Marketing Plan for the Internationalisation Project of Huawei Technologies Ltd The WritePass Journal

Marketing Plan for the Internationalisation Project of Huawei Technologies Ltd Executive Summary Marketing Plan for the Internationalisation Project of Huawei Technologies Ltd ). This means that Huawei would have to contend with the challenge of establishing trust with potential Indian partners and customers, and prove that its products and services are of high quality contrary to prevailing negative perceptions of Chinese companies in India. There are also infrastructural deficits in many part of India, especially the rural areas, which may affect Huaweis servicing of the Indian market. Many parts of India lack not only key telecom infrastructure, but also basic infrastructures such as power supply and roads (DB, 2010). It may therefore be challenging for new entrants such as Huawei to operate successfully in such areas. In spite of the challenges associated with the Indian market environment in general and the telecom market segment in particular, this market is suitable to target because of the considerable opportunities it offers and the resources available. The sheer size of the market and the number of telecommunications carriers in the country offers a potentially huge customer base for Huawei to exploit. The socio-political stability of India is also an advantage, as it would facilitate a conducive business climate for new entrants into the Indian market. Marketing Objectives Marketing objectives refer to the measures of accomplishment by which the organisation can measure the degree of success of its marketing strategies. Marketing objectives may therefore include elements such as retention, market leadership, rate of new sales growth, and other indices (Joshi, 2005). In essence, marketing objectives clarify what the organisation wants to accomplish through its marketing activities. In order for marketing objectives to help the organisation achieve the required aims and successfully implement the marketing plan, they need to meet the SMART criteria, which means that they should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (Doran, 1981). Huaweis marketing objectives in seeking to enter the Indian market can be discussed in terms of the Ansoff Matrix – a conceptual model and marketing planning tool that describes how the organisation links its marketing strategy with its strategic direction. The Ansoff Matrix suggests four distinct growth strategies in marketing planning, namely market penetration, market development, product development, and diversification. Table 1: Ansoff Matrix *Adapted from Ansoff (1967) In line with the provisions of the Ansoff Matrix, Huawei’s marketing objectives are mainly based on market development, which involves seeking to achieve growth by selling existing products or services in new markets (Ibid). Accordingly, Huawei’s key marketing objectives are to enlarge its customer base and increase revenues by establishing itself strongly in the Indian market within the first three years of market entry. These objectives are specific because they are straight-forward and clear. They are measurable because the total revenues and incremental number of customers can be quantified to determine how much progress is being made. The objectives are also achievable and realistic because Huawei already has significant experience, proven capability, and superior technologies that allow it settle quickly and make an impact in the new market within the projected time frame. They objectives are also time-bound, given that the projected three-year period for realisin g the objectives provides sufficient opportunity to set timelines, monitor progress, and adjust the plan where necessary in order to ensure that the objectives are realised within the set period. Marketing Strategy In order to determine the most appropriate marketing strategies best combination of the Marketing Mix to adopt for the planned internationalisation project, it is important to note that Huawei Technologies would be entering the Indian market as a latecomer, as opposed to a pioneer. Pioneers refer to the firms that are first to introduce a product or service in a given market and establish themselves early on. On the other hand, late comers refer to later entrants who enter a market with products or services that are already in existence or provided by existing firms (Kalyanaram and Gurumurthy, 1998). Given that being a pioneer can provide significant market-share advantages over latecomers, later entrants often need to adopt distinctive marketing strategies and positioning in order to compete favourably with the existing firms (Gao et al., 2007). Based on this reality, the marketing mix (i.e. price, products, promotion, and