Marketing management assignment help online: Marketing plan of AmpBolt electricals – Pestle & SWOT

Q?? Write a marketing plan for Amp Bolt electrical s??

Solution::

Introduction

With an experience of more than 12 years Ampvolt has made a stronghold in the Australian continent. Popular as an independent electrical contractor, the company has made a stable position for itself. The company today is equipped with experienced staff and has been consistently working on renewable energy programs backed by the modern technology equipment. The study below tries to evaluate the current situation of the company and establishes the action plan with the possible steps which the company needs to take and expand efficiently. The report also presents a competitor analysis for three of its competitors and tries to evaluate the level of competition which they pose for Ampvolt. The report below starts with the situational analysis to give us the present scenario of the company.

Situation analysis

Before Ampvolt makes its marketing strategies and the objectives to move ahead and expand in the markets there are a few questions which it needs to answer and take a note of. Some of the questions could be:

What are the revenues generated by each service the company has offered? How much was the profits for each?
Where the company sees it in the coming three years?
What is the geographical area it serves and which are the possible areas it should look to expand?

Background of the Company

There are many other questions which might be required to take a note of and plan the objectives ahead. Based on the current scenario where the company is now a medium sized service provider the reports have suggested that the company is popular and has been making good profits for a period of 12 years now. Moving ahead while developing the objectives and its marketing plan the company needs to make its employees aware of them. A successful marketing plan only shapes up if the organization contributes as a whole where each and every member of the company is aware of their independent tasks and responsibilities.

The answers for the questions above have been compiled below to frame the possible objectives and the road ahead for Ampvolt. Objectives would actually help the company move ahead and have a set roadmap as well as a goal to achieve. With a fixed target in mind it gives a better opportunity for a company to provide its services and hence meet all the possible requirements of its customers. A Marketing plan is developed on the basis of objectives which Ampvolt would have in its action plan. It facilitates and lists out the possible steps that need to be addressed and hence implemented in the action plan.

Macro Environment

Political

The government has a key role to play for the business environment of the company. There are various rules and regulations which are to be followed by the company. They require the contractors to abide by and comply while all the operations of the company are carried out. Some of the laws which govern the business environment of the company are:

The Electricity Safety (Regulation & Licensing) Regulation 2002
Fuel Tax Credit 2011
Carbon Tax 2012
Independent contractors Act 2006

Economic

Electrical Services are one of the essential elements for both the households and the business people. The maintenance activity is the vital segments of the electrical markets. With the economic slump in the recent years the industry seems to have been affected. People are reluctant to invest in new projects which have been a considerable loss of work in this sector. The businesses including electrical houses had to cut down jobs and employees to tackle the entire economic instability. The industry estimates have clearly specified that the wage costs are likely to increase by 1.5% percent over the next 5 years. This would call for a larger wage supply and force the business to increase its revenues as well. Hence economically to meet its expenses business would have to increase the current costs for its services and hence tackle the inevitable changes.

Technical

Technology around the globe has drastically been upgraded each year. With the intentions of reducing its cost and fight the odds against the rise in prices the companies are investing in more efficient technologies. Introduction of the LED lamps and CFLs have been the best recent solutions for fighting against the increase in electricity billings. The industries have gone through several technological changes and are looking to implement renewable forms of energy so as to provide cost effective yet environment friendly services. The possible additions of renewable energy have been the Cyclone Technologies Schoell Cycle engine, Solar Energy Corporation, and Toroid Fusion.

Environmental

Environment has been one of the key areas which the businesses across the globe have been focusing upon. Renewable sources of energy are the future of this industry and companies need to invest largely on these. Households besides the businesses also seem to have been diverted to use these forms of energy. Climate change being one of the concerns in the region of Australia like the world would demand a much greener technology. It has resulted in decrease in demand for normal electric energy and increase in demand for the solar and wind energy. This trend surely brings in a great opportunity for Amvolt to tap upon and cater to potential customers.

