Research Project Report

This research project report focuses on Harry Auto Garage and its expansion strategies. It analyzes the external conditions for the company's operations and provides recommendations for cost-effective growth. The report includes a situational analysis, research objectives, methodology, and results.

Research Project Report
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Executive Summary
Harry Auto Garage has been operating in South Eastern Melbourne since 2015. Three
employees including the owner have been serving the customers who are mainly cab
drivers. The garage has not employed any marketing technique and thus have failed in
expanding in the market. The price at which services are offered is the biggest advantage of
the company. The latter has been responsible for generation of considerable amount of
word of mouth. The aim of the paper is to evaluate the external conditions for the
operations of the company which will be used to evaluate the options that are available for
the expansion of the company. It was found lack of marketing expertise and capital were the
main reasons behind the lack of market expansion of the company. Porter’s five forces were
analysed and the nature of the customers, suppliers and the industry as a whole was
adjudged. Interviews were the sources of primary data, websites, and annual reports were
the sources of secondary information. It was recommended that the company should utilise
the options such as social media marketing, outsourcing by focussing on the low price
appeal in order to attain the increased awareness and market share in the market that they
are operating in.
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Table of Contents
1. Introduction...................................................................................................................................1
2. Situation Analysis...........................................................................................................................1
2.1. Key Stakeholders.......................................................................................................................2
3. Purpose of the Research Project....................................................................................................2
3.1. Research Objectives...................................................................................................................3
4. Research Methodology..................................................................................................................3
5. Results...........................................................................................................................................3
6. Discussion......................................................................................................................................5
7. Recommendations.........................................................................................................................5
References.............................................................................................................................................6
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1. Introduction
Harry Auto garage was established in 2019. The garage is located in South East Melbourne, Australia
and operate as a small scale mechanical shop. During the initial days of operations, the company
started with three employee including the owner of the garage. The number of employees is still
sustained by the company. The main customers of the company are cab drivers who have been loyal
to the garage. The biggest value proposition of the company is the value of the service that they
offer to the customers. It has been found that there are various companies in the form of
automotive mechanic companies who have established supply chains and effective marketing
competencies. The Harry Auto garage has not been able to gain market share as result of the scale of
the operations backed up by the fact that they are unable to increase their expenditure over the
expenses associated with expansion. Furthermore, the lack of employees and infrastructure of the
company has been identified as one of the main reasons behind the failure of the garage to gain
market share in the location that they are operating in. The aim of the paper is to identify the
objectives that the garage should stick to in order to grow the business through cost effective ways.
Furthermore, recommendation will be made in order to resolve the issues that are being faced by
the garage which is having a time in expanding their market share.
2. Situation Analysis
The harry auto garage was established in 2015, that is four years ago. Since then they have been
operating the south eastern Suburbs of Melbourne Australia. The company began its operation with
three employees including the owner. The number of employee has still been sustained by the
company. The company have around 7 to 8 competitors in the area that they are operating in. The
competitors of the garage have been found to employ effective marketing techniques that help the
companies to attract potential consumers towards the companies. The amount of capital that is
available to the companies is the reason behind their ability to carry out operations in the highly
competitive market. At the beginning of operations, the garage served around one to two customers
per day. The success that the company has exerted in term of carrying out their operations which
deals with serving the customers has been recognised as the reason behind the rise of customers
that the garage serves per day. The loyal customers of the garage are cab drivers who visit the
garage on a monthly basis. Furthermore, it can be said that main reason behind the return of the
customers is due to the flexible pricing of the services that the company provides. It can be said that
price of a product or service is one the key factors that determine the success of a product or service
regardless of the size of the organisation or the nature of operations of the organisation. The price at
which the company offers it services is deemed to be very genuine. The garage has gained popularity
in the market as a result of the satisfaction that the customers have gained. Due to favourable word
of mouth and referrals the garage has been subject to growing number of potential customers in the
area that they are operating in. The company operates every day of the week excluding Saturdays.
