A PROJECT REPORT

ON
MARKETING STRATEGIES OF TOYOTA

REPORT SUBMITTED TOWARDS PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQIREMENT

OF DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
G.G.S..I.P. UNIVERSITY, DELHI

SUBMITTED TO

SUBMITTED BY
AYUSH KULHANS
BBA-2010-2013
Roll No. 03224001810

TRINITY INSTITUTE OF PROFESSIONAL STUDIES

Sector-9, Dwarka, New Delhi

DECLARATION
I, Ayush Kulhans, student of Bachelors of Business Administration from GGSIP University,
Delhi hereby declare that I have completed Report on Marketing Strategies of Toyota as part of
the course requirement.

AYUSH KULHANS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

It is with the feeling of satiated and sense of Zenith that I draft this acknowledgement note. I
wish to express my gratitude to those who have generously helped me to compile the
Dissertation and stand up high, to the expectation of the institute.
I wish to express my deep sense of gratitude to my HOD, Trinity Institute of Professional
Studies, New Delhi for his guidance has aided me in the completion of this project.
I further declare that the information presented in this project is true and original to the best of
my knowledge.

AYUSH KULHANS

TABLE OF CONTENTS
3

S.NO.

PARTICULARS

PAGE
NO.

1.

Chapter 1: Introduction About The Topic

2.

5-7
8-35

3.

Chapter 2: Profile Of The Company

Chapter 3: Research Methodology

4.

Chapter 4: Findings And Analysis

5.

Chapter 5: Conclusion, Recommendations &

36-39

Suggestions
6.

Bibliography

7.

Annexure

CHAPTER-1

Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION ABOUT THE TOPIC
5

Research can be defined Marketing research is "the function that links the consumer, customer,
and public to the marketer through information information used to identify and define
marketing opportunities and problems; generate, refine, and evaluate marketing actions; monitor
marketing performance; and improve understanding of marketing as a process. Marketing
research specifies the information required to address these issues, designs the method for
collecting information, manages and implements the data collection process, analyzes the results,
and communicates the findings and their implication. Marketing research is the systematic
gathering, recording, and analysis of data about issues relating to marketing products and
services. The goal of marketing research is to identify and assess how changing elements of the
marketing mix impacts customer behavior. The term is commonly interchanged with market
research; however, expert practitioners may wish to draw a distinction, in that market research is
concerned specifically with markets, while marketing research is concerned specifically about
marketing processes
Research can be defined as the search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to
establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories,
usually using a scientific method. The primary purpose for basic research (as opposed to applied
research) is discovering, interpreting, and the development of methods and systems for the
advancement of human knowledge on a wide variety of scientific matters of our world and the
universe.
The success of any business entity solely depends on how effectively does it utilizes its optimum
resources and how soon does it make arrangements for the removal of the customers grievances.
Moreover, the company should always be ready to make necessary changes according to the
requirement in order to attract more customers so as to maintain a substantial growth in the
market.

OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

 The object of report is not only to focus on competitors but also to get the competitive
position in the national as well as international market through customer satisfaction.
These are as follows.
To discover and translate the needs and desire of customer into products and services so
as to create the demand of the product (through planning and producing planned product).
To serve the customer through channel of distribution.
To face the keen competition.
To know about the marketing strategies used by Toyota.
To know about the marketing strategies of the competitors of Toyota.
To find out the market share of Toyota.
To know where Toyota stands as far as the BCG matrix models concerned.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

7

The title of my Project is MARKETING STRATEGIES ON TOYOTA. The purpose of the

study which I have done is to carry out an in-depth analysis of the TOPIC which is being
practiced in most of the corporate, viz. TOYOTA. The basic purpose is carried on with an
intention to reduce the study in the form of a report which is submitted in the partial fulfillment
for the Award of Degree of BBA (Banking & Insurance).

CHAPTER-2
8

CHAPTER 2 : COMPANY PROFILE

The Headquarters of Toyota in Toyota City, Japan

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The story of Toyota Motor Corporation began in September 1933 when Toyoda Automatic Loom
created a new division devoted to the production of automobiles under the direction of the
founder's son, Kiichiro Toyoda. Soon thereafter, the division produced its first Type A Engine in
1934, which was used in the first Model A1 passenger car in May 1935 and the G1 truck in
August 1935. Production of the Model AA passenger car started in 1936.

10

Although the Toyota Group is most well known today for its cars, it is still in the textile business
and still makes automatic looms (fully computerized, of course), and electric sewing machines
which are available worldwide.
Toyota Motor Co. was established as an independent company in 1937. Although the founding
family name is Toyoda, the company name was changed to:

Signify the separation of the founders' work life from home life;

Simplify the pronunciation, and

Give the company an auspicious beginning. Toyota is considered luckier than Toyoda in
Japan, where eight is regarded as a lucky number, and eight is the number of strokes it
takes to write Toyota in Katakana.

During the Pacific War the company was dedicated to truck production for the Imperial Army.
Because of severe shortages in Japan, military trucks were kept as simple as possible. For
example, the trucks had only one headlight on the center of the hood.
Commercial passenger car production started in 1947 with the model SA. In 1950 a separate
sales company Toyota Motor Sales Co. was established (which lasted until July 1982). In April
1956 the Toyopet dealer chain was established.

