Using Perceptual Maps in Marketing

Using Perceptual Maps in Marketing

The business environment is constantly changing. Likewise, the customers' response to products will also change over time. Because of that, it is necessary for companies to engage in environmental scanning and organizational planning in order to adopt the right marketing strategies to enhance their competitiveness. One of the key tools which can be adopted will be that of perceptual maps. In the given scenario, Thorr Motorcycles is facing a challenge because the sale of its product, the CruiserThorr, has been on the decline. As such, there is a need to use perceptual maps in order to analyze the effectiveness of marketing and to adopt more appropriate strategies to achieve organizational goals. This paper will look at three different situations of Thorr Motocycles and evaluate the solutions adopted for each situation.

First situation

In the first situation, it has been observed that sales of CruiserThorr have been on the decline. This is due to the aging of the core customer group of CruiserThorr. This group of consumers is no longer interested in the lifestyle that was symbolized by the product, hence leading to a decline in sales. Therefore, there is a need to make a new marketing plan in order to handle the problem.

In order to ascertain the market position of CruiserThorr, there is a need to first determine the parameters that are relevant to the motorcycle industry. In this case, the four parameters that were chosen include Lifestyle Image, Quality Engineering, Price and Service Offerings. First, lifestyle image was chosen because it has been observed that the key reason why CruiserThorr is facing a decline in sales, due to the failure of consumers to identity with the lifestyle the product symbolized. This makes it a critical parameter to examine. Next, quality engineering is important because consumers are generally interested in factors such as design, reliability, user-friendliness, and speed of such products, falling under this category. Price is also important because it determines the ability of consumers to purchase the product. Finally, service offerings is important because the type and quality of service provided can directly affect a customer's perception of the product as well as the desire to purchase the product (Gitman & McDaniel, 2008).

The results were positive for all four parameters identified. However, it is also important to note that while the other parameters are less important, they are still relevant and should also be taken into consideration in order to engage in successful marketing.

Second situation

In the second situation, the company is presented with the choice of repositioning CruiserThorr or introducing a new motorcycle that can better appeal to younger customers. In this case, the solution was to reposition CruiserThorr. This is because it has been observed that the key reason for the decline in sales of the product is a result of consumers' inability to identify with the lifestyle presented. It would be feasible to reposition the product in order to capture the market. In addition, this can be a much more cost-saving solution as opposed to introducing a new product, which may not likely succeed.

In this case, to reposition the product, the strategy selected will be to decrease price and increase styling. This will help to better attract the consumers as opposed to increasing prices, which would turn consumers to other competitors (Gerald, 2009). Given that there was only a budget of $13 million, not all desired strategies could be adopted. In terms of price, the decision was to decrease it, in order to better attract customers. In terms of place, all four options of dealers, exclusive showrooms, distributers and website were selected in order to have a wider outreach. In terms of promotion, the strategies selected, include offering insurance plans, free test rides and merchandise. These strategies were selected because they offer consumers benefits, which they can see and experience directly and thus is predicted to be more effective in attracting customers. Finally, in terms of services, all the options (training to dealers, offering customization options, club memberships, financial services, and services to owner groups) were selected to engage in effective differentiation, to retain customer loyalty.

However, it appears that certain decisions were not as desirable