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UNIVERSITY OF APPLIED MANAGEMENT

GHANA-CAMPUS

COURSE NAME: MARKETING

LECTURER’S NAME: MR SHANI BASHIRU

INDEX NO: UAMM0020

SUBMISSION DATE: 20TH DECEMBER, 2011


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QUESTION

CASE STUDY OPTED FOR: VODAFONE TELECOMMUNICATIONS

You are the Marketing Consultant of a Telecommunication firm in Ghana.

Competitive rivalry has become intense and yet another firm is about to enter

an already saturated market.

Your organization has found the need to prepare a detailed marketing plan to

enable it stay ahead of the competition.

As the Marketing Consultant, you are required to:

{A} Undertake a micro environmental audit of your firm

{B} Conduct a macro environmental analysis of your firm

{C} Design a SWOT analysis and

{D} Create a detailed marketing plan for your firm


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TABLE OF CONTENT

PAGE NO

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY………………………………………………………………………………….4

INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………………………………………...5

ANALYSIS & DISCUSSION………………………………………………………………………………6

CONCLUSION…………………………………………………………………………………………….15

RECOMMENDATION……………………………………………………………………………………16

REFERENCE………………………………………………………………………………………………17

BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………………………………………….18

APPENDIX FOR

ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATIONS………………………………………………………………………..19


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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In developing a detailed marketing plan as the Consultant at Vodafone in the midst of intense

rivalry, competition and market saturation to enable it stay ahead and gain a competitive

advantage at the expense of other radical and already existing players such as AIRTEL,

TIGO, MTN, EXPRESSO as well as new entrant like GLOBACOM, a number of strategicinitiatives during the situation analysis were employed. A few of these pointers dealt with in

course of this detailed and extensive research project are listed as below: (a) Usage of Seven

(7) “Ps” during the Micro-Environmental Auditing (b) Effective utilization of PESTEL in

conducting a Macro-Environmental Analysis of the organization in contention

(VODAFONE)

The objective of the study: To augment market share, profit margin, growth rate, ROCE etc.

by 15% via competitive advantage of Vodafone at the expense of rivals such as MTN and

TIGO as well as new entrant like GLOBACOM by the end of December, 2011.

Some of the strategic initiatives deemed fit and feasible to enable VODAFONE have an

enviable competitive edge and stay ahead of the competition irrespective of the saturated

nature of prevailing markets are categorically listed as below: (a) Customer Acquaintance

(b) Product Promotion (c) Strategic Location Selection (d) Building a Strong Relationship

with Employees (e) Improvement in Billing and Service Quality (f) Adherence to Premium

Business Solutions etc.

Marketing Mix (7 Ps) were also used during the implementation stage in the course of this

extensive work.

With regards to the Monitoring & Controlling category, tested and reliable

techniques/metrics/tools such as the Balance Score Card (BSC), Benchmarking,

Performance Appraisals, Sensitivity/Gap Analysis, Budgetary Control Measures, Statistical

Methods such as Run Charts, Scatter Diagrams, Pareto Charts, Ishikawa Tools of Quality,

Kaizen Continuous Improvement, Six Sigma Level just to mention a few were factored into

the scheme of things at Vodafone so as to boost its market share, profit margin as well as the

attainment of overall organizational set goals and competitive advantage.


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INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND HISTORY OF VODAFONE

Vodafone Group Plc (LSE: VOD, NASDAQ: VOD) is a global telecommunications

company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest mobiletelecommunications company measured by revenues and the world's second-largest measured by subscribers (behind China Mobile), with around 341 million proportionate subscribers as of November 2010. It operates networks in over 30 countries and has partner networks in over 40 additional countries. It owns 45% of Verizon Wireless, the largest mobile telecommunications company in the United States measured by subscribers.(www.wikipedia.com). The terminology “Vodafone” derived from voice data fone, was chosenby the company to "reflect the provision of voice and data services over mobile phones".

Vodafone has its primary listing on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of theFTSE 100 Index. It had a market capitalization of approximately £93 billion as of 9 March

2011, making it the third-largest company on the London Stock Exchange. It has a secondary listing on NASDAQ.

