A marketing plan I constructed on Hertz Car Rental complete with Internal, External, and Customer analysis. Marketing recommendations and action plans were created by me to enhance company profitability and customer market share.

2. High

3. There is a substantial amount of competitors currently operating within the Rental and Leasing Services industry. The fight for consumer market share has forced these companies to differentiate themselves through price and their level of customer service. Unfortunately, because the intensity of this industry is so high, many competing companies offer similar prices, features and benefits to consumers. As a result, companies lose potential profits as they compete in price-wars to gain consumer market share.

4. Threat of New Entrants

5. Low

6. To start a rental service company, an individual needs to have an extensive amount of financial resources. The likelihood of achieving profitability in a highly competitive industry serves as a barrier for new entrants.

7. Threat of Substitutes

8. High

9. There are a lot of competitors within the Rental and Leasing Services industry. This has caused consumers to view the products and services offered by car rental service companies as commodities because of their similar features and prices.

10. Consumers can also utilize taxi, train, and bus shuttle services as a means of transportation.

11. Bargaining Power of Buyers

12. Low/High

13. The bargaining power of buyers can be classified as low and high because it is largely dependent on the buyer’s financial resources. If an individual wanted to rent a car service, they would have low bargaining power. This is because the loss of potential financial resources will not significantly impact company revenues. If the individual is a buyer from an automotive company seeking to purchase several vehicles, they would have high buying power. Losing a potential sale that could bring in significant company revenues will hurt the company.

14. Bargaining Power of Suppliers

15. Low

17. Brand competitors provide consumers with products that have similar features, benefits, and prices as that of Hertz Car Rental.

18. Avis, Budget, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Alamo, and National Car Rental

19. Product Competitors

20. Product competitors provide consumers with similar products as Hertz Car Rental, but they differ in features, benefits, and price.

21. Toyota, Mazda, Ford, and Chevrolet Motor Companies

22. Generic Competitors

23. Generic competitors do not offer similar products as Hertz Car Rental; however, they still satisfy the same consumer need of transportation.

24. Yellow Cab, Checker Cab, American Limo Network, and local airport shuttle bus services

25. Total Budget Competitors

26. Total budget competitors represent other activities that consumers choose to spend their limited financial resources on.

28. Avis Budget Group is a company that operates two subsidiary car rental service companies: Avis and Budget. Avis is the leading car rental service company that provides luxurious, premium vehicles to consumers. On the opposite spectrum, Budget provides products and services to consumers who are price-value conscious. Avis Budget Group has the ability to operate globally in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, Europe, Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Middle East regions. This is because their extensive rental fleet consists of more than 350,000 vehicles. In 2009 alone, Avis Budget Group was responsible for over 23 million vehicle rental transactions that totaled revenue of $5,131 million at the end of the fiscal year (“Company Information” Avis Budget Group).

29. Enterprise Holdings, Inc.

31. The current consumer confidence index score reached 54.1 in November of 2010, the highest score obtained over the past 5 months (“Consumer Confidence Survey” The Conference Board).

32. Consumers have a positive outlook on the economy. The higher the consumer confidence index score, the more likely consumers will increase their financial spending habits.

33. Consumers will start to spend their financial resources on travel, restaurants, entertainment venues, etc. again

34. Employment Rates

36. North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

37. The North America Free Trade Agreement, signed in 1993, allows consumer goods produced in Canada or Mexico to be sold in the United States with no import fees (Studer).

38. Large companies take advantage of this agreement and outsource their production operations to Mexico and Canada to take advantage of their lower employee wage rates. This caused the unemployment rate in the US Automotive industry to reach 10% after NAFTA was implemented in 2007 (Studer).

39. NAFTA creates political controversy because US individuals feel that US automobile production should be restricted to the US. They believe restricting the US automobile production will the US economy and decrease unemployment rates.

40. Regulatory Issues

41. Telephone Consumer Protection Act

42. The Telephone Consumer Protection Act is a regulation that prohibits businesses from relaying advertising messages to consumers over the phone regarding information on their availability of property, goods, and services (Hertz Annual Report, 2009: 45).

43. Advertising to consumers over the telephone is considered legal only after the consumer expresses either written or verbal consent to the business stating they accept advertisement solicitation.

44. Consumer Liability

45. As of February of 2006, Hertz Car Rental has shifted the liability on all vehicle damage caused by poor weather conditions to their customers (Schlossberg). This regulation does not apply to customers who rent their vehicles in Wisconsin and California due to legal law restrictions.

46. Customers are liable for all damages to their rental vehicles caused by severe thunderstorms, floods, blizzards, hailstorms, hurricanes and tornadoes. Customers must also pay for any damages incurred to their rental vehicles as a result of falling tree limbs and utility poles.

