1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
Since 2014, Grab Viet Nam has been officially open for business. Since then,
Grab has built a reputation for providing high-quality service at a reasonable
price. Grab is also implementing the use of a mobile application provided the
consumer with the most positive experience in terms of convenience, which
was considerably superior to reserving transportation in the traditional
manner. Grab has been targeting the Vietnamese market for more than seven
years and is now one of the most popular apps for transportation, freight, and
food delivery in the country. This study includes an analysis of Grab as well as
facts and recommendations for the company.
There will be two stages to the report: The current state of Grab will be
evaluated in the first stage in terms of product life cycle, target segmentation,
SWOT analysis, and positioning map. Grab has been competing with other
companies such as Be, GoViet, Vato... or traditional motorbike taxis while in
the growth stage of its product life cycle, with distinct strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities, and problems. In Vietnam, Grab's target segments are middleto low-income people aged 17 to 45 who have a lot of daily travel demands
and live in metropolitan cities, and who also need an affordable and
convenient passenger transportation service.
The report will introduce a new integrated marketing campaign named "Cool
+" in the second stage. The major goal of this campaign is to give Grab a fresh
image in addition to the convenience, friendliness, and low pricing that it
already has. As a result, "Cool +" not only raises brand awareness but also
increases consumer loyalty. The trigger stage, activation stage, and amplified
stage will be the three primary stages of the IMC strategy. To warm up for the
trigger stage, there will be a design contest, some web media, and the first
video online. Grab will throw a large festival called "50 Shades of Green"
during the activation stage. In the last round of the amplify, Grab will have its
own TV commercial broadcast. Many Vietnamese celebrities will attend the
"50 Shades of Green" festival. Grab is able to improve its brand image by
participating in this festival.
COMPANY BACKGROUND
After a classmate complained about the difficulty of hailing a taxi in Malaysia,
Harvard student Anthony Tan drew up an idea for an Uber-based taxi booking
software in 2011. Tan eventually came up with a booking service, which he
pitched at the 2011 Harvard Business Plan Competition, where he placed
second, allowing him to attract angel investors. MyTeksi was the first service
to emerge in 2012, and it swiftly grew into GrabTaxi, then Grab.
Grab is now available in 30 cities in Malaysia, the Philippines, India, Thailand,
Singapore, Indonesia, including Vietnam. The Grab application is a service that
connects passengers with vehicle or motorcycle drivers. Grab Taxi, GrabCar,
GrabExpress, GrabFood and GrabBike are the five services offered via a mobile
application. Grab is gradually gaining confidence among its target clients, with
the simple goal of making Southeast Asia a better place.
In mid-2018, Grab initially declared its desire to become a "super app." Grab's
ecosystem already has the components in place to achieve its goals at the
time.
Grab began as a ride-hailing service and has now expanded to include a variety
of other transportation services, forming a network of driver-partners that
spans 43 provinces and cities across Vietnam. This brand has two-wheeler
booking services, such as GrabBike, and four-wheeler booking services, such as
GrabCar, GrabTaxi, and so on. This demonstrates that when users need to get
someplace, they only need to open the Grab app to see a list of possibilities
that are appropriate for their schedule and budget.
Grab is using its huge network of driver partners to expand its GrabExpress
freight forwarding and GrabFood food delivery services. Through a strategic
partnership with Moca, Grab expanded the number of Moca e-wallets
available on the Grab app in 2018. Users may transfer money in their wallets
to each other, pay bills, pay at stores, charge up phones, and more every time
they open the Grab app.
All services are provided through Grab, a single application. Furthermore, each
transaction will generate GrabRewards points, which may subsequently be
swapped for other exclusive Grab incentives.
With all of this in mind, it's clear that Grab carefully considers the
seamlessness of the experience, allowing customers to take advantage of everincreasing convenience and benefits. The services complement and connect
one another, allowing users to make payments using a single application.
SITUATION ANALYSIS
1. Product life cycle:
Grab service was first introduced in 2014, and it is well recognized as a new
service with an increasing number of users. As a result, Grab is part of the
product life cycle's growth stage. According to Product Life Cycle, the Growth
stage, the second of the product life cycle's stages, is primarily responsible for
establishing a product's market position, boosting sales, and increasing profit.
Those goals can be met by continuing to increase customer needs through
marketing and promotional efforts. This leads to the creation of Grab's IMC
plan. Grab can enhance brand visibility, engagement, and sales by utilizing
IMC.
