This paper aims to give a broad but clear characterization of marketing as a concept, specifying in the car rental companies in Cuba, the Havanautos case. The functions of the client and their relationship with the subject, tools to measure their satisfaction, proposed strategies, as well as a bit of history in relation to said rental agencies in Cuba.
Introduction to Marketing:
Marketing is a young discipline, with a very recent scientific development, characterized by multiple attempts to define and determine its nature and scope, giving rise to numerous controversies at an academic, business and social level. Although Marketing has been talked about a lot, the lack of knowledge is still considerable. In recent times its field of application has extended to non-profit activities, Marketing of non-profit institutions, Public Marketing and Social Marketing. In any case, it is about the exchange being beneficial to all parties involved in it. In a broader sense it can be classified as a philosophy and as a technique. In the first case, as a philosophy, because it means an attitude,a way of conceiving the exchange relationship of the company with its environment, and considers the needs expressed in the desires of the market as the most important for the development of the company and obtaining benefits. And as a technique, it is the specific way of acting and executing the exchange relationship, aimed at serving and developing demand.
How many definitions does Marketing have?
On this aspect experts in different generations conceptualized:
- Marketing comes from the word market - market: place where products / services are negotiated. Marketing - "Marketing": action and effect of negotiating products / services.
There are many definitions of marketing or marketing:
• 1949: Paul Manssur: Marketing is the delivery of a standard of living
• 1953: Malcom McNair: It is the creation and delivery of a standard of living
• 1954: Peter Drucker: It is more than just selling; it is not something specialized. It is the entire business seen from the perspective of consumers. For this reason, the responsibility for marketing penetrates all areas of the company.
• 1973: Peter Drucker: The objective of marketing is to make the seller's task unnecessary because it is about knowing and understanding the customer in such a way that the product or service fits perfectly and will sell itself.
• 1995: American Marketing Association (AMA): Marketing is the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, communication, and distribution of ideas, products, and services to create exchanges that meet individual organizational goals.
• 1996: William Stanton: Marketing is a total social system of business activities whose purpose is to plan, set prices, promote and distribute products that meet needs among target markets to achieve corporate objectives.
• 1999: McArtur and Perreault: Micro-marketing is the performance of activities that seek to meet the objectives of an organization, preventing the needs of the consumer or customer and directing a flow of product satisfaction and services to the customer. Macromarketing is a social process that directs the flow of goods and services in an economy from producers to consumers, in a way that efficiently integrates supply and demand and meets the objectives of society.
When sometimes, when dealing with the subject of Marketing, trying to replace that term with another that transmits, in essence, the same idea, the terms obtained are many and sometimes surprising, but mainly the list helps to identify concepts and clarify the real meaning of business work when it is truly customer-focused. In any case, it is predisposed to accept a paradigm shift, something that is very important for organizations today.
Service, attention, promotion, communication, marketing, sales, transaction and even barter are frequent candidates to replace the word Marketing. The list grows when we allow to make the substitution with two or more terms, although it is really difficult to express in three words everything that we know that Marketing includes, as well as at the same time leaving out everything that should not be included.
But do we really need a new definition of Marketing?
The answer is yes and no. What we need is to replace the old conceptual definitions with a new operational definition that allows us to act in a manner consistent with a business orientation that guarantees the success of the company in the market.
A conceptual definition is one that explains a concept on the basis of others, in the manner of a dictionary. For example, Philip Kotler proposes the following:
"Marketing is a social and managerial process through which individuals and groups obtain what they need and want through the creation, supply and exchange of valuable products."
This is a definition that we can read, understand, and learn; some people may be able to rely on it to work: create valuable products, offer them and exchange them with others. However, most people would not know how to act managerially to carry out exchanges of value with individuals and groups. The keywords in this definition are exactly those two, exchange and value.
An operational definition establishes the sequence of events that must take place for a concept to exist or occur in practice. In other words, to define Marketing operationally, we must answer the question: what to do in practice to develop a continuous commercial relationship with the company's clients, based on value exchange?
This question can be asked in many ways. For example, we might treat it as the matter of developing an ongoing business relationship with the company's customers. Thus, we are not only talking about Marketing but we have added a very important condition: the continuity of the relationship. We could add others, such as the quality of the relationship, or the satisfaction that results from it for both parties.
