Marketing Management Case Study: Toyota RAV4 in the Australian Market

This case study delves into the marketing management strategies employed by Toyota for its RAV4 model, particularly within the Australian automotive industry. It analyzes macro-environmental factors using a PEST analysis, identifying political, economic, social, and technical influences on Toyota's market position. The study assesses the strengths and weaknesses of the RAV4, highlighting its affordable price and loyal customer base against its limited online presence and tarnished reputation. It also examines the product lifecycle stage of the RAV4, suggesting it is in decline and requiring revised marketing strategies. Furthermore, the case study explores market segmentation and target marketing, considering the reactions of loyal customers to new positioning campaigns. Finally, it outlines the consumer decision-making process for car purchases and recommends strategies for Toyota at each stage. This student-contributed assignment is available on Desklib, a platform providing study tools and resources for students.

Running head: MARKETING MANAGEMENT
MARKETING MANAGEMENT
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Notes

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MARKETING MANAGEMENT
Answer to Question 1
The macro elemental factors that have played a role in the given case study can be traced in
the PEST analysis of the topic
Political Factors
 Stability in the political market is one of the major elements for Toyota
 Free Trade agreement should also be considered as an opportunity in the political
factors for any brand
 Support from the central and local government authorities should also be taken into
considerations while marking the opportunity in the political factors
Economic Factors
 Gradual growth of the economy of Australia is one of the major factors that have
affected the rise of Toyota in a positive way
 The increase in value of Australian dollars is another way of measuring the impact of
economy of the brand
 The rapid growth of developing countries in relation to the brand is another major
economic factor.
Social Factors
 The increase of consumers in hybrid cars is one of the major social factors associated
 Cars running on electricity and saving the fuel is another social factor
 Financial inequality is another major factor that can act as a threat
Technical Factors
 Business stability is one of the major factors
 The loss of fuels in the global market can be served as another technical factor

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Strength and Weakness of RAV4
Strength
 Toyota RAV4 is one of the best cars in the affordable price line that can cater to the
preference of a number of consumers
 Toyota has a loyal customer base
 The innovative culture of Toyota is one of the major advantages
 The brand value holds a major positive effect
Weakness
 Lack of online presence of Toyota is one of the major disadvantages
 The car as well as the brand is facing tarnished reputation
Answer to Question 2
Product lifecycle can be defined as the stages of marketing that the product undergoes
from the initial days to the days of removal of the product from the market. The concept is
different for different products as some products donot get removed from the market while
some have a varied life cycle.
According to the case study provides, Toyota RAV4 is on the declining stage in the
product life cycle as the owners need to incorporate strategies and concepts to make the brand
and the product floating in the demand amidst the other brand and newer innovative products.
The marketing mix required at the stage of decline is completely different from the
other stages as in this stage the product reaches the point of saturation. The product does not
have any new and innovative measures to make it a rage in the market and as a result the
marketing mix and strategies of the particular product declines at a large level. The reasons
for the lack of interest in the marketing mix includes the reasons namely high cost on

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investment, declining sales, change in customers trends and demand. The only target of the
brand is to make sure that the product remains in the loyal view of the customers and the
customers are interested in the product even if there is no marketing innovation.
Answer to Question 3
The process of dividing a market of potential and loyal customers into various groups
and segmentations is termed as Market Segments.
There are different types of customers who are willing to buy a specific type of
products in the market and it is very important to target those potential customers and make
them the actual purchasers in the long run. The importance of target marketing lies in the fact
that with the help of target marketing the brand can make innovative marketing strategies and
concepts which can focus on the specific target area and can make the whole process of
marketing effective for a specific group of audience.
Toyota RAV4 is focussed on a group of customers who are loyal to the brand and will
purchase the products of the brands irrespective of their declining market reputation. Another
type of customers who will be interested in the brand are the ones who want to possess a car
that has the brand value of Toyota with the label of SUV.
The older loyal customers of Toyota RAV4 may react in a mixed way to the new
positioning campaign as they can feel that the newer customers of the company put their
brand loyalty at stake. The company is trying to implement newer strategies in the brand
making it more approachable for the newer customers, which requires the brand to implement
strategies that are non-classical in nature. This can hamper the loyalty of the old customers in
some way.
Answer to Question 4

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The consumer in order to choose their products goes through a major decision making
process that involves five steps namely need recognition, information search, evaluations of
alternatives, purchase and post-purchase behaviour, consequences of the decision. These
steps can be undertaken by a consumer in order to make decision for the purchase of the
products in the future.
Major five factors determine the buying of a car in the market by a consumer who is
willing to purchase it. The five factors are namely reliability of the brand, exterior and
interior styling, fuel economy of the car, brand image in the market or from previous
purchase experience, reputation of the car and the reviews given by the consumers in other
cars.
The recommendations of the brand at each stage of decision making is as follows
 The need of the consumer should be analysed in respect of price point and the type of
cars wanted
 Information of the brand as well as the car should be made available both online and
offline for the better knowledge of the potential customers
 Alternatives of the brand as well as the car should be taken into considerations so that
the customers can be prevented from taking up other options
 The customers should be made aware of the purchase and post purchase facilities
given by the company at all levels by the brand
 The consequences of the customers after buying the product should also be analysed
beforehand including the problems that the customer can face after the purchase of the
product.