ASSEMBLY PLANTS OVER THE WORLD

Toyota has factories all over the world, manufacturing or assembling vehicles for local markets,
including its most popular model, the Corolla. Toyota has manufacturing or assembly plants in
the United States, Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Poland, South Africa, Turkey, the United
Kingdom, France, Brazil, and more recently India, Argentina and Czech Republic. Toyota also
builds and sells cars in China in a joint venture with Tianjin Xiali. Toyota New Zealand

11

assembled vehicles until 1998, when it switched to importing cars from Japan and Australia.
Cars from these plants are often exported to other countries.

Overview

12

In 2006, Toyota was engaged in a variety of projects designed to solidify its foundations while
continuing to grow.
On the product front, Lexus launched its new flagship model, the LS, and the new global Camry
went on sale. In Japan, a new Corolla range was introduced, emphasizing the importance of this
best-selling car.
In manufacturing, several new projects were started around the world. In May, manufacture of
the Camry began in Guangzhou, China, while in the United States, the Kentucky plant, which in
October celebrated 20 years of production, started manufacturing the first Toyota hybrid vehicle
to be made in North America, the Camry Hybrid. In November, the Texas plant began producing
the new Tundra truck, a key vehicle in Toyotas North American lineup. In Japan, Toyota Motor
Kyushu, Inc. began full-scale operations at its engine factory, while Toyota Motor Tohoku Co.,
Ltd. increased its manufacturing capacity.
In human resources development, following the establishment of the Asia Pacific Global
Production Center in Thailand in August 2005, Toyota established the North American
Production Center in the U.S. in February, and the European Global Production Center in the
United Kingdom in March. Established as branches of the Global Production Center in Japan,
these were created to spread Toyotas manufacturing knowledge and skills throughout the world
in pace with the rapid growth of Toyotas overseas manufacturing. The centers educate trainers
for local manufacturing plants in all regions, with trainees passing on what they learn to team
members on their return to their plants.
In R&D, Toyota focused its efforts on three key areas: environment, safety and energy. It made a
special effort in the area of the environment by expanding its lineup of hybrid vehicles, and has
worked on R&D relating to plug-in hybrid. In addition, as part of Toyotas efforts to respond to
the diversification of energy, in 2007 Toyota plans to introduce a flex fuel vehicle* in the
Brazilian market that will run on 100% bio-ethanol fuel. From this point on, based on the
philosophy of providing the right car, in the right place, at the right time, and in accordance
with the infrastructure and customer needs of each region, Toyota will continue to promote
efforts to develop environmentally friendly technology and vehicles.Corporate Data

13

Company Name Toyota Motor Corporation

Head Office

1 Toyota-Cho, Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture 471-8571,

Japan
Phone: (0565)28-2121

Tokyo Head

1-4-18 Koraku, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 112-8701, Japan

Office

Phone: (03)3817-7111

Nagoya Office

4-7-1 Meieki, Nakamura-ku, Nagoya City, Aichi

Prefecture 450-8711, Japan
Phone: (052)552-2111

Establishment

August 28, 1937

Since its foundation, Toyota has conducted business with contributing to the
development of a prosperous society through the manufacture of automobiles as a
guiding principle. When I became president two years ago, I called on all employees to
work with me in returning to our origins and asking earnestly whether Toyota is truly
contributing to society and whether we are doing everything we should be doing. On
the occasion of Toyotas 70th anniversary, we will reinforce our measures designed to
return to our core principle, which is to "repay the earth and society through
technological innovation (and contribute to enhancing the quality of life everywhere

14

Guiding Principles
Honor the language and spirit of the law of every nation and undertake open and fair corporate
activities to be a good corporate citizen of the world.
Respect the culture and customs of every nation and contribute to economic and social development
through corporate activities in the communities.
Dedicate ourselves to providing clean and safe products and to enhancing the quality of life
everywhere through all our activities.
Create and develop advanced technologies and provide outstanding products and services that fulfill
the needs of customers worldwide.
Foster a corporate culture that enhances individual creativity and teamwork value, while honoring
mutual trust and respect between labor and management.
Pursue growth in harmony with the global community through innovative management.
Work with business partners in research and creation to achieve stable, long-term growth and mutual
benefits, while keeping ourselves open to new partnerships.

Toyota Percepts

15

 Be contributive to the development and welfare of the country by working together,

regardless of position, in faithfully fulfilling your duties.
Be at the vanguard of the times through endless creativity, inquisitiveness and pursuit of
improvement.
Be practical and avoid frivolity.
Be kind and generous; strive to create a warm, homelike atmosphere.
Be reverent, and show gratitude for things great and small in thought and deed.