In December 2007, a Vodafone Group-led consortium was awarded the second mobile phone license in Qatar under the name "Vodafone Qatar", and on 3 July 2008, Vodafone agreed toacquire a 70% stake in Ghana Telecom for $900 million. The acquisition was consummatedon 17 August 2008. The same group-led consortium won the second fixed-line license inQatar on 15 September 2008. Vodafone Qatar is located at QSTP.

On 15 April 2009, Ghana Telecom, along with its mobile subsidiary one-touch, was rebrandedas Vodafone Ghana. (www.wikipedia.org). Vodafone in Ghana is an operating company of

Vodafone Group, the world's leading mobile telecommunications company, with asignificant presence in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific and the United States.

VODAFONE’S CURRENT POSITION IN GHANA

Vodafone is the only total communications solutions provider deeply entrenched in mobile,fixed lines, internet, voice, data just to mention a few and is currently unmatched in providingfixed lines and internet services, the leader and the first choice for Ghanaians. They are thethird ranked operator in Telecommunication with a huge potential and proclivity to take over the market. As a corporate body, they value their customers and constantly build keyrelationships with the private sector and government. Their ultimate goal and aim is to be the

communications leader in an increasingly connected world and provide the kind ofinnovative and responsive service for which the Vodafone is recognized worldwide respectively

INTENSE RIVALRY EXISTING IN THE TELECOMMUMICATION INDUSTRY

It is undoubtedly authentic that rivalry among competing firms in the telecommunication industry of which the Vodafone is a part via the most potent of the competing forces (market

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EVIDENCE as the head office and numerous outlets across the nooks andcorners of the country

PROCESS Internal processes and customer care service deficiencies, well-knitted, market-driven processes, user-friendly, cost-effectiveness (lack) etc.

PLACE Strategically located/vantage outlets

PEOPLE Innovative/skilled staff , medium labor turnover

MACRO-ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS

POLITICAL Stable democracy (good governance), government

intervention because of the significant share in thecompany in contention

ENVIRONMENTAL Ghanaians perception/attribution (preconceived ideology) pertaining to number change, partially disaster-free unlikesome of the Asian countries such as Indonesia, China,Japan etc. where the occurrence of natural disasters (Tsunamis, Hurricane, Typhoo’s etc). areprevalent/rampant

SOCIAL Growing population, costly Globacom brand making itextremely difficult to maintain through the strict adherence to Total Quality Management( TQM), Customer

Satisfaction or Relation Management(CSM/CRM),Business Process Re-engineering (BPR) etc.

TECHNOLOGICAL Drastic and disproportionate improvement in the field oftechnology causing the reduction in the prices of productsand services

ECONOMICAL High interest and inflationary rate

LEGAL Enforcement of tariffs/cost on every call

USAGE OF SWOT ANALYSIS

STRENGTHS WEAKNESSESEfficient network infrastructure Internal processes


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Loyalty bonus to customers After sales service

Expertise/Skilled workforce

(Innovative staff with high acumen and ingenuity)

Exorbitant tariffs compared to

EXPRESSO & AIRTEL (InternetServices)

Low labor turn-over/downsizing through retrenchment strategies,spinning-offs etc.

Negative return on assets (ROA) underperform key competitors likeMTN, Tigo, Expresso, Airtel just tomention a few

Diversified geographical portfolio with strong mobile telecommunicationoperations in Europe, the Middle East,Africa, Asia Pacific and to some extentthe US

Ghanaian business not nearly asstrong as the Europeans/rest of theworld operations

Leading presence in emergingmarkets such as India

80% of its business is generated inEurope and the rest of the world

Strong in cities such as Accra,Kumasi, Takoradi, Sunyani etc.

Low average customer handlingtime, lack of product marketexpansion, inability to build strongbrand, quality option, evaluation ofservice quality

OPPORTUNITIES THREATS

Prevalence of Global brand New entrant such as Globacom

Products and services targeted atsegmented markets

Other Internet Service Providers (ISP’s) offering the same products

Stable democracy Highly competitive market & radicalplayers such as MTN, TIGO etc.

