A. Conventional Automotive Market

Q1)
1.How is the conventional automotive retail market structured, and how

has the car retail industry evolved in North America?
a. conventional automotive market:
-Restricted by regulations
（It has been 118 years since the first formal automotive franchise agreement in the
United States. In that first agreement, an automotive retailer was assigned an
exclusive territory from the manufacturer, and, in return, the retailer provided
“adequate service and suitable facilities.）
-Excessive distances between retailers 【due to legal restrictions】

（the second law established proximity distances between two
retailers of the same brands.For example, in a metropolitan area in Pennsylvania,
dealers representing the same brand had to be at least 10 miles (16 kilometres) apart,
the distance measured by a straight line between the retailers’ centres. The resulting
10-mile radius was known as the “relevant market area.” ）
-high costs, poor service
-Traditional offline and cumbersome sales mode

Customers who visited the showroom would go through a sequence of steps
in their efforts to purchase a new vehicle. These steps, often referred to as the
road or steps to a sale, were the basis of new car selling in the United
States.//
the steps, which varied from a low of seven to as many as eleven, coached
salespeople through the process of closing a deal (see Exhibit 1).
Dealerships were required to have a licence that was granted by their
respective state. Without this licence, a new vehicle could not be
demonstrated, stocked, nor displayed, and salespersons could not
engage in any activities to sell a vehicle.
b. car retail industry evolved in North America

virtual reality customer shopping experience using Oculus equipment.
Improve the customer buying experience（Studies that Miller consulted

indicated that car buyers spent as many as three to five months researching
vehicles.So Miller, through salespeople trained to enhance the customer
buying experience)
2.What marketing strategies and tactics have been used, and in which phase of its
life cycle is the automotive industry today?
a. marketing strategies:
Customer-focused approach: CarCierge is focused on providing a customer-
centric experience. The company strives to understand the needs and preferences of
its customers and tailors its services to meet their needs.
（Personalization）: CarCierge offers a personal concierge service to customers,
helping them find the right car for their needs and preferences. This personalized
approach sets CarCierge apart from traditional car dealerships.
Online presence: CarCierge has a strong online presence, allowing customers to

easily find and purchase vehicles through their website. The company also uses
digital marketing tactics such as search engine optimization and social media
advertising to drive traffic to their website.
b.Phase of its life cycle

The automotive industry is currently in the mature phase of its life cycle
The automotive industry is currently in the mature phase of its life cycle. In this
phase, the industry has reached a high level of saturation and the market is relatively
stable. The competition is intense, and companies are focusing on maintaining
market share and profitability.
Q2) Conduct a 5C analysis for non-conventional automotive retailers, given

the information provided in this case.
Yixin XIAO:
Q3) What can you infer about the market potential for Carcierge based on
the postal code level sales data provided with the case?
Based on the postal code level sales data provided with the case, the total annual
sales of all Audi vehicles sold are 470. From this, we can infer that the market
potential for Carcierge is huge. According to the HD, the number of households with
an income higher than US 148,000 plays an important role in sales of Carcierge.
Q4) Who are MMC’s main stakeholders, and what kind of value does
Carcierge generate for each? How should Carcierge approach its diverse
and conflicted stakeholder base?
The Employees: Employees play an important role in selling cars. In lieu of vehicles
on disp[lay, Carcierge featured 58-inch monitors for use by consumers and sales
representatives, which reduce the pressure of employees.
The Manufacturers: Carcierge engaged in a conventional sales model but it didn’t
sell just a single brand, it paid on time and produce value for the manufacturers.
The Customers: At Carcierge, the customers can get professional advice on any
vehicle, rather than one single brand, they could also arrange for delivery of the
vehicle at any location and choose to have the vehicle serviced at their preferred
service center, which can make customers feel more comfortable and satisfied.
The Government: The government is very important in the automotive retail
industry. the operation and development of company should respect regulations.
It should cooperate with manufacturers, governments, and customers…
Q5) Given the limitations around automobile retailing, what marketing

strategies can Miller use to drive more traffic to Carcierge?
Aditya Jayarama Rajan Sridhar:
STP analysis
The ideal customer for Carcierge would be young adults between the ages of 30-40.
There are many reasons why this target audience is optimal including income, online
shopping, and the location of Carcierge itself, Income is the first factor affecting the
target audience Carcierge should focus on as they are not legally allowed to sell the
cars, but rather must lease. This works perfectly for a younger audience because
they still wouldn't have the cash balance and possibly the steady income high
enough to purchase new and expensive cars. Still being young, this customer base
is more inclined on wanting to have nice cars, even when purchasing them outright is
not an option, which leaves leasing wide open.
With the technological advances in the past twenty years, this age group is as
adapted to doing things online as anybody. Whether it be shopping for clothes or
working remotely during the recent Covid-19 outbreak, online has become a way of
life. This relates to the business that Carcierge conducts because in studies
conducted by Jerry Miller, owner of Carcierge, about car buyers and their relation to
online research he found: "71 percent of them had researched prices: 68 percent
had found the vehicle they believed they wanted to buy: 63 percent had established
the value of the car they would be trading in; 46 percent had narrowed down which
dealership they wanted to buy from" (p4). This is important because it proves how
important online shopping and resources mean for car dealerships. In addition to
doing all this research online before buying cars, young adults are also using online
resources to purchase items without ever seeing the real thing in person, Online
shopping for clothing has become a regular thing in today's society, and for people
between the ages of 30-40, these customers would be the perfect age to be adults to
young children so would have immense practice making purchases online,
Numerous car dealerships like Tesla and Volkswagen have begun leaning into new
ways to view and customize their cars online and even purchase them online without
ever seeing the real thing so the practice of maneuvering and purchasing products
online is perfect. The final reason that young adults are optimal is because of the
location of Carcierge and the impact that makes on the population within. Being
located in the metro market area of Pennsylvania means that they are close to major
cities with large possibilities for economic growth and jobs. This means that people
entering the workforce are very likely to lease cars.
Value proposition -Carcierge should provide in-depth information about what they
have to offer in addition to their expansion of services. Carceige offers customer
experience directed towards finding one's most suitable car. The expansion of
services that Carcierge has to offer include chauffeur services and car rentals which
can be bundled with other services such as body works and personal customizations
Education
Market orientation - Proactive market orientation as it is based on entirely latent
needs which was based on Miller’s empathetic research which indicated that vehicle
buyers researched 3-5 months online prior to buying cars.
Q6) What could be a general question about the case or industry that
may generate in-class discussion?
Feel free to change just adding it for now-
If concierge were to expand it's product or service line, what would you recommend?

A. Conventional Automotive Market

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Q1)

1.How is the conventional automotive retail market structured, and how

-Excessive distances between retailers 【due to legal restrictions】

-high costs, poor service

-Traditional offline and cumbersome sales mode

b. car retail industry evolved in North America

Improve the customer buying experience（Studies that Miller consulted

Online presence: CarCierge has a strong online presence, allowing customers to

b.Phase of its life cycle

Q2) Conduct a 5C analysis for non-conventional automotive retailers, given

Q5) Given the limitations around automobile retailing, what marketing

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