A) General Motors made the following mistakes in the Miami market: * They failed to understand the customers’ tastes and preferences; they failed to understand the need of the customer. * They had advertisements that did not relate with the customers of that region like they had Cadillac advertisement that showed them being driven in snow while in Miami there is no snow. Their other advertisement focused on the theme ‘Breakthrough’ a word doesn’t have a direct Spanish translation while their market in Miami consisted of Hispanic community. * They did not target or identify their customers rather just followed a central marketing plan. The lapses in communication between the senior management and the customers made them ignorant to market needs. * They ignored the suggestions of their local dealers who were familiar with the market in Miami and could provide valuable inputs to increase GM’s market share in Miami.
2) Discuss how GM could have used marketing approaches to avoid these mistakes.
A) GM could have done the following to avoid these mistakes: * Expert opinion: GM should have listened to their dealers and the customers to understand the Miami market better. * Consumer Survey: GM should have done a consumer survey to better under stand their target customers and then created their advertisements accordingly to appeal to those customers of that region. * Positioning of the Product: They should have positioned their products better to target the right customers. * Analysis of Historical Data: To understand what they did wrong and what they should do to improve their market share.
3) Briefly describe the three key points managers must consider when using expert opinion, consumer surveys, test marketing, and price experiments in analyzing consumer behaviors.
A) Managers must consider these 3 key points: * Whether the participating groups truly