Marketing Mix of General Motors (GM)

Marketing Mix of General Motors (GM)

This article explores the marketing mix of General Motors (GM). It analyses the effectiveness of the 4Ps of GM in its global success. It also identifies certain limitations and challenges that need to be taken into account in the future marketing mix decisions.

Product strategies of General Motors (GM)

General Motors is an American multinational company with a strong global presence. It engages in the designing, manufacturing, and selling of cars, crossovers, trucks, and automobile parts. It is also involved in providing financial services.

The vehicle brands of General Motors include Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, and Cadillac. The company also has a service called OnStar that has emergency certified advisors to help if a driver has any issues while on the road.

However, it should be mentioned that GM had to shut down a Michigan assembly plant for several weeks in the aftermath of a recall of its Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicles over battery issues. It recalled more than 140,000 vehicles at a cost estimated at $1.8 billion (Shepardson, 2021).

Pricing strategies of General Motors (GM)

When determining the price of a vehicle, General Motors considers a number of factors i.e. competition, geography, type of vehicle, and the quality. Global lockdowns have also caused issues for its pricing decisions as customers are more conscious of their spending due to difficult financial conditions.

General Motors offers vehicles to different segments of consumers e.g. middle income consumers as well as consumers who can purchase luxury vehicles. The Chevrolet is more appealing to middle income consumers whereas the Buick is a more high-priced vehicle.

Place/Distribution Channels of General Motors (GM)

Place is an important element in the marketing mix of General Motors (GM). The company is headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It has presence around the world and does business with nearly 140 countries such as United Kingdom, China, India, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Egypt etc. It sells vehicles through dealers or directly to the customers.

Though the USA is the largest source of revenue for GM, China is in the leading position in terms of unit sales which is evidenced from the sale of around 3 million vehicles in 2020. The company assembles most of its cars in the USA, however, a massive number of cars are assembled in Asia as well. It is worth noting that cars targeting Chinese customers are produced locally (Wagner, 2021).

Promotion strategies of General Motors (GM)

General Motors aims to promote a strong brand awareness through its promotion strategies around the world. Notable platforms it uses are social media, TV, magazines, and auto fairs. However, some of its adverts failed in the past, and social media ads did not work that well either.

The loyalty programme ‘My GM Rewards’ has already drawn the attention of millions of people who can earn and redeem points on eligible purchases from oil changes to accessories (General Motors, 2021).

Recently, General Motors introduced a campaign named as “Everybody In”. This campaign has a number of celebrities including author Malcolm Gladwell and Bethany Hamilton. This campaign was introduced to highlight the Ultium batteries which power electric vehicles such as Cadillac and Chevrolet.

We hope this article ‘Marketing mix of General Motors (GM)’ has been useful. You may also like reading SWOT analysis of General Motors (GM). Other articles that may draw your attention are:

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Last update: 10 September 2021

References:

General Motors (2021) About us, available at: https://www.gm.com/our-company/about-gm.html (accessed 09 September 2021)

Shepardson, D. (2021) GM extends Michigan plant shutdown over Bolt EV recall, available at: https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/gm-extends-michigan-plant-shutdown-over-bolt-ev-recall-2021-09-09/ (accessed 10 September 2021)

Wagner, I. (2021) General Motors – statistics & facts, available at: https://www.statista.com/topics/2480/general-motors/ (accessed 31 July 2021)

Author: Fahim Shah

Fahim Shah has been working in the UK as a visiting lecturer in Business and Tourism for the last 10 years. After completing a Bachelor’s degree in Business and Marketing, he went on to gain an MBA from the University of Bradford, the UK. He is a Fellow of Advance HE (FHEA) and a full member of the Association of Business Executives (ABE).