Assignment Sample on Digital Consumer Behaviour
1. Introduction
High-end businesses such as Maserati priorities understanding and influencing digital consumer behavior in the age of connectivity. This strategy roadmap was carefully created to improve Maserati’s digital interactions by tackling important issues and seizing chances. The main objective is to provide an engaging online experience that appeals to a broad global customer base. Utilizing data-driven customization, including seamless omni-channel experiences, and developing virtual showrooms are key components in achieving this. This plan includes both short-term and long-term initiatives, all of which are aimed at encouraging consumer loyalty, building trust, and elevating Maserati’s digital success to previously unheard-of levels.
2. Brand contextualisation and audience
Brand and Environment
Maserati is one of the most luxurious car brands based in Italy and was established in 1914 (maserati.com, 2022). The brand’s distinctive cars appeal to a particular group of customers who value luxury and Italian history. Maserati’s storytelling and digital-focused marketing approach aims to effectively engage customers. Worldwide vehicle exports from Maserati fell from the about 19,000 units delivered in 2019 to about 17,000 units in the fiscal year 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic’s effects throughout the winter of 2019–2020 were blamed for the drop in Maserati exports (statista.com, 2023).
PESTEL analysis
| Factor | Description | Impact on Maserati |
| Political | Luxury taxes to the companies and the political implications (Lam and Mercure, 2021).
Luxury taxes |
The situation for Maserati has worsen due to luxury taxes from 327 cars sold in 2011 to a pitiful 81 in 2012, sales have practically dropped by 75% (panorama.it, 2012). |
| Economic | In line with earlier predictions and at its lowest level since January 2022, Italy’s annual inflation rate decreased marginally to 5.3% in September 2023 (tradingeconomics.com, 2022).
Impacting consumer spending highly |
Due to the economic forces driving this high inflation, Maserati’s production costs and customer purchasing power may be impacted, which have an influence on the Italian luxury automobile market and the company’s sales. |
| Social | Changes in prices or consumer buying patterns (Rolling et al. 2021).
Changing market demands and consumer behaviour of the people towards luxury cars
|
The changes in the consumer behavior affects the company’s sales and revenue.
The demand shifts also pushes market competition and price changes |
| Technological | The companies AR technology implementations
AI chatbots for customer assistance Technological advancements in cars to maintain environmental policies and rules |
The environmental concerns pushes the costings and prices for the company to invest in technological advancements (Nguyen et al. 2020).
AR and AI chatbots used for marketing by the company |
| Environmental | Legislative Decree No. 152/2006, which outlines the environmental policies and also focuses on the principles like sustainable development, precaution and the “polluter pays” principle, has a big impact on Maserati (Kraft et al. 2019). | Technological changes in the engines and car manufacturing to meet the environmental legislative decree (Kraft et al. 2019). |
| Legal | Maserati will be significantly impacted by the new regulations that call for all CO2 emissions from new vehicles to be eliminated by the year 2035 in the European Union. It suggests that Maserati will have to stop selling new fossil fuel-powered vehicles in the EU market and completely switch to electric or alternative fuel vehicles (politico.eu, 2023).
Laws and legal regulations for luxury cars
|
Maserati has been negatively impacted by the tax relief program’s exclusion of vehicles with cylinders larger than 2000cc (2500 cc for diesel models) (politico.eu, 2023). Maserati makes luxury cars, many of which have larger engines and are consequently taxed more heavily. |
SWOT analysis
Porter’s five forces
Threat of New Entrants: Maserati’s strong brand history and enviable reputation offer significant defense against the introduction of new rivals, making the threat of new entrants minimal. However, the corporation faces increased competition from luxury companies like Lucid Motors and rising electric vehicle makers like Tesla, which poses a significant challenge (Gustafsson and Holster Krantz, 2022).
Bargaining power of Supplier: While Maserati relies on specialized suppliers for components and materials, which may provide suppliers a moderate amount of influence (Helmold et al. 2022). The brand is able to maintain significant control over the supply chain thanks to its relationships with top-tier vendors.
