14. Targeting previous customers through follow up ay waster valuable resources.

T

h r e a t s

1. Utilize the global Toyota presence to keep financial budgets and cash flows under control. 2. If one market collapses, it might threaten others, thus Toyota must balance all its market locations equally.

3. Upcoming competition with other major names threatens Toyota's dominance in sustainable technologies. The company needs to continue investing in new innovative technologies to maintain dominance.

4. Domestic brands smearing Toyota with the idea that buying foreign takes away from American jobs, the company should continue to open plants in different nations as to provide jobs in the countries which they sell in.

5. Cutting prices too low may create a price war with major competitors of both foreign and domestic vehicle producers.

6. Ever changing technologies threaten to outdate costly investments in technology development at a more rapid rate. Therefore, Toyota must keep up an innovative and up-to-date research department.

7. Competitors will always play out strategies of diversification as well, forcing Toyota to stay innovative in what it invests and lends its name to.

8. Other companies may target Toyota to attempt to ruin the reputation of reliability through advertising campaigns and other promotional efforts.

9. By keeping with true functionality which leads to scientific breakthroughs, Toyota can avoid the threat of having to compete in other markets such as the motorcycle or water entertainment units.

10. American complaints about a foreign company stealing American jobs loose the weight of their argument if philanthropic efforts are conducted domestically. Rather than conducting charity abroad, Toyota should domestically show its charitable nature

11. Static price points also leave the company to the mercy of extreme marketing campaigns on behalf of competitors such as the current Saturn run payment for three months on new vehicles is the borrower looses his or her job.

12. The teen driving program has only been implemented in one area, thus there may not be the capability to deal with it on a national demand level.

13. Companies may react by attacking the larger brand name, rather than a specific competing product. This then places the entire image of Toyota in danger.

14. Maintaining customer contact can help fend off other competing car companies from stealing previous clients from the Toyota brand.

1. Keep operation costs as low as possible and minimize spending in such rough times. 2. Capitalize on such a large reach rather than drown in it. Toyota needs to keep expanding to take over new markets as they emerge. 3. Launch strong advertising campaigns speaking to different demographics directly regarding the importance of each person taking individual steps to help the environment.

4. Along with providing jobs, Toyota can also give back to local communities in charity for to help boost the domestic reputation of the brand. 5. Dealing with importing in mass numbers would also help reduce the import costs and keep them to a minimum.

6. Work with companies promoting alternative sources of energy as to help fund development of greener technologies and loosen the hold gas companies have on the car industry.

7. Staying innovative forces Toyota to invest largely in research and development, potentially limiting the budge of other areas. However proper handling of research and development will potential prove to have enormous success.

8. If something were to happen to threaten that liability, such as a financial scare seen in the American competitors, this fractures the reputation built on liability. Therefore, keeping the liability low on the customer end will prove risky at times but beneficial to the brand in the end.

9. Other competitors may overlap Toyota in the domination of other functional markets, such as Honda within the motorcycle market.

10. Yet, Toyota holds dominance over a wide range of markets, forcing the company to spread out the funds and resources allocated to philanthropic purposes.

11. Working with domestic agencies to help encourage the importation of more eco-friendly vehicles may prove an efficient strategy in the event of a tariff being raised on importing vehicles into the United States.

12. Expanding the teen driving program will help boost trust of the Toyota brand within the demographic of parents, who not only buy for themselves but also for their children.

13. By diversifying marketing strategies under an umbrella strategy, Toyota can keep such a diverse target consumer base.

14. Returning customers are some of the moat reliable sources of income if they remain loyal. Therefore allocating extra resources to maintain customer contact is not a waste.

Marketing Mix

Overview

The marketing mix of any company proves an essential element to full scale success. It helps formulate effective...

Within the context of any given marketing mix is what the industry calls the four P's (International Center for Management a Business Administration Inc. 2007). These include price, place, promotion and public relation. The ultimate goal of an effective marketing mix "is to make decisions that center the four P's on the customer in target market to order to create perceived value and generate a positive response," (International Center for Management a Business Administration Inc. 2007). The efficiency of implementing the different aspects of the marketing mix could have serious consequences on the future of Toyota.
Product

The major product Toyota deals with is automobiles. The company also delves in other types of servicing and additional products to supplement their vehicles, but these activities take back seat to the top profit maker -- automobile production. Toyota specializes in providing a variety of vehicle choices to consumers, from SUVs to Prius. Along with normal consumer cars, the company also controls luxury brands such as Land Rover and Lexus, which also bring in enormous profits. However, the major products highlighted recently in the midst of both a financial and environmental crisis have been sustainable and affordable sedans and coops. The effort goes to save the consumer money upfront with the initial purchase, along with in the log run in the savings produced by Toyota model's gas efficiency. In comparison to domestic made cars, Toyota's models provide consumers with a fuel efficient and affordable mode of transportation. Models like the Prius and Yaris provide consumers environmentally friendly transportation at a reasonable price, thus satisfying the Toyota company mission.

Price

The company strives to maintain affordable prices while also maintaining the reputation of their luxury brands in order to appeal to a larger consumer base. The cost effective Yaris, Camry, and Prius are affordable in comparison to American competing models. However, import costs do raise the price more than what the company might like. For example, the Prius, a "fuel-efficient, ecologically friendly," is made strictly in Japan (Uchitelle 2007). The cist for brand new off the lot Toyotas proves affordable to many Anericans. For example, a 2010 Camry ranges around $26,000. For a brand new vehicle that promises later savings thanks to stellar gas mileage, that price is not terrible. Older and used Toyota's go even lower with the same dealership promise and functionality. In the state of the economy as bad as it is, Toyota needs to keep its promise of affordability in order to dominate the market.

Place

Thanks to the early move to go global, Toyota model vehicles can be purchased just about any where. As the world's largest car maker, the company has locations in more than 140 countries. The company also has plants located in Japan, Australia, India, South Africa, Turkey, Colombia, the United Kingdom, Indonesia, Poland, France, Portugal, Argentina, Mexico, and several more including here in the United States. Toyota dealerships offer both brand new models as well as used vehicles to local consumers. Such availability of Toyota products is key to maintaining its dominance as a major name in the automotive industry world wide.

Promotion

Promotion is key to allocating future health and growth. Without promotional activity, Toyota would loose much of its methods for gaining new customer business. As with any company, "In the context of the marketing mix, promotion represents the various aspects of marketing communication, that is, the communication of information about the product with the goal of generating a positive customer response," (International Center for Management a Business Administration Inc. 2007). In the midst of a changing world, both literally and from a marketing perspective, there is a large push towards green branding. Green branding is the idea that there is a large open market which demands an eco-friendly product, "As consumers rally to the climate change challenge, companies have rapidly learned that being green -- and being seen to be green-makes good business sense," (Bowman 2008). Toyota can and has capitalized on their eco-friendly products within their promotional campaigns. Billboard and print ads focus on the beauty of nature. Television ads represent a connectedness between the modern individual on the go and the mutual respect for the external world that surrounds all of us. Green Branding is an intelligent strategy in that it allows the manufacturer to reasonably bump up costs in order to provide the client what is truly needed and…