Micro Environment

SWOT Analysis

Strength

The company has been in the business for over 12 years which gives it a strong base of experience and a rich company value. This assists in providing quality, safety, policy and integrity which are the part of its main objectives.
The company has a rich pool of experienced staff and experts. These employees have been a part of the industry for a long period which helps the company to provide effective and efficient services.
AMvolt has a long list of old customers. This has helped the company to build upon its customer base. It has largely helped in benefiting from the word of mouth advertising for the company as the satisfied customers often recommend others to take up these services.
AMpvolt has been providing environment friendly services. The technology used and the methods deployed have always been towards offering environment friendly services.
They provide around the clock services which is 24 hour assistance to its customers.
Ampvolt has always been in the news for charging higher prices. Although it is well understood that quality services come for a price the company needs to address this issue of pricing its services.
Ampvolt also faces the blame of people having overlapping duties. This reduces accountability and hence brings in confusion while the work is being carried out.
The company has been relying on word of mouth promotion rather than using other forms of promotion. It further needs to use other modes of promotion to fight out the ever increasing competition.
Being a family business it is more of personal business. The company needs to bring in more professionalism and make it more than just a family business.
Expanding upon its reputation the company holds a world of opportunities to expand further. The word of mouth advertising could well be utilised to promote their services and expand its operations.
The company further needs to strengthen its relationships with the builders and real estate agents.
AMpvolt should use internet and a new website to promote its services and get more accessible to its customers.
It needs to increase its service base by employing more employees and especially those who are aware of the environmental issues. The green installation of power units are the future and company needs individuals who have the right knowledge for providing these services.
Quite likely the competition is something which is the biggest threat to the company. It would need to fight out some of the bigger players in the industry who have been there for decades. This would certainly call for a better quality of service and inclusion of things which are not provided by the other providers.
Economic slowdown as mentioned above has been a big concern. That has affected the company in its business. TO counter that the company needs to provide better services at cheaper costs. People would be more inclined to try out cheaper services and may do away with some or the other extra benefits.
The company would further need to reinvest in technology and expand its existing technological units. They currently have a strong technology base but some of these have out-dated or have been around for years. The company would have to treat this threat with great concerns and make use of advanced technologies.

Weakness

Opportunity

Threats

Competitors

Currently the 3 largest competitors to the company are:

Laser Electrical contractors: The Company is among the most popular company’s in Australia today. They have more than 200 employees and offers a very reliable and dependable services to the residents of Australia. It caters to a diverse market and has a strong presence in Agricultural and Horticultural places as well. This is an added advantage to the company where besides the general provision of its services it caters to two big markets. The only criticism about the company has been its expensive overhead costs and a long term debt on the company. Similar to any other companyu in the market it faces the threat of competition and economic slowdown. Seeking the opportunities it has one of the largest base of customers and has been the first choice of its customers.

Geert Electrical contractors: They are known to provide the lowest prices for their services in the industry. Adding to that they offer flexible time where they respond quite quickly to their customer queries. Their services are also available during the weekends which give them the edge as a service provider. Highlighting the weakness of the company it would include the lack of qualified electricians to cater to a vast network of customers. The company has also been limited in terms of its advertising which has not exactly helped the company in expanding. Like Ampvolt this company has done fairly well with the word of mouth advertising and has a long list of regular customers. The few threats to the company are its unstable income levels, lack of finance, etc. However it gives a good competition to AMpvolt.