47. Age Differential Policy

48. The suggested minimum age to rent a vehicle from any car rental service company is 25 with a driver’s license that has been valid for at least 1 year. On their company website, Hertz Car Rental states that they allow individuals to rent their vehicles if they are at least 21 years old and have had a valid driver’s license for at least 1 year. If a customer is between the ages of 21-24, they will be charged an Age Differential fee in addition to their rental rate (“Requirement Details” Hertz Car Rental).

49. Their high-performance vehicles and Prestige Collection vehicles are not available for rent to customers under the age of 25.

50. Legal Issues

51. Concession Recovery Fees

52. On October 13, 2006 a legal suit was filed against Hertz Car Rental by Janet Sobel, Daniel Dugan, and Lydia Lee. These individuals claim they were wrongfully charged airport concession recovery fees in addition to their total rental rate charges. These consumers rented their vehicles in Nevada, a state where it is unlawful to charge airport concession recovery fees (Hertz Annual Report, 2009: 45).

53. As of late 2009, the legal suit is still active awaiting a final court decision.

54. Patent Infringement

55. On February 19, 2007, Hertz Car Rental filed a legal suit against Enterprise Holdings, Inc., TSD Rental LLC, and The Crawford Group, Inc. Hertz Car Rental claimed that all three companies were involved in unfair and deceptive business practices that made competing with their consumer offers impossible (46).

56. Hertz Car Rental received a non-monetary settlement from all companies involved and the case was dismissed in June of 2009 (47).

57. Public Liability and Property Damage

59. Companies create an internet website to highlight their prices, products, services, and current promotional offers to consumers online. Consumers can purchase their car rental products and services directly from the website through company reservation portals.

60. Comparison Shop

61. Internet

62. Online websites provide consumers with access to all car rental service rates available in nearby geographic regions. Consumers can compare the car rental service rates from competitors all in one location. This allows for easy comparison shopping.

63. Mobile

64. Smart phone applications help consumers find the current rates of competing car rental service companies while they are traveling.

65. Placing Product Reservations

66. Consumers have several channels available to them that make the task of renting a car service quick and easy. Consumers can book their car rental products and services through reservation portals located on the company website or through the company’s mobile smart phone application.

68. The Lighthouse Project is a program developed by Hertz Car Rental in 2009 that looks for ways to continually improve and streamline their car rental process from the vantage point of their customers (5).

70. Increased Importance on Fuel Efficiency

71. The increasing costs of fuel at the gas pumps have increased the popularity of hybrid and fuel efficient vehicles.

72. Consumers recognize the detrimental health of the environment. They want vehicles with minimal gas emissions in an effort to reduce their carbon footprint.

73. Increase of Product Information on Internet

74. The internet has dramatically changed the way businesses and consumers communicate with each another.

75. Businesses provide information about their products, services and current promotional offers on their company website and social media company profile.

76. Consumers can purchase products from global companies. This has expanded the level of competition between business industries.

77. Internet allows consumers to view product and service ratings posted by other customers before they commit to purchase.

78. Consumers can find information and order product from the internet without the help of a sales associate.

79. As the amount of company and product information on the internet rises, significant improvements must still be made to increase the accessibility of internet to all global consumers.

81. Consumers want fuel efficient vehicles that will reduce their carbon footprint.

82. Hertz Car Rental has realized this sociocultural trend and currently offers consumers gas efficient, hybrid vehicle models in their Green Collection.

83. Pricing

84. Consumers often relate price as an indication of quality.

85. Prices need to be high enough to cover all incurred costs and competitive enough to achieve profitability, and increase both sales and market share.

86. Distribution

87. Hertz Car Rental has 8,100 car rental service locations in 145 countries (Hertz Annual Report, 2009: 3).

88. The wide distribution of their car rental service locations provides Hertz Car Rental the opportunity to reach diverse customers. As they continue to expand their global operational structure to new locations, they will attract new customers and increase both their sales and market share.

89. Promotion

91. Individuals ages 21+

92. Must have valid driver’s license for at least 1 year.

93. All races

94. Middle class income level

95. Must have a good credit score

96. Geographic

97. Hertz Car Rental has 8,100 car rental service locations dispersed amongst 145 countries (Hertz Annual Report, 2009: 3).

98. Locations reside in both airport and off-airport markets.

99. Hertz Car Rental plans to open 60 additional locations in the off-airport market by the end of fiscal year 2010 (Associated Press).