The answer constitutes an operational definition of Marketing that is beginning to be accepted more and more by different people, recognized practitioners and academics in this field, who took it from a group of Tec de Monterrey students: understanding to serve. They are three words that contain all the meaning that you want to convey and that leads directly to two fundamental actions: understanding the customer, to serve the customer.
It is impossible to choose only one of the two actions. It is impossible to decide which of the two is more important, or which one to assign a greater or lesser operating budget. One without the other reduces the possibility of adding value to the exchange and therefore reduces the probability of success in an ongoing business relationship.
Other definitions:
The "traditional" definition describes it as the total of activities involved in the flow of goods and services, from production to the last contact with consumers after final delivery.
Not bad, but the idea made by Peter Drucker in 1954 is stronger: Marketing is, along with innovation, the only function of a company.
Marketing is a direction, an attitude, a focus, a way of unfolding towards the market. The main companies in the world have in their heads some marketer who practices formally or informally, but runaway towards the market and competition.
A slightly more polished definition of Marketing: find, develop, define and implement a course for the company, based on a vision regarding the future and where differentiating strengths are had or can be had over the competition, and that best serve, chosen clients and includes the organizational implications for building or exploiting that position.
Heading: because it has to be a consistent and perceptible direction throughout the organization. The strategic is the tactical raised at the organizational level and with an injection of resources (not just money), it also happens when a strategic intention is "loaded".
Vision: because it is necessary to delineate a course of action that is easy to articulate so that the organization understands it and, through measurement and compensation, this "story of the future" is lived.
Differentiating strengths: because it is not about doing things simply better than the competition, but about building a unique value proposition in the market.
Better serve the selected market, because it can no longer serve everyone. Successful marketing strategies are when you have the courage to choose the segment or niche of customers to serve, and do it in a unique way.
That includes organizational and infrastructure arrangements to build or exploit that position, because only through orchestration throughout the organization is it feasible to build and reach that desired position.
Marketing is in short: create, acquire, retain and develop customers.
In this broad aspect of debate we can say as a conclusion of the epigraph that:
Marketing can be defined as the set of procedures used for the marketing and distribution of various products among different consumers, with the aim of increasing sales and improving profits. Goods must always be produced that are pleasing in price, quality or brand to the consumer.
Today marketing covers the entire process of production, marketing and distribution of goods, from market studies to distribution studies and sales budgets. With increasing competition, marketing strategies take on a more fundamental role in economic development every day and a good market study or a good business plan can make the difference between the success or failure of companies.
Marketing or marketing focuses above all on analyzing the tastes of consumers, intends to establish their needs and desires and influence their behavior so that they wish to acquire existing goods, so that different techniques are developed aimed at persuading consumers to that they acquire a certain product. Marketing activity includes planning, organizing, directing and controlling decision-making on product lines, prices, promotion, and after-sales services. In these areas, marketing is essential; in others, such as in the development of new product lines, it plays an advisory role.
Organization for the client:
A company exists thanks to the relationship it establishes with its public: consumers who pay for goods and services; companies that are provided through other companies; etc.
In all cases, the relationship between the two is established in terms of an exchange through which the public (client) is willing to give some of their money, effort, attention or time to receive a benefit, satisfaction or solution from the company.
Market orientation consists of facilitating these exchanges through understanding the behavior of renting and serving customers favorably and better than competitors.
This way of thinking suggests that in the long term, those companies that base their performance with an outside-in perspective will be more successful; that is to say, that starting from understanding the clients, they define the necessary processes to serve them.
The Strategic Market Planning process begins with the setting of objectives and the design of strategies in light of an internal diagnosis of the company's circumstances (strengths, weaknesses) and an external diagnosis of the market circumstances (opportunities, threats).
With a market perspective, these objectives and strategies will focus on Market Segmentation, Product Differentiation and Brand Positioning decisions.
The strategy will be successful, that is, it will translate into successful performance indicators if and only if the company consistently establishes the structure and processes necessary for market orientation to occur.
A company of any size, even large and with a global presence, can be sensitive to the market it serves thanks to the use of information through an appropriate technological platform.
Collaboration between employees, suppliers, distributors and customers themselves allows you to be flexible to serve that market in such a way as to improve performance indicators such as customer satisfaction and share value.