3. Watters’ Electrical contractors: This is the subsidiary of the Hastie Group which is a leading international designer, installer, and maintainer of technical services. The company has a large pool of well-qualified staff and offers their service around the clock. It has been involved in promoting energy solutions and is suitable for its type of services to virtually every need. However the company has been having a long term debt which has affected its profitability too. The accounting system within the company has also been in the news of being disorganized. The reputation and a vast relationship with the customers is something which presents a great opportunity for the company to expand. But competition and the economic slowdown presents a large threat to the company and it has to be seen how it adjusts according to the future needs.
Expand their customer base by 10%: One of the most essential objectives for the company would be to expand the base of their customers. It should aim at increasing the customer base by at least 10% year on year. It has a vast experience of over 12 years and a large pool of qualified professionals which has helped the company to maintain regular customers. Leveraging on the existing structure Ampvolt needs to get the right mix in its marketing plan to reach a broader market.
Expand services on offer:The electrical fittings and the maintenance market has gone highly specialized and diversified. In order to provide extensive services Ampvolt should lay emphasis on training its employees and technical staff with the latest technology so that it could provide every possible solutions to any needs which their clients may have (Ecmweb 2010). This would help them to attract a larger pool of customers while providing options of getting newer services to the existing customers.
Control Prices: One of the aspects which have been up there in the objectives by the company is the controlling prices. The company would need to take the right measures to control the price of their services. Moreover it needs to get the right products for the right set of targeted customers and at the right prices (articles.pubarticlesn.d.).
Create a Website: Although the company is in operation for years, it doesn’t have its own company website. Making a website would actually be among the other things to facilitate the marketing plan because internet is one of the biggest sources of promotion for any company today.
5. Increasing its relation with the real estate agents: Ampvolt has been tying up with many builders and real estate agents. The step ahead would be to approach bigger real estate agents and market their services in a larger manner to bag big projects.
6. Inspire word of mouth references: It has been observed that the company is getting popular thanks to its word of mouth advertising. The company should take initiatives to make the existing customer valued so that they could inspire the mouth to mouth references further. This could be done by increased contacts with the customers, taking their constant feedbacks, and addressing their concerns in the fastest time possible.

Objectives

Product Strategy

Ampvolt needs to devise its product strategy as per the needs of their clients. As mentioned earlier different people have different requirements. This is why the company needs to develop a set of services which can cover the needs of every age group, gender, and family structure in a comprehensive manner (DSD WEB 2010). The service needs to include the following characteristics:

Timely and active repair as well as maintenance unit in order to ensure that energy supply is safe. Moreover it should be built in such a way which is safe for both the elderly and the children of the house.
It should be capable of supporting energy diversity which offers clean energy
Appoint a technical contractor and a qualified electrician to take care of complex housing projects as well as the safety concerns (articles.pubarticlesn.d.).
The service needs to be in such a way that it can help the customers save energy and electricity bills.

Place Strategy

Ampvolt has been a medium sized player in the market and has a rich experience of providing its services in the entire area. However after analysing the place and the needs of its people it should implement the following points into its place strategy:

Target the domestic markets which look to have a high potential for the company to expand its roots while providing its premium services through its clean energy program.
Currently with the workforce it has Ampvolt is only catering to Melbourne and its surrounding areas. However, in view of increasing its service area it needs to form teams which take care of certain areas independently. This would facilitate in taking a better care of dedicated areas and thus increase the efficiency of their services.
Making teams with individual contractors for dedicated areas will also be preferred by the customers. This would help in increasing the reliability of the company and hence build trust among its customers.

Price Strategy

Every city and area has people from different class and different financial backgrounds. The company would need to devise its pricing strategy in such a way that it comes well within the budget of targeted areas. Some of the following things need to be addressed under its pricing strategies:

It needs to price its services as per the region it’s provided and the market it is offered. For example in an industrial area where the usage is high the company can offer discounted rates due to the increase in scale of operations. Similarly in the household areas where usage is comparatively lessor the company may devise separate plans for the customers to choose from.
The company should offer comprehensive packages where it includes the rates for electrical installations and maintenance which shows the savings people make if they opt for it. Moreover for those who are in search of only the maintenance services pricing as per the scale of needs should be provided.
Offer discounts for new customers so that they are attracted to avail of the services by Ampvolt. For retaining the existing customers special offers could be released from time to time to ensure that they don’t shift to the other service providers.

Promotion Strategy

Ampvolt has been expanding due to its word of mouth promotion where the existing customer base has drastically contributed to its expansion. However there are a few promotional strategies which the company needs to implement in order to fight the competition and more importantly explore the opportunities to increase its business.

In this digital world one of the areas where the company is lacking is its online presence. The 1^st step it needs to take is creating a website for the company. Moreover an effective online promotion also needs to be done highlighting its services and offers. This would highly contribute in promoting their brand and making them popular over the people who search for local service providers in the Melbourne region.
Increasing its advertising through the modes available such as print media, television, and hoardings could be done which has hardly been undertaken by the company in the past. Moreover giving out corporate gifts would be another medium which could assist the company to attract attention from their possible customers. Advertising is an important element which could make or break for a company in a competitive environment. The company even though has fared well with the increase in competition it needs to make its products popular and known to the people around.

