In this age of globalized competition and digital media connecting with the world on a 24/7 basis, the companies that have been able to invent and re-invent are the ones that have able to grow and succeed.
The celebrated Japanese automotive giant Toyota Industries Corporation is one such company that has strategized and positioned the product and services in view of the times and thus has been able to strengthen its position in the sector amidst strong competition.
Toyota has diversified and expanded immensely since starting in 1926 with manufacturing automatic looms, into textile machinery, automobiles (vehicles, engines, car air-conditioning compressors, etc.), and materials handling equipment, electronics, and logistics solutions (Toyota Business Overview, 2016).
The target market of Toyota is a diverse segment in view of the aforementioned products and services, however being a global player the hero products are the automobiles in the product mix that caters to segments depending on luxury, family, environmental and disabled consumers.
Just recently Toyota Tacoma new model for 2016 which is a leader in mid-size truck segment has been positioned for thrill seekers and adrenaline junkies like snowboarders, off-roaders to name a few, to keep the target market hooked and also stave off competition from General Motors by creating an emotive connect (E.J. Schultz, 2015).
The target markets main aspect is the mid size truck segment is the attitude that comes with the rush of thrill seeking when it comes to the drive and how it caters to their needs in an effective and efficient manner.
The marketing promotion for the campaign has been the brands biggest investment in a decade and the communication theme of the campaign i.e. Play Now will in essence carry forward the main theme ‘Let’s go Places’ to connect with the functional attributes of the product.
The communication with the newly launched model offers to given the thrill seekers the ‘experience with an attitude’ that will not only satisfies their needs of adrenaline rush but also creates an aura around the products association with their personal traits.
The product has added new features i.e. crawl control that basically takes over the acceleration and braking part and lets the driver focus only on the steering and a GoPro camera for a rear view mirror, these features are to increase the thrill seeking experience of the consumers.
The main factors that differentiates Toyota from the competition starts mainly with the design and its consumer friendly features, based on the selected target audience, case in point is of Toyota Tacoma.
Besides superior marketing communication that creates an emotive connect which can be gauged for the fact that in spite of the issues of car recalls that the company witnessed it was able to sustain the image effectively in terms of consumer loyalty.
Technology as evidenced by the addition of new features in Toyota Tacoma is one the primary forte of Toyota and most importantly the products and services are not focused on a niche and is affordable that gives the corporation an advantage on the cost leadership.
Last but not the least the Toyota production system (TPS) is affixed on the two concepts Jidoka and JIT that in essence creates a process of quality to primarily cater to the needs of the consumers (Toyota Production System, 2016).
Toyota as a corporation is moving forward with the times and to conclude it is imperative that the company keeps its connect with consumers by activating brand Toyota in the minds of the consumers on a constant basis through different communication channels and most importantly by delivering consistently on quality.
References
E.J. Schultz (2015, Oct 02). Tacoma Debuts Biggest Campaign in Decade Amid Truck Battle. Ad Age. Retrieved from http://adage.com/article/cmo-strategy/tacoma-debuts-biggest-campaign-decade-amid-truck-battle/300720/
Toyota Industries Corporation. (2016). Business Overview. Product. Retrieved from http://www.toyota-industries.com/product/
Toyota (2016). Toyota Production System. Company. Retrieved from http://www.toyota-global.com/company/vision_philosophy/toyota_production_system/
