Industrial Marketing Project
POLITEHNICA University of BucharestFaculty of Engineering in
Foreign LanguagesBusiness Administration and Engineering in
Industry
Industrial Marketing Project
Customer analysis of California Car Scents air freshenerson the
Romanian market
Coordinator:Student: Dr. Ing. Cristian POPESCU U Andrei
Table of Contents
1.Product description California Car Scents22.Targeted
market52.1Segmentation52.2Targeted customers and their
decisions63.Unique Selling
Proposition84.Questionnaire95.Conclusions11References11
1. Product description California Car Scents
Car Scents is the range of automotive spill proof air fresheners
produced in the USA by California Scents. The company was founded
in 1993 in Southern California and started by producing and selling
air fresheners packed in aluminium canisters, similar to the ones
used for packing fish cans, suitable for home, office or in the
car.In the beginning, the company produced only one type of air
freshener which was available in six scents. Along with the
increased popularity of their products, the company extended their
range and now, they have four main divisions: Household,
Automotive, Pet and Fragrances.
The Car Scents are automotive air fresheners consisting of three
scent pads made of organic recyclable fiber which are infused with
fragrance oil (Figure 2) and are packed in aluminum cans as you can
see in Figure 1. The black plastic cap acts as an air diffuser
which gives the user the possibility to adjust the intensity of the
scent.Figure 1 California Car Scents [2]
Since the big cities have the tendency to get more and more
crowded with people spending more time in their cars, this involves
an increase in the drivers and passengers need for comfort in the
vehicles they are using.Figure 2 Oil infused scent pads [2]
The need for comfort does not only refer to the interior space
or the ergonomics of the seats, but also the air quality and scent
in the vehicle has become a need and also a demand for most of the
drivers, leading to the development of a whole market of automotive
air fresheners. They come in different forms regarding to
packaging, usage, source of the fragrance and, state (solid, liquid
or gas) and in a large variety of scents.California Scents offers a
variety of 32 fragrances of their Car Scents range of products,
from fruity scents to new car scent or even bubble gum. Figure 3
shows only a part of the product range.Figure 3 Variety of Scents
[2]
On the Romanian market, the absolute leader is the Ambi Pur Car
air freshener, with a market share of 84.8% (in 2009), according to
this article, and the products offered by California Scents
struggle to increase their share, competing with the market leader,
with the Wunder-Baum hanging scented little trees and with other
liquid or gel air fresheners or even promotional ones from gas
stations.The competitive advantages of the Car Scents products can
be summarised as: Spill-proof, meaning that no oil or other liquids
may be spilled because they are infused in the fiber pads; Scent
that lasts up to 60 days (I am a frequent user of these products
and I can confirm this affirmation); Wide variety of fragrances in
order to satisfy a broad range of customer demands and wants; They
are packed in aluminium cans that fit perfectly in the cup holders
of every car, and can be used discreetly, without needing to hang
them from the rear-view mirror or clip them on the air vents The
products are manufactured in the USA, with high quality standards;
Enviro Kleen Certified they contain 100% pure fragrance oil, the
fibers that carry these oils are biodegradable and the cans are
made from recyclable aluminium; The plastic lid has an adjustable
opening, allowing users to control the intensity of the scent, and
also the life of the product.From all the 32 varieties of Car
Scents, one of them is the bestseller on the Romanian market, that
being the Golden State Delight one (Figure 4). The fragrance of
this product is very similar to the flavour of the Turbo chewing
gum which was very popular in the early and mid-90s and which are
back on the market now. This resemblance makes this product very
popular among the nostalgic 25-35 age segment of the buyers. I must
confess that I prefer this scent from the same reason.Figure 4
Golden State Delight [3]
The market leader, Ambi Pur Car, although its also a car air