The organizational design must then respond to the characteristics of the market environment in which the company competes. Mainly to its diversity, which translates into a complexity to attend to it, but also to the rapidity of the change in competition factors, the intensity with which it occurs and the interdependence between business units.
The process of adapting the company's skills to the market requires it to modify its organizational structure, the activities carried out within it and the role played by each of its members, in such a way that it manages to improve its efficiency and effectiveness. through:
- Establish close contact with customers Improve the service offered to them Eliminate unnecessary levels of command Streamline decision-making processes
The design dimensions to be considered have to do with the structure of the company:
1 • - The form that the organization must take to accommodate the members and the functions they must perform.
2 • - The distribution of activities within the structure, expressed as departments or work areas.
And they have to do with the process necessary for the structure to come to life and function:
1 • - The degree of specialization required by the members that compose it.
2 • - The distribution of decision-making power within the structure, reconciling the problems of vertical leadership with horizontal leadership.
Ultimately, it is about reconciling two aspects that are essentially contradictory, but necessary and that must coexist, control and creativity. In other words, the organizational design must allow an adequate balance of the formality necessary to maintain good control of performance and the informality necessary for change and innovation that prevent it from becoming obsolete.
Some examples of the conflicts that result when creativity and control coexist are those that arise from:
1.- The degree of centralization or decentralization that you want to have.
2.- The relationships between the functional areas, mainly between marketing and sales.
3.- The development of new products and services.
This last task is very delicate because it has a business nature that requires a lot of creativity, but it must happen in an orderly manner. A solution is the matrix arrangement of work teams under a scheme of 'coordination through lateral processes' through the organization whose form is given by functions, markets or products.
Other more recent examples, some of them highly critical, are given by companies that undertake a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) initiative, adding to their structure an appendix in charge of developing and maintaining relationships with customers.
Some appendices are as small as a minimal customer service department; others as large as a multi-million dollar investment in hardware and software.
If you do not change the culture of the organization, the structure under which it is organized and its work processes, it is impossible for the CRM initiative to work. It is necessary to guide processes that go from the development of relationships with customers to the generation of performance indicators that show the efficiency and effectiveness with which these relationships exist.
It is not a question of saying that the company is oriented, or will be oriented, towards the market. Its structure and processes must be prepared so that production, service provision, distribution, logistics and delivery, financial management and human resource management support this orientation.
In summary, the new competition rules require companies:
A-) Organized for change, not for stability.
B-) Organized through collaboration networks, not a rigid hierarchy.
C-) Based on the interdependence of its associates, not on self-sufficiency.
D-) Built on technological advantages, not on the traditional cement and brick building.
They must have the right mindset and culture of change, use information technology in innovative ways, have very progressive human resource policies, and place an almost fanatical emphasis on their customers.
Measure customer satisfaction:
Satisfaction is conceptually defined as “the fulfillment or realization of a need, desire or taste” 5, which, in terms of market research, could be posed as a question in terms of whether it has been fulfilled or not, to a greater or lesser extent. degree, need, desire or taste that gave rise to a certain income.
Also, an interviewee could be asked directly whether or not they are satisfied with that income. That is to say, the term itself can be used in the question, or a synonym of more colloquial and frequent use. Satisfaction has as synonyms joy, pleasure, taste, complacency, joy, delight, pleasure, well-being or contentment, among many others.
Satisfaction can be measured at different stages of the rental process, from the expectations that are previously established, to the rental situation and the use of the products and services that are offered. In fact, it could be argued that the measurement includes a comparison between what the customer expected to obtain versus what he actually obtained through the terms of trade.
In addition, some effects after the transaction and even more, after the use, consumption or enjoyment of the product or service should be considered. Perhaps this would lead to a questionnaire that is too long, so it is common to find measurement instruments focused on an evaluation of results, rather than expectations.
Satisfaction can be measured by itself, or the elements that led to it occurring. That is, a direct measurement can be made of what we call 'satisfaction' and which is the result of a complex chain of events and relationships that interweave the relationship between customer and supplier. Or a measurement can be made of each and every one of those dimensions, factors, attributes, execution elements and characteristics of the product or service that together give rise to a satisfied customer.
In the first case, customers would simply be asked how satisfied are they (how happy)? In the second, they would be asked to make an evaluation of the perceived quality of each of the elements of the customer - supplier relationship.
