“The New Beetle” (HBS) Case Study Analysis
This case study discusses the history of Volkswagen (VW) in America and in particular the launch and relaunch of one of the most successful VW models, the Beetle. 1. Why would positioning the New Beetle be considered Mission Impossible? Volkswagen (VW) started their business in the US in 1949 with the very successful Type 1 or as it was know, Beetle. In the 80’s, due to several reasons from legislation to Japanese competition, VW had to stop its production. In 1994, began the idea of re-launching the once brand’s icon. But this time, the New Beetle was envisioned at first as “the bug of the new millennium”, aligning the tradition and nostalgia of the past with the new technological advances and
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Having identified this ambiguity, how would the marketing team position the New Beetle? Would it be as a revival of the Old Beetle, focusing on heritage and emotions it brought but bringing the concern of the perceived image of ‘toy car’ due to its past reputation as people’s car or would it be positioned as a real, drivable car focusing on drivability, uniqueness and in line with the strategy of approach, invitation and drive 4 experience . Moreover, should they include it in the “Drivers Wanted” campaign? Some defended that New Beetle was aligned with the campaign’s value proposition, others were of the opinion it should be positioned on a different campaign, leveraging on tradition and past it had with the Old Beetle. There was also the issue of the possible cannibalization of Passat, which was released a few months before. Concerning price, it was set at $15,200 in the small-size category, which ranged between $11,000 and $18,000, putting it at the high-end. This was an issue because it would bring a broader competitive set (customers could consider the upper categories, where was Golf), and was inconsistent with the image of affordability. Also, setting a price too low would send the message of low quality and also lead to dealer concern due to small profit margins and eventually, some defection. Finally, there was also a decision to be made about media. With only 25% of
Over the past sixty years, the American car scene has been dominated by two completely different vehicles and the entire communities that believe in them. Both designed, founded, and rooted in Detroit, Michigan, the Ford Mustang and the Corvette have continued to fuel the chase for the label of America’s true muscle car. The question over the years has been, why and how do consumers choose which to own, and which one is our “bald eagle”? Investigating deeper into the roots of each American superpower, it all began with introduction of something that would change the automotive industry forever. “Corvette: Dream Car Come True”, is an article that highlights the beginning of the car movement in the United States: the birth of Chevrolet’s Corvette. “Born in 1953 at the General Motors plant in Flint, Michigan, the Corvette grew up on the raceway and has ruled the road ever since” (Seiden 14). The article also goes on to mention that “the Corvette is not for racers only. True car lovers own Corvette cars for everyday driving… and the highest performance standards have been built into every model” (Seiden 14). Early dominance of Corvettes on and off the racetrack, led other competitors such as Ford Motor Company wonder why and how the Corvette could be out-driven and out-sold. Directly opposing the release of the Corvette and its multipurpose ingenuity “Lee Iacocca, then general manager of Ford Motor Company, challenged his design team to create a car that could be driven ‘to
White says that “to produce a new vehicle it takes three to five years” (332), but he neglects to prove this information with ethos. The author later defends the automakers by stating “that doesn’t mean auto makers and their technology suppliers aren’t serious about rethinking the status quo” (333), therefore, he could confuse the reader with mixed opinions (332-333).
In June of 2011, the Asian Longhorned Beetle was found in Clermont County, about 30 minutes from where I live now. Clermont County is home to East Fork State Park, a 4,870 acre state park which is comprised of about 50% woodland. The Asian Longhorned Beetle (ALB) is an invasive insect in Ohio that will host in about 10 different types of trees. This is an important topic to me because this invasive insect is not only single-handedly taking down forests in Ohio, but the introduction of an invasive species also disrupts the soil, air, and water quality. I chose this topic because more people need to be aware of the little things they are doing that can affect the environment. By moving firewood, different types of lumber, or nursery stock to a location that is not affected by the ALB will just make matters worse.
The mountain pine beetle (MPB; Dendroctonus ponderosae) is a native insect of North America that induces pine tree mortality from bark boring infestation. On average, the MPB lives for one year with four stages of development (egg, larva, pupa and adult). The MPB remains burrowed within a host pine tree throughout all four stages of its life except in the late fall when the mature beetles leave a brood tree in search of a new reproduction site. When a MPB finds an optimal tree for infestation, pheromones are released which attract a swarm of adult beetles. After successfully burrowing into the Pine bark, egg galleries are created for the 75 eggs each female will lay, and these eggs develop into larvae that feed on the host tree's phloem.
Forests are carbon sinks, they absorb carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas, from the atmosphere through photosynthesis and store it in plant biomass and soils belowground. When the trees die, they stop absorbing and storing carbon dioxide, and as they decompose, they release some of the stored carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere (Suzuki & Moola, 2008). The mountain pine beetle (Aendroctonus ponderosae) is a primary agent of forest disturbance, a higher number of outbreaks occur due to favorable forest age and climate patterns (Progar et al., 2014). The mountain pine beetle (MPB) starts its attack when the female finds a pine tree (usually lodgepole) that is at least 80 years old. Upon finding the tree the female bores into it, while releasing a pheromone that attracts the male beetles. When the males arrive they, also release more pheromones to attract more females. The tree tries to defend its self by secreting a toxic resin. But the beetles carry spores of a blue-stain fungus in their mouths which they release as they bore into the tree, the fungus prevents the tree from transporting nutrients and water. The beetles lay eggs under the tree’s bark, and when the larvae hatch, they feed on the blue fungus until they are mature enough to leave the now dead tree (Aukema et al., 2006).
