1. 1. WanderVan Joe Bagazinski Trevor Burns Trevorra Gilliard Edwin Gress LaToya Moore Cathy Nguyen
2. 2. Contents Mission Statement ........................................................................................4 Strengths.....................................................................................................5 Weaknesses ................................................................................................5 Opportunities..............................................................................................5 Threats........................................................................................................6 Product Management .................................................................................8 Life Cycle.....................................................................................................8 Portfolio Management................................................................................9 Product........................................................................................................10 Core Benefit..............................................................................................10 Basic Products...........................................................................................10 Expected Product......................................................................................10 Augmented Product..................................................................................11 Potential Product ......................................................................................11 WanderBus ...............................................................................................12 WanderPass ..............................................................................................12 WanderHub...............................................................................................13 WanderBikes.............................................................................................13 WanderVan Airport Shuttle.......................................................................13 WanderFest: Vintage Car, Craft Beer, and Music Festival .........................13 Community Involvement...........................................................................14 UNT Football Games ..............................................................................14 UNT Mean Green Fling...........................................................................14 North Texas State Fair and Rodeo..........................................................15
3. 3. Denton Arts and Jazz Festival .................................................................15 UNT Freshman Orientations...................................................................15 TWU Pioneer Preview Day .....................................................................16 Customer Profitability.................................................................................17 Customer Profile .........................................................................................19 Segmentation Strategy..............................................................................20 Descriptive vs. Behavioral ......................................................................20 Customer Satisfaction Requirements........................................................21 Customer Communication Strategy ..........................................................22 Social Media Communication Strategy......................................................22 Facebook...................................................................................................22 Twitter ......................................................................................................23 Instagram..................................................................................................23 Customer Value Proposition .......................................................................24 Market Positioning Strategy .......................................................................25 Brand Identity .............................................................................................27 Pricing Strategy.........................................................................................28 Competitive Advantage...............................................................................29 Affordability ...........................................................................................29 Convenience...........................................................................................29 Reliability ...............................................................................................29 Safety .....................................................................................................30 Overall Competitive Advantage..................................................................31
4. 4. Mission Statement To keep Denton moving with safe transportation at the highest quality in customer satisfaction with professional staff, excellent customer service, and unique vintage vans. Reference Market
5. 5. WanderVan SWOT Analysis Strengths One of our biggest strengths is that, unlike our biggest competitor Uber, our drivers will be local Dentonites that are familiar with Denton roads and how to navigate around high traffic areas. In addition, WanderVan has the competitive advantage of being affordable, especially due to a big portion of our market consisting of college students. Due to our unique design, we feel that the company will be easy to identify and highly recognizable. Weaknesses A major weakness for WanderVan is the fact we are simply new to the market. This factor makes it difficult for us to foresee any situations we may encounter when launching the business and at its early stages. Another weakness is that we are starting off with only two drivers. Emergencies may occur which would be crucial to the business to run one van short so it would be important to have backups to fall back on.
6. 6. Opportunities There are a number of opportunities within the Denton community WanderVan can take advantage of. First off, college students love going out. With a city of two universities, there will be plenty of potential customers for this service. College students are also frugal. They need a cheap means of transportation especially since Denton parking has always been a heated subject. At five dollars a ride, the WanderVan shuttle is easily affordable for this population. There are also at least 33 bars within the Denton Square and Fry Street that locals frequent which proves an opportunity for WanderVan to service. Threats Competitors such as other taxi services and Uber could be considered a threat to WanderVan. There is also a threat of substitutes as well if fare prices were to be lower as opposed to WanderVan's prices. Tax rate, inflation, and gas prices can also be a threat because it affects the operational costs depending on if they're increasing or decreasing which will then be reflected upon fare prices.