In this second case, you can still ask a direct (general) question about customer satisfaction. And it could be done before and after the evaluation of each of the individual elements. Thus, the first question would be considered a spontaneous evaluation of customer satisfaction, while the second a reasoned evaluation.
It is assumed that the process of evaluating each element of the business relationship separately leads to a correction in the customer's original assessment of satisfaction. This correction can be both to overvalue and to devalue the originally declared satisfaction.
Satisfaction can be measured as a phenomenon in absolute or gradual terms. The consideration must be made separately for the direct measurement of satisfaction as a general phenomenon and for the evaluation of the elements that give rise to it separately.
In the first case, there is a general agreement that satisfaction is a phenomenon that occurs gradually, so in reality the problem lies in deciding on the number of points within the scale, the inclusion or not of a point intermediate; the balance between positive points towards one extreme and negative points towards the opposite extreme and the phrasing of the scale points. The scales are usually 4, 5, 7 or 10 points, with descriptions of the type 'Very satisfied' or 'Not at all satisfied', or equating the level of satisfaction to a rating scale of 10 points.
On the other hand, in the case of the elements of the commercial relationship, it is worth considering a categorical measurement of the YES / NO type. For example, ask Was your car delivered to you on time? As opposed to asking about your satisfaction with your car's delivery time.
The decision of the scale has to do both with the writing style, the fluency and the handling of the questionnaire as well as with the statistical analysis that is intended to be carried out with the answers given by the clients. Both considerations are very relevant in reaching a decision regarding the scale of the questions. The importance of satisfaction items can be measured directly, or they can be derived statistically.
In the first case, the interviewees are asked how important each of the elements that affect their satisfaction is. This can make the questionnaire very long, since you have to ask for the importance of each attribute and then, in a second round, its evaluation. Also, it typically results in an overestimation of the importance of attributes.
In the second case, starting from the general evaluation of satisfaction declared by the interviewee, a statistical analysis is carried out in which that 'dependent variable' is considered to be a function of the elements that give rise to it. The most widely used functional statistical technique is multiple regression, in different versions, although discriminant analysis or tree analysis can also be used.
The dependent variable can be spontaneous or reasoned satisfaction, as well as questions about repurchase intention, recommendations to third parties, etc. They are also based on the evaluation of the elements of customer satisfaction.
Either statistical method provides sufficient validity and reliability to avoid having to ask respondents for a statement of the importance of each attribute. The only reason to order it this way separately would be the possibility of carrying out a market segmentation exercise in such a way that customers are grouped according to which attributes they consider more or less important. A customer satisfaction study must include the measurement of global conformity, spontaneously and reasoned; a satisfaction evaluation for each performance attribute; questions about intention to rent and recommendations to third parties and a section of open questions about recommendations,without forgetting the classification data that in the end will help to understand the differences between satisfied and dissatisfied customers.
Additional discussion topics have to do with the definition of the sample (who to interview), the moment of measurement (near or far from the moment of truth), the frequency of measurement, the means of application of the interview, its anonymity, etc. Also, with the characteristics and depth of the information analysis, its presentation to the General Directorate and, very especially, the use that will be made of it.
Customer satisfaction is an evaluation response that they give about the degree to which a product or service meets their expectations, needs and desires. Being aware of it only makes sense to the extent that the provider is willing to change the way they establish a relationship with that customer.
Strategic Marketing Plan:
Every company designs strategic plans to achieve its objectives and goals. These plans can be short, medium or long term, depending on the size and magnitude of the company. It is also important to point out that the company must specify exactly and carefully the mission that will govern it, as it is fundamental, since it represents the operational functions that it will perform in the market and will supply consumers.
Strategic Planning constitutes a management system that shifts the emphasis from "what to achieve" (objectives) to "what to do" (strategies).
It seeks to focus on those feasible objectives to be achieved and in which business or area to compete, in correspondence with the opportunities and threats offered by the environment.
The essence of strategic planning is the systematic identification of opportunities and dangers that may arise in the future, which combined with other important data provide the basis for a company to make better decisions today to exploit opportunities and avoid risks. dangers.