100. Psychographic (Hertz Annual Report, 2009:10-12).

101. Replacement Renters

102. Consumers who need a replacement vehicle as a result from accident, theft, or mechanical failure.

103. Leisure Renters

104. Consumers that rent vehicles to increase their ease of mobility during travel.

105. Generally rent vehicles for extended amounts of time

106. Business Renters

107. Use rental vehicles to travel to and from airport locations.

108. Uncomfortable leaving personal vehicle unattended in airport locations when they travel

110. Individuals who purchase car rental products from Hertz Car Rental.

111. These customers seek to purchase car rental products to satisfy the basic consumer need of transportation.

112. Users

113. Individuals who purchase car rental products and services from Hertz Car Rental. They are most likely to purchase additional amenities and services to enhance overall rental experience.

114. These customers seek to purchase car rental products and services to satisfy both needs and wants.

115. Influencers

116. Friends and family members influence the purchaser’s decision to purchase car rental products and services from Hertz Car Rental. Past Hertz Car Rental customers can also influence the purchaser’s decision through posts on product/service review websites.

117. They engage in informal word-of-mouth marketing by relaying their personal opinions of the company and/or past customer service experiences.

118. These word-of-mouth interactions can be both positive and negative.

119. Financially Responsible Parties

120. When consumers reserve car rental products and services from Hertz Car Rental, a credit check is performed by Hertz Car Rental to ensure individuals have adequate financial resources.

122. Consumers have the option to purchase car rental products and services at Hertz Car Rental locations or through their company website.

123. The Hertz Car Rental company website contains a reservation portal where consumers can purchase car rental products and services in a financially-secure environment.

124. Consume

125. Customers are classified by the number of times they consume car rental products and services through Hertz Car Rental. Customers can be classified as either heavy or light users.

126. Heavy Users

127. Customers who frequently purchase car rental products and services through Hertz Car Rental.

128. Individual is either a member of the Hertz #1 Club, Hertz #1 Club Gold, Hertz #1 Club Gold Five Star or Hertz #1 Club Gold President’s Circle loyalty program (“Hertz #1 Club” Hertz Car Rental).

129. Light Users

130. Customers who purchase car rental products and services from Hertz Car Rental based on customer convenience and price.

132. When vehicles are no longer eligible for manufacturer repurchase or enrollment in the guaranteed depreciation program, Hertz Car Rental will remove the rental vehicle from their product line (Hertz Annual Report, 2009: 14).

133. Hertz Car Rental uses the following channels to dispose of their rental vehicles:

134. Auctions

135. Brokered sales

136. Wholesaler/Dealer sales

138. The following products and services can be purchased at Hertz Car Rental locations and through the company website:

139. Rental Vehicles

140. Cars

141. Chevy Aveo, Nissan Sentra, Sebring Convertible, Cadillac STS Chevy Traverse, GMC Terrain, Kia Sedona

142. SUVs

143. Chevy Traverse, GMC Terrain, Kia Sedona

144. Commercial Van/Trucks

145. Ford Cargo Van

146. Green Collection

147. Smart Fortwo, Toyota Corolla, Ford Fusion, Toyota Prius Hybrid, Nissan Altima Hybrid

148. Fun Collection

149. Jeep Wrangler, Ford Mustang, Corvette Convertible

150. Prestige Collection

151. Cadillac Escalade, Mercedes E Class, Volvo C70 Convertible

152. Services (“Products & Services” Hertz Car Rental).

153. Emergency Roadside Assistance

154. The Hertz Emergency Roadside Assistance Center will make arrangements to help assist customers in unforeseen circumstances.

155. Provides customers with 24 hour assistance all 365 days of the year

156. Hertz Local Edition Free Pick Up & Return Service

157. Customers that rent vehicles at participating Hertz Local Edition locations will be picked up by employees and driven to the Hertz Car Rental location.

158. Eliminates the need of making travel arrangements when picking up rental vehicles

159. Connect by Hertz

160. Provides customers with the option to rent vehicles at low hourly rates. These low hourly rates include the costs of fuel, insurance and the in-car navigation system.

162. Hertz Car Rental is so confident in the quality of their rental car products and services that they are willing to match the offers that their competitors are currently offering to consumers. In addition to matching competitive offers, Hertz Car Rental also provides customers with a coupon for $50 off a future car rental.

163. Promotion will terminate January 31, 2011.

164. No Differential Age Fees

165. If a consumer between the ages of 21-24 is looking to rent a vehicle, Hertz Car Rental will waive their Age Differential fees. Promotion is eligible on all car classes except for the Prestige and specific vehicles in their Fun Collection.

166. Promotion will terminate December 31, 2010.

167. Save Up to $100 on Prestige Collection Rentals

168. Hertz Car Rental is offering customers who rent a vehicle within the Prestige Collection a daily savings of $20. Depending on the length of the car rental, customers can save up to $100.