Bargaining Power of buyers: Due to Maserati’s exclusive product line and small manufacturing runs, consumers’ negotiating leverage is constrained. Nevertheless, rising competition and shifting customer tastes could cause this dynamic to change. Maserati’s smart use of digital touchpoints has a significant impact on consumer behavior. Maserati encourages emotional connections with customers through interactive online experiences, configurators, and compelling narratives on their website and social media platforms. These online interactions encourage consumer participation, bolstering brand loyalty and influencing buying behavior.
Threat of Substitutes: The company has kept itself unique from mass-produced cars by putting a great effort on the services, customer preferences and its unique heritage in the industry (Turner et al. 2020). Therefore, the threat of substitutes is negligible. Nevertheless, as the popularity of electric vehicles like Tesla and Lucid Motors soars, the traditional luxury automobile industry may see demand issues as consumer preferences change.
Competitor rivalry: The competitive rivalry for Maserati is Medium. However, Maserati distinguishes itself in the competitive luxury automobile market by offering a distinctive design, exceptional performance, and gripping storytelling. In the midst of fierce competition with rivals like Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Aston Martin, Maserati is so placed.
Psychological factors influencing consumer behavior and customer purchasing decision
The study of consumer psychology by Jansson-Boyd (2012) digs into the fundamental ideas that guide customer behaviour, which is essential for creating successful digital marketing efforts. Numerous psychological elements have a significant impact on the purchase behavior and consumer behavior of Maserati clients. Customers identify Maserati with social class and luxury, and this association plays a big role in the brand’s perceived prestige (Petravičiūtė e al. 2021). Maserati’s marketing places a strong emphasis on emotion, particularly thrill and exclusivity. Another important factor is brand loyalty, as many buyers have strong ties to Maserati’s Italian background and racing past. Purchase decisions are also influenced by perceptions of greater performance and quality. Additionally, Maserati’s standing as an emotionally charged and aspirational brand in the premium car market is influenced by the desire for distinctiveness, aspirational reasons, emotional connections, and sensory experiences (Brdar-Szabó and Brdar, 2023).
Reflection upon the diverse global audience
Davide Grasso, the CEO of Maserati, emphasizes the company’s preference for quality and value over pricing conflicts with rival brands. They place a priority on preserving dealer price control and premium offers. Even in the face of supply chain difficulties Maserati is committed to providing luxury vehicles without sacrificing on price. The company has a profit margin of 9.2% (europe.autonews.com, 2023).
Due to its reputation as a premium automaker, Maserati draws customers from all over the world with various buying preferences. Wealthy people and fans of luxury make up its main clientele. Wealthy consumers in developed regions like North America and Europe particularly love the brand because of its illustrious history, superb craftsmanship, and iconic position (Díez Arroyo, 2021).
Prestigious Italian businesses like Ferrari, Maserati, and Lamborghini have suffered significant losses as a result of the luxury tax. This heavy levy has resulted in increasing petrol and insurance costs in addition to a sharp fall in supercar sales in Italy (panorama.it, 2012). Additionally, numerous prestigious super-luxury car brands have experienced bad luck (panorama.it, 2012).
Prospective purchasers are driven to Maserati by its premium reputation, especially in developing countries like China. These clients regard the uniqueness and prominence of the brand highly and value lavish showrooms and immersive experiences (Ainslie and Evans, 2020). Additionally, it’s critical to recognise the growing needs of internet buying. The company also has to manage varied approach if it wants to effectively serve this diversified audience (MAHMOUDIAN, 2019).
3. Digital Channel Analysis & Development of the Digital Customer Journey
Digital touchpoints
This is crucial in the consumer decision-making process because they help potential customers go from the inspiring stage to reasoned assessments. Maserati uses a wide range of this to establish proper relationships with the customers to gain their loyalty (Daffy, 2019). The brand’s website acts as an immersive hub that enables buyers to picture and experience the essence of Maserati online. Customers are propelled along their path to purchase by this thoughtful use of digital touchpoints, which promotes strong emotional engagement. To help consumers make informed decisions, online evaluations and expert opinions are frequently presented on forums and automobile websites (Ullah and Sepasgozar, 2020). Maserati’s success in forging strong client relationships is largely attributed to its digital prowess.
Johanssen (2019), who explores the interactions between psychoanalysis, social media, and big data, presents a distinctive viewpoint on audience analysis. Maserati uses social media to enhance its relationship with customers by exhibiting the brand’s lifestyle and illustrious past. The company fosters emotional relationships with its audience by disseminating engrossing storytelling (Delbaere, Michael, and Phillips, 2021). This cutting-edge method of audience analysis improves Maserati’s consumer resonance and engagement.