7. 7. Competitors SWOT UBER ZIPTRIP
8. 8. Product Management, Life Cycle, and Portfolio Management Product Management Our core product will be the taxi service; however another major product we will offer is the late night shuttle service. With two vans, the shuttle will run into a demand problem. There will not be enough space in the vans to keep up with demand. We recommend purchasing a third van during the summer 15, a storefront near the square. The storefront would be a stop on the shuttle route where people can relax, hang out with their friends, purchase light snacks and non-alcoholic beverages, purchase WanderVan merchandise, and wait for the shuttle to pick them up. During the winter of 15 we recommend purchasing a vintage Crown Supercoach school bus. This will allow the shuttle route to be continued by the bus and the vans can be made available to run more taxi routes. After the bus is purchased, an additional van should be the next major purchase. Other longer term goals might be pedi-cabs to take care of shorter routes, an airport shuttle service, and hosting a festival. Life Cycle Currently WanderVan is in the development stage. As the service launches we will move into the introduction stage. The introduction stage will be characterized by heavy marketing to make a name for ourselves. As the introduction stage moves into the growth stage, we believe that purchasing a higher occupancy vehicle would help that growth immensely. As WanderVan grows into the maturation stage, we can branch out into other brand extensions such as a pedi-cab service, or an extended taxi network. The key about the product life cycle is introducing new brand extensions that complement the existing business without cannibalizing their existing business.
9. 9. Portfolio Management WanderVan needs to ensure that we maintain a good mix of new innovative products and services while not overspending our budget. Our action outline will demonstrate the need for a bus. Our reasoning behind the WanderBus is to allow the company to expand to a wider audience. Vans as shuttles might shut out the groups of people once the van becomes occupied. There are six seats to occupy, and if there is a group of four, it shuts out every group larger than two people going out. We need our portfolio to reflect that we are a locally owned and operated business. WanderVan may sponsor some free t-shirts at a UNT athletic event, or signage and flyers to attract local customers.
10. 10. PRODUCT Core Benefit WanderVans core benefit is transportation service. Basic Products WanderVan wants to use vintage vehicles for transportation. Expected Product Customers will expect well maintained vintage vehicles. Since WanderVan is a local business, we assume customers will want drivers who are familiar with Denton to avoid delays. Friendly and respectable drivers and staff are essential to maintain excellent customer service.
11. 11. Augmented Product WanderVan wants to differentiate from competitors. Many of the augmented products are creating friendly and memorable experiences. Having a 60s vintage theme vans and shuttle buses will accomplish that. With bright exterior paint on the vehicles, WanderVan wants to portray a company with friendly and outgoing drivers and staff. Since WanderVan is a local business, WanderVan is looking forward to working alongside with other local business and by doing so, will provide advertisement on the vehicles. Some ideas are to have appropriate size TV screens inside the buses and vans to display local business advertisement. Local business partners will have their business names or logos display on the exterior of vehicles. One important augmented product WanderVan has in mind is allowing customer and prospects to connect and communicate with the company via social media networks. The hashtag #WanderVan will be the primary tool to allow anyone to share and communicate their experience with others. This will allow WanderVan to bridge the gap of vintage 60s theme with modern technology. Potential Product WanderVan is a transportation service with vintage, 60s theme vehicles. We also capitalize on modern technology such as video advertisement of local businesses, as well as maintain a social media presence to allow customers to connect through social media.
12. 12. Actions WanderBus The WanderBus is a high capacity vintage school bus, preferably a Crown Supercoach. The Crown Supercoach would cost 20,000 is a bus that fits the style of the brand. A modern school bus would ruin the brand image that we are trying to create. According to our financial analysis, the best time to purchase a bus would be October of 2015 in order to be operational by December and January. The drivers need a CDL. WanderPass The WanderPass is a subscription based service that would begin with student passes only. The WanderPass price will be $225 dollars per semester. This price is only for students who present a valid UNT or TWU ID. Based on survey answers, students visit bars, on average, 3 times per week. This amounts to $450 dollars in full price WanderVan rides a week. The WanderPass will cut that cost in half, giving subscribers an incentive to use the pass. The WanderPass will be offered at an introductory promotional price of $150 for each semester and $75 for the summer. This price is low, because we want customers to return for multiple trips, creating a sense of loyalty and commitment to the brand. After the first year of this promotional pricing, it will return to the original price. We will be sure to inform the consumers of the introductory price. Depending on the success of the student WanderPass, we would have to consider a WanderPass for our dedicated frequent customers that arent students.