Focusing on cost reductions thereby

improving returns

Still lags behind the major competitors

in Ghana e.g. MTN

Major stake in the developed countries Extremely high penetration rate intothe Ghanaian market

Research & Development of new andstate-of-the – art mobile technologies

Influx of digital music industry,prevalence of file transfer


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Increasing internet savvy population

Smart devices increasing becomingpopular, Increasing demand forlaptops, Greater appetite for data

connectivity

OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

To augment the market share by 15% via competitive edge (advantage) of Vodafone at theexpense of other radical players in the Telecommunication Industry such as MTN, TIGO,AIRTEL, EXPRESSO, etc. by the end of December, 2011.

STRATEGY

¥

STRATEGIES TO ENABLE VODAFONE STAY AHEAD OF THE COMPETITION INTHE WAKE OF NEW ENTRANT SUCH AS GLOBACOM AND ALREADY

EXISTING RADICAL PLAYERS SUCH AS TIGO & MTN

An efficient marketing strategy is one of the pre-requisites for the success of a business.Numerous researches have been carried out to know which marketing strategies can guarantee

Data

Consumer

Enterprise

Mobile

Voice

Consumer

Increasing internet savvy population

Smart devices increasingly becoming

popular

Increasing number of NMCs

Increasing demand for laptops

Greater appetite for data connectivity

New market for premium business

Increasing demand for smart devices

Promotionally responsive market

More market growth; 62% Penetration


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success. But the fact is with rapidly changing global markets, competitive rivalry becomingso intense as well as market saturation, organizations need to be at their innovative best tocome up with strategies that cater and appeal to the target customers. There are numerous successful marketing strategies and enlisting each one of them is not possible as what maywork for one product or service may not work for another. There are certain basics of

marketing that have proven to be useful and effective over the years. A few of these marketing strategies that work are categorically listed as below:

EFFICIENT MARKETING STRATEGIES USING THE “7” P’s

Customers acquaintance: The first and the foremost thing that we need to do before we getdown to brainstorm on marketing strategy is to identify which segment of population willthe product or service cater for (People). It is important for us to familiarize ourselves withthis attribute because customers have varied tastes and preferences and ignorance on this canhave serious repercussion/impact on our plans. It is therefore imperative that we plan our strategy in accordance with our target customers.

Along with a proper promotion policy, an ideal people-oriented marketing strategy ought tobe put in place by Vodafone to enhance Customer Satisfaction Management (CSM). Customer-centric product promotion is nothing new in the industry though product promotion campaigns are less likely to be determined by any other factors than the strengths of the product. (Lovelock, 1999). In as much as the emphasis might be placed on the overallpromotion strategy to attract as many potential customer as possible, there won’t be anystrategic advantage in the long term if Vodafone concentrates too much on its strengths onlysuch as network infrastructure, loyalty bonus to customers etc. This is irrevocably astrategic shortcoming in the continual development process that Vodafone should imbibe into its scheme of things in order to maximize profit margin, market share and overall

profitability in the long run.

Product Promotion: Running a sale, or putting discount coupons in the daily newspapers orinternet sites helps in creating visibility for our business. Before we plan a promotional offer,it is important that we have enough information about the offers of our competitors. Anotherbenefit of this marketing strategy is that our customers are likely to tell their friends about thepromotional offer. This will help us a great deal as word-of-mouth publicity counts a lot. Itis therefore important that VODAFONE maintain a balance with their pricing and offer. Ifthey keep the price too low, they may not be able to recover their costs which can lead tolosses/detrimental consequences.

Again, product characteristics include those tangible and intangible benefits for thecustomer. Candidly speaking, a typical cross section of the youth and professionals/elites would be inclined to buy products such as Black Berry, Modems etc. since its promotion strategy places emphasis on the afore-mentioned items super brand image and low browsing rates. In other words, the seventh “P” (Physical Evidence) of the variety of products atVodafone carries much weight just like in sensory marketing. (Miser, 2006). Hence, it istherefore auspicious that Vodafone factors this strategic initiative into its scheme of things inorder to stimulate competitive edge in the telecommunication industry.