Maserati’s distinctive digital touchpoints go above and beyond traditional methods to produce a remarkable client experience. Their unique augmented reality (AR) app, which enables consumers to realistically explore and meticulously customize their dream Maserati, is a remarkable feature (Kim and Jeong, 2022). This cutting-edge tool offers a realistic, immersive preview of the car, strengthening the emotional connection. A personalized AI chatbot that is used by Maserati on their website offers real-time support, individualized recommendations, and human-like interaction to create a highly entertaining and educational online experience (Magnani, 2022). Maserati stands out thanks to these unique digital touchpoints, which elevate the brand’s digital experience to one that is not just educational but also emotionally engaging and cutting-edge in terms of technology.
Digital customer journey
The Customer Value journey is the primary focus of Maserati’s trip, and it uses captivating brand narrative on its website and social media platforms to spread awareness. This strategy caters to a clientele demanding prestige and extravagance on a worldwide scale (Rossato and Castellani, 2020). Maserati appeals to potential customers’ need for exclusivity through digital marketing by directing them to interactive configurators and expert reviews (Chaffey, 2019). Godin (2018) emphasizes the value of encouraging two-way dialogue in marketing and thoroughly comprehending the target audience. Customer involvement in the decision-making process is increased by Maserati’s dedication to personalized interactions.
Maserati thoroughly examines customer demands using the Jobs-to-be-done paradigm before adjusting touchpoints. In order to appeal to clients looking for emotional connections, the company, for instance, uses social media to arouse desire and aspiration (Oc et al., 2023). According to Kingsnorth (2019), it is important for a company to undertake digital marketing in the modern market changes and trends. The participatory phase that is made possible by user-friendly e-commerce platforms helps the company to understand its strength of objectives and targets. Maserati promotes brand promotion and loyalty by hosting special owner events and online communities to ensure post-purchase pleasure (Probst, 2021).
Ethical implications
The management of online client engagement raises ethical questions of privacy, openness and manipulation. It is crucial to respect privacy rights while gathering and using consumer data for personalization that calls for clear approvals and undertaking methods for the management of the data and security (Spiekermann and Winkler, 2020). For brands to manage their products and service to customers and also maintain ethical tactics in order to gain customer loyalty (Kotler, 2021). In order to avoid taking advantage of clients’ vulnerabilities or pressuring them into unpleasant behaviors ethical restraint is also essential when using persuasive methods in digital marketing (Ogbuke et al. 2022). Maintaining moral standards and pursuing business goals in a way that promotes long-lasting digital interactions is essential to keeping online interactions respectful, reliable and oriented towards the interests of the consumer.
4. Strategic Plan
Long term goals:
- Utilize AI-powered algorithms to analyse client data in-depth and produce specialised advertising, content, and product suggestions.
- Create a unified user interface that is uniform across all digital touchpoints to enable easy navigation between websites, social media, and e-commerce platforms.
- Create virtual reality showrooms that are fully immersive to increase client engagement, remove geographic restrictions, and offer a complete online vehicle experience.
Steps and actions to Take:
- Create consumer personas to precisely segment customers and deliver relevant content and offers.
- Implement a dynamic user interface for your website that responds to user inputs in real-time.
- Create a centralised content management system to ensure consistent branding and messaging for omni-channel integration.
- Integrating social media feeds and real-time updates on the website will promote engagement and interaction.
- Deep linking should be used to provide seamless transitions between social media adverts and the website.
- It is important to partner with tech teams in order to develop a “user-friendly virtual showroom” platform.
- Use 3D technologies and AR in order to manage customisation.
- Easily incorporate digital showrooms with online automobile configurators.
5. Conclusion
Maserati is prepared to revolutionize its approach to communicating with customers as a result of its deliberate adoption of the digital development. Maserati not only handles the current risks but also focuses on digital interactions and modern way of marketing for better performance in future. The new technologies and insights show that Maserati is totally concerned for ist customer trust and loyalty and has a strong focus on gaining market demand.
References
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Chaffey, Dave (2019). Digital Marketing: Strategy, implementation and practice. Pearson: UK.
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