13. 13. WanderHub The WanderHub is the headquarters of the entire company. It provides an area for customers to convene while waiting for the next available shuttle. The WanderVans, and eventually the WanderBus will stop at the WanderHub on every cycle. Inside the WanderHub will be couches, coffee, bar style seating, tables, retro arcade games, and Denton memorabilia from local universities. WanderBikes WanderBikes are a long term prospective proposal. It involves using pedi- cabs as bicycle powered taxi service ideally operating within the neighborhoods surrounding fry and the square. The service would be less expensive than a WanderVan ride, but because of the short routes, the frequency of rides will increase. It is low cost, and high volume of rides. WanderVan Airport Shuttle In the future, offering flat rate rides to the DFW airport would be lucrative for WanderVan to expand to. It would require a new model vehicle, and a special permit to operate within the airport. WanderFest: Vintage Car, Craft Beer, and Music Festival WanderFest will be a weekend festival with 3 parts. First it will be a vintage car show. We will invite auto clubs from the DFW area to take part and show off their restored vehicles. The second part is craft beer. We will have a beer garden set up in an outdoor setting where everyone from the local breweries to home brewers can serve their beer to festival goers. The third and most important portion is music. Denton has a vibrant music culture, and the festival will be host to major rock groups in the area. By the second year we hope to land a minor recording artist and the third year we hope to be headlined by a major recording artist.
14. 14. Community Involvement In order to spread awareness and knowledge about WanderVan, we will need to attend events within the Denton community, whether its at UNT, TWU or the city of Denton. Here are some events we recommend attending: UNT Football Games UNT Football games are huge attractions within the UNT community, and there are lots of chances for WanderVan to spread their business. UNT typically hosts 6 games each season between September and November. WanderVan should set up a table or booth near the hill (where all of the students tailgate) and have handouts for the students that pass by. These could include coozies, hats, t-shirts, sunglasses, etc. This would be a great way to advertise WanderVan and to attract customers. Some of the students will be drinking at tailgate, so it is an opportunity to offer free or discounted rides to students who cant drive home. This would expose the students to WanderVan and could help create repeat customers and customer loyalty. UNT Mean Green Fling The Mean Green Fling is an event during the beginning of the semester in August located on the hill at Apogee Stadium. During the Mean Green Fling, there are multiple sponsors and student organizations that have tables set up to promote their respective company or organization. Attendees of the event walk around the hill to gather handouts and information from the tables. This would be a great opportunity for WanderVan to gain customers because within the past two years, there have been over 8,200 students, parents, faculty and staff who have attended the Mean Green Fling.
15. 15. North Texas State Fair and Rodeo This would be a great way for WanderVan to attract customers who dont go to UNT or TWU, but still go out to Fry Street or the Square. The North Texas State Fair and Rodeo is from August 21-29 2015 and takes place in Denton and there are approximately 135,000 people who will attend the event over the 9 days. This is a huge event and it could be extremely beneficial for WanderVan and reaching new customers. Some patrons for this event will be drinking, so it is another opportunity to offer discounted rides and have people actually use the vans. Denton Arts and Jazz Festival The Denton Arts and Jazz Festival is a huge event for the Denton community and would be a great event for WanderVan to reach a large part of the Denton community. The event takes place from April 24-26 at Dentons Quakertown Park and will have a variety of food, activities and exhibits for adults and children to partake in. UNT Freshman Orientations During the summer, UNT hosts the entire freshman class throughout multiple three-day sessions. On one of the days during the orientation, the students have an information session with vendors and organizations associated with Denton and UNT. These events are similar to the Mean Green Fling, but there arent as many people there so you can get the chance to really connect with the customers. The orientation dates are June 15-17, June 21-23, June 24-26, July 6-8, July 12-14, July 15-17, July 27-29 and August 18-19.