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Strategic Location Selection: The location of an outlet or franchise is another important factorwhich determines the effectiveness of a marketing strategy (Place). If outlets are placed atimportant/vantage junction or near a landmark, chances are that we will get more browsers,whom we can convert into buyers. Have you ever noticed that majority of McDonalds outlets

are at some of the busiest places in the world? The location plays a very important role as itcreates an opportunity for us to be accessible to our customers.Place, again imposes some limitations on the firm’s ability to exploit broader marketing principles. Market segmentation strategy of Vodafone is exclusively intended for the creationof brand dependency and therefore, there is a drawback associated with its geographicallocation. For example, Vodafone, which markets Black Berry, has a huge network of outlets in almost every nook and corner in Ghana. It is therefore imperative and pressing that a lot ofemphasis be placed on this attribute by Vodafone so as to confer on it an enviable competitiveadvantage at the expense of new entrants like Globacom as well as staying ahead of thecompetition irrespective of market saturation in the telecommunication industry in thecountry.

Utilization of Web-Marketing: As mentioned earlier, organizations need to be innovative ifthey have to stay ahead of the competition. One of the steps in this direction is the visibility ofour business on the internet (Physical Evidence). One would have noticed that everyprominent website offers a link to customers through which we can go to a company'shomepage, place orders or know about an upcoming offer. Putting ourselves up on popularsocial networking sites can also help us know our customer's tastes and preferences. In fact,market researchers are of the belief /candid opinion that internet marketing will be one of thedominant marketing tools in the near future.

Build a Strong Relationship with Employees: Our employees are one of the most important parts of our marketing strategy. If our employees feel strongly about the company, it reflects in their behavior and helps in creating a positive impression on our customers and within theirown social circles. It is so glaring that some people boast of the company that they work with,and some always speak ill about the policies of their employers. This, to a great extent, shapesthe public opinion and has the ability to impact on our outcome of the marketing strategy. Itis important therefore, that we instill a feel-good factor in our employees so that they havemagnificent things to say about our organization. This will help in building a positive brand-image for the organization of which VODAFONE is a part.

Process: With regards to the process, a lot of setbacks associated with the internal processes as well as customer care services cannot be over-emphasized or underestimated. Strictlyspeaking, the lengthy amount of time it takes for customer’s application to be processed orattended to leaves much to be desired. Customer’s credit check is further compounded bylong delays which more often than not militate against Vodafone’s billing of optimumcustomer satisfaction management.Also, pertaining to the external processes associated with Vodafone, porting by other radicalplayers such as MTN takes too much time before it addresses customer’s complaint (demeritsolely attributable to the manual facilities utilized or employed at MTN). This invariablyimpedes effective communication amongst client’s day-to-day activities in the country as a


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whole thereby affecting Vodafone’s competitive advantage. There is therefore the exigentneed to map out formidable strategies/mechanisms to curb these debilitating encumbrances associated with network service providers of which Vodafone is a part.

Price: Prices of the variety of products and services at Vodafone’s disposal is essentially a

reference to the larger context of the company’s pricing strategy and especially at thecurrent competitive environment vis-à-vis intense rivalry and market saturation. There isvery little liberty if any is available to the firm in contention to adopt a pricing policy of itschoice. In the strict sense, market penetration would seem to be the most ideal pricingstrategy for product/services such as Black Berry, Broad Band 4 U just to mention a few aswell as price discrimination on the basis of market segmentation.

IMPROVEMENT IN SERVICE QUALITYThere should be an improvement in fixed network system so as to foster effective data service delivery across the country as a whole.There is therefore the need to also augment sales to facilitate installation and maintenance processes at Vodafone. This will invariably help boost its market share, profit margins via

competitive advantage at the expense of other radical players in the telecommunicationindustry.ENHANCED ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT

Pertaining to the afore-mentioned attributes, it will be appropriate for Vodafone to factorinto its scheme of things the pointers listed below: (a) hiring and up skill personnel/staff tofacilitate better and formidable service delivery and for that matter customer satisfaction management (CSM) (b) Exigent need to establish SLAs and secure feasible contracts withcustomers/clients by the Vodafone outfit (c) Precedence with respect to corporate and serviceexcellence to customers through strict adherence to Total Quality Management (TQM), Customer Relationship Management (CRM) etc particularly VGEs and government accounts.

BILLING IMPROVEMENT A vast improvement in the billing processes or systems will do the trick at Vodafone as far asthe effective delivery service to clients/customers is concerned. This can be achieved whenthe requisite priority is accorded the following attributes listed below: (a) Augmentation ofmanual processes and systems (b) Streamlining of the billing system to boost sophistication atVodafone i.e. to say Online Billing Portal (c) Provision of consolidated billing across allenterprise products.