Board of Directors
Chairman and Representative

Fujio Cho

Director
Vice Chairman and

Katsuhiro Nakagawa

Representative Director
President and Representative

Katsuaki Watanabe

Director
Executive Vice President and
Representative Director

Tokuichi Uranishi
Kazuo Okamoto
Kyoji Sasazu
Mitsuo Kinoshita
Takeshi Uchiyamada
Masatami Takimoto

Senior Managing Director

Akio Toyoda
Yukitoshi Funo
Takeshi Suzuki
16

Atsushi Niimi
Hiroshi Takada
Teiji Tachibana
Shinichi Sasaki
Akira Okabe
Yoichiro Ichimaru
Shoji Ikawa
Koichi Ina
Takeshi Yoshida
Shinzo Kobuki
Akira Sasaki
Hiroshi Kawakami
Tadashi Arashima
Mamoru Furuhashi
Satoshi Ozawa
Honorary Chairman
Senior Advisor

Shoichiro Toyoda
Hiroshi Okuda

17

Locations of Toyota Facilities

Toyota Manufacturing Subsidiaries and Affiliates

Start of

Main products
Toyota Motor Kyushu, Inc.

operations
Harrier, Harrier Hybrid,
Kluger, Kluger Hybrid, IS, ES
Transmissions, transfers,

Toyota Motor Hokkaido, Inc. aluminum wheels, drivetrain

parts, etc.
Toyota Motor Tohoku Co.,

Mechanical and electronic

Ltd.

parts

Toyota Auto Body Co.,Ltd.

Hiace, Liteace, Voxy, Noah,

Estima, Prius, Land Cruiser,
Alphard, Ipsum, Townace,
18

Regiusace, Coaster, Estima

Hybrid, Alphard Hybrid,
LX470
Kanto Auto Works, Ltd.

Century, Crown, Corolla

Spacio, Corolla Fielder, Isis,
Belta, SC, Auris, BLADE

Central Motor Co., Ltd.

Raum, MR-S, Scion xB,

Corolla Axio, Corolla
hatchbacks

Gifu Auto Body Industry Co., Hiace

Ltd.
Daihatsu Motor,Co., Ltd.

Rush, Passo, Probox, Succeed,

bB, Porte, SIENTA

19

Toyota Today
Supporting Spirit of Athletics
Toyota continued its support of the ideals and spirit embodied in athletics by becoming, for the
third time since 2003, the Official Partner to the 11th IAAF World Championships in Athletics,
held in Osaka, Japan, August 25th-September 2nd. Through the sponsorship and a global
advertising campaign with the tagline, "Beyond Limits," Toyota aims to communicate its support
for athletes who, like Toyota, continually push themselves further in pursuit of the ultimate goal.
Apart from providing a fleet of 220 cars for use as official vehicles at this year's championships,
Toyota also supported a program to encourage new world records for women's events by
becoming the official women's bib sponsor.
Toyotas First FFV
Toyota do Brazil LTDA. (TDB) launched Toyota's first-ever flex fuel vehicle (FFV), a vehicle
which runs on gasoline, ethanol or any combination of the two, at a line-off ceremony at its India
tuba Plant in So Paulo on May 29th. Representing Toyota's commitment to developing
environmental technologies, the locally produced Corolla Flex and Corolla Fielder Flex are the
first marketed Toyota models that can run on 100% bio ethanol. The introduction of the two
models in Brazil, where bio ethanol is widely used as fuel and FFVs represent 83% of newly
registered vehicles in the market, firmly demonstrates Toyota's belief in listening to its
customers. In the first semester of the year, Toyota accounted for almost 33,000 of the more than
one million vehicles sold in Brazil during that period.
Island Adventure
Members of the Philippine motoring press had a wet and wild time at the Toyota Road Trek 3,
held May 31st-June 3rd in the archipelago's central islands. Bringing media representatives to a
variety of well-known destinations across the country, the annual road trip is conducted by
Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. to demonstrate the toughness and versatility of its IMVs. This
year, the event took over 40 participants on an island-hopping adventure, enabling them to fully
test the exceptional capabilities of the Innova, Fortuner and Hilux vehicles.
A series of competitive, water-related activities made it a truly challenging and fun trip that
20

encouraged teamwork, camaraderie and friendship among all attendees. The event was
prominently featured in major newspapers and magazines, further boosting the popularity of
IMVs in the market.

A Way to Learn Road Safety

Dedicated to promoting activities that help minimize traffic accidents in Pakistan, Indus Motor
Company Limited (IMC) in January launched a Toyota School Road Safety Program. Through
music concerts, skits by clowns and quizzes in schools, the pilot program aims to educate
children about road safety in a fun and memorable way. Twenty schools in Karachi and around
18,000 children have already benefited from the program, which is part of IMC's comprehensive
corporate social responsibility initiative with the slogan, "Concern Beyond Cars." IMC looks to
expand the program to other schools in Karachi and later to other cities, given the overwhelming
response from the children and parents who have so far participated.
Crown Bamboo Concert
As part of its 2007 campaign for the Crown with the theme, "Playing out your life with
intelligence," FAW Toyota Motor Sales Co., Ltd. held its Crown Bamboo Concert at the famous
Anji bamboo forest in Zhejiang province, China, on August 18th. The classical music concert
successfully communicated the flagship model's philosophy of harmony to the guests present,
and was extensively featured in various media across China.