16. 16. TWU Pioneer Preview Day This event takes place on June 13, 2015 and is a preview day at TWU for prospective first year students. Throughout the day, students are getting acclimated to TWU and Denton and it would be a great time for WanderVan to reach out to students new to TWU. For all of these events, WanderVan should set up a table or booth and have handouts available for the people attending the events. If possible, it would be great to have one of the vans at the events because that would definitely attract crowds to the WanderVan table and it would help build brand awareness around Denton. WanderVan needs to become involved with the community, and these events would be a great way to start building a relationship with Denton. Especially considering the events with the major universities, every freshman year class is an opportunity to build a customer base. These students may not be old enough to drink, but they may not have a car in Denton and rely on WanderVan for their various transportation needs. Most of the events are free to set up a table at, they will just need to contact whoever is in charge and get the proper paperwork in order to be able to attend.
17. 17. Customer Profitability To measure customer profitability, we have to take into account all of our revenue less total cost for serving an individual customer in the market segment. Doing so will allow us to measure our cost and profit correctly with aid of the activity-based costing technique. Customer 1 Customer 2 Customer 3 Product 1 Highly Profitable Product Product 2 Profitable Product Product 3 Unprofitable Product Product 4 Highly Unprofitable Product High Profit Customer Value Conscious Customer Discount Seeking Customer
18. 18. After analyzing the data from potential prospects or customers, we can determine the best approach that will benefit the profitability of the company. Customer 1 will represent a very profitable customer buying all profitable products while customer 2 and customer 3 will represent mixed bag and losing customer respectively. Two ways to deal with customer 2 and 3 is by raising prices of our less profitable products or eliminating them. Also WanderVan can try to sell these customers profit making products. Normally well-established firms will encourage their value conscious and discount seeking customers to consider competitors for their needs. Although, we feel since WanderVan is a new transportation company, driving these customers away will create a larger risk. We believe in creating a friendly, respectable environment by providing the best customer service to all our customers. We believe this plays a huge role in establishing our brand identity and as well play a role in creating brand equity.
19. 19. Customer Profile WanderVans customer profile consists of current college students and recent graduates, and Dentonites ranging from the ages of 18 to 30. This customer can be either male or female because there is an even distribution when it comes to interests of going out to the Denton Square or Fry Street regarding gender. Their personality type includes being an outgoing individual who likes to have a fun time especially when going out. They would consider themselves a socialite. Some behaviors they might engage in socializing, shopping, meeting new people, and being out and about.
20. 20. Segmentation Strategy Descriptive vs. Behavioral WanderVan is based around the Denton community which consists of two universities that frequent the Denton Square and Fry Street. There isnt any other highly active transportation service that is comparable to what WanderVan will provide therefore it will be best to go with a descriptive marketing segmentation because we can be more successful basing the strategies on data and demographics as opposed to basing them on behavior patterns. We based our segmentation strategy on location and the target market age range. With The University of North Texas and Texas Womans University in close proximity to the hot spots of Denton, it makes sense to define our target market as 18 to 30 years old males and females. The reason for choosing this age range is because this range includes incoming, current, and post-grad students. This is the ideal group that still ventures to the Denton Square and Fry Street when it comes to going out. The age range of 18-21 are going to be customers who are not legal to drink, however they may be students from out of town who dont have a car. WanderVan can fit their needs. Also, the age range of 21 to 30 is where its legal to drink which is where WanderVan will be most profitable because after a night out on Fry Street, consumers will be in need of transportation. The ages of 25 to 29 years happens to be the largest population group for males and 22 to 24 years for females. This proves that this segment is the best one to target because they populate the city of Denton the most.
21. 21. Customer Satisfaction Requirements Much of our customer satisfaction focuses will be based on social media and online reviews. Businesses now cannot ignore an online presence, as that is their main interaction between the business and customers. Much of the focus with consumer satisfaction is have a presence on Yelp, Google Business, and other similar rating websites where we can respond to criticisms and react to the consumers wants and needs.