ENHANCEMENT OF BASIC ENTERPRISE SOLUTIONSThis can be achieved and dealt with if the under listed pertinent issues are thoroughly dealtwith: (i) Optimization of data service pricing; streamline bundle offering e.g.Voice+Data+Device and lastly but not the least (ii) Attention should be placed on dedicatedinternet and extended corporate mobile solutions even beyond senior management. This willundoubtedly help boost CSM/CRM, TQM, effective service delivery, market share, andgrowth rate as well as the attainment of the strategic goals at Vodafone thereby enhancing itsperformance, productivity, profitability and overall competitive advantage at the expense ofcompetitors such as MTN & TIGO.

ADHERENCE TO PREMIUM BUSINESS SOLUTIONSA vivid adherence to Premium Business Solutions where issues/strategic initiatives such asthe: (i) Provision of WAN and LAN services (ii) Filling in of product gaps to offer more


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comprehensive enterprise solutions such as Blackberry offers via (iii) Audio and VideoConferencing; Centex; Securing remote accessibility is critical as far as gaining a long termcompetitive advantage in the wake of intense rivalry from emerging telecommunicationoutfits, market saturation and new entrants such as Globacom is concerned.

VIEWS/SUGGESTIONS FROM CUSTOMERS INTERVIEWED

(1)Improvement in fixed voice/broadband service (2) Customers are expecting Vodafonebrand to deliver premium enterprise solutions mentioned earlier in the course of the analysis(3) Exigent need to recognize and appreciate superior mobile network quality (4) Customersare expectant as regards superior customer experience/zero defect in service delivery fromVodafone brand.

STRATEGIC INITIATIVES IMPLEMENTATIONAs the Marketing Consultant of Vodafone, I will beyond reasonable doubt propose that themanagement of this telecommunication outfit incorporates these under listed pointers intoits scheme of things in order for it to not only stay ahead but also compete favorably with somealready existing players such as MTN & TIGO as well as new entrant such as Globacom irrespective of the saturated nature of telecommunication outfits/networks in contemporary

Ghana.There should be the deployment of NGN solutions to curtail and address the pertinentchallenges associated with fixed network of most telecommunication firms of whichVodafone is a part.Secondly, it will be most appropriate that Vodafone offers more comprehensive enterprisesolution/panacea such as network services and its management to enhance customersatisfaction management (CSM) via its overall profitability and competitiveness.Also, the deployment of 3G in hotspots is a must and will irrevocably provide a panacea withrespect to the improvement of mobile data experience.Precedence should be given to the maintenance of superior quality through the incorporation of TQM, Kaizen Continuous Improvement Strategy, Change Management, BPR, Strategic Management in addition to the New and State-Of-The-Art Network Coverage RolloutOption. Furthermore, it will be quite incongruous and absurd to turn a blind eye to the expansion ofretail and internet café experience as this pointer will also help foster Vodafone’scompetitive advantage at the expense of new aggressive entrant such as Globacom viaalready existing gurus in the telecommunication fraternity including MTN & TIGO.The enterprise account management team at Vodafone should endeavor to be dedicated andexhibit high levels of team spirit, cohesiveness, synergy, proactiveness, diversity, ethicality,fairness/transparency, sound organizational climate/culture etc which are undoubtedly some of the critical factors associated with successful organizational framework such asMTN and lastly but not the least ,there should also be an improvement in faulty reporting andresolutions as these when properly taking care of will enhance effective communication between workers/co-workers at Vodafone and clients in totality.

MISCELLANEOUS STRATEGIESAverage customer handling time: Vodafone is currently deficient strong customer support department which would provide solutions to the clients and take care of them in the longrun. Thus, there is a communication gap between Vodafone and the customer which needs tobe abridged to enable it stay ahead of the intense rivalry and competition.