21

Dreaming about Future

Toyota Motor Corporation got a glimpse of the future through the eyes of children across Asia
and China when it held the Dream Car Art Contest from October to January. Giving school
students aged 15 years and younger the exciting challenge of drawing their ideal car, the annual
contest generated greater awareness of the Toyota brand in the region. By means of a website,
ads in Reader's Digest magazine and promotions at local dealerships, Toyota successfully raised
public consciousness about the contest, drawing over 20,000 entries from 12 countries - an
eightfold increase from the number of designs submitted at the first contest in 2004.
Toyota Turns 40
Toyota AG (TAG), Toyota's distributor in Switzerland, celebrates its 40th anniversary with yearlong promotions and a series of activities for its customers and partners. Kicking off its
commemorative year with an elaborate Auris media launch on February 16th, TAG has since
initiated a comprehensive advertising campaign that creates awareness of its special promotion
packages for customers as well as Toyota's successful history in Switzerland. In March, a
birthday gala dinner for 900 associates, dealers and partners served to thank everyone within the
TAG Family for their support and encouragement throughout the distributor's four decades in the
country.
Growth of Toyota
Lasting growth for Toyota will depend on aligning our interests with the larger interests of
customers and the community. We must be a company where people think seriously about the
role and responsibility of their company in the world. Our economic and industrial contribution
in each region grows, for example, as we globalize our operations. Another way to align our
interests with the larger interests of the community is through technology.
By the end of 1997, we will introduce the world's first new-energy transport that is commercially
competitive with conventional automobiles. That is when we will put a hybrid-electric passenger
car onto the market in Japan. Our hybrid-electric car will have a gasoline engine to generate
electricity or provide supplementary power to the wheels. It is twice as fuel-efficient as
conventionally powered vehicles of comparable size and performance. Equally important, the
22

value of its potential fuel savings could prove greater than its cost premium over conventional
vehicles. So, it actually could save money for car owners.

Survival and growth in our industry will hinge on developing technologies for reducing
environmental impact of our products and operations, as well as improving vehicular safety.
Photos and text on the following pages introduce some of the technologies we are developing to
position Toyota as an environmental leader.
Priorities for Toyota in the growth Strategy

Fortifying our product line

Asserting a competitive edge in technology

Accelerating globalization

Reclaiming market share in Japan

Cultivating demand in new business sectors

Measures for asserting a competitive edge in technology have centered on environmental themes.
We have introduced or demonstrated new power train technologies in the past year that will
make Toyotas run cleaner and greener than ever. Those technologies include...

A direct-injection system that makes gasoline engines more efficient

Hybrid-electric systems that double fuel efficiency and reduce noxious emissions

Pure electric, "zero emission" vehicles that alleviate urban pollution

Fuel-cell systems that could transform the automobile in the 21st century.

23

Market Share of Toyota

Toyota Motor Corp. grabbed more U.S. retail market share than Ford Motor Co. in early
November and it was less than one share point behind General Motors Corp.,
Toyota, Japan's largest auto maker, had a 15.4 percent U.S. retail market share a year earlier.
Toyota plans to enter small car segment in India
Worlds second largest automaker wants to get offensive in the Indian domestic auto market.
Toyota is very much interested in launching a small car here in the segment currently dominated
by Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai. Tata also has a decent presence in the market with their Indica
range of diesel vehicles.
Toyota is at the moment carrying out a feasibility study for launching such a vehicle in the
domestic market where it has models like the Innova and Camry amongst others. They have had
an incredible success with their stopped Qualis model and are selling Toyota Innova in large
numbers. T Ino, director (marketing), Toyota Kirloskar Motor Pvt Limited has expressed that the
Indian auto market is a huge one and has the capacity to involve more players in the small car
segment.
Toyota has a variety of interesting models in its global lineup, which it can consider to launch in
the Indian market. Some of these are Vios, Platz, and Passo. The company also expects to break
even here in India this year with all the accumulated losses were expected to be wiped out during
2005. They also plan to invest around Rs 130 crores during the current year to enhance
efficiency.
Toyota plans to open up another manufacturing plant in India and is currently looking for a
location, which suits its requirement.

24

Competitors
Hyundai Motors India Limited (HMIL)

A decade after the Korean War and during the period of reconstruction, Hyundai Motor
Company began its fledgling efforts at automobile manufacturing by entering into a technology
transfer agreement with Ford of Great Britain, receiving design and styling from Ital Design of
Italy, and assembling technology from both England and Japan, all of which made the production
of our first model car, the "Pony," possible. In just ten years, in 1976 Hyundai began to export to
the world market. In 1986, we entered the U.S. market establishing the Excel as a new contender
among small cars and promoting the image of the Korean automobile industry.

Upon expansion of our Ulsan plant, which enabled Hyundai Motor Company to have a large
scale production base, and the founding of HM Canadian Corporation, which established
Hyundai throughout North America, we produced a record 10 million cars and exported over 4
million, breaking records in a short span of time. No other automobile company can boast of
these figures over such a short time span. We also poured our efforts in creating concept cars
such as the HCD-I, followed by the HCD-II and III, electric cars, and high technology hybrid
cars that will bear fruit in the future with their low pollution emissions, safety features, and
environmentally-friendly recyclable components. From Pony to Equus, Hyundai Motor
Company is committed to its growth as a mature company, constantly keeping in mind its
customer-oriented mottoes: "Customer Satisfaction" and "Create Value for Customers."