22. 22. Customer Communication Strategy WanderVan needs to create a personality based on the brand that shows through its communication. Because of the retro nature of the vans, it is recommended their online profile have a groovy nature to it. By using words from that youth movement of the 1960s era, WanderVan can create a classic element to the brand. In addition, the visual profile of WanderVan will feature bright exuberant colors and symbols that were popular in the 1960s. Symbols such as the peace sign and the flower, will be accompanied by blues, greens, yellows, purples, pinks, and the like. All of this will convey to the consumer that they are a hip and young company that has an appreciation for the retro movement. Denton and its residents have a character like that of the 1960s youth movement. Denton also has a very anti-corporate culture. The residents are young and the buildings seem to be from different eras in time. WanderVans communication strategy needs to reflect the town that it exists in. Social Media Communication Strategy Social media is a large part of the everyday life. College students spend more time on their phones than they do reading a newspaper or watching television which means traditional forms of advertisement are not as useful as they used to be. A business without a plan to reach people through these platforms, will likely fail to last long in the market. Facebook Facebook has 1.3 billion monthly active users (Edwards, 2014). That number by itself tells us how massive this platform is. An active presence on Facebook will be an important part of the coming years for the company. Using google to search for Wandervan, the first link that shows up is the Facebook page, therefore keeping it active and clean is one of the best ways to increase online presence.
23. 23. Twitter Wandervan should come up with one or two hashtags for people to use. They should be short and relevant in order to let people talk in the 140 letter character limit. Examples would be: #Wandervan or #WV. They can also be paired together with other hashtags in order to reach more users. #Denton is used by many people who live in the area. Pairing the two hashtags increases the amount of people that will see tweets related to Wandervan. It is also possible to advertise on Twitter, but it is more expensive than Facebook and the hashtags are a lot of exposure. Instagram Instagram is a free picture sharing website with about 300 million monthly active users. It can be connected with both Facebook and Twitter and also utilizes the hashtag system. People gain followers based on the pictures they take. Wandervan will create an Instagram and encourage people to post pictures or videos on it while using the service could help spread the name to people who may have not been aware of it before. Tagging a picture with the hashtags discussed in the Twitter section is a good way to keep everything connected
24. 24. Customer Value Proposition WanderVans services offer the following advantages to customers: Convenience. WanderVan recognizes that customers want an easy transportation experience by providing the driver and the customer with the convenience of a credit/debit card system that gives instant approval. In addition, we want to provide routes and stops that will be accessible to our customers. Reliability. Wadervan will capitalize on delivering a reliable service to its customers. We realize that there is currently a shortage of reliable transportation services in the Denton community and we want to fulfill this need. We want to provide a route schedule that will operate regularly and be dependable. Safety. WanderVan wants to keep the streets of Denton safe. We realize that college students enjoy going out and having a good time and we want to limit the risk of students driving while under the influence of alcohol. Our shuttle will strive to provide a transportation service for the night owls of Denton to transition for one bar scene to another as well as get these individuals home safely.
25. 25. Market Positioning Strategy Positioning is a particular target markets perception of the competitiveness of a company or brand. The positioning process is comprised of four steps: 1. Choosing target segments 2. Identifying positioning variables 3. Finding current positioning compared to competitors according to the variables chosen 4. Developing a positioning proposal to maximize companys potential benefit Positioning is dependent on the other offerings from competitors available to the consumer. In the chart above, we chose the safety, reliability, and convenience to compare WanderVan and other competitors in the market. These three variables help categorize the primary traits and benefits of some of the transportation companies in Denton. Brand placements on the chart below were based on relation to one another and on the intensity of each variable.
26. 26. WanderVan is placed highest on safety with a stress on reliability over convenience. This is based on the fact that currently there are only two vans available. Once more vehicles are obtained WanderVan will eventually move closer to the center.