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Customer loyalty: Vodafone can encourage their employees towards the high customeractivity to satisfy them and augment the total expenditure of each customer. This can be done by motivating them to integrate online and offline through loyalty programs like privilegedcards and redemption points. While there is no particular set of metrics to measure brandloyalty for Vodafone Black Berry in Ghana, there is enough empirical evidence to attest to

the fact that the product is indeed attracting a lot of patronage. (Tasner, 2010).This strategicinitiative will undoubtedly foster the attainment of organizational goals such as competitiveadvantage and optimum profitability vis-à-vis staying ahead of the competition in the telecommunication fraternity.Evaluation of service quality: The telecommunication outfit in contention should try as muchas possible to adhere to the effective utilization of Six Sigma and TQM concepts and tools toensure that both the perceived level of quality and the actual quality management methods such as Kaizen Continuous Improvement, Ishikawa Tools of Quality by minimizingvariations in standards, living up to the billing of Zero-Defects in productmanufacturability and service delivery, unifying product specifications and removing errorssystematically. This will automatically boost Vodafone’s growth rate and subsequently

enhance its competitive advantage via staying ahead of the competition.Quality option: Brand or product differentiation strategies heavily weigh on the subsequent ability of the firm to distinguish its brand on the basis of quality. A customized mobilephone service company would have the desirable impact on the customer’s expectations onlywhen the quality standards have been satisfactorily met. (Donovan & Samler, 1994). Thus,the quality option in brand differentiation for the Vodafone’s new brand of mobile phone for the youth and professionals is determined by the company’s ability to drive the point home for the potential customer that indeed means a lot. Hence, it is therefore auspicious andexpedient that the management of Vodafone strategizes along these lines of initiatives afore-mentioned so as to boost its market share/profit margin as well as stay ahead of the competition via competitive advantage in the telecommunication jurisdiction and fraternity.Building strong brand: A strong brand doesn’t necessarily connote that radical players suchas MTN & TIGO or new entrant like GLOBACOM would remain quiescent (inactive) or in astate of inertia. In other words, the building of a strong brand depends on the already existing and established degree of loyalty. For that to come to fruition there must be some brandequity promotion activity. (Mac Donald & Sharp, 2000). Vodafone should be constantlyseeking to build up a strong brand on the basis of brand equity so as to compete favorably with sister companies in the country as a whole.Product market expansion: The product market expansion strategy for Vodafone must bebased on the afore-mentioned parameters. (Gonzalez & Quesada, 2004). These parameters can be identified as a measure or approach to overcome the existing level of competition andstrategically re-orient its marketing campaign to achieve positive cohesiveness and synergiesdirectly and indirectly related to the corporate goals of Vodafone.

MONITORING & CONTROL

This aspect of the marketing plan basically accentuates on comparing Vodafone’s setgoals/targets such as budgetary allocation/cost with actual. Performance appraisals ofemployees, benchmarking can also be used to ascertain the performance of the organization in


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contention not losing sight of the effective utilization of the Balance Score Card (BSC) comprising of key parameters as shown in the diagram below:

In addition to the afore-mentioned metrics, competitor analysis, quality techniques and toolssuch as the Six Sigma Level, Ishikawa Tools of Quality, Pareto Charts, Kaizen Continuous Improvement Strategy can also be employed to really predict assertively if Vodafone is notonly on track to success but also living up to its billing of Zero-Defect as regards its productmanufacturability and superior quality service delivery as well as strict adherence toCustomer Satisfaction Management (CSM). Also, major source of poor quality which give rise to variation, usage of Statisticaltechniques such as Control charts, Run Charts, Scatter Diagrams, Process Variability,Quality Circles, DMAIC can be factored into the monitoring and control process to ascertain if the implemented strategies are yielding the expected dividend as well as conformance toorganizational goals/targets via ISO/QS 9000 standards of quality.Furthermore, Problem solving tools such as PDSA, Quality Control (QC) Tools, Sensitivity& Gap Analysis, Florida Power & Light’s “7” Steps Model can also be utilized at this stage of monitoring, controlling/evaluation which will irrevocably enable VODAFONE have anenviable competitive advantage thereby ensuring that it stays ahead of the competition at theexpense of already existing telecommunication gurus such as MTN &TIGO via new entrant like GLOBACOM.