Sallenave (1991), states that «Strategic Planning is the process by which leaders order their objectives and actions over time. It is not a domain of senior management, but a process of communication and decision-making in which all the strategic levels of the company intervene ». Strategic Planning aims to produce profound changes in the markets of the organization and in the internal culture. This requires four well-defined phases: formulation of mission, organizational objectives; analysis of the strengths and limitations of the company; surrounding analysis; strategy formulation.
Market strategy indicators:
“Everyone is looking through the wrong side of the lens, as if profits are what drives the company. Financial reports don't address the reality that drives financial results: employee motivation, employee turnover, customer satisfaction, on-time delivery, brand perception, purchase intentions.
The main message we must extract from this statement is that companies worry about things after they happen; they spend most of the time in their board and senior management meetings discussing the effects, rather than their causes.
With a market perspective, we can say that companies do not recognize the role of Marketing as a generator of cash flow and do not have a clear idea of the value of the brands, of the satisfaction of their customers, or of other indicators of purchasing behavior. that move your financial indicators. Even those companies that do care about measuring their market performance spend a minimum of time during senior management meetings. In general terms, the problem results from a confusion between what is relevant in tactical terms and what is relevant in strategic terms.
The tactical is solved in the short term, requires fewer financial resources, is resolved at the lower levels of the organization, focuses on the volume of production and sale and its main activity is the operation. It is not a subject for meetings considered important.
The strategic is resolved in the long term, involves greater financial resources, is resolved at the highest levels of the organization, focuses on the relationship with current and potential clients, and its main activity is planning. These are important topics and among them those related to financial resources stand out and they consume the attention, not only of executives and directors, but also of shareholders, the specialized press and the general public.
The solution to different problems that can arise in an entity is to correctly understand the concept of marketing, or the orientation of the company towards its clients as a strategy that in the long term will allow it to obtain greater profits. That is, profits through customer loyalty, as opposed to profits solely through sales volume or production efficiency.
With a Marketing vision, in the short term the important indicators have to do with customers, more than with sales; with the payment they make, rather than with the cash flow; with your loyalty, rather than with the value of the stock.
Not seeing the business through the wrong side of the lens requires taking a working outline as a reference. For example, the Marketing Operating Model proposed by Thomas Kinnear and James Taylor.
The Behavioral Response is the central point of the model and essentially refers to the purchases that customers are expected to make as a result of the environment that surrounds them and of the company's marketing actions.
The Performance Measures result from and depend on the Behavioral Response.
Situational Factors are all those variables external to the company that affect the behavioral responses of the market to which the company is targeting, including politics, economics, legislation, the social environment, geophysical aspects, technological development and from then the competition.
The Marketing Mix refers to the set of tools used by the company to achieve its market objectives. That is, the activities carried out or the decisions taken to achieve behavioral responses from your target market.
Looking at the company from the wrong side of the lens is the result of privileging the Performance Indicators: sales, costs and profits of the company, as well as the variants and combinations of them, such as market share, cash flow, profitability or value of the action.
It does not mean that they are not important. They are, and a lot. But they are a consequence and happen after the Behavioral Response.
And this has to do, in addition to income, other previous responses (knowledge, understanding, differentiation, taste, preference or income intention) and other responses after it (satisfaction, recommendation, or fidelity).
The message is very simple to raise, although extremely difficult to implement in practice: resolve first what concerns a favorable response from the public, causing the performance indicators to move later.
In this research on the implementation of new business strategies for a prestigious entity in terms of car rentals both nationally and internationally, we take up some references from other car rental companies in the country, giving some data that they use in common but do not distinguishes one from the other because the quality is given by its officials and the body to which they belong, mainly due to the good relationship they maintain with the client.
History of some of the Car Rental Agencies in our country:
Undoubtedly, the most pleasant way to get to know the country is traveling it with the independence and autonomy that a car gives to the customer's disposal. Naturally, a car can be rented at many points in Cuba (hotels, agencies in cities and tourist destinations, airports, etc.) but the model or type of car that the renter would like is not always available at that time. For that reason, it is best to make your reservation in advance. Regarding car rental in Cuba, you will also enjoy a special and complete assistance from us. If you have any type of problem, the client can call any of the offices 24 hours a day and 7 days a week.
Regarding car rental in Cuba, the contracting entities have very competitive rates and the best reservation services according to province. It is enough for the user to make their reservation, receive the voucher and appear directly at any travel agency in the country. The prices are packaged, much cheaper than public prices.