freshener it comes in a different form. It is basically a bottle of
fragranced oil with a diffuser that clips on to the air vents of
the interior of the vehicle. It is sold as a pack of device
(clip-on support and diffuser) + reserve, or the reserves
separately (similar to the Gillette model). Although Ambi Pur Car
is the market leader and the most popular product among the car air
fresheners, its main disadvantage is the price. A starter pack of
Ambi Pur Car (device and reserve) costs up to 40 RON (37.90 RON at
Carrefour Hypermarket). Compared to that, a can of California Car
Scents costs almost 15 RON (13.99 RON at Auchan Hypermarket, 17.99
at eMAG and 15 RON at most of the online dealers), making it cost
63.3% less than the market leader, both products being comparable
in terms of lifecycle, quality, and both can be considered premium
products on this market.Despite the fact that it is way cheaper
than the market leader, it costs three times as much as another
notable competitor product range which is the Wunder-Baum trees
that are usually hanged by the rear view mirror. The scented trees
cost almost 5 RON (4.99 RON at eMAG) and this being said, the price
of the California Car Scents can be both an advantage or
disadvantage depending on what other products they are compared
with. As a conclusion of this first part you can see a SWOT
analysis of the Car Scents product range. High popularity in online
forums and communities of auto enthusiasts; Attending and
sponsoring automotive related events (expositions, tuning shows,
retro vehicles annual meetings) Products should be displayed in
places frequented by car enthusiasts (car washes, parts and
accessories shops, auto service units s.o.) and at pay-points of
the big retailers as they can be easy targets for impulse buyers.
May be perceived as expensive, compared to most of the competitors;
Some people may be not consider them when buying, being used with
the classic liquid or hanging fresheners; Currently not so widely
exposed in popular places such as hypermarkets, gas stations
a.o
Spill proof no liquids may spill in the car Aluminum package
that fits every cup-holder of every car Long-lasting up to 60 days
or even more Adjustable intensity of the scent Wide variety of
fragrances (32) Environmental friendly Enviro Kleen Certified Made
in USA Costs 63.3% less than the market leader
The avalanche of low priced (1-3 RON) and poor quality products
available almost everywhere; People who prefer to buy the products
mentioned above without considering quality and time-lasting
WeaknessesStrengths
OpportunitiesThreats
2. Targeted market
In this second chapter, I will describe the targeted market for
the product analysed, along with the segmentation variables taken
to account and the market segments considered. It is needless to
say that it addresses the final consumer, being a
business-to-consumer (B2C) product. However, if we take the case of
rent-a-car or taxi companies that use this product, it can also be
considered a business-to-business product, but this project will
concentrate of the business-to-consumer approach.2.1
Segmentation
As Philip Kotler states in his book, Principles of Marketing
15th Edition, market segmentation involves dividing a market into
smaller segments of buyers with distinct needs, characteristics or
behaviours that might require separate marketing strategies or
mixes. This process is important because it gives the companies a
framework to start from in order to reach their future customers
more efficiently and more appropriate to their needs, wants,
resources, buying behaviours and patterns and other
variables.[1]Figure 5 Major segmentation variables for consumer
markets [1]
As Figure 5 shows, the first variable I will consider will be
the geographic one. Since the product can classified as premium
considering its price segment, from the geographical and location
point of view, our targeted customers live in urban or suburban
areas, in developed or developing countries with moderate or warm
climate. The climate aspect is quite important because, for example
in a northern area with constantly cold climate, an air freshener
based on vaporization of scented oils is absolutely useless.From
the demographic point of view, the customers can have any age as
long as they are legal to own and drive an automobile; can be
either men or women and should have an average or higher income.