170. Hertz Car Rental experiences a significant increase in demand during the Spring and Summer months of the year.

171. To prepare for the increase in demand, Hertz Car Rental locations increase the number of vehicles in their rental fleet and hire additional employees.

172. Winter

173. Hertz Car Rental experiences a sharp decline in demand during the Winter months of the year.

174. Hertz Car Rental locations are still responsible for covering the costs of their fixed operating expenses.

176. The operating hours of each Hertz Car Rental location vary.

177. Hertz still provides customer service to their customers whenever it is requested.

178. Hertz Reservation Center

179. Provides a listing of contact numbers that customers can call for 24/7 assistance.

180. FAQ

181. The company website lists the answers to their customers’ most frequently asked questions.

182. Live Help

183. The company website also provides customers with the option to chat with a member of their support team upon request. Support team employees are available to provide customers with 27/7 assistance.

184. Special Amenities (“Products & Services” Hertz Car Rental).

185. Optional insurance packages

186. Loyalty Club Memberships

187. Hertz #1 Club Gold President’s Circle, Hertz #1 Club Platinum

188. Convenience Options

190. Hertz Car Rental offers cars and SUVs to satisfy customers who want to travel with the basics. They offer their special Green, Fun, and Prestige Collections to satisfy customers who want to travel with added convenience, comfort, and style.

191. These rental vehicles are guaranteed to satisfy all customer personal preferences.

192. Unique Services

193. The Rental and Leasing Services industry is highly competitive, which forces Hertz Car Rental to offer their products at similar prices as their competitors.

195. Consumers who want to purchase car rental products and services must have a valid driver’s license.

196. Driver’s license must be valid for at least 1 year at the time when the consumer purchases car rental products and services.

197. Consumer driver’s licenses that have been suspended in the past, or contain restrictions that require the consumer to carry a breathalyzer with them at all times will not be acceptable to purchase Hertz Car Rental products and services (“Requirements to Rent” Hertz Car Rental).

198. Credit History

199. Once a consumer places their car rental products reservation into the Hertz Car Rental reservation portal, they are required to surrender either a Credit or Debit card.

200. Debit cards are only acceptable if there is either a VISA or Mastercard logo on them.

201. Prepaid Credit gift cards are not accepted.

202. An extensive credit check is performed on the consumer’s Credit/Debit card to determine their eligibility to purchase car rental products and services.

204. Consumers can choose to utilize other means of transportation that will better satisfy their needs

205. City Dwellers

206. It is difficult to travel around large city locations with a vehicle.

207. Consumers can utilize train and subway services

208. Elderly

209. A majority of elderly consumers feel uneasy when driving in crowded, low-visibility conditions. Some elderly consumers no longer have a valid driver’s license.

211. Continuous Growth

212. Hertz Car Rental is currently in the process of expanding their business using the continuous growth strategy of market penetration to increase their sales and revenue in the off-airport market.

214. 2007

215. At the end of fiscal year 2007, Hertz Car Rental generated a positive net income of $284.2 million. Their car rental service sector alone brought in $6,900.7 million (Hertz Annual Report, 2009: 54).

216. 2008

217. As a result of the economic recession that the economy faced in 2008, Hertz Car Rental ended the fiscal year of 2008 with a negative net income of $1,185.9 million. Their car rental service sector generated $6,730.4 million. Hertz Car Rental experienced a negative net income because of the impairment charges they paid out. Hertz Car Rental spent $1,168.9 million in impairment charges to assist their customers during harsh economic times.

218. 2009

220. As of October 5, 2010, Hertz Car Rental generated more than $1 billion in revenues according to the online article found on Yahoo! Finance, Hertz says Non-Airport Rentals Bringing in $1B (Associated Press). Although the 2010 year end revenue totals are not complete, it is still a $100 million increase from the revenues Hertz Car Rental experienced at end of the 2009 fiscal year. This amount of financial resources will allow Hertz Car Rental to open 250 more locations in the off-airport market. This will support their marketing strategy of market penetration in the off-airport market segment to gain market share.

221. Human Capital

222. At the end of 2009, Hertz Car Rental had approximately 15,680 individuals employed in their US operations and 7,370 individuals employed in their international operations (Hertz Annual Report, 2009: 20).

223. Because of their negative financial performance when the economic recession occurred in 2008, underperforming Hertz Car Rental locations were shut down. Employees working in those locations that were unable to transfer to other locations were forcibly unemployed.

225. As of December 31, 2009, Hertz Car Rental acquired 31% of their total US market rental vehicles from Ford Motor Company. 27% of their total international market rental vehicles were also from Ford Motor Company (13).