Threats to the existence of the competitors in the company is from the competitors who have the
ability to utilise higher number of employees along with higher amount of capital. Without any form
of voluntary marketing activity, the garage has been found to be relying on the power of word of
mouth and references from friends and family to increase the awareness of the existence of the
company.
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2.1. Key Stakeholders
The stakeholders of an organisation are the individuals who influence the decisions of a company (-
Cifuentes, León and Davies 2014). It can be said that every operations or the moves that the
company makes, affect the stakeholders of the company directly or indirectly. It is the aim of every
company is to motivate performances in every functional divisions of the company. However, it can
be said that the motive of each stakeholders of an organisation are different. The perspective of the
stakeholders of the company determine the methods that the organisation employ in order or
satiate the needs individual stakeholders if the company. There are three internal stakeholders in
the garage. The latter comprise of the owner and the mechanics and the apprentice. The customers
of a company are one of the most important stakeholders of a company (Iglesias, Ind and Alfaro
2017). Thus, the cab drivers have been recognised as the key stakeholders of the garage. It has been
found that the owner of the garage has taken a loan from a bank to get the investment in the bank
for the start-up of the business. Furthermore, they had to take the permission of the local municipal
authority of the area in order to gain rights to carry out business in the area. Accordingly the bank
that the owner has taken a loan from and the local municipal authority of the area have been
recognised as the internal stakeholder of the Harry Auto Garage. For the particular study, the bank
and the internal stakeholders are have been recognised as the most important stakeholders of the
company.
3. Purpose of the Research Project
In order to mitigate he issue that are being faced by the garage, the following research is being
conducted. The harry auto garage have had difficulties in expanding business even if the nature of
the business can help them in gaining profitability in the market that they are operating in. The
services that re provided by the company are favourable in terms of the prices that the garages
charges its customers for the services that re provided in the garage. Furthermore, it was found that
the garage has had difficulties in gaining increased market share that they are operating in. This has
been recognised as the reason behind the lack of profitability that the company has been subject to
from the initial days of operation of the company. The aim of this paper is to find out the probable
ways that the company can undertake in order to mitigate the current issues that they are facing.
One of the biggest problems that is being faced by the garage is in terms of gaining considerable
amount of capital which they can use to carry out marketing activities and go on a motive of
business expansion. Success in carrying out the research effectively will help the business to
formulate measure that the business that they can take in order to solve that are hindering the
operations of the business. Moreover, success in carrying out research will help the company in
gaining attention of the customers in the market that the company are operating in. Expansion of
the scale of operations of the business will help the garage to be at par with the competition that
exists in the market. The purpose of the report will be to mitigate the issues that the garage is facing.
Thus, it can be said that the purpose of the report is to help the business stop investing in areas that
are deemed to be unproductive. Moreover, it will help them in investing in areas that will help the
business in gaining profitability.
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3.1. Research Objectives
1. To identify the factors that affect the growth of the garage business: There are certain
factors that can propel the position of a business or cause hindrance to the same. By
identifying the same the factor, the garage can work productively towards mitigation of the
issues and highlight the factors that they are strong in.
2. To investigate the opportunities that can be taken up by the garage business in order to
expand in the market: By identifying the opportunities of expansion, the garage can gain
knowledge about the topics that can be taken up by the company to effectively carry out the
operations of the business in terms of gaining appreciation from the consumers of the mart
that they are operating in.
3. To achieve profitability in a cost effective method: One of the main aims of every business
is to carry out their operations in a cost effective manner. It is also the aim of businesses to
gain profitability at the same time.
4. To carry out situational analysis of the external environment for the operations of the
business by acquiring information about the customers, suppliers and competitors.
4. Research Methodology
Research methodology refers to the strategies and steps taken in order to carry out a study in any
particular topic (Kumar 2019). It is carried out in order to achieve the most logical outcomes that can
be taken in order to derive and arrive at the most the logical outcomes of study and the research.
The methodology of carrying out the business mainly comprises of primary and secondary sources.