CONCLUSION

From the above findings, it can be safely inferred that Vodafone has been dwindling in terms of its customer’s capacity as compared to other competitors like MTN & TIGO. Since thedemand for mobile phone services is bound to accelerate, it can be predicted that the marketgrowth for products and services such as Black Berry, Broad Band 4 U etc. is inevitable.Vodafone maintains a good brand image and a loyal customer base in Ghana. It is thereforevital that it continues to invest in developing new technologies as otherwise new innovations and inventions from other telecommunication players could capture the market. (De Burca,Fletcher & Brown, 2004).It will be more feasible and appropriate for Vodafone to form informal partnerships andformal legally binding one with other companies in order to share knowledge and technology to assist further and enhance its deliverables as efficiently as possible.Vodafone is also faced with a threat from inferior quality pirated products in the market forexample through mobile phone imported from countries such as China.Strictly speaking, the digital music industry is evolving very fast. There is always the threat of a new company such as GLOBACOM introducing something totally new to the market such as Wireless Technology that could replace the need for a physical music player. It’s of

TQM ELEMENT FINANCIAL MEASURE NON-FINANCIAL MEASURE

Customer Satisfaction Field service expense, Externalfailure cost

Results of customer satisfactionsurvey, On-time delivery,

Number of customer complaintsInternal Performance Preventive cost, Internal

failure cost, Appraisal costDefect rates, Idle capacity,

Yield Unscheduled machinedown time, Lead times etc.


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paramount significance for Vodafone to invest enormously in research, development andmarketing in order to keep up with new entrants and introduce newer products to themarket. (www.asseco.com) Vodafone is again faced with the risk of employees themselves divulging secrets about its newtechnology. This could cost it a lot of fortunes/profits. File transfer and sharing is another

menace/threat that cannot be underestimated within the jurisdiction of thetelecommunication industry. Radical players such as TIGO & MTN are conversant withthese possibilities. It is therefore vital that VODAFONE strategically map out techniques toimpede file sharing so as to enable it to not only gain an enviable competitive advantage butalso stay ahead of the competition in terms of profit margin, growth rate, and market share and its overall performance, productivity and profitability.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR GAINING COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGEA new marketing strategy for Vodafone’s products and services such as VideoConferencing, Black Berry, Broad Band 4 U just to mention a few has to be characterized bya series of value creation/additions to tempt the potential customer to purchase the variety of

products offered by the outfit in contention.A product orientation and expansion strategy based on the existing brand strength associatedwith the new customized mobile phone’s market leadership is desirable.ANSOFF’s product market growth strategy might be useful to a varying magnitude e.g. intargeting new niche markets (new markets-new products/brands) to place the customized mobile phones for teens. However, new niche markets where there is already some intense rivalry and stiffer competition from radical players can be very expensive. (Gerpott &Jakopin, 2005) More so, new emerging markets and entrants such as GLOBACOM might be more feasible for a sustained marketing campaign coming into the market almost on a daily basis with theirhighly distinguished brands and products.A broader and better focused strategic vision in conformance with the long term marketinggoals including competitor and customer orientation strategies might be the best and likelyalternative for Vodafone right now.Again, market segmentation according to consumer demographics based on key variables such as the number of visit to store/retail outlet during a given time period by an average customer is feasible.Above all, the awareness of customer preference matters. The existing market shares ofVodafone mobile phones and its rivals depict that it leads with the lion’s share. The bigger themarket share, the greater would be the possibility of success. But nonetheless, the company incontention is highly concentrated at the top management level. This presupposes that thedecision making process has to be decentralized to accommodate marketing companies thatrun on high budget and tight time schedules. (Bennett & Blythe, 2002) Vodafone’s products such as Black Berry, International Roaming etc. need to be marketedby adopting a market penetration strategy. This means that introductory prices of products and services must be kept to the barest minimum so that quite a sizable share of the market can be captured and maintained. The existing competitors such as AIRTEL, EXPRESSO,TIGO and MTN in the telecommunication fraternity basically rely on providing a corenumber of enabling services, especially to the 3G mobile phone user.

