Market growth
Market growth is defined as the increase in demand for a particular good or service over a given period (Kotler, et al, 2008). Depending on the selling features of the product, the market growth can either be slow or fast (Kotler, et al, 2008). For instance, the Voice-Activated Braking System, being a new technology, may at first be within the budgets of a few individuals but over time the price may go down and more people will see its benefits, hence increasing its demand. If a chart is plotted to illustrate the transition from when the product was selling a few pieces to when everybody would want to buy a car fitted with the gadget, it will essentially indicate the market growth.
Since the product is still at its inception stage Team D cannot make the argument of a strong market growth because this is a characteristic that can only define a product that is already in the market.
Competition
Competition is the concept of business people or institutions working towards gaining the greatest market share for their products, both goods, and services (Auerbach, 1988). Competition is very instrumental in the growth of any industry (Auerbach, 1988). This is because as the market becomes crowded, companies and other business establishments have to come up with new products or services that would help them cut a niche. For Toyota, the most they can do at the moment is to come up with new technologies that would give the buyers a better product (car) in terms of safety. The success of Team D’s proposal-the Voice Activated Braking System will go a long way in helping the company’s products regain their fast-waning popularity. This is extremely important because the business that the company is involved in, like most businesses depends on how fast they can dispose of their products.
At the moment, the product being suggested is still undergoing the debating process and once production has begun and it becomes successful in the market, then it is predictable that other companies would like to borrow the idea and start making similar products. It is only then that competition for this particular product market can be said to have started.
Product offering/Product definition
The product offering is the specific good or service that a company is presenting to the market (Palubiak, 1998). In marketing, the product definition/offering comprises two major parts, these are The product name and the product features (Palubiak, 1998). Group D’s product name is the Voice Activated Braking System (VABS); a name that generally tells what kind of product they are suggesting even without further explanation. The product characteristics/features include new technologies that can be installed into a car braking system in such a way that brakes can be applied via vocal commands. This is a precautionary measure and would come in handy when the traditional foot pedal brakes fail to work as has been the complaint with some Toyota’s in recent times.
In describing the product offering, the marketers of the said product must get to ensure that the buyers fully understand its strong points even without going into an in-depth explanation of the technology involved. This is done well before the launch will help give the product the popularity it desires hence controlling a substantial market share from its initial release.
Reference List
Auerbach, P. (1988). Competition: the economics of industrial change. Oxford: B.Blackwell.
Kotler, P., Armstrong, G., Wong, V. and Saunders, J. (2008). Principles of marketing. New Jersey: Pearson Education, Prentice Hall
Palubiak, R.C. (1998). Product offering: The right mix. Missouri: Optim Consulting Group.