The primary research was carried in the form of interviews and secondary data was obtained from
sources such as newspapers, industry publications, journals and scholarly articles. The sample size
for the interviews was three. The three employees of the garage, were the individuals who were
subject to the interviews that were carried out. The interviews comprised of five to six open ended
questions that were used in order to identify the challenges that the garage is facing in order to gain
increased awareness in the market that that they are operating in. Apart from the latter, the
research was carried out by analysing the aforementioned secondary sources of information. The
research methodology assimilates and analyses different theories that help in the achievement of
the ultimate goals utilising theory of interpretivism. The methodology for carrying out the situational
analysis was carried out by utilising the helps of secondary sources of data such as journals, annual
reports of the competitor and the annual government publishes. Qualitative data was obtained by
interpreting the responses of the interviews. Quantitative data that is data related to figures and
number were obtained by the help of the secondary sources of data (Quinlan et al. 2019). The
methodology of the research determines the ultimate success of the research. Hence, prime
attention was paid to the same in order to attain favourable, specific and accurate information.
The research was carried out strategically in order to ensure a smooth flow of operations of the
business. The tasks that needed to be undertaken in order to carry out the research in a smooth
flow, were segregated into weeks. Proper delegation determined the nature of the outcomes
derived.
5. Results
One of the most crucial parts of the research revolves around the situational analysis of the
conditions that exists in the local market weer the company is operating in. one of the objectives of
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the study was fulfilled by carrying out the situational analysis that comprises of statistics of the
market that the garage is operating in along with the analysis of porter’s five forces. Following is the
analysis of the five forces (Regan et al. 2013);
Internal rivalry (Moderate): The nature of rivalry of the industry is deemed to be on the higher side.
There are various competitors in the industry and the local market were the company operates in.
The aim of the competitors is to satisfy the consumers as a result of which they are constantly
formulating policies that helps the competitors to stay ahead of the competition.
Bargaining power of suppliers (Low): The companies that are operating in the garage industry have
the opportunity to choose the suppliers who provide the materials to the companies for the lowest
possible prices. Furthermore, there are numerous suppliers in the market who are offering similar
products.
Bargaining power of the buyers (Moderate): The customers have the liberty of choosing the garage
that they feel are the most suitable for their pocket capacity. However, depending on the vehicles
that they own there are not many garages who tune or maintain vehicles of every brand. Even if the
customers have the liberty to choose the service providers, they cannot fully influence nature of the
industry.
Availability of substitutes (High): Services of similar nature are provided by various competitors.
Thus the customers can choose from various companies and still manage to derive similar services.
Threat of new entrant: (Moderate): The industry is highly regulated and companies have to amend
by the needs and the regulations that have been propounded. This poses hindrances to entry of
new companies. However, provided that the companies abide by the regulations and have adequate
capital, they can easily enter the market that the companies are operating in.
It has been found that there are more than 30 companies in the garage industry that are operating
in Melbourne alone. The nature of operations that are carried out in the garages help in attaining the
objectives of the individual companies. Companies such as the Princes motor repair, Cox Auto
services centre, ABS Collingwood, Midas Kew, Rapid Tune Chadstone and many more of the garages
in the locality have been the ability and the competency to pose threats to the expansion of the
business. Furthermore, the companies have customers who are from middle income to high income
background along with the customisable services that they offer to the customers of the company.
The customer reviews have been found to be favourable and on the behalf of the companies who
are catering to the needs of the customers.
Form the interviews it was found that the owner of the Harry Auto garage possess adequate
awareness about the market conditions including the opportunities that they can pertain to in order
to increase their share in the local market. The owner of the company has adequate knowledge
about marketing and logistics and all the necessary changes that they need to carry out internally.
However, it was found that one of the biggest hindrances that is keeping the company from
operating at its full potential is the lack of capital. Apart from the lack of capital the lack of expertise
in marketing is the reason behind the hindrances to the growth of the company.
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6. Discussion
The findings suggest that the garage is operating in conditions that favour the companies that are
operating in the market. The availability of high number of suppliers in the market give the
companies in the industry the liberty to choose from the various suppliers that are available for their
utilisation. The customers of the industry are the reason behind the sustainability of the industry.
However, they do not have the power to control the prices in that are charged by the companies.