2. SWOT Analysis:
Strength
- Grab, a pioneer in the field of ridehailing technology, first entered the
Vietnamese market in 2014.
- With the highest number of users
and drivers in the market, Grab
currently the market leader (Grab car
booking accounted for 73 percent of
Vietnam market share in the first 6
months of 2021, according to ABI)
- The main firm (Grab Holdings Inc.)
has vast financial resources so
communication programs are simple
to implement.
- The brand identity is well-liked, and
all parts of the brand identity are in a
striking green color.
- Effective market power is built by
having a strong presence in a variety
of industries (car, taxi, bike, food,
delivery, etc.).
- The level of safety is higher than
that of the competition.
- The information about the driver
and the car is clear and obvious.
- Display the number of vehicles
available in the client area
prominently to assist consumers in
selecting the quickest vehicle.
Oppotunities
- Demand for online delivery and
payment increased sharply after
consumer behavior was affected by
the Covid-19 epidemic.
Weaknesses
- Relatively heavy app (700 Mb on
IOS and 100 Mb on Android)
- The UX on the App is not optimized,
too colorful and causes lag.
- Higher prices than competitors, less
discount voucher codes.
- Failure to control the time and area
of operation of the driver leads to a
shortage of drivers in some areas.
- The management of the driver is
still very loose, sometimes the driver
has a bad attitude.
- Rates vary by weather and time of
day.
- Loyal customer care activities have
not been really focused
Threat
- The number of competitors in the
Vietnamese market is relatively
large, the competitors have low
prices, more discount programs.
- The number of people using
smartphones is increasing, even
children are equipped with
smartphones (as a result of online
learning during the epidemic).
- Contactless payment method will
increase Grab's revenue from Moca.
- Wifi is increasingly popularity in
Vietnam, in addition, 4G and 5G
charges are quite cheap.
- Vietnam's population has a golden
population pyramid structure, so the
number of potential customers of
Grab is relatively large.
- Grab faced legal litigation with the
Vietnamese government.
- Grab has financial disputes:
Increasing the discount rate,
increasing fees, paying taxes ... with
the driver.
3. Problem recognition:
In general, Grab has done a good job of attracting client attention through a
variety of channels, both online and offline, as seen by the fact that Grab has
risen to the top of the list of options for individuals who need to commute by
motorcycle in a short amount of time from to. Nonetheless, Grab's secret
difficulty has been the disparity between the number of genuine users and
those who are reached through Grab's marketing efforts but do not actually
require the service. Given that a large population of people in need has little
involvement with social media, which is one of the key channels Grabbike uses
to sell online due to its huge participation and excellent results, it is an
admittedly difficult problem to tackle properly. As a result, Grab could use
more relevant marketing methods to reach those potential clients who may
significantly increase Grab's income.
MARKETING OBJECTIVE
Grab is still in the growth stage, the " Cool + " campaign will run for around
four months, with the primary activities and events. Mainly focusing on goals:
- Customer loyalty should be consolidated and increased.
- Encourage more potential clients ( New users download Grab app)
- Enhance and refurbish in order to improve the brand's image and consumer
interaction.
"Cool +" is the name of the IMC campaign. After the campaign is
implemented, this large idea allows the brand image to be updated from
cheap and unprofessional to the next level - cool. The promotion will last
for six months, with the focus being on the months of May to July. All
activities before to May will be pre-campaign activities, which will include
time for planning and advertising. "Get a cool feeling for a better
experience," is the main message to convey to customers. The finest
approach to describe something that is neat and awesome is to use the
word "cool." "Cool" is defined as "extremely relaxed," "never goes out of
style," and "no one will ever laugh at you if you use it." The IMC concept of
the campaign attempts to create this sensation through a variety of
methods, including a design contest, a festival, OOH, TVC, internet video, a
summer promotion, and so on, all of which help to evolve the customer
experience.
"An cheap price yet cool and courteous driver with a stylish designed
uniform," the campaign's primary visual appears in consumer perception.
Turning a friendly and familiar driver with an unprofessional image into a
person with a cooler appearance, attitude, and considerate manners, which
communicates itself through his dress (uniform) that will attract the
customer's eye at first glance. Customers will exclaim, "How cool is GRAB?"
in their heads.
This is an opportunity to build a fresh perception because the first brand
character from customer perspective is already kind and thoughtful. The
barrier of an unprofessional image in the customer's view will either vanish
or become a long-lasting perception if it is upgraded to the next level.