226. General Motors Corporation

227. As of December 31, 2009, Hertz Car Rental acquired 21% of their total US market rental vehicles and 14% of their total international market rental vehicles from General Motors Corporation.

228. When General Motors Corporation used government bailout money to continue operations, they received heavy criticism and a negative image from the media. Hertz Car Rental continued their business with General Motors and will continue to support General Motors as they improve their brand image.

229. Toyota Motor Corporation

230. As of December 31, 2009, Hertz Car Rental acquired 16% of their total US market rental vehicles and 27% of their international market rental vehicles from Toyota Motor Corporation.

231. In early 2010, Toyota Motor Corporation was forced to announce recalls on a significant amount of their vehicles. 13% of vehicles that Hertz Car Rental obtained from Toyota Motor Corporation were subject to the safety recall (13).

233. Mark P. Frissora/Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

234. Mark Frissora has served as both the CEO and Chairman of the Board for Hertz Corporation since January 1, 2007. Before moving to join the team at Hertz Corporation, he was the CEO of Tenneco Inc., an automotive operations company. He has also obtained product development and marketing skills from his 10 years experience at General Electric and Philips Lighting Company.

235. Elyse Douglas/Chief Financial Officer (CFO)

236. Before joining the Hertz Holdings team, Elyse Douglas was the Assistant Treasurer at Nabisco from June of 1995 to December of 1999. When she moved to Hertz Holdings, she first served as an Interim CFO from August to October of 2007. Her exceptional job performance led to her to a permanent position as CFO on October 29, 2007.

237. Employee Satisfaction

238. With the economic recession, Hertz Car Rental was forced to lay off a significant amount of their human labor force and close underperforming locations to cut costs. The human labor force that remained was subjected to a decrease in financial compensation. Regardless of the setbacks employees faced, Hertz Car Rental reported an employee satisfaction rating of over 85% in late 2009 (Hertz Annual Report, 2009: 3). This is partly because of their learning and mentor programs, accelerated management training programs, and their expanded employee stock purchase program (3).

239. Customer Orientation

241. Hertz Car Rental has control over two subsidiary car rental service companies: Dollar and Thrifty. Combined, these two rental car service companies are located in 8,100 locations spread out amongst the 145 countries Hertz Car Rental operates in (Datamonitor, 2009: 5). These two car rental service companies compete on a global scale with locations in the major cities of US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the UK, Spain, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxemburg, the Czech Republic, Australia, New Zealand, China, and Brazil (5).

243. In 2009 alone, Hertz Car Rental successful acquired two diverse assets from multiple companies through the use of acquisitions. They began with the first acquisition of Advantage Rent A Car in April for a total of $33 million. The second company that they acquired was the online car marketplace, Automoti Group, in August (6).

245. Hertz Car Rental has satisfied the diverse preferences of their consumers by creating several specialty segments within their car rental service fleet. They have also set themselves apart from the competition by offering their Rent-it-Here/Leave-it-There program, Connect by Hertz, and the new Hertz Rent2Buy services (7).

247. Hertz Car Rental has seen a steady decline in their revenues since 2007. At the end of 2007, Hertz Car Rental obtained revenues reaching $8,685.6 million for the fiscal year. In 2009, those revenues experienced a 10% decline to $7,101.5 million (7).

249. Hertz Car Rental provides benefits to their employees who have retired from the company. These benefits include a financial pension plan. Unfortunately, with the current economic conditions, Hertz Car Rental was unable to find a company to help fund the costs of providing pension plan benefits to their retired employees.

251. The economic recession that occurred in 2008 forced consumers to reduce their amount of financial expenditures. Companies began to experience a decline in revenues and were unable to cover the costs of their operations. As a result, employees were released from their jobs and forcibly unemployed. With travel considered a luxury expense, consumers cut back on their financial spending in the US Airline industry. With the economy slowly improving, the rise in consumer confidence has allowed consumers to stimulate the economy with an increase in spending.

253. Hard economic times have forced consumers in the market for a vehicle to purchase used vehicles rather than brand new vehicles for their transportation needs. The price of these used vehicles has increased by 16.3% in March of 2010 to match the increase in demand for used vehicles (9).

255. As stated previously in the industry analysis, the Rental and Services industry is highly fragmented. Hertz Car Rental has to fight for market share with both global and smaller, local car rental service companies within the industry. Competing companies offer similar products at competitive prices.

257. Costs for fuel are known to fluctuate because their prices are heavily influenced by the current condition of the economy. As our economy slowly recovers from the economic recession, the price for fuel is expected to increase. The cost of fuel in 2010 is currently $76 per barrel. If the economy grows by the expected 3.9% that is forecasted, fuel prices will be expected to reach $82 per barrel in 2011 (10).