The documents to present at the time of renting the car are the passport and the driver's license. It is possible to rent the car in one place and return it in another (drop off).
Cuba has different car rental agencies, although in general their commercial policies are similar, prices, rental conditions and car models. Among the entities that stand out the most are: CUBACAR, MICAR, VÍA, REX and HAVANAUTOS.
CUBACAR: It is dedicated to the rental of comfortable cars through requests made, fundamentally, by international tour operators from abroad, through an automated Global Reservation System (SGR), it is the first tourist entity in the country to use this reservation modality so novel and widespread in the world, facilitated by access to the Internet. It also responds to orders made directly to its Reservation Center or at the counter, at its various points of sale.
Among the markets that most frequently request its services are France, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, Holland, Italy and Germany, as well as Canada and Mexico, who use the Global Reservation System installed in the offices of more than 150 tour operators abroad or direct access to the website on the Internet.
The fleet of vehicles includes 591 cars of recognized brands such as Hyundai, Mitsubishi, Toyota, Peugeot and BMW, among others, which can be hired through very accessible rates and other benefits, in the rental bureaus of the branch and through its address electronics on the Internet. CUBACAR imposes a group of conditions for the rent. These must be observed by the client when hiring one or more of their cars.
In the agencies of Havana City, no type of rent is made for less than 3 days. The limited mileage option starts after 3 days, in the rest of the Cuban provinces the rent with limited mileage does not have a restriction of days.
The rental with free mileage is only available after 6 days. It will not be rented with free mileage for less than 6 days with the exception of category F.
Insurance is mandatory. You must select one of the insurance options offered by CUBACAR. The insurance options offered by certain credit cards are not valid for paying insurance in Cuba and will not be accepted momentarily.
The contract covers only one driver. Each additional driver must be included in the contract upon opening at a cost of $ 10.00. In the event that the car is left in a province other than the one in which it was rented, you must pay the price of returning the car to its place of origin. CUBACAR confirms only vehicle categories and not models.
At all times CUBACAR will try to guarantee the model that is requested but the confirmation only ensures the category. CUBACAR reserves the right to change the prices of its car categories without prior notice. Reservations that have paid the initial fee will not be affected by price increases. The user can make the payment in cash or with credit cards. In the case of the latter, the fund must not be deposited in North American banks (USA). Cards such as Visa, MasterCard, EuroCard, JCB are accepted. This restriction is not for the payment of the initial reservation fee. Payment of the reservation fee can be made with any Visa, MasterCard or American Express credit card.
The initial reservation fee is not mandatory. When making the rent the client must deposit a guarantee. This amount will be refunded at the end of the rental, the price of the guarantee is $ 200.00 for all categories except E and F ($ 300.00 and $ 500.00 respectively). CUBACAR offers you two insurance options, of which you must choose one. The insurance options offered by certain banks and credit cards are not valid in Cuba and will not be accepted. No car rental will be made without the corresponding payment of one of the insurance options.
The insurance options offered by CUBACAR are the following:
INSURANCE A: Covers any damage over a deductible of $ 250.00 CUC. The price of this insurance is $ 10.00 CUC per day for all categories except category F, which is priced at $ 15.00. The insurance data is specified in each car category.
INSURANCE B: Covers any damage, theft, or accident suffered by the vehicle. Covers damages to the insured and third parties. The only one of its kind in Cuba as it covers against all risks, for only a small difference with respect to the insurance A. CUBACAR recommends this option. To know the prices of the Insurance type B consult each of the car categories.
MICAR: As an integral part of the Cuban tourism market, you forecast its growth due to the sustained development of the sector for next year. In the coming years, MICAR intends to develop a growth strategy based on an increase in the number of available cars in the fleet and a greater rotation in rental.
Currently there are 10 car rental entities in the market without a driver, MICAR, differentiating itself from the rest, spread nationally and rapidly throughout the country, including the northern Keys of Ciego de Ávila and the Tourist Poles of Santa Lucía, Guardalavaca, the Special Municipality of Isla de la Juventud and Pinar del Río. MICAR, associated with Oro Negro service centers and with more than 60 rental points scattered throughout Cuba, which provide specialized and immediate technical assistance.
