Moller Skycar Is Assumed to Be Launched

¶ … Moller Skycar is assumed to be launched into production in 2013, currently requiring an effective and efficient promotion strategy. Before actually constructing this promotions strategy, it is necessary to identify other elements of the marketing mix, namely the product, the price and the distribution channels. These three additional elements of the marketing mix would not be emphasized, but would be addressed to help set the basis of the promotions strategy.

The product

The product is the Moller Skycar, a vertical takeoff and landing craft, more commonly known as a flying vehicle. The investors and technical aficionados have been focusing on their creation for the past recent years now, and more sustained developments are registered at this level.

The Moller Skycar has been named by its creator, Paul Moller, who acted on his passion for flying cars for over four decades (Downside, 2004). The dream of the creator was that of crafting a more efficient alternative to the traditional automobiles, an alternative which would also be easy to maintain and operate, as well as affordable. The skycar is characterized by the following specifications:

Vehicle capacity of 4 passengers

Vertical takeoff and landing

Emergency parachutes

531 kilometers per hour maximum speed

491 kilometers per hour cruise speed (Website of Moller International, 2009)

The price

At the level of sales price, a dilemma is raised. On the one hand, it is required that the price be small enough to attract buyers. In other words, the price has to be affordable for the prospective customers. On the other hand however, the retail price has to be sufficiently high as to cover for the totality of the costs incurred in the manufacturing of the skycar. And these costs are extremely high, especially in a context in which the investors were rather scarce and the company funded most of its operations through loans (Grainger, 2009).

Given this dual necessity of the retail price, it would be recommended that the organization implemented a combination of pricing strategies. In this order of ideas:

The price of the Moller Skycar would initially be established with the aid of the penetration pricing strategy, which allows the setting of a lower retail price and which supports promotional efforts

After a pre-determined period, the variable pricing strategy would be implemented. This sees that the retail price is set in accordance to the costs incurred in the manufacturing and distribution of the skycar. This strategy would ensure that the company recuperates its investments.

The place

The place specifically refers to the channel to be employed in the distribution of the skycar. At a traditional level, two alternatives are obvious, namely the indirect distribution through intermediaries, and the direct distributions. In the case of the Moller Skycar nevertheless, the indirect distribution strategy is not viable as intermediaries specialized in this field are scarce.

This then indicates the need for Moller International to implement a direct distribution strategy, which sees that the skycars are directly retailed by the manufacturer. This solution is also useful from a promotional standpoint as it ensures lowered retail prices -- through the elimination of the intermediaries -- and the creation of an ambiance in which the customers and the manufacturers interact directly.

The promotions strategy

In light of the propositions so far introduced, the promotional strategy would be developed and implemented based on the following elements:

a) The retail price

The retail price represents the first mechanism to promoting the vehicle and attracting the customers towards it, as a result of a low price. This promotional price would be implemented with the aid of the penetration pricing strategy and it would create an opportunity for the prospective clients to purchase the Moller Skycar.

The retail price would be initially stated as promotional and this would also appeal to customers not only because it would render the vehicle more accessible, but also as it would create the sense of an increased ability to belong to a limited customer share which is able to purchase the product at a lower retail price. Aside from the price, emphasis would also be placed on the uniqueness of the skycar and the sensation of privilege it would offer to the customers who purchase it.

The price would be communicated within all the media campaigns and it would as such convince the customers to seek the product even before the actual launch within the market.

b) The product information

The primary scope of any promotional campaign is that of familiarizing the customer base with the product and generating demand for the respective item. Nevertheless, aside from making the product look tempting, the promotional campaign must also be informative. The offering of information is the single means of creating customer trust and sustainable demand.

In this order of ideas, the promotional campaign would focus on informational materials, aired on various channels. In essence, all media advertisements would be structured 50 per cent on the promotion of the shykar, and 50 per cent on informing the audience about the technical features of the vehicle, the safety elements and so on.

c) Complementary services

At the level of the complementary services, these refer specifically to the offering of training programs through which the buyers are taught how to operate the skycars. Also, to raise customer appeal, some of the training sessions would be offered free of any charge.