25

Marketing strategy of Hyundai

The Price Strategy
In August 2004, a leading business newspaper reported that Hyundai Motors India Limited
(HMIL), an Indian subsidiary of the South Korea- based Hyundai Motors Company (HMC) was
expected to reduce the price of its flagship car - Santro - by as much as Rs 40,000. Industry
experts were expecting a reduction in Santro's price in response to the price war being waged by
the market leader in India - Maruti Udyog Limited (MUL), which had reduced the price of its
largest selling car in the B segment - Alto - by Rs 58,000 in two price cuts starting from
September 2003. This move had resulted in Alto replacing Santro as the largest selling car in the
B segment in the period January to June 2004 (Refer Exhibit I for the market segmentation of the
Indian car industry).
Rebutting the report on price cuts, HMIL's managing director, BVR Subbu (Subbu) said, "We are
not cutting prices on the Santro. We have allowed our competitors the prerogative of cutting
prices." Several dealers of HMIL also felt that the company would not reduce Santro's price as it
had not adopted such tactics earlier.
Santro had been the most successful product of HMIL and was also the largest selling car in the
B segment till the fiscal year 2003-04. Introduced in late 1998, Santro had emerged as the second
largest selling car in India after MUL's M800 and had retained its position till March 2004 (Refer
Exhibit II for the total units and value sales of the top eleven car models in India). In mid 2004,
HMIL with its four models, Santro, Accent, Sonata and Elantra, was the second largest car
company in India with 19% market share in the industry. The company was planning to launch
another model, 'Getz', in September 2004.

26

Competitive analysis
Strength of Hyundai
Volumes has been 2 other promotional time of my choosing.

Brand Strategy
Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group today announced the launch of its new global brand
management strategy, in which Kia and Hyundai will pursue differentiated brand images as a
means of boosting the Groups overall market share and increasing the value of the two brands.
In accordance with the new strategy, Hyundai and Kia will be promoted under two separate
brand slogans. The Hyundai slogan - "Drive your way" - is designed to communicate the
companys refined and confident brand attributes, while the slogan - "The Power to Surprise" is aimed at embodying the exciting and enabling values of the Kia brand.

27

Maruti Udyog Limited (MUL)

It was established in Feb 1981 through an Act of Parliament, to meet the growing demand of a
personal mode of transport caused by the lack of an efficient public transport system.
Suzuki Motor Company was chosen from seven prospective partners worldwide. This was due
not only to their undisputed leadership in small cars but also to their commitment to actively
bring to MUL contemporary technology and Japanese management practices (which had
catapulted Japan over USA to the status of the top auto manufacturing country in the world).
A license and a Joint Venture agreement were signed between Govt of India and Suzuki Motor
Company (now Suzuki Motor Corporation of Japan) in Oct 1982.

The objectives of MUL then were:

Modernization of the Indian Automobile Industry.

Production of fuel-efficient vehicles to conserve scarce resources.

Production of large number of motor vehicles which was necessary

for

economic growth.

28

Marketing strategy of Maruti:

PRICE STRATEGY: - (RS.-LAKHS)

Maruti 800

2,00,850

Maruti versa

4,24,214

Omni

2,51,000

Zen

2,85,000

Wagnor

3,43,221-4,68,609

Esteem

4,25,0005,09,000

Baleno

6,62,556

GrandVitara-xl7

17,31,400

29

THE COMPETITION (Maruti)

Since 1985, Maruti Udyog Limited (MUL) has been the market leader in the passenger car
industry in India. Its flagship product - M800 had the distinction of being the largest selling car
model in India since its launch in December 1983. Positioned as people's car, M800 ruled the
Indian passenger car market and remained unchallenged ever since it occupied the top slot, five
months after its introduction. In March 2003, MUL sold 20,687 units of M800, the highest ever
sales by any single model in a month. It was also the highest sales since M800 debuted,
surpassing its previous monthly high of 18,735 units in August 1999.
For the first few months of 2004, M800 performed well, selling 15,301 units in January, 13,518
units in February and 15,540 in March. But gradually Alto, another MUL product, began eating
into M800's share. Alto reported sales of 8,399 units, 8,324 and 9,011 units in January, February
and March respectively. In April, its sales increased to 9,350 units and in May 2004, Alto took
over M800's position as the largest selling car with sale of 10,373 units, slightly over M800's
sales of 10,016 units. Analysts felt that Alto had taken the top spot because of its price reduction
in September 2003 by Rs. 23,000 followed by the launch of the non-AC Alto for Rs. 0.23 mn in
the first week of April 2004.

On reducing the gap between its bread and butter model M800 and its compact car Alto, MUL
said it had "long term" plans for M800. Commenting on Alto's pricing strategy, Jagdish Khattar
(Khattar), managing director of MUL, said, "The new price positioning of the Alto would
cannibalize existing A1 segment product the M800 which is also considered an old model. But,
the cannibalization will remain within the Maruti family and the bigger numbers will help Maruti
depreciate Alto faster. Net M800 sales may be less but we would be pushing more Alto and the
more we sell the Alto the faster it will depreciate."