259. Hertz Car Rental currently operates with a fleet of vehicles that are largely from General Motors and Toyota. Within the past few years, both companies have been largely scrutinized in the media for their manufacturing defects resulting in the safety recalls of their vehicles. As a company that rents and sells these vehicles to consumers, should anything happen to the consumer as a result of safety recalls, Hertz Car Rental could be held liable.

261. Hertz Car Rental has achieved strengths due to their growth and global operational structure. They can use these strengths to capitalize on both opportunities of the US airline recovery and the increased growth in the used car market. They have experience with their growing company as an advantage. Also, as they continue to offer their unique services to customers, it will increase their market share as they expand their business further into the US airline and used car market segments.

262. Minimizing Threats

263. To minimize the threat of industry competition, Hertz Car Rental should try to find a unique niche to focus their operations in. This will decrease the number of direct competitors and increase their probability of finding a competitive advantage to capitalize on. This will differentiate their car rental products and services that they offer to consumers.

264. Knowing that the fuel prices are estimated to increase as the economy improves; Hertz Car Rental should look into constructing a contractual agreement with their fuel providers. This will keep costs down as their competitors struggle to cover the increase in operating costs.

266. Objectives

267. Increase promotional marketing expenditures by 15% between April of 2011 and April of 2012.

268. Consumer market share will show an increase of 20% by the end of fiscal year 2012.

269. Sales will increase by 20% by the end of fiscal year 2012.

270. Description

272. Objectives

273. Increase the number of customer service satisfaction surveys completed by consumers to 100% by making it mandatory when consumers purchase Hertz Car Rental products and services by the end of fiscal year 2010.

274. Obtain a 90% customer satisfaction rating from collected survey data by the end of fiscal year 2011.

275. Description

277. Demographics

278. Individuals ages 35-50

279. 70% Male, 30% Female

280. All races

281. Has children

282. Annual income: $40,000+

283. Psychographics

284. View travel as an experience where convenience and comfort are necessities

285. Travel should be a luxurious experience

286. Social, outgoing individuals who are up-to-date on the latest products in technology

287. Geography

288. Urban & Suburban areas

289. Purchasing/Shopping Habits

290. Purchases items to make the traveling experience fun

291. Magazines, books, games

292. Wants products that are not the basic minimum, but are not the flashiest

293. Wants a car at the right value price for its amenities

294. Consumption/Disposition Characteristics

295. Heavy Users

296. Spends a lot of time traveling

297. Hertz Car Rental loyalty member

298. Medium Users

299. Travels 3-4 times a year

300. Usually does business with Hertz Car Rental, but will go to a competitor if they are offering better incentives/deals

301. Light Users

302. Travels few times in several years

303. No loyalty to any car rental service company

304. Extremely price-sensitive

305. Segmentation Criteria

306. Identifiable & Measurable

307. According to the US Census government website, the world population of males and females from the ages 30-54 in 2010 has reached 2,215,685,150 people (“Age Group Summary” U.S Census Bureau).

308. Growth Rate

309. The world population of males and females from the ages of 30-54 in 2050 is projected to reach 2,913,309,688 people in 2050 (U.S Census Bureau). This information shows an average annual growth rate of 17,440,613 individuals per year.

310. Substantial

311. Consumers who travel will seek car rental products and services to increase the ease of their mobility. While traveling, consumers prefer products that will provide additional convenience and comfort.

312. Accessible

313. The target market can be reached through television commercials, internet websites, e-mails and promotional offers. For increased effectiveness, marketing expenditures should be placed on travel and airport-booking websites and television channels. The target market is knowledgeable of the latest technology; therefore, social media should also be utilized for marketing support.

314. Responsive

315. Target market is up-to-date on latest technology.

317. Company Marketing Mix

318. Car rental segment

319. Cars/SUVs

320. Commercial Vans/Trucks

321. Fun Collection

322. Green Collection

323. Prestige Collection

324. Market

325. Consumers 35-50 years old

326. 70% male, 30% female

327. All races

328. Has children

329. Annual Income Level: $40,000+

330. Positioning Strategy

331. Price/Quality

332. Price of renting vehicles is dependent on a variety of factors that are decided by customers. Examples of these factors are:

333. Length of rental

334. Insurance coverage

335. Destination and mileage expected during travel

336. The amount of amenities provided

337. Some amenities are standard and provided at no additional cost to the customer, while other amenities can be purchased.