Although gender should not be a segmentation criteria for marketing
of products like the one analysed, some of the scents in the
fragrance range can be more appealing to one of the two genders
(e.g. the Golden State Delight has a scent similar to the Turbo
chewing gum, which were part the childhoods of most of men between
25-35). If we consider each one of the variety of scents available
individually, then the demographic segmentation may have different
variables with different values, and in a real scenario that would
be more efficient, but since this project has an educational
purpose, I will consider a single segmentation process for the
whole range of scents available.The psychographic segmentation
variables that we can take into account are social class and
personality. The potential buyers of our products are people from
middle class who are passionate about their vehicles and give
importance to using good quality products when it comes to
maintaining and accessorizing their cars. Also, most of these
people consider that the vehicle they drive should be a reflection
of their personality and social status. For example, we all have
friends or acquaintances that always keep their cars clean and with
service always according to the schedule; they most probably use or
will use California Car Scents to keep the air in their cars fresh
and fragranced.From the behavioral point of view, the Car Scents
products have benefits that make them appeal to a wide range of
customer segments. For the practical and pragmatic users, they can
be easily deposited in the vehicle, and do not contain liquids that
may spill and damage the dashboard or the seats. They offer a wide
range of possible scents to suit different tastes (they even have
some licensed scents similar to designer fragrances from brands
like Gucci, Christian Dior or Hugo Boss, in order to satisfy even
the most sophisticated buyers). They are probably the most
eco-friendly products in their market, having a recyclable package
and biodegradable fibres infused with organic oil, so they appeal
to people who are very interested in the environmental impact of
the products they decide to buy and use. Also there are buyers who
relate the quality of the products with the country or region they
are produced (e.g. there is a segment of buyers that consider
products made in China are poor quality) and based on the fact that
the products are manufactured in the USA, this segment will also
have its buyers. 2.2 Targeted customers and their decisions
Starting from the segmentation process described above we now
have information about the people that may or will buy the
products, people that should be appealed through marketing tools
and campaigns.As for every other type of product, the customers
certainly have expectations based on their personality, tastes or
even on previous experiences with other brands or types of products
from this market (car air fresheners).Two aspects that I think are
important when deciding among the variety of car air fresheners
available on the market are the price and the lasting of the
products which can be considered the customer perceived value. A
simple comparison based on the information printed on the packages
of the products and on the prices presented in the first chapter
shows that California Car Scents products have the best
cost-per-day (or price to lasting ratio) compared to its main to
competitors, Ambi Pur Car and Wunder Baum hanging trees.Table 1
Comparison of the cost per day of using air freshenersAmbi Pur
CarWunder Baum treesCalifornia Car Scents
Price [RON]38515
Lasts up to [days]451460
Cost/Day0.840.350.25
Another set of aspects that I, as a consumer find particularly
important are the form of packaging and the, lets say, modus
operandi or how the product should be used and how it affects or
improves the comfort of driving. For example, the little trees
(Wunder Baum) must be hanged by the central rear-view mirror and in
order to achieve the longest lasting of the product you should keep
the plastic wrapping and unveil the product gradually, which is
inconvenient and may affect the visibility of the driver. As for
the other competitor (the Ambi Pur), it contains a small bottle
filled with a perfumed oil which, in case of spilling will destroy
the materials of the dashboard (it happened to me once and that was
when I decided not to use it anymore). Also consumers surely want
that their air fresheners to work all the time, which is hard to
achieve with products that rely on the air flow from the air vents
of the car in order to spread their smell.
Figure 6 above shows four different types of buying behaviors,
as found in Kotlers book. The buying behaviour most appropriate to
the products analysed is the Variety-seeking buying behaviour which
involves low involvement from the customer although he perceives
significant differences between brands.Figure 7 Consumer buying
decision model (Belch model) [1]Figure 6 Consumer buying behaviors
[1]
What Figure 7 shows is the Belch model of consumers buying
decision process which I will analyse in the context of the
products considered in this project. The first stage is the need or
problem recognition, where the consumer discovers his previous air
freshener ran out, or that he has a bad smell in the car, or he
sees the product displayed or advertised somewhere and discover
that he needs or wants it.The Information search stage is the one
where the consumer gets informed about different products of the
ones that he wants. This type of products, the air fresheners do
not need a complex information search process. People usually
decide based on information written on the package, or by
references from friends and family (external) or based on their
previous experiences and purchases (internal)The third stage is
where the consumer evaluates the alternatives of brands available
on the market based on the information he has and finally makes the
decision to purchase one of them.Probably one of the most important
stages in this process from the point of view of the car air
fresheners is the postpurchase behaviour. I can write entire pages
about what needs the products fulfil or how consumers perceive
them, but in the end people try different brands and types of air
fresheners and when they find one that meet or exceed their
expectations they will become loyal to that particular brand, range
or product and will eventually recommend it to their acquaintances
and this happens in the postpurchase behaviour stage of the Belch
model. Basically, as Kotler says, this stage is where the companies
build profitable long-term relationships with their customers.