Though industry analysts said this move would boost MUL's profits, they also expressed their
views that MUL's long-term plan might be to discontinue M800 and replace the entry segment
with Alto. However, Khattar clarified that MUL's pricing strategy was not meant to replace
M800 with Alto. He said, "Now, we have two cars in entry-level. Maruti 800 is still a dream of
Indians, how can I replace it?"
30

Competitive Analysis
Strength
In an era when owning a car was a distant dream for a vast majority of Indians, MUL rolled out
its first car, the M800. The company labeled it a people's car, with a 796cc 3-cylinder engine that
delivered 39.5bhp at an affordable price of Rs. 65,000. The first vehicle was released for sale in
December 1983. Initially, the car was criticized for its diminutive size, but it proved to be
spacious enough to carry four adults. Better technology and an affordable price due to a higher
level of indigenization helped MUL achieve a dominant position in the Indian passenger car
market

Weakness
MUL reduced the price difference between these two models positioning them on an almost
equal platform, which resulted in confusion in the minds of consumers and industry analysts.
Threat
M800 had ruled the passenger car market as the only car in the entry-level segment in the Indian
automobile industry and was now facing the danger of cannibalization from one of its own
family members, Alto
For the first few months of 2004, M800 performed well, selling 15,301 units in January, 13,518
units in February and 15,540 in March. But gradually Alto, another MUL product, began eating
into M800's share. Alto reported sales of 8,399 units, 8,324 and 9,011 units in January, February
and March respectively. In April, its sales increased to 9,350 units and in May 2004, Alto took
over M800's position as the largest selling car with sale of 10,373 units, slightly over M800's
sales of 10,016 units. Analysts felt that Alto had taken the top spot because of its price reduction
in September 2003 by Rs. 23,000 followed by the launch of the non-AC Alto for Rs. 0.23 mn in
the first week of April 2004.

31

Main Report Analysis

Marketing Strategies of Toyota
Price:As far as pricing strategy of Toyota is concerned, they are focusing on the very segment of the
market not only particular segment. Basically they are focusing on official and business class
people
Product Line
Avalon

$26,625

$28,875

$31,075

$33,815

Camry

$18,445(standard)

$19,545(LE)

$20,375(SE)

$22,795(XLE)

Camry Salora

$19,530

$21,025

$23,405

$26,942

Corolla

$14,005

$15,050

$15,215

$17,780

Matrix

$15,110

$16,590

$19,100

Prius

$21,725

4runner

$27,635

Highrunner

$34,625

Land Cruiser

$56,115

Sequoia

$32,820

Sienna

$23,625

Generic Strategies - Michael Porter (1980)

32

Generic strategies were used initially in the early 1980s, and seem to be even more popular
today. They outline the three main strategic options open to organization that wish to achieve a
sustainable competitive advantage. Each of the three options are considered within the context of
two aspects of the competitive environment:
Sources of competitive advantage - are the products differentiated in any way, or are they the
lowest cost producer in an industry? Competitive scope of the market - does the company target
a wide market, or does it focus on a very narrow, niche market?

The generic strategies are: 1. Cost leadership, 2. Differentiation, and 3. Focus.

1. Cost Leadership
The low cost leader in any market gains competitive advantage from being able to many to
produce at the lowest cost. Factories are built and maintained; labor is recruited and trained to
deliver the lowest possible costs of production. 'cost advantage' is the focus. Costs are shaved off
every element of the value chain. Products tend to be 'no frills.' However, low cost does not
always lead to low price. Producers could price at competitive parity, exploiting the benefits of a
bigger margin than competitors. Some organization, such as Toyota, are very good not only at

33

producing high quality autos at a low price, but have the brand and marketing skills to use a
premium pricing policy.

2. Differentiation
Differentiated goods and services satisfy the needs of customers through a sustainable
competitive advantage. This allows companies to desensitize prices and focus on value that
generates a comparatively higher price and a better margin. The benefits of differentiation
require producers to segment markets in order to target goods and services at specific segments,
generating a higher than average price. For example, Toyota differentiates its product and
service. The differentiating organization will incur additional costs in creating their competitive
advantage. These costs must be offset by the increase in revenue generated by sales. Costs must
be recovered. There is also the chance that any differentiation could be copied by competitors.
Therefore there is always an incentive to innovated and continuously improve.
3. Focus or Niche strategy
The focus strategy is also known as a 'niche' strategy. Where an organization can afford neither a
wide scope cost leadership nor a wide scope differentiation strategy, a niche strategy could be
more suitable. Here an organization focuses effort and resources on a narrow, defined segment of
a market. Competitive advantage is generated specifically for the niche. A niche strategy is often
used by smaller firms. A company could use either a cost focus or a differentiation focus. With a
cost focus a firm aims at being the lowest cost producer in that niche or segment. With a
differentiation focus a firm creates competitive advantage through differentiation within the
niche or segment. There are potentially problems with the niche approach. Small, specialist
niches could disappear in the long term. Cost focus is unachievable with an industry depending
upon economies of scale e.g. telecommunications.