Over the last few decades in North America an insect has wreaked havoc on the coniferous trees that inhabit the Rocky Mountains. The insect known as the Mountain Pine Bark Beetle, or Dendroctonus ponderosae although once an important part of the cycle of life in the pines of the Rocky Mountains has recently grown out of control. Because of the beetles need to live inside of trees, they have adapted the ability to fight against the trees defenses, but in doing so have endangered the trees by cutting off their source of moisture throughout the tree. The Mountain pine beetle has an interesting physiology that allows it to burrow into trees. This causes many
Mountain-pine beetles have drastically changed the environment they are living in; due to this, areas such as industry, recreation, and the ecosystem have been impacted. For the last few decades the mountain- pine beetle has become a huge problem in the Rocky Mountains, stretching all the way from New Mexico all the way to central Canada. More than 60 million acres of forest have been infected, which has resulted in about 60% of the mature pines across North America to be killed (Rosner, 2013). Every day hundreds of trees are felled in an effort to clear out the beetles and to rid the forest of the unsightly dead trees. Entire forests have been reduced into nothing more than standing grave yards that mark a once great ecosystem. Forest Service officials are struggling to come up with a solution to this epidemic but find their options limited due to legal framework, public opinion, and just options in general.
The world is a tough place to survive. If the creatures living on this massive planet cannot adapt in order to survive, extinction will eventually win out. There have been five mass extinctions, and many minor ones, throughout the history of the world. Of course, not all extinctions can be controlled, such as natural disaster and over hunting. However many extinctions, such as no defense against predation, lack of water conservation, no control of osmoregularity, and the inability to adapt to a new environment, can be avoided through natural selection. There is one creature in particular that has mastered the art of surviving against predation:
The Hercules Beetle, which is native to South America, is one of the largest species of beetle in the world. The Hercules Beetle spends most of its life on the ground of the leaf covered rainforests and tropical jungles searching for food. The leafs covering the ground also help hide the beetle from predators. The Hercules Beetle is an omnivore, which means it eats both plants and animals. One of the most distinctive things about the Hercules Beetle are its pincers that look like horns, which are mainly used against other male Hercules Beetles during disputes. The Hercules Beetle has a conservation status of “threatened” and its skin type is shell.
The bombardiers beetle is a small insect that uses a unique form self-defense involving chemical reactions. The beginning of this reaction is in the secretory lobes which produce a highly concentrated mixture of hydrogen peroxide and hydroquinone that is sent to the collecting vesicle. Now, the reaction between hydrogen peroxide and hydroquinone goes like this: the hydrogen peroxide decomposed into water and oxygen; when the oxygen mixes with hydroquinone it produces more water and quinone, a chemical that generates heat up to boiling. Quinone is the goal of the entire chemical reaction, for quinone is the chemical used by the beetle when threatened. However, this possess is not instant and develops over a significant amount of time. This is
Hollensen 2007 states the third phase in the IMS model is the screening of the markets. Following Arnold Communications research, VW had assessed and developed their potential markets. Now was the time to select and screen the best of the segment opportunities. VW had deduced that their two main target markets would be 18 to 34 year olds and the baby boomers in the over 40’s range. Both of these markets, much like the VW research showed similar persnality traits. However, due to VW’s lack of budget it was not possible to target both markets. VW had to decide where to position the new Beetle. For the younger market, utilising the successful Drivers Wanted campaign and therefore putting the Beetle under the VW umberalla. Or for the baby boomers, by developing a seperate campaign to fully utilise the nostalgic leverage and to use the Beetle as a Hero brand for VW.
God perfectly designed every animal to be fully capable to live their lives just how the need to. Each animal is way too complex to evolved into another form. To proof this, I will show you some amazing animals that God has created. The European Green Woodpecker's tongue comes from the back of the throat, travels from the back of its head, through its nostril, and out of its mouth. Clearly that is way too complex to be evolved, and evolutionist have no idea how because no other animal has that type of tongue. The Bombardier Beetle manufactures chemicals that makes a explosion to protect itself. There's no way that this bug could evolve, it needs all of its parts their all at once or you don't have the animal. God created this bug was created
Thesis: From 1916 to the present day BMW has earned the title of "The Ultimate Driving
The development of marketing concept from a Product orientation to a Sales orientation and finally a Marketing orientation has signified an important change in how we understand and conceptualizes marketing in the 21st century. It signified an increased focus in the behavior of consumers and how by applying different marketing strategies organizations have been able to influence the way in which consumers react to their potential needs and how marketers can change their strategy to target different consumers wants. An assessment has been made in this essay looking at the development of the Volkswagen (herein referred to as VW) polo hatchback model.
The Board took note of a lack of emphasis in the Marketing Plan on Volkswagen’s green technology, as this is one of the company’s greatest strengths. Volkswagen has made significant efforts to increase efficiency, and has created the world’s most fuel efficient 5-seat vehicle, the Polo. The Board emphasized the fact that green technology appeals to American consumers. The company has leveraged this in other parts of the world and has had success, and The Board felt strongly that by implementing the current Marketing Plan, the company would be missing out on highlighting an important aspect of the brand.