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Vodafone’s current strategy of concentrating on providing a broader spectrum of services across seamless application of both technology and user friendly operational parameters isgood enough but requires a much cost conscious approach.The company in contention has successfully created customer value through the expandedmarketing mix rather than restricting the marketing strategy to the 4P’s based mixed in the

market.However, there is still greater possibility of increasing market share through an extensiveonline advertising campaign.Radical players such as MTN & TIGO’s customized Nokia and Sony Erickson tunes havenoticed the reliable efficacy of sensory marketing as a potent force in appealing to the youth in the digital music market in Ghana delivered on the mobile, visuals and audio quality. Thecountry currently is a saturated market for mobile telephony but an innovative marketing strategy such as the Boston Consulting Group Matrix and ANSOFF should be used judiciously to capture this so-called market by concentrating on customer preference andtheir taste.In order to capture a large segment of the market, it is vital that initial price of the products

be kept to the barest minimum. The price cutting war in the market is going to be particularlydeadly for small competitors though. In other words, a market penetration pricing strategy isalmost the foregone conclusion with rivals such as EXPRESSO, AIRTEL just to mention afew.

In lieu of this analysis and findings, VODAFONE cannot be complacent. It should continue inexperimenting with newer technologies in order to come up with novel inventions. Else, theycould be overwhelmed by other competitors. (Alleyne, 2011) Furthermore, Vodafone could strategically form new alliances with other organizations in thetelecommunication industry informally and formally so as to share technology and thusfurther enhance the quality of their products. Technology concurrments (agreements) withother service providers would be desirable in this context.

Based on the results/findings trampled upon throughout this extensive research work asregards the undertaking of micro & macro environmental audit and analysis respectively, Iwill as the Marketing Consultant of Vodafone emphatically propose that further research studies ought to be taken in future to ascertain the extent of influence on customers’ decision to patronize telecommunication products and services and this shouldn’t be restricted to only semiotics but also extended to a study of how brand and customer loyalty are formed even inthe absence of any tendency to associate personal preferences of consumers with somesuperior product quality. This is in direct conformance with the current trend in marketing adopted by radical players in the telecommunication industry in the country as a whole andthe world at large.

REFERENCES

Alleyne, I. (2011) “Mobile War in Trinidad. An Analysis. Available at www.carribean360.com Bennett, R. & Blythe, J. (2002) “International Marketing: Strategy Planning, Market Entry &

Implementation, London: Kogan Page.

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De Burca, S., Fletcher, R. & Brown, L. (2004) “International Marketing: An SME Perspective,Harlow: Prentice Hall.

Donovan, P. & Samler, T. (1994) “Delighting Customers-How to build a Customer-Driven

Organization. New York: Springer

Gerrpott, T.J. & Jakopin, N.M. (2005) “International Marketing Standardization & FinancialPerformance of Mobile Network Operators-An empirical Analysis”, Schmalenbach Business

Review, vol. 57, Pp 198-228.

Gonzalez, M.E. & Quesada, G. (2004) “QFD Strategy House: An Innovative Tool for LinkingMarketing and Manufacturing Strategies. Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 22 (3) Pp. 335-

348.

Lovelock, C.H. (1999) “Developing Marketing Strategies for Transnational Service Operations.Journal of Services Marketing, 13 (4/5), pp 278-295.

Mac Donald, E. & Sharp, B. (2000) “Brand Awareness Effects on Consumer Decision Making

for a Common Repeat Purchase Product: A Replication Journal of Business Research, 48 (1), Pp5-15.

Miser, B. (2006) “Absolute Beginner’s Guide to iPod and iTunes, 3rd

ed. Victoria

Tasner, M. (2010) “Marketing in the Moment: The Practical Guide to Using Web 3.0 Marketing

to Reach Your Customers First. New Jersey: FT Press.

www.asseco.com

www.wikipedia.com/org

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Kotler, P. & Armstrong, G., (2009) “Principles of Marketing” 13th

Ed. New Jersey: PrenticeHall.

Martin, C., (2011) “The Third Screen: Marketing to Your Customers in a World Gone Mobile.

Massachusetts: Nicholas Brealey Boston.

Porter, M.E., (2008) “The Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy. Harvard BusinessReview.

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Saunders, M. Lewis, P. & Thornhill, A. (2007) “Research Methods for Business Students. 4th Ed.

London: Prentice Hall.

APPENDIX FOR ACRONYMS/ABBREVIATION

DMAIC: Define Measure Analyze Improve Control

ISO: International Standards Organization

PDCA/PDSA: Plan Do Check/ Study Act

QS: Quality Standards

SLA: Service Level Agreement

VGE: Voice Grade Equivalent

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