34

Customer satisfaction
Toyota's believes in putting the customer first and aims to provide the best levels of customer
satisfaction as its main marketing strategy. Their dealers have also worked hard to provide their
high levels of customer support."
"In the last one year, Toyota has taken many initiatives, which has made Innova the most
successful product. Innova has successfully become a category creator.
We will continue to meet the ever-challenging customer expectations and will come out with
innovative marketing strategies.
With a change of guard at Toyota Kirloskar Motor Ltd., the company has evolved a new strategy
to capture 15 per cent market share in the Indian automotive segment. Effective from January 1,
Atsushi Toyoshima has been appointed Managing Director of the company, replacing Sachio
Yamazaki. "Competition is intense in the Indian market for domestic and foreign companies. The
Indian market is important for Toyota with potential to aid its growth strategy," Yoshio Ishizaka,
Executive Vice-President, Toyota Motor Corporation, said.
According to analysts, the Indian market would touch annual sales of 1.2 million units by 2005.
Last year, Toyota sold 3.8 million units overseas, manufacturing six million vehicles at 56 plants
in 25 countries. In India, the Toyota Quails notched sales of 25,000 units since its launch last
year, he said. Toyota's strategy to corner a significant chunk of the Indian market involves
"superior product offering and dedicated technology". In this context, the change of leadership in
Toyota's Indian division is important, indicating a more important role for the company's
manufacturing base in Bangalore.
"Bangalore is an ideal location to meet all of Toyota's needs, including auto components," Mr.
Toyoshima said
According to the managing director of Toyota Kirloskar Motor, Atsushi Toyoshima, the decision
to introduce Innova here (India) was based on three factors. First, over the last five years, the Csegment (between Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh) of the car market has grown by 20 per cent every
year. The multi utility vehicle segment has also grown at double-digit levels. Second, with an
35

improving lifestyle and better roads, the Indian consumer wants to take his vehicle for long
drives with friends and family. Third, there is a latent desire of customers, including those
owning MPVs, to seek attributes like greater interior space and overloading ability, while
passenger car buyers look for better styling and improved riding comfort. Innova brings together
the space and fuel economy of an MPV with the style, agility and power of a sedan. Toyota
Kirloskar Motor has described it as the first three-row seating passenger car in the Indian market.

36

CHAPTER-3

37

Chapter 3: Research Methodology

MARKETING RESEARCH
Marketing research is the function, which links the consumer, customer and public to the
marketer through information.
Information used to identify and define marketing opportunities and problems generate, refine
and evaluate marketing action, monitor marketing performance, and improve understanding of
market as a process.
Marketing research specifies the information required to address these issues, design the method
for collecting information, manages and implements the data collection process, analyses the
results, and communication the finding and their implications.
In this study;
Type of Data Collected
This project depends upon the primary as well as secondary sources which are as follows.
Primary Source:
Questionnaire (For Questionnaire See Annexure A)
Experiment
Talking with distributors, retailers and so on
Secondary Source:
Balance sheet of the company
38

 Company website

Primary Data:Primary research entails the use of immediate data in determining the survival of the market. The
popular ways to collect primary data consist of surveys, interviews and focus groups, which
shows that direct relationship between potential customers and the companies. Whereas
secondary research is a means to reprocess and reuse collected information as an indication for
betterments of the service or product. Both primary and secondary data are useful for businesses
but both may differ from each other in various aspects.

Secondary data:In secondary data, information relates to a past period. Hence, it lacks aptness and therefore, it
has unsatisfactory value. Primary data is more accommodating as it shows latest information.
Secondary data is obtained from some other organization than the one instantaneously interested
with current research project. Secondary data was collected and analyzed by the organization to
convene the requirements of various research objectives. Primary data is accumulated by the
researcher particularly to meet up the research objective of the subsisting project.

39

Sample Size & Areas Covered

A customer-based survey was conducted in which 100 people were asked to fill the questionnaire
in which 100 people belong to cities of Delhi and GURGAON.
Because it was not possible to consider each and every person of those cities or of villages so,
PROBABILITY SAMPLE or RANDOM SAMPLE was taken.

40

Statistical and Presentation Tools Used

PRIMARY DATA is:
First classified i.e. grouped qualitatively and quantitatively according to the situation or
the type of the data which was collected.
After classifying is represented in the form of tables i.e. systematically arranged in
columns and rows.
Some of the data is also graphically represented in the form of PIE DIAGRAM.

SECONDARY DATA is represented:

In the form of tables.

By the way of BAR GRAPHS and SUBDIVIDED BAR GRAPHS (Graphical

presentation).

41

CHAPTER-4

42

Chapter 4: DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

FINDINGS BASED ON QUESTIONNAIRE
Q1.) Which car do you own?
Hyundai

Maruti

Toyota

47

25

28

28
Hyundai

47

Maruti
Toyota

25

Q2.) Are you satisfied with the performance of your car?

Yes: 92

No: 8

Yes
No

92

43

Q3.) Given a choice, which car company would you prefer?

Hyundai: 52

Maruti: 30

Toyota:18

18
Hyundai
Maruti

52

Toyota

30

Q4.) Why would you prefer this particular brand?

