Marketing Strategies of China Shipping Company
China shipping container line is a leading shipping company in the world and there are measures and strategies that need to be put in place in order to emerge as the best serving shipping company to all our esteemed customers. The company provides transhipment, custom clearance and storage facilities to its customers and hence the need to be efficient and effective in providing the services. Currently being among the top 10 container shipping company in its operating capacity our aim is to offer the best services and emerge the leading shipment company. The company operates on domestic routes and International linear service from China and has formed a network covering the main ports of China, Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia and hence the need to put in place effective marketing strategies. Being a dominant player in China, the company has a share of over 50% in significant numbers of domestic ports. They have advanced marketing methods and distribution channels which has helped the growth of the organization. Furthermore good management has improved their quality whereby the cooperation of man power has been of great help to the expansion of the company. However, there has been good exportation services in there ports where unity has helped them deliver to their best to other companies.
The company that is CSCL engages in several activities such as the container transportation and other related services. The company thus provides freight transportation services for instance transshipment, storage and customer’s arrival and manifest filling. It is stated that, “more than any other carrier, CSCL calls 12 China base ports, plus most river ports along the Yangtze River, the Pearl River and their branches, providing fast, safe, and economical transportation for all containerized freight. A total of more than 40 international routes round out the current service profile of the Line and this number are constantly increasing” (Nolan, 1995). The company has its own laid down strategies to market and distribute its produce, for example China has got good relations to GT Nexus that has acted as its major market because of the best services its offering. Through the web Chinese company has done well in having their goods sold all over the world and there is no competition because they are offering the best services in the market.
Discussion
The aim of the company is to meet the goals and objectives and this can be done through proper planning, organizing and monitoring and checking the progress in order to meet the performance standards. To emerge as the leading shipping company in the world there has to be strategic measures placed and excellent management skills. Marketing strategies such as advertising, programs, improved shipments services, high quality transport services and a competitive cutting edge shipping company. A well developed marketing strategy is required and takes into account the anticipated moves of competitors in the shipping companies. A firm should prepare defensive strategies before potential threats arrive from competitors with certain strengths and abilities and one of the key strategies is through advertisement. Advertisement conveys the services and products offered by the company.
China Shipping Container lines advertises through international cargo agencies spread out through the entire continent to provide quality services to its esteemed customers and reach out to a vast market. The company uses advertising channels such as, the web site which display the company’s information, its location, services offered and other materials. In a statement by (Kotler & Sheff, 1997), they state that, “Customers want simpler, more automated solutions, delivered over the Web, for managing global transportation processes. Today’s announcement adds more validity to our network strategy and the advantages it provides for both carriers and shippers” (Glen, Lee, and Singh, 2000).Web sites make a business appear up-to-date and provide a direct communication interface between the company and the targeted customers shipping information which include the routes to be followed and the anticipated time of destination of a particular container the web site is restructured on a regular basis to keep it updated (Capon, 2008).
Also, the company can adopt using direct mails that are sent direct to the customers and are highly customized to suit their nature and needs. Through this, “all services are delivered on-demand, over the Web, which allows customers to get up and running quickly and cost effectively. Carriers integrate once and then use that single standardized interface to exchange business information with thousands of global customers”. Customers are required to fill out information card to provide their details including their mail addresses (Xiao, 1991). More so, the use of emails in the organization has helped through sending business information which including the signature line. Print and audio videos have also been employed to reach out to the larger market. However, a well organized management structure with qualified personnel who oversee the smooth running of the company and their many years of experience in the shipping industry has lead to the growth of the company. The administration lay out policies and plans by allocating resources to achieve the set objectives. The management works hand in hand with its employees to enhance efficiency of service delivery to meet the customers’ expectations.
This company also has developed a railway transport network in the north east china region named the “china shipping No.1” (Kotler & Sheff, 1997), which seeks to improve its operations and enhance further ocean-railway transportation capacity which has helped cut down the cost of transportation. CSCL has advanced equipments, young and modern fleet comprising of 143 vessels that are in excellent condition. These two factors have provided the company with additional competitive advantage to stay in the industry forefront.
Recommendation
- Having evaluated the SWOT analysis of the company and established the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats from other competitors, there is a need to come up with objective policies of the company which include other forms of advertisements (Xiao, 1991). One of our key strengths currently is having a railway line that connects the ports to Northern China, extending the railway network to other parts of the country will enable the company to tap resources from other parts of China at lower cost. This aspect will help the company grow and supply goods at a cheaper and an easier way rather than relying on one area.
- The other opportunities that have not been exploited include broadening its service routes to other parts of the continent like Australia and South America to increase their market share. In this way, the services will assist the company to mature and advance in a better position than any other sector supplying the same access. Through establishing polices to overcome the other shipping companies in terms of provision of good services is also essential in that the company is able to point out the threats and stiff competition from the other shipping companies like Horizon lines, Hamburg Shipping Company and others companies which are equally competitive (Kotler & Sheff, 1997).
- The company should continuously improve safety management skills of personnel ashore and aboard ships which involves emergencies preparedness and environment protection.
- Coming up with lower tariffs to enable younger companies meet the shipment cost thus broadening the market size (Kidd & Reynolds, 2000).
Conclusion
With the advanced equipment, high technology and proper strategies put into effect China shipping Container Lines Company limited is bound to have a bright future as one of the leading carriers in the shipping industry. Nonetheless, capon states that, “In the containerized