The Viability of Segways for College Students

Segway LLCPresented by Kelly Morris

Would you sport this?

Quick Facts 85- Pound Scooter

Top Speeds of 12.5 MPH

Carries up to 250 pounds

Operates on battery

Tsk Tsk:Problem Definition

• Consumer Recall• Faulty Batteries &

Internal Software Imperfections

• Price Issue• Marketing Strategy• Target Market

Would this fulfill your need for speed??

A Possible Solution?

Expand Market Segment to Include College Students<Generation Y>

Research Questions

R1: Would expanding Segway’s target market to include college students increase use of the product?

– H1a: Students would be more willing to purchase a

Segway at a lower price than they had been offered in the past.

– H1b: Students will only buy a Segway if they are able to test drive it first from a reputable vendor that is easily accessible would provide an incentive to purchase the product.

R2: What specific needs of the student population could Segway Fulfill?

– H2a: Segway will help solve the widespread parking issues that plague college campuses.

– H2b: The use of Segway will aid student financial problems with respect to gas expenditures.

R3: Would students be willing to utilize Segway scooters as an alternative form of transportation

to/from/around campus?

– H3a: Students will be willing to utilize Segway scooters as an alternative form of transportation to/from/around campus.

R4: How much would students be willing to pay

for a Segway?

– H4a: Males will be willing to pay more than females for a Segway.

– H4b: Students will be more willing to pay for a Segway if a payment plan is available to them that is flexible and fits their needs.

R5: Would customization of Segways affect the willingness of students to purchase the product?

– H5a: Students would be more willing to purchase a Segway if

they were able to customize the product.

Research Design

Target Population:College Students

Sample Population:

VT Students

Sampling Method: Non-Probability Convenience Sample

Benefits2. Largest Sample Size3. Fast4. Low Cost

Limitations2. Not representative

of population

2. Self-selection bias&

Data Collection Method: Online Survey

Benefits2. Cheap3. Reach larger number

of people4. Fast5. No interviewer bias6. Take at leisure, not

rushedThreats to Validity

1. Maturation Effect2. Mortality Effect3. Auspices Bias

&

Sampling Frame: VT Listserves

1. Pi Sigma Epsilon2. Delta Sigma Pi3. Pi Kappa Alpha4. Delta Zeta5. Delta Delta Delta6. Management Society7. Marketing Major8. Marketing Club

Ta Da!Research Results

RQ1: What would increase the attractiveness of a Segway?

3 options were given to choose from72.4% - Change Color

33%- Add a Decal24% - Personalize the License Plate

Change Color

Add Decal

License Plate

RQ2: How much are students willing to pay for a Segway?

– 62 respondents did not answer this question! Why?– # that would actually buy a Segway: 2– # willing to use a Segway around campus: 33.

H2A: Students’ reservation price is less than the market price.

-Mean reservation price: well under $2000 vs market price: between $4000 and $5000.-Lack of responses caused by: lack of product demand or

the inability to place a specific price on the product.

RQ3: Would students be more willing to purchase a Segway if they were able to test drive it first?

Yes. 90.9% of students who said they were willing to use a Segway chose to test drive the product first before deciding to purchase.

RQ4: What specific needs of the student population could Segway fulfill?

H4A: Segway will help solve the widespread parking issues that plague college campuses.

– We wanted to know if students who described parking as poor or fair would be more willing to purchase the product for more parking convenience.

– This was not significant

RQ5: Will the use of Segways aid student

financial problems with respect to gas expenditures?

– Minimal correlation between students willing to use a Segway on campus and those affected greatly by rising gas prices

– Majority of students were not affected by rise in gas prices

RQ6: Would upperclassmen be more willing to use Segway scooters as a form or transportation

to/from/around campus more than underclassmen?

– Problem: Only 1 freshmen answered our survey– Junior and seniors showed similar results so they were

grouped together as upperclassmen, and remaining respondents were classified as underclassmen.

– Of the 30% of students willing to use a Segway on campus, 50% of those were underclassmen

H6A: Males will be willing to pay more than females for a Segway.

– No significance between gender and maximum cost willing to be paid for a Segway.

H6B: Students will be more willing to pay for a Segway if a payment plan is available to them that

is flexible and fits their unique needs– On a 10 point scale:

• Gas cost: mean 7.8• Convenience of parking in motorcycle spots: mean 7.4• Flexible Payment plan: mean 6.6

* Compares only those students willing to use a Segway on campus

Oops!

• Topic– Pick one that better relates to college students– Interesting but unreasonable for this research project– Difficult problem definition & scope

• Research Questions and Hypotheses– More specific – Should have linked each stage in the project together more closely with the

problem definition• Survey questions

– Form to directly correlate with the research questions and hypotheses– When coming up with research questions and hypotheses keep the data

analysis stage in mind

for Segway:

Present as originally intended• Specialized product

Stick with original target marketAddress price concerns Product awareness campaignAddress all possible areas of use…be creative !

Take-Away…

Big Picture: Research as a StairMaster…each stage builds on the step before (and increases in difficulty)

No I in TEAM…5 heads are better than 1!!!

Minor changes in design = major changes in results

Marketing Research is an essential ingredient for the recipe of any company’s product strategy.

(and Segway’s may not be as cool as we thought)