[1]As a conclusion to this chapter, in order to succeed on the
market of car air fresheners, I can identify some fundamental
success factors: Convenient and comfortable to use package and
form; Long lasting scent that meets (ideally exceeds) customers
expectations; Wide variety of scents; Convenient price (price to
days ratio)3. Unique Selling Proposition
After discovering the targeted segments of customers, a company
must create a Unique Selling Proposition, which has to
differentiate the product from its customers. Basically it should
summarise the main benefits or the value that customers will
receive when buying that product, by positioning it on an
attractive place in the customers perception of brands. This is a
powerful marketing instrument, especially for the consumer products
that are usually bought impulsively or without prior information
research from the customer. The selling or value proposition must
state the products competitive advantages and differentiate it from
the competitors. [1]From our products point of view, the main
competitive advantages that we can use to differentiate it from its
competitors are: It is long lasting; => Longer It is spill proof
and therefore clean and comfortable to use => Cleaner Its
eco-friendliness is certified = > GreenerThe three words written
in italic should certainly be key words in the Unique Selling
Proposition of our product. Another characteristic that is a
benefit to customers is the fact that they come in a wide variety
of fragrances and their names suggest more likely experiences or
places (especially from the USA) than fruits or flowers with
similar scent. Some examples of names include: Citrus Splash,
Hawaiian Gardens, Golden State Delight, Desert Jasmine, Gardenia
Del Mar, Emerald Bay and so on. The names of the fragrances also
suggest natural sites and that backed up by the fact that they are
made with organic oils can lead to referring to nature in the value
proposition. As we all know, all the expensive designer fragrances
and perfumes use natural oil extracts and in most cases their names
refer to nature (e.g. Bulgari Aqua, Kenzo Flower) and in my opinion
the value proposition can refer to the fact that the product,
through its scent brings a bit of nature in the interior of the
customers vehicles. Therefore, based on the arguments stated in
this chapter, I consider that a good Unique Selling Proposition for
the products analysed would be:California Car Scents: Brings nature
in your car. Longer. Cleaner. Greener4. Questionnaire
A questionnaire is a form of marketing research, and to be more
precise, it is usually a used a quantitative form of research in
order to acquire primary data that may lead to customers insights.
Those insights are information regarding to customers needs, wants
and opinions about the products and help marketers find
improvements in order to deliver higher customer value, and build
more profitable customer relationships.There are several types of
questions used in surveys and questionnaires, such as: open ended,
closed ended, multiple choice, scaled and others. Although the open
ended questions can provide deep information about each customers
opinion, fixed answer questions have the big advantage that they
simplify the responding process and the analysis of the replies.The
following questionnaire (available on the next page) is an example
that can be used to find information about the opinion of the air
fresheners users. I should note from the start that it is addressed
to people who own or drive vehicles, and therefore are potential
buyers of the products.The population taken into account for this
survey will be the people from Bucharest who own or drive a car.