Cost: 44

Design: 20

Interior:16

Fuel Efficiency:20

20
Cost
44

Design
Interior

16

Fuel Efficiency
20

Q5.) From where did you come to know about this particular brand?
Dealers:10

Print Media:15

Internet:14

TV: 61

44

10
15

Dealers
Print Media
Internet

61

14

TV

Q6.) According to you, Which car company has marketed itself well?
Hyundai:40

Maruti:35

Toyota:25

25
40

Hyundai
Maruti
Toyota

35

Q7.)Does your car company provide you after sales services?

Yes: 83

No:17

45

17

Yes
No

83

46

CHAPTER-5

47

48

CHAPTER 5: Findings, Analysis, Conclusion, Recommendations

Findings & Analysis

The strong industry position of toyota is based upon a number of factors including a
diversified product range, highly targeted marketing and a commitment to lean
manufacturing and quality.
The company(Toyota) uses marketing techniques to identify and satisfy customer needs.
Its brand is a household name. The company also maximizes profit through efficient
manufacturing approaches (e.g. Total Quality Management).
Toyota is to target the 'urban youth' market. The company has launched its new Aygo,
which is targeted at the streetwise youth market and captures (or attempts to) the nature
of dance and DJ culture in a very competitive segment.
Toyota's believes in putting the customer first and aims to provide the best levels of
customer satisfaction as its main marketing strategy. Their dealers have also worked hard
to provide their high levels of customer support."
Competition is intense in the Indian market for domestic and foreign companies. The
Indian market is important for Toyota with potential to aid its growth strategy,
They have had an incredible success with their stopped Qualis model and are selling
Toyota Innova in large numbers.
While Suzuki-Maruti, Tata Motors, Hyundai, Mahindra & Mahindra and Toyota
command the top five positions in the domestic passenger vehicle segment, Honda, GM
and Ford are fighting each other for the sixth position.
49

Conclusion
While Suzuki-Maruti, Hyundai, and Toyota command the top three positions in the domestic
passenger vehicle segment, Honda, GM and Ford are fighting each other for the sixth position.
Incidentally, in the first five months of the fiscal (Apr-Aug 04) Skoda has moved to the tenth
position, overtaking Italian major Fiat.
Hyundai, which has been the market leader in the mini, compact and mid-size segments, retains
its leadership position with sales of 1.9 lakhs units, followed by maruti with 1.1 lakhs and
Toyota with 19,797 units.
Competitive pricing and a better value offerings were driving the sales of most auto majors for
the past few months. Despite a competitive business environment, most of the car majors were
able to hold on to their market shares in the April to August 4 period. The exceptions were, who
saw their market shares fall marginally.
The market is slow and there are visible signs of discounting, particularly in the higher end of
the car segment. However, since entry level and compact cars are volume segments, the
slowdowns effect is more visible here.
For many automobile companies, it was a double whammy in August 04. The truckers strike
and adhikmas (inauspicious period) last month affected dispatches of most car companies,
including Maruti Udyog, General Motors and Tata Motors, resulting in lower saw.

50

Recommendation
Toyota should adopt the defensive marketing strategy because as being the second largest
car producer in the international market,

Toyota must at the moment carry out a feasibility study for launching a vehicle in the
domestic market where it has models like the Innova and Camry amongst others.

Toyota should conduct market survey in Indian market for quails in order to know the
perception of Indian consumers.

Toyota should adopt an offensive marketing strategy for entering in the small car
segment. This market is dominated by Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai in the Indian domestic
auto market.

Toyota must plan out an ideal marketing producing capacity ,becaue it faces the problem
of over and under capacity in case of upturn and downturn of the market.

51

Limitations of the Study

Since the road to improvement is never ending, so this study also suffers from certain limitations.
Some of them are as follows:

of response. Co-operation on the part of informants, in some cases, was difficult to

Because of illiteracy, it was a time consuming method in which continuous guidance was
required.
Questionnaire method involves some uncertainty presume.
It is possible that the information supplied by the informants may be incorrect. So, the study may
lack accuracy.

52

Bibliography

Books:
Philip Kotler, Marketing Management 30th edition.
T. N. Chhabra, Marketing Management, 2005.
C. B. Gupta, Marketing Management, 2006.

Web:
www.wikipedia.org/
http://www.scribd.com/doc/17342747/-Presentation-for-Toyota-marketing-strategies
http://lifeinmotion.wordpress.com/2006/12/23/%E2%80%9Ctoyota-developingstrategies-for-growth%E2%80%9D

53

Annexure
Annexure A
Questionnaire
A) NAME
B) ADDRESS
C) CONTACT NUMBER
Please tick () the appropriate option.
Q1.) Which car do you own?
Hyundai

Maruti

Toyota

Q2.) Are you satisfied with the performance of your car?

Yes

No

Q3.) Given a choice, which car company would you prefer?

Hyundai

Maruti

Toyota

Q4.) Why would you prefer this particular brand?

Cost

Design

Interior

Fuel Efficiency

Q5.) From where did you come to know about this particular brand?
Dealers

Print Media

Internet

TV

Q6.) According to you, Which car company has marketed itself well?
Hyundai

Maruti

Toyota

Q7.)Does your car company provide you after sales services?

Yes

No

54