27. 27. Brand Identity
28. 28. Pricing Strategy WanderVan wants to position itself as a transportation service that is not only safe and reliable, but affordable as well. We would like to take on a market-penetration pricing approach for the shuttle service. These rides can be redeemable by bartenders who dont think their patrons are sober enough to drive themselves home. Taking into account that a majority of our target market is price sensitive with being college students, we would like to set the price of our shuttle service relatively low in comparison to our competitors at a price of $5 per ride, and our taxi service would be comparable to the existing competitors in Denton. We anticipate that this pricing strategy will allow us to gain significant market share over our competitors, as well as establish brand familiarity and loyalty, as well as make a profit according to our pro forma statement. We predict that demand for our services will be relatively high, particularly during the school year, due to our low prices. To compensate for the high demand, we recommend the first major purchase be a bus to run the shuttle route. By dedicating the bus to a shuttle route, the vans have an opportunity to take people to and from locations that are not on the bus route.
29. 29. Competitive Advantage Affordability WanderVan shuttle rides only cost $5, and due to our target market mainly being college students, we will be the most cost-friendly mode of transportation between the bars of Denton and local apartment complexes. Our competitors such as Uber and taxi services, charge much higher fares than we do and will also not be able to offer the customers the convenience that we do. Once the WanderBus is purchased, it will take over the $5 rides, and the WanderVans will be free to transport regular taxi customers. Convenience WanderVan will have a scheduled shuttle route that will run from 10pm- 4am and will consist of stops at Fry street, the Denton Square and most of the major apartment complexes for student living in the Denton area. We will be able to transport, customers to and from multiple places in Denton, at various times throughout the night, at an affordable rate, and that is something that our competitors do not bring to the table. Again, the WanderBus will take over the shuttle when purchased. Reliability Right now there is not a reliable mode of transportation in Denton that services the target market we are targeting. WanderVan and later, WanderBus will have a consistent route schedule that we will try our hardest to maintain so that our customers will be able to rely on us to get them where they need to be and when they need to be there.
30. 30. The Experience Our competitors in Denton will not be able to compete with the experience we will be able to provide our customers with. Most of our competitors consist of just you, the driver, and an awkward car ride. WanderVan will provide you with an opportunity to create your own experience because our drivers will be friendly and outgoing and there will more than likely be other people on your ride, which will give you the opportunity to meet new people and to make new friends. As WanderVan grows and expands, the experience will grow and expand as well, especially if there is a storefront opened up with a place for customers to interact with each other and to relax a little bit. Unlike many competitors, the most important aspect of the experience is our consistency. Everytime you call a WanderVan, you will get a 1960s Ford Econoline, a friendly driver, and a safe ride home. Safety WanderVans priority is safety for our customers and our drivers. We want all of our customers to feel safe and comfortable in our vehicles, with our drivers, and with the other customers. We are offering a safe ride home from the bars where the customers more than likely have been drinking and are in no condition to drive. Instead of risking drinking and driving, we want the Denton community to start using WanderVan as the safe alternative.
31. 31. Overall Competitive Advantage WanderVan has various competitive advantages that can help it become a very successful company in Denton. Our competitors may offer similar services, but they cannot come close to the affordability, convenience, reliability, safety and the experience that you will get when you choose to use WanderVan as your transportation service.
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33. 33. Instagram: Monthly active users 2013-2014 | Statistic http://www.statista.com/statistics/253577/number-of-monthly-active- instagram-users/ Population Demographics for Denton, Texas in 2014 and 2015 https://suburbanstats.org/population/texas/how-many-people-live-in- denton The Flying Squirrel - 1974 Crown Supercoach - Update 2/6 http://www.skoolie.net/forums/f11/the-flying-squirrel-1974-crown- supercoach-update-2-6-a-8751.html Top 15 Most Popular Social Networking Sites | March 2015 http://www.ebizmba.com/articles/social-networking-websites Traveling to and from DFW International Airport https://www.dart.org/riding/dfwairport.asp Uber taxi service takes Dentonites for a ride http://ntdaily.com/uber-taxi- service-takes-dentonites-for-a-ride/ Vine rings in its second year by hitting 1.5 billion daily loops https://gigaom.com/2015/01/26/vine-rings-in-its-second-year-by-hitting-1- 5-billion-daily-loops/
34. 34. Appendix Contents Survey 1 Survey 1 Responses Survey 2 Survey 2 Responses Pro Forma Presentation Powerpoint