338. Product Attributes

339. Vehicles available for rent satisfy a variety of customer preferences.

341. Features/Benefits

342. Entertainment Collection vehicles will combine the aspects of their current Fun Collection and the Prestige Collection.

343. Possess similar style of the Fun Collection

344. Will provide additional services/amenities to increase travel comfort and convenience

345. Possess similar style of the Prestige Collection

346. The amount and types of amenities will not be as high-class as the Prestige collection.

347. Priced higher than the Fun Collection, but significantly lower than the Prestige Collection vehicles

348. Expands market share

349. Sustainable Competitive Advantage

350. Main brand competitors

351. Avis, Budget, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Alamo, and National Car Rental

352. All brand competitors classify car collections by passenger size. Cars are further classified as either economy or luxury vehicles.

353. Hertz Car Rental is the only car rental service company that offers vehicles based on psychographic attributes as well.

354. Green Collection satisfies consumers who want lower gas emissions and higher fuel efficiency.

355. Fun Collection satisfies consumers who want sporty vehicles with sleek design.

356. Prestige Collection satisfies consumers who want top-of-the-line vehicles with all amenities.

357. New Entertainment Collection will satisfy consumers who want sporty, sleek vehicles with similar amenities as Prestige collection at lower costs.

358. Brand Name/Packaging

359. The Entertainment Collection will consist of 20 sport SUVs manufactured by General Motors.

360. Each vehicle will have one flat screen TV, a Sirius music system, and a Nintendo Wii console all provided by Best Buy.

361. Customer Service Strategy

362. The Entertainment Collection will aim to satisfy consumers that want additional amenities and added comfort than basic rental vehicles, but at lower costs than high-end luxury rental vehicles.

363. The perfect balance of luxury and price

364. Complementary Products

365. Select Nintendo Wii games will be provided to customers

366. Additional Wii games can be rented at an additional cost to customers.

367. MP3 hookups and Bluetooth capabilities come standard

368. Headphone hookups are provided

370. Prices will increase market share and sales by 20% by the end of fiscal year 2012.

371. Discount/Markdown Policy

373. Alliance Auto Transport will transport and ship Entertainment Collection vehicles to all 8,100 Hertz Car Rental locations.

374. Intermediaries/Channels Used

375. Retailer Channel

376. Entertainment Collection vehicles are available for consumers to rent only through Hertz Car Rental locations and online reservation portal.

377. Vehicles that are removed due to underperformance from Hertz Car Rental locations will be available for consumer purchase only at General Motors automotive dealerships.

378. Elements of Customer Convenience

379. Entertainment Collection vehicles will provide the travel experience of added comfort and convenience at a fair price to all customers.

381. Each Hertz Car Rental location will provide 2 free consumer upgrades to the Entertainment Collection for customers who fit within designated target market.

382. IMC Objectives/Budget

383. To attract new customers and increase market share

384. Goal is to increase market share by 20% by the end of fiscal year 2012.

385. To increase sales through repeat Entertainment Collection rentals from customers who were selected for the free upgrade promotional offer.

386. Positive word-of-mouth from customers who received free upgrade promotional offer will encourage friends and family to rent vehicles in the Entertainment Collection.

387. Goal is to increase sales by 20% by the end of fiscal year 2012 as a result of increasing marketing expenditures by 15% from April of 2011 to April of 2012.

388. IMC/Promotional budget: $1,650,000

389. Elements of Advertising/Publicity Strategy

390. Television commercials on travel-related TV channels

391. Personalized e-mails

392. Advertising in travel-related magazines

393. Social media vehicle updates and alerts

394. Elements of Personal Selling Strategy

395. Hertz Car Rental employees will communicate price, features and additional consumer benefits associated with the Entertainment Collection to customers.

396. Notify phone and walk-in customers before they book their rental vehicle

397. Elements of Trade Sales Promotion (Push) Strategy

398. Direct-selling performed by Hertz Car Rental employees to customers regarding the price, features and added benefits of renting a vehicle from the Entertainment Collection will push customers to either upgrade their existing reservation or reserve a vehicle within the Entertainment Collection.

399. Elements of Consumer Sales Promotion (Pull) Strategy

401. 70% Male, 30% Female

402. All races

403. Has children

405. This new vehicle collection will allow families an easy, convenient way to travel to their destinations at lower costs than air travel.

406. The vehicles will contain the following features:

407. Sirius XM Radio

408. Bluetooth capabilities

409. 6-disc CD Player

410. MP3 Player hookups (iPod, Zune, etc.)

411. Flat screen TV in backseat

412. 3 headphone hookups

413. Nintendo Wii with 3 controllers

414. Each Entertainment Collection will consist of 20 SUV GM vehicles:

416. Project manager will be responsible for contacting Best Buy for flat screens TVs, Nintendo Wii game system and video games, and the Sirius XM Radio systems.

