (McKay, 2014).
Bungy Jumping is seen as an adventurer’s dreams, which are both a physically jarring and a
mentally stressful activity. Henry van Asch, the co-founder believes that the sport is more of a
personal challenge than being a physical one. Over the years due to the increasing demand of
the sport, AJ Hackett expanded his business for tourist and corporate clients. At present AJ
Hackett has operations in Australia, China, France, Germany, Singapore and each location offers
a basic menu of Bungy Jumps as well the local specialists (Lovelock & Patterson, 2015).
Price for Bungy jumping varies by location and the activity with combo deals, discounts and
promotions are offered to the corporate guest to give an impetus to the adventure sport. The
market condition for the company which operates on high adrenalin rush is to find new ways to
challenge the gravity and people. AJ Hackett believes that there is more to stretch in the
industry and heights and he aims to develop sites around the world for the people who want the
“Soft Adventure” (Laviolette, 2016).
Key Aspects of the Case Study
Safety and overcoming the fears of the customers- Bungy Jumping is a high adrenalin sport
which is definitely not for the weaker hearts. Although the company ensures the safety of its
consumer, there is still a high risk involved with the adventure activity. Jumping off the cliff or
other placed with heights ranging in 100s of metre is definitely not an easy task at hand. Thus, it
takes lot of convincing from the jump masters and assurance to make the person enjoy the rush
the activity gives them.