Prospects of Gojek Partnership with Carousell

This study analyzes the prospects of the partnership between Gojek and Carousell in Singapore. It explores the benefits that Gojek can derive from the partnership and examines the stable growth strategy, Porter's generic strategies, and sources of cost advantage. The study also discusses how Gojek strategically positions itself in the market.

Running head: PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
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1PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
Executive Summary
The study is focused towards finding the benefits that Gojek can derive from the partnership with
Carousell in the context of the market of Singapore. A systematic study have been made through
which the background of the companies have been provided. The analysis have considered
Porter’s generic growth strategy, sources of cost advantage and strategic positioning.
Subsequently, the conclusion and recommendations have been provided. The implications have
pointed towards a partnership that can potentially provide long term benefits to Gojek.

2PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Stable Growth Strategy....................................................................................................................4
Porter’s Generic Strategies..............................................................................................................6
Cost Leadership...........................................................................................................................6
Differentiation..............................................................................................................................6
Cost Focus...................................................................................................................................7
Differentiation Focus...................................................................................................................7
Sources of Cost Advantage..............................................................................................................8
Strategic Positioning of Gojek.......................................................................................................10
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................12
Recommendations..........................................................................................................................13
References......................................................................................................................................14

3PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
Introduction
The report is based on the partnership between the Singapore business division of Gojek
and Carousell. The focus of the report is towards finding the significant business prospects of the
partnership. The benefits that can be derived by Gojek have been analyzed. Gojek is essentially a
ride-hailing and small scale logistics company operating in Singapore and other parts of South-
east Asia. Carousell is the most popular consumer-to-consumer online market in Singapore.
Recently the two companies got into a partnership that ensured special discounts to customers of
Carousell on downloading Gojek app. The customers are provided 13 dollar ride vouchers on
downloading Gojek app through the link provided by Carousell. It is extra 3 dollar over the usual
10 Singapore dollar discounts that are provided to new riders by Gojek. Both the logistics and
the ride hailing business of Gojek is focused in the study. Gojek as a company was established
for logistics and ride-hailing purposes it witnessed steady growth in a short time. The company’s
business prospects after getting into partnership with Carousell need to be significantly analyzed
(Sg.carousell.com 2019). This will require the implementation of strategic tools that can assess
the effectiveness of the organization. The prospects of the partnership can determine significant
growth paths for Gojek for the future.

4PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
Stable Growth Strategy
The company would need to bank on the customers of Carousell for effectively
increasing its customer base. The focus should be towards achieving the goals that are short term
and long term in value. The goals however need to be essentially justified in view of the future
vision of the company. In order to form a growth strategy that is stable and effective Gojek will
require to focus more on using the partnership to its advantage. However, Gojek would have to
also focus on the mutually beneficial business prospects of the partnership at the same time. The
extra discount that is being initially offered of 3 Singapore Dollars is a good initial growth
strategy (Go-jek.com 2019). However, to ensure that the growth strategy remains stable in the
times to come, Gojek has to ensure that it they keep providing better offers in accordance of the
changing times. The positioning of the product also need to be changed from time to time. The
global head of Gojek. Raditya Widowo has said that the main reason for the partnership was to
align with brands that serve everyday common people like Carousell. This creates a situation
where the consumers of Carousell could actually benefit from the services provided by Gojek
(Kayikci 2018). It has been rightly pointed out by the Global head that the focus area is to make
the exchange of goods better accessible.
The main functions of the stable strategy in regards to the partnership is hence, to provide
the most required services to the customers of the Carousell app. The provision of additional
benefits to the Carousell customers would mean that the company can optimize the functional
effectiveness of the partnership. A stable strategy for growth consists of the essential aspects of
stability, growth and retrenchment. In regards to this partnership a stable strategy can be created
as the carousell app is used by customers that can also be considered as the target customer base
for the product being offered by Gojek. Stability is achieved as the carousel customers will be

5PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
attracted to both the offers and the usage value of the services of Gojek. Growth can be achieved
through the partnership as Carousell is a growing online market and has potential to be accessed
by even more customers in Singapore (Digital News Asia 2019). Retrenchment aspects can also
be positively achieved if Gojek strategically uses the partnership to reduce costs related to
marketing and promotion. Moreover, Carousell is offering a ready customer base to the company
that can be utilized towards increasing future profitability. In essence the prospects for creating a
stable strategy is good for Gojek. This is mainly because the two companies take part in similar
businesses.

6PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
Porter’s Generic Strategies
Cost Leadership
Cost leadership is an essential criteria for establishing greater market value than the
competitors. It is important for Gojek that the company provides services at a cost that no other
competing firms are providing. Given the deal with Carousell, the discounts that are being
offered can help in maintaining the cost effectiveness that is required. There are other companies
in the market such as Rydex, Filo and Mass Vehicle Ledger. These apps are providing good
discounts and are already established in the Singaporean market. The 13 Singapore dollar
discount for the carousel customers will have better value as the customers will have an option
for choosing the products they would like to buy as well as the choose the way to get them
transported to them (Angela, Pangemanan and Rumokoy 2018). Both the buyers and sellers
would be interested in such an initial discount.
Differentiation
There is ample scope of product differentiation that can specifically be achieved due to
the partnership with Carousell. The app is the largest customer to customer online market in
Singapore. The customers are buyers and sellers of mainly secondhand goods. The goods need to
be carried to the specific buyers. As mentioned in the Case study by the head of transport
Wibowo, Gojek wants to capitalize on by solving the issue of the customers related to the
exchange of goods and services. The ride hailing and small scale logistics services that are
provided by Gojek has significant differentiation. This is very different from the usually
available cab services of the country.

7PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
Cost Focus
The cost focus of Gojek can be narrowed down to niche strategy with regards to the
partnership with Carousell. It is important to assess the type of customer base that the company
would like to attract. The customers that engage in product buying and selling through Carousell
can easily be approached as they would require the goods and services to be transported to the
various people. In essence the exchange of goods would be made easier due to the partnership as
customers in need to get the items transported to the buyers would get a ready option to use the
services of Gojek at a discounted rate (Um and Kim 2018).
Differentiation Focus
The differentiation focus will be the small scale nature of the logistics support or the ride-
hailing facilities that the company can provide to the customers. This means that the customers
of carousel especially the sellers can use the services to get the goods they are selling to the
buyers. More importantly the products that are sold are both first hand and second hand. This
means that the products are much in demand. The differentiation can be in in regards to the
unique transport facility that the company is offering the customers (Angela, Pangemanan and
Rumokoy 2018).

8PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
Sources of Cost Advantage
The cost advantage considering the partnership between Gojek and Carousell is
significant as a factor than can guide the future productivity of the organization. The cost
advantage primarily is in regards to the promotion and marketing of the product. Gojek are quite
a new organization considering the market of Singapore. Hence, as a new entrant it can have to
heavily rely on promotion and publicity. This greatly increases the initial costs that are incurred
by the company. Moving forward the company would also need to spend time assessing the
market proposition of the service and the target customers. However, the costs related to these
aspects are being greatly reduced as the company can use the already established customer base
of a company like Carousell to promote their products and services. At the same time the
company also gets to utilize the already established customer base of Carousell. Direct
interactions will be facilitated and the crucial customer requirements can be essentially
addressed.
There are mainly five forces of cost advantage that affect an organization. Firstly, the
people that are connected with the company. Secondly, the materials and supplies that are
required for productivity. Thirdly, the process and systems that are being utilized. Fourthly, the
facilities for production and fifthly, the capital that is invested in the company (Laudon and
Traver 2016). Considering these factors the most important factors that can lead to the cost
advantage of Gojek are the capital, the process and the people. The capital investment will be
much lower as a large part of the costs are being saved. The processes will be smoother as a large
part of the sales functions are being effectively enhanced due to the Carousell application. The
capital investment will be significantly lowered as the app will get ready promotion through the
Carousell application (Kayikci 2018). The people that are required will be more as a result of this

9PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
partnership as this will greatly contribute to a strong market demand for the services. The
customers will be able to save more through the app of Carousell. Hence, more customers can
download the already popular Carousel app to get the extra discounts. The 14 day voucher
validity will increase the demand for the product and service (Esfandari 2015). In essence, the
company will greatly be able to save on its costs. As an initial promotion the value that is being
added by Carousell and Gojek for the customers is significantly large. The cost advantage that is
being gained by Gojek can form the basis of its foundation in the market of Singapore.

10PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
Strategic Positioning of Gojek
The strategic position of Gojek is crucial for understanding the overall effectiveness of
the organization in the future. It has to be seen how the company can bank on the knowledge that
it would be able to garner to approach the market of Singapore in the shortest possible amount of
time. Being a new entrant in the market of the country will require Gojek to form strategies that
attract new customers. Hence it is important that the organization focuses more on a given
problem within the market. The target customers of the company in the country are small and
medium scale businessmen with logistics requirements and the customers travelling within the
city (Slack and Brandon-Jones 2018).
Considering the partnership of the company with Carousell the company would be
providing logistics services at discounted rates. The existing services provided by the company
are small scale logistics delivery and transport facility. There are significant competitors for
Gojek in the market of Singapore. Already existing companies like Rydex and Filo have strong
customer bases in the country. The unique proposition that is being added by Gojek is the
provision of bikes for transport. Hence, it can be said that the company would attract the small
scale businesses with regards to logistics services offered and mainly the office going working
people in need for quick transport. The company additionally offers services like Go-ride, Go-
Car and Go-Food.
The strategic positioning of the company should take into consideration the logistics
services that are being offered. Not many companies operating within the market of Singapore
are offering logistics services at the same scale. The partnership will ensure that the people can
buy and sell items and access the essential means to transport them at the same platform. This is
creating a significant value proposition. Carousell being the leading customer-to-customer firm

11PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
for buying and selling of goods will be a very good platform for analyzing the market and form
effective and efficient strategies (Esfandari 2015). The strategy can be utilized for consolidating
the customer base further in the future. The company is offering discount rates that are currently
not being provided by other companies providing the same services in Singapore. It becomes an
important strategic position for the organization. There are apps in the country such as my taxi
that are providing services. However, the services are for cars and more premium rate than the
services of Gojek. The company offers fast transport and logistics facility in a country like
Singapore that is highly congested. The positioning of the company is effective and poised
towards greater realization of productivity and profitability in the future.

12PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
Conclusion
Gojek are a company that are increasing its business across South-East Asia. It is
important that the company focuses on gaining the right kind of customers that can contribute to
its sustainable productivity (Esfandari 2015). The study found that the partnership prospects with
Carousel is significant towards achieving future goals. The partnership will bring new customers
to the company and there is a good scope for realizing initial profits for the company. At the
same time a stable growth strategy for the company would require the optimization of the offers
and discounts that are being provided to the customers. The product differentiation of Gojek is
found to be essential in the market of Singapore as it will have a strong niche demand due to the
partnership with Carousell. It is important that the organization keeps on improving its products
and services for effective realization of long term profitability goal. The partnership is a source
of significant cost advantage of the organization due to no extra promotional or marketing
requirements (Slack and Brandon-Jones 2018). In all it can be said that the business proposition
of the partnership is a very good initial step that can be further grow in future if properly utilized.

13PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
Recommendations
It is recommended that the organization does a detailed planning before taking further
steps in regards to the partnership. It becomes important that the Gojek uses a different strategy
for attracting the market of Singapore that is different to its approaches in the other areas of
South-East Asia. The market of Singapore has good potential for providing the organization with
better revenue. However, it is important that the company chooses the right kind of companies
that can help it to be successful in the Singaporean market. It is important that the company
essentially considers the options available and make profitable partnerships. The digital
platforms need to be used predominately for enhancing the productivity of Gojek. It becomes
important that a dedicated team manages the partnership with Carousell and all other essential
partnerships of the company in Singapore.

14PROSPECTS OF GOJEK PARTNERSHIP WITH CAROUSELL
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