417. Best Buy employees will install flat screens, game systems and Sirius XM Radio systems into vehicles for an additional installation cost.

419. Project manager will contact Best Buy for sales orders at discounted bulk rates immediately.

420. Best Buy will have the flat screen TVs, Nintendo Wii game systems and Sirius XM Radio systems by March of 2011.

422. Flat Screen TVs: $4,000

423. Sirius XM Radio: $6,000

424. Best Buy installation fee: $10,000

425. Nintendo Wii game consoles with controllers: $5,000

426. Assorted Nintendo Wii Games: $1,000

427. Total: $746,000/vehicle collection

428. Each Hertz location will obtain 1 Entertainment Collection.

431. 70% Male, 30% Female

432. All races

433. Has children

434. Annual income: $40,000

436. Pricing will show an increase in sales by 20% by end of fiscal year 2012.

437. Sales will be monitored 4 months prior to and 4 months after the launch of the Entertainment Collection.

439. IT professionals will create employee training software.

440. Engineering professionals will install the sales tracking software packages to computers.

442. Hertz Car Rental employees will be educated on the new Entertainment Collection starting in January of 2011.

443. Engineering will begin the creation of the sales tracking software immediately.

444. This software will be installed on all computers by March of 2011.

446. Sales tracking software development: $100,000

447. Sales analysis fees: 500,000

449. All nation-wide locations

450. Non-airport locations

452. Entertainment Collection vehicles will be air-shipped to all international Hertz Car Rental locations.

454. Alliance Auto Transport will create a shipping timeline and designated travel routes to their company employees assigned to the Hertz Car Rental Entertainment Collection account.

455. All participating Hertz Car Rental branch managers will assign 10 employees to the Entertainment Collection team.

457. Travel expenses and shipping discounts will be finalized by January 15, 2011.

458. Shipping timelines and travel routes will be finalized January 15, 2011.

459. Alliance Auto Transport will ship to international Hertz Car Rental locations beginning February 15, 2011.

460. Alliance Auto Transport will ship to US Hertz Car Rental locations beginning March 1, 2011.

461. Hertz Car Rental location managers will appoint employees to the Entertainment Collection team by February 15, 2011.

463. $40,000/Entertainment Collection

464. $2,000/vehicle shipped

465. Projected international fees: $150,000,000

467. Individuals ages 35-50 who need a car rental service

468. 70% Male, 30% Female

469. All races

470. Has children

472. Customer data will be organized, sorted, and analyzed.

473. All customers that fit within the Entertainment Collection target market but did not reserve a vehicle within the collection will be entered into a drawing to win a free upgrade.

474. Each month, two random reservations will be chosen at each Hertz Car Rental branch for the free upgrade.

475. Customer satisfaction will be tracked by surveys.

477. Marketing associates will track and randomly select reservations that fit within the Entertainment Collection target market.

479. Software will be installed on all reservation computers by March of 2011.

480. Marketing associated will chose the days the free upgrades will be offered at the beginning of each month.

481. Only two free upgrades will be given per month

482. Hertz Car Rental employees will distribute customer satisfaction surveys when customers return vehicle.

484. Projected upgrade costs: $20,000

485. Customer satisfaction surveys: $500

486. Data sorting/analyzing/tracking fees: $1,250,000

488. Adding the Entertainment Collection to Hertz Car Rental’s current fleet will increase both sales and consumer market share by 20% by the end of fiscal year 2012.

489. Corrective Actions

490. If consumer market share and sales do not increase by 20%, Entertainment Collection vehicles will only be available in select Hertz Car Rental locations. These locations will be larger rental locations in large cities. Locations that are underperforming will no longer carry the Entertainment Collection vehicles.

492. Corrective Actions

493. If all vehicles are not shipped and delivered to all Hertz Car Rental locations by launch date in April of 2011, marketing sales individuals will contact the Alliance Auto Transport shipping company.

495. Corrective Actions

496. If designated change of 20% in sales is not obtained, Hertz Car Rental will remove Entertainment Collection vehicles from underperforming Hertz Car Rental locations.

498. Corrective Actions

499. Additional questions will be added to the customer satisfaction surveys to further understand why customers were not satisfied with their Entertainment Collection experience.

500. Customer responses will be analyzed to decide the changes that will need to be implemented.

501. Success of the free consumer upgrade promotional offer will be tracked and recorded in regards to its effect on sales. If Entertainment Collection sales increase significantly from repeat customers, promotion will continue rather than terminate in April of 2012. References <br />quot;
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