Electrolux’s Key Competitive Advantages

Questions:

1. Please discuss and evaluate Electrolux’s key competitive advantages in major appliances market

2. Explain and discuss customer behaviour in the major appliances market (B2B, B2C)

3. Please make a general segmentation of the smartphone market and suggest key customer groups for Electrolux (B2B, B2C)

4. Please discuss and evaluate the screening criteria that you would use for Electrolux’s IMS (International Market Selection) regarding their major appliances. Which regions (among the four mentioned in the case) would you recommend as future focus Electrolux markets – Please argue for your ranking 1,2,3 and 4?

5. Please design a marketing mix and argue how it should be used in the region, which got rank no. 1 in Question 4.

Question 1

Electrolux has a global presence with manufacturing plants across different continents. This provides Electrolux with economies of scale since they can produce each product in large quantities and also they can order for their supplies in huge quantities giving them the opportunity to reduce the overall cost of the products they produce.

Electrolux focuses on 360-degree consumer experience process. This process focuses on creating the best customer experience and with this plan at hand they are able to deliver services that are beyond just the production and sale of electronics but also provide consumers with an experience that they may not find available with other producers. This focus improves customer loyalty and also gives Electrolux much needed information on which areas to improve upon when developing a new product.

Electrolux provides consumers products that are localized and also focused on the specific local needs. With the existence of several local manufacturing plants, Electrolux is able to produce products that meet the specific needs of people in that locality and this makes the products from Electrolux unique and also standout from the different products available on the market.

Electrolux is able to invest more into research and design since they are a large organization and also have a lot of resources at their disposal. With the availability of such resource, they are able spend more on developing products that meet the specific demand of consumers across different continents making their products sell to a wide range of consumers.

Electrolux also leverages a lot on online sale in order to bring their products directly to consumers and also have access to consumer feedback, which is very crucial to the sustainability of organizations. With the use of online portals for sales, Electrolux is able to sell it’s products directly to consumers which would reduce the cost to the consumer and also provide direct access to customer needs for Electrolux.

Question 2

B2B

They prefer having direct and personal relationships with sales representatives. That is businesses that do business with Electrolux prefer to have a more personal relationship with their sales representatives from Electrolux and not just a transactional relationship. This is because they mainly aim to do repeat business with other companies and would want the terms of their transactions to be more flexible.

They usually prefer customized products that suit their specific needs and demands. This makes it easier for them to order and use with little or no modification required.

They are more knowledgeable in the products that they request for. That is, they have a lot of information on the products that they need and require specific products.

They are more rational. Businesses are more rational compared to the average consumer.

B2c

Their average knowledge on products is growing. That is with the emergence of Internet, consumers are able to read more on products and also compare them to other existing products on the market.

Prevailing economic conditions affect consumers’ spending behavior especially when it comes to electronics that are not considered necessities.

They are easily influenced by trends and advertisement.

They prefer products that are standardized.

Question 3

B2B

Governmental