The promotional strategies should be aimed to touch the daily necessities of customers. It should be developed in such a manner that it helps them to relate to the requirements they have. Further advertisements should be simple and easy to understand so that normal people could understand the benefits they could get out of the services offered by the company.

Actions

Ampvolt seems to have gained a good reputation among the locals which has been the reasons for its effective implementations and actions. However as the company moves ahead and takes the next step to reach a new level in terms of operations and services there are a few actions which it needs to perform. Some of them have been listed below:

Manage your database: Usually for small and medium sector enterprises it is very common to see the database being managed in a much haphazard manner. The same looks to be the case of the company as individuals are more focussed on providing their services rather than maintaining their contacts and accounts in a better manner. The need to follow the three C’s of Contact Data Management which stands for clean, complete and current data. So the 1^st step forward should be to centralise the database storage of their clients and keep it updated with the most recent client details. Popular CRM software could be used in order to provide the entire management service(Ecmweb 2010).
Consistent Monitoring of Activities: It would also be advised to have a regular reporting system for their on-going activities which would keep the management and staff about the progress as well as the work that needs to be done. This would ensure no delays as well as make sure that necessary steps are being taken in case any wrong methods had been deployed.
Cultivate Team Relationships: The other aspect which needs to be taken care of and necessary actions have to be taken is cultivating team relationships. As the company is growing and would have to manage dedicated teams and individuals it would be important to create a strong bonding among the workers as well as a better relationship with the management heads. It would keep everybody informed about how the company is progressing and focus on the targets while moving ahead collectively to the targets which the company has.
Expand the availability of services:Ampvolt needs to take this necessary step in order to expand its domain of offering services. Adding more people and catering to a larger section of the Melbourne and surrounding areas could be a very good opportunity. In order to do so the company needs to make dedicated teams and divide the areas besides assigning job roles to its employees. This would enable them in offering better services and hence attracting newer customers.
Survey their customers:Ampvolt has a considerable customer base, so conducting a survey to understand the level of satisfaction among its customers would be one of the actions it needs to take. It would enlighten them with the avenues which they could explore and services they could provide to their clients. Moreover it would certainly help them to fix any possible flaws or requirement which is not up to the mark as per their clients (smallbusiness.chronn.d.).
Force open lines of communication: One of the actions which for years had been regarded as a possible threat to the company is promoting open lines of communication. However this would actually prove beneficial for the company as it would increase the comfort level when the project managers, foremen and the administrators communicate with each other. Through this the upcoming projects as well as the plans of the company would be known to each member of the company. This would in turn help the employees and staff members to promote selling of their services to the possible clients.

Budget

Budgeting is another vital element which Ampvolt would need to take care of. As it’s growing and there is a possibility of increased business a budget allocation and advanced planning would be recommended so that it manages its resources better and hence increases its efficiency. This in turn will contribute towards increased profits as wastages would be reduced and funds could be properly allocated. In order to do this the company would require to analyse the costs it incur for a particular set of functions it carries out and then allocate its funds accordingly. (DSD WEB 2010)

After conducting the possible growth of the future business prospects the company would need to take a decision to estimate the amount it wishes to spend for its business in the coming years. Scale of operations would be another criteria which include the demographics of the particular region such as the number of people, the usage of electricity, upcoming projects, type of area (industrial or residential), etc.

Another vital issue before a fund is allocated to a particular unit would be to consider the transportation costs which applies for brining certain equipment and materials to a place. As transportation is a major cost it needs to be considered before the budget is prepared.

The Distribution of revenues earned should be decided and allocated accordingly. I policy of deciding a budget and allocating it in a defined proportion would definitely benefit the company. A policy such as keeping 20% for promotions, 10% for Research, 20% for technological investments, etc. could be a well-defined prospective for the company.

Conclusion

From the experience that you have gained in following this marketing plan will help for the development of the company and make a more professional future. Practice makes it better but not perfect and each time the marketing planning process is followed, the results would surely keep on improving. With the best planning markets usually are affected by the dominant market forces. However a proper plan can help the business to withstand any possible damage which may come in between. With this plan Ampvolt Electricals would surely increase their facilities and develop a business where they have to take actions.

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