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Liberty University

BUSI745

Disruptive Marketing Plan – Brand Proposal Paper

Vladimir Belyaev

7/12/2020
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Marketing disruption is a new approach in business models and marketing today. In the

conventional approach to marketing, firms developed products and services, implemented

strategies designed to attract potential customers. However, the rapidly changing business

environment has disrupted the entire way of business operation. Today's consumers are the core

drivers of the market, and not the other way round. Essentially, firms must strive to produce what

customers want. The report offers an analysis of a disruptive plan for General Motors (GM)

product offering for its Chevrolet car model. The in-depth analysis of the product provides an

insight on disruptive marketing based on aspects such as marketing mix and target market.

Disruptive Brand Plan

General Motors is among the household names in the automobile industry with a strong

brand name that also traverses international borders. Its global presence in North America makes

it hold a strong reputation. GM enjoys a large market share in the US compared to other brands.

However, their market share has recently begun getting threatened by other innovative car brands

and stiff competition. This disruptive plan targets GM's Chevrolet car brand. GM now focusses

on technological innovation to improve market share, in the backdrop of a steep decline in sales.

GM's Chevrolet sales dropped for twelve consecutive months every year due to the reduced

passenger car demand (Autonews, 2019). The new approach focusses on going green and using

innovation and environmental marketing to market the product. Green marketing entails steps

taken to facilitate human needs satisfaction with a minimal impact on the environment (Shil,

2012). The brand should get targeted and join the green car revolution by designing an electric

car model. The increased attention towards environmental sustainability requires marketers to

claim that their products are environmental-friendly. Therefore, this disruptive plan will
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comprise a marketing strategy that considers green marketing by advertising an electric car

model.

Marketing Mix

The marketing mix comprises various strategies used by a company in its marketing plan.

GM still maintains a strong market share for its Chevrolet brand that competes with the likes of

Toyota and Ford. However, the falling demand and market uncertainty calls for a change in the

marketing mix. For Chevrolet to incorporate green marketing, there are changes that should be

made.

Product

Chevrolet is a strong brand, but the recent changes in the market must involve making

some adjustments. The brand comprises a set of vehicles that cater to specific market segments.

Besides the family cars, it also consists of SUV, Silverado pick-up truck, and Corvette sports car.

The approach that the company should take is to ensure that the product line involving cars are

transformed and designed to be environmentally-friendly electric vehicles. In the US, the green

market is growing, and reporting increased sales (Hao & Muralidharan, 2019). Product

categories have increased, and firms like Toyota and Tesla generate billions in yearly sales.

Designing electric vehicles will appeal to customer need for environmentally-friendly products.

Price

GM trimmed its operations and mostly focused on North America. Thus, this analysis

involves the prices of Chevrolet models based on three countries, the United States, and Canada.

At the moment, the current pricing for Chevrolet's Spark car in the US is $13,400 (Chevrolet,

2020). Meanwhile, in Canada, the price for the same product is $9,998 (Chevrolet.Ca, 2020). In
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Mexico, the car goes for $ 17,500. A change is required in the product’s pricing strategy. It

should adopt the market-oriented pricing strategy to match competitors.

Distribution (Place)

The car brand is available in various distribution outlets. First, the firm conducts an open

road sales event that avails the product to customers. Secondly, the company maintains a large

network of dealers who aid in the global supply. Apart from the US, the company also maintains

production and assembly plants in the US and Mexico. In this approach, the company held a

strong global presence through its distribution network. Consumers can purchase the automobiles

through the dealers. The brand should include its products on various TV shows and films to

garner more attention.

Promotion / Communications

GM adopts various promotional strategies in promoting products to global customers.

The company invests in advertising and promotion to increase sales. Also, it employs the use of

digital promotion to reach consumers and engage them. Besides its website, the firm utilizes paid

online advertising and social media to reach customers. Chevrolet has 22 million followers on

Facebook, which is an excellent platform to engage customers. To improve the current strategy,

the company should ensure it designs a responsive marketing message, create a platform for

connection, maintain a blog, and use incentives (Liu et al., 2017).

Target Market

The current target market for Chevrolet’s Spark car brand is for the young population.

The mini and small Chevrolet brand offers customers efficiency and connectivity elements

resonating with their needs. Similarly, the future target market also intends to appeal to the
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Millennials. Considering the green buying habits of the Millennials motivated by environmental

concern, it is crucial that marketing communication raise their concern. This process will entail

employing factual information designed to inspire a negative emotional appeal. Consumers

choose green products as an effort towards preserving the environment. Thus, the changes

intended to appeal to the Millennials who are environmentally conscious.

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References

Autonews. (2019). GM: Chevy Weighs on other Brands' Gains. Retrieved from

https://www.autonews.com/sales/gm-chevy-weighs-other-brands-gains

Chevrolet. (2020). CARS. Retrieved from https://www.chevrolet.com/cars

Chevrolet.Ca. (2020). CARS. Retrieved from https://www.chevrolet.ca/en/cars

Heo, J., & Muralidharan, S. (2019). What triggers young Millennials to purchase eco-friendly

products?: the interrelationships among knowledge, perceived consumer effectiveness,

and environmental concern. Journal of Marketing Communications, 25(4), 421-437.

Liu, Y., Li, K. J., Chen, H., & Balachander, S. (2017). The effects of products’ aesthetic design

on demand and marketing-mix effectiveness: The role of segment prototypicality and

brand consistency. Journal of Marketing, 81(1), 83-102.

Shil, P. (2012). Evolution and future of environmental marketing. Asia Pacific Journal of

Marketing & Management Review, 1(3), 74-81.