place) would have to be carefully evaluated to select the most effective combination suitable for Huawei as a latecomer in the Indian market. As such, the combination of product and promotion is suggested as the appropriate combination of the marketing mix that should be used in Huaweis market entry plan. A product strategy should be central to the marketing strategy, particularly in terms of defining the product range as well as product standardisation in order to ensure the same quality products and services that the Huawei brand is renowned for in the existing markets in which it operates. This should also involve improving product and service quality through incremental innovation in order to compete favourably with existing rival products and services. This product strategy should also be combined with a promotions strategy that involves repackaging product and service offerings through effective adve rtising and marketing to penetrate the new market. This is best achieved by segmenting the market and focusing on specific target demographics where high impact promotional activities would generate customers seeking varieties or enhanced substitutes to existing products or services (see Matthews, 2002). The Action Plan Action January February March April Who Conduct preliminary assessment of preferred operational base and acquire suitable office(s) 15th – 20th Administrative Staff in conjunction with local agents Commence process of recruiting qualified personnel 15st HR/Recruitment Agency Establish contact with preferred agents, suppliers, and partners 20th – 5th Regional Manager/Business development Managers/Logistics Department Profile target customers and establish contacts with them though presentations and proposals 20th – 30th Business Manager/Marketing Department Commence positioning attempts and repackaging of products and services to suit the needs of identified potential customers and targets 16th – Business Development Manager/Operations Department Begin promotional activities through focused advertising and public relations 20th – Marketing Department/Marketing Communications Agency/Industry Contacts Marketing Budget The marketing budget for Huaweis planned market entry should be sufficient to ensure the realisation of the marketing plan objectives, while also being cost efficient at the same time. Considering that there are competing marketing initiatives and needs in the proposed plan, allocated funds must be dedicated to each aspect of the marketing effort to ensure that objectives are achieved in a measurable and timely manner (Luke, 2009). The elements of the marketing budget for Huawei’s market entry as well as the amount allocated to each category are outlined as follows: Activity Allocation (US$) Advertising and promotional activities (in telecom and ICT industry-focused journals, social media, etc) 380,000 Advertising and promotional materials (e.g. Brochures, fliers, banners, pens, calendars) 55,000 Product Repackaging Redevelopment 550,000 Research Development 400,000 Recurring expenses 420,000 Total Budget 1,805,000 Monitoring and Evaluation Monitoring and evaluation is a critical phase of the marketing plan, since it helps ensure that the plan is being implemented as designed, and meeting the projected objectives. It is also useful in making it possible to adjust or modify sections of the plan in response to observed shortcomings and external unforeseen contingencies (Tourism NT, 2007). There are a number of approaches that can be used for monitoring and evaluation, but for the present purpose, it is sufficient to adopt the McKinsey 7S Framework to monitor and assess the progress being made by the organisation towards achieving set objectives. The framework comprises strategy, structure, systems, staff, style, skills, and super-ordinate goals (or shared values). It is based on the premise that these seven components must be aligned and mutually reinforce each other in order to help the organisation determine where to realign needs to improve performance, or maintain alignment   in order to sustain performance (Peters, 2011; Waterman et al, 1980). Figure 1: The McKinsey 7S Framework Source: Peters (2011) The McKinsey 7S framework would be useful in monitoring and evaluating the implementation of Huaweis marketing plan, as each of the seven elements in the framework would be examined to determine where problems may arise along the line, and where further planning may be necessary. In specific terms, the performance of Huaweis marketing efforts in its international expansion plan would be based on measurable elements such as extent of customer awareness and feedback in response to advertising and promotional efforts, sales response to portfolio of products and services, customer satisfaction with