Although we should have a clear view of the size of the population,
for this case it is quite difficult to know, because Bucharest is a
city of transit and there are a lot of people living here but are
registered in other cities; also there are many cars (especially
company cars) registered in Bucharest but which are driven in other
cities where the company runs its operations. Therefore, based on
the fact that there are almost 900000 cars registered in Bucharest,
we will consider that the number of cars driven in other cities
compensates the number of people that live in Bucharest and are
registered in other cities and also have or drive cars. Therefore
the population considered for this survey will be N=900.000
people.The next step for computing the sample size will be choosing
the margin of error which basically shows how closely the answers
received will be to the true value. We will choose the most common
value which is the e=5% margin of error, or confidence
interval.Further, a confidence level should be chosen, which shows
how accurate the answers will integrate into the chosen confidence
interval. Again we will choose the most commonly used value which
is 95%. Another thing considered is the standard of deviation which
tells how much variance should be accepted which usual is p=0.5.
The confidence level corresponds to a Z-number, which in our case
will be z=1.96. [3]
Using the formula above, the necessary sample size will be of
384 people.
We at California Scents truly value our customers opinions and
we struggle to constantly improve our products for your delight.
Therefore we would be grateful if you could give us 5 minutes of
your time to answer the following questions.
1. Which of the following ranges would reflect your current
age?[ ] 18-25 [ ] 25-35 [ ] 35-45 [ ] 45 and above2. Do you use air
fresheners in your vehicle or in the one you drive?[ ] YES [ ] NO3.
If you do, what types of products do you prefer?[ ] hangers [ ]
vent-clip [ ] canned [ ] aerosols [ ] other type4. How long would
you like your air-freshener to last?[ ] 7-14 days [ ] 14-30 days [
] 30-45 days [ ] 45-60 days [ ] over 60 days5. For that amount of
time, what price (in RON) are you willing to pay? [ ] < 2 [ ]
2-5 [ ] 5-10 [ ] 10-15 [ ] 15-20 [ ] 20-25 [ ] 25-30 [ ] >30 6.
Using the scale below, grade the following characteristics of an
air freshener in general, based on their importance, according to
your preferences:1= unimportant, 2=less important, 3=fairly
important, 4=important, 5=very importantLong lasting[ ]Price range[
]Fragrance aroma[ ]Packaging, form & design[ ]Adjustable
intensity[ ]Other:[ ]7. What brand of car air freshener do you
usually buy?[ ] Areon [ ] California Scents [ ] Wunder-Baum [ ]
Other: ..[ ] Ambi Pur [ ] Gas station brand [ ] OEM (car
manufacturer brand)8. What type of fragrance do you prefer for the
air freshener you use in the car?[ ] Fruity [ ] Floral [ ]
Anti-tobacco [ ] Bubble Gum [ ] Other:9. Have you ever used one of
our products? [ ] YES [ ] NO10. If your answer to the previous
question was YES, could you rate the characteristics, based on your
satisfaction with our products, using the scale below?1=
unsatisfied, 2=poorly satisfied, 3=average, 4=satisfied, 5=the best
Ive triedLong lasting[ ]Packaging, form & design[ ]Price range[
] Adjustable intensity[ ]Fragrance aroma[ ]Other:[ ]11. Do you have
any other comments or suggestions regarding our company, products
or even this questionnaire?....Thank you!
5. Conclusions
The California Car Scents air fresheners are convenience
products which possess a wide set of competitive advantages in
relation to their competitors on the Romanian market, which we
described in detail in the first chapter. Although the leader of
this market is in its maturity stage of the product life cycle, the
products we analyse are somewhere between the introduction stage
and the growth one, as they were introduced relatively recent and
they market share is following a growing trend.Based on the above
statement, the product has a high potential of developing its
status on the market and further actions should be directed into
advertising and raising the customer awareness as high as possible.
Another path that should be exploited would be the one of
automotive enthusiast as the product is quite popular among
them.
References
[1] Philip Kotler, Gary Armstrong Principles of Marketing, 15th
Edition Pearson Education, 2014;
[2] California Scents Website -
http://californiascents.com/product/california-car-scents/[3]
Survey Monkey Website -
https://www.surveymonkey.com/blog/en/sample-size-calculator/
Bucharest2015
5