There are various carriers that the companies in the industry cater to. From economy cars, to
midrange to luxury cars, the industry caters to them all. The rivalry in the industry is high as there
are limited number of companies catering to the needs of the customers. The marketing efficacy of
the companies determines the inflow of their business. Thus it can be said that the companies who
have the capability to employ marketing in their operation will be able to gain the maximum number
of customers.
The financial competency of the Harry Auto garage is keeping them from achieving the full potential
in the market that they are operating in. Even though the company has been operating favourably in
the market, the opportunities that are presented to the company are not being utilised as a result of
proper utilisation of the marketing competencies of the companies. The prices that the garage
serves its customers is one of the biggest pros of the company. The lack of expertise is one of the
other reasons why the company have not been able to capitalise in the favourable nature of
operations in the market. It can be said that the knowledge about the industry that a company is
operating in is one of the biggest advantages that a company has in order to gain profitability in a
business. The owner of the garage has perfect knowledge about the same. However, lack of capital,
utilisation of opportunities and expertise is hindering the performance and the sustainability of the
company.
7. Recommendations
The issues such as lack of marketing activities, lack of capital and unavailability of expertise are
hindering the performance of the garage. The following are the activities that must be carried out by
the company in order to carry out the operations of the company in a larger scale that will help with
the expansion motives of the company.
A. Social Media marketing: Marketing on social media has been recognised as one of the most
cost effective measures to increase the awareness of a business in a market that they are
operating in (Ashley and Tuten 2015). It is cheap and helps in directing the initiatives of the
company towards a select group. By utilising the same the garage will be able to attract
customers apart from cab drivers.
B. Outsourcing: The Company can utilise the expertise of various small scale marketing
companies to boost their marketing competencies (Tiago and Veríssimo 2014). Outsourcing
marketing has been recognised as one of the most reliable measure adopted by small scale
and comparatively new companies regardless the industry.
C. Pricing appeal: The prices at which the garage serves its customers is one of the best ways
that they can gain the attention of the potential buyers. It would help them in attracting
customers towards the direction of the company.
D. Increase the seating capacity: By increasing the seating capacity the garage will be able to
have a chance to increase their inbound flow of customers.
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E. Innovation and idea generation: The garage should incorporate ideas that help them attract
customers. They can include lucrative plans such as giving refreshments to the customers,
they can also engage different communities with the help of campaigns that are sustainable
in nature. The latter will help the company in increase their Public Relation efficacy.
F.
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References
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branded social content and consumer engagement. Psychology & Marketing, 32(1), pp.15-27.
Bull, J.W., Jobstvogt, N., Böhnke-Henrichs, A., Mascarenhas, A., Sitas, N., Baulcomb, C., Lambini, C.K.,
Rawlins, M., Baral, H., Zähringer, J. and Carter-Silk, E., 2016. Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities
and Threats: A SWOT analysis of the ecosystem services framework. Ecosystem services, 17, pp.99-
111.
Iglesias, O., Ind, N. and Alfaro, M., 2017. The organic view of the brand: A brand value co-creation
model. In Advances in corporate branding (pp. 148-174). Palgrave Macmillan, London.
Kumar, R., 2019. Research methodology: A step-by-step guide for beginners. Sage Publications
Limited.
Olmedo-Cifuentes, I., Martínez-León, I.M. and Davies, G., 2014. Managing internal stakeholders’
views of corporate reputation. Service Business, 8(1), pp.83-111.
Quinlan, C., Babin, B., Carr, J. and Griffin, M., 2019. Business research methods. South Western
Cengage.
Regan, M.A., Williamson, A., Grzebieta, R., Charlton, J., Lenne, M., Watson, B., Haworth, N.,
Rakotonirainy, A., Woolley, J., Anderson, R. and Senserrick, T., 2013, August. The Australian 400-car
naturalistic driving study: Innovation in road safety research and policy. In Proceedings of the 2013
Australasian road safety research, policing & education conference, Brisbane, Queensland.
Tiago, M.T.P.M.B. and Veríssimo, J.M.C., 2014. Digital marketing and social media: Why
bother?. Business horizons, 57(6), pp.703-708.
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