product and service quality, and ROI on marketing investments in relation to quarterly earnings. Keys to Success Targeted product redevelopment and repackaging to meet the specific needs of high-value ICT and telecom customers Focused promotional and marketing activities for maximum exposure to the targeted demographic of potential customers Reliable customer service and after sales maintenance support Faithful implementation of elements of the marketing plan in line with the time-line Critical Issues The emphasis of product and promotion based marketing strategy is crucial for the success of the marketing plan. Since the telecom and ICT/telecom industry is highly dependent on quality of products and services, it is important to ensure that Huawei maintains its high product/service standard, and make necessary modifications to product formulation and packaging based on the location-specific requirements of the Indian market. Promotion is also vital, as the adopted promotional and marketing activities must be effectively implemented to establish the companys presence quickly among potential customers. Lastly, the monitoring and evaluation process must ensure that the marketing plan facilitates Huaweis incremental growth to a position of competitive advantage in terms of superior product offering, market share, and revenues within 3 years of entering the market. References Alli, A.M., Winter, G.S. and May, D.L. (2007) â€Å"Globalization: Its Effects†, International Business Economics Research Journal, 6(1), 89-96. Ansoff, I. (1967) Strategies for Diversification, Harvard Business Review, 35(5), Sep-Oct, 113-124 Bartlett, C. A., and Ghoshal, S.   (2005) â€Å"Transactional management, text, cases, and readings in cross-border management†, Journal of Management, 69(2), 99–120 Child, J. and Rodrigues, S.B. (2005) The internationalisation of Chinese firms, Management and Organisation Review, 1(3), 381-410 DB (2010) Issues and Opportunities of the Indian Telecom Industry [online], Available at: dnb.co.in/IndianTelecomIndustry/issues.asp [Accessed 10 November 2012] Dess, G, Lumpkin, T. and Taylor, M. (2004) Strategic Management: Creating Competitive Advantages, New York: McGraw Hill Professional. Doran, G.T. (1981) Theres a S.M.A.R.T. way to write managements goals and objectives, Management Review, 70(11), 35-36. Gao, X.D, Liu, J.X., Chai, K.H., and Li, J.Z. (2007) Overcoming latecomer disadvantages in small and medium-sized firms: Evidence from China, International Journal of Technology and Globalisation, 3(4), 364-383. Hill, C. (2009) International Business: Competing in the Global Marketplace, New York:   McGraw-Hill/Irwin Johnson, S. and Turner, J. (2003) International Business: themes and issues in the modern global economy, London: Routledge Joshi, R.M. (2005) International Marketing, New York: Oxford University Press. Kalyanaram, G. and Gurumurthy, R. (1998) Market Entry Strategies: Pioneers Versus Late Arrivals, Best Practice, Third Quarter, 1-11. Kotler, P. and Armstrong, G. (2006) Principles of Marketing, New Jersey: Pearson Education. Luke, K. (2009) How to Construct a Marketing Plan and Budget, Advisor Perspectives [online], Available at: advisorperspectives.com/newsletters09/pdfs/How_to_Construct_a_Marketing_Plan_and_Budget.pdf [Accessed 12 November 2012] Mathews, J.A. (2002) Competitive Advantages of the Latecomer Firm: A Resource-Based Account of Industrial Catch-Up Strategies, Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 19, 467-488. Nakai, Y. and Tanaka, Y. (2010) Chinese Company’s IPR Strategy: How Huawei Technologies Succeeded in Dominating Overseas Market by Sideward-Crawl Crab Strategy, Tokyo, Japan: Tokyo Institute of Technology. Parker, B. (1998) Globalization and Business Practice: Managing Across Boundaries, London: Sage Publications Peters, T.J. (2011) A Brief History of the 7-S (McKinsey 7-S) Model, [online], Available at: tompeters.com/dispatches/012016.php [Accessed 11 November 2012] Svensson, G. (2002) Beyond global marketing and the globalisation of marketing activities, Management Decision, 40(6), 574–83 Tourism NT (2007) Monitoring and Evaluation, [online], Available at: tourismnt.com.au/Portals/3/docs/industry/business/FS_monitoring_your_product.pdf [Accessed 12 November 2012] Vernon, R. (1996) â€Å"International investment and international trade in the product cycle†, Quarterly Journal of Economics, 80, 190-207 Waterman, R.H., Peters, T.J., and Phillips, J.R. (1980) Structure is not Organisation, Business Horizons, June, 14-26) Witzel, M. and Goswami, T. (2012) Huaweis entry to India, Financial Times [online], Available at: ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/a7c4d656-fe89-11e1-8028-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2C0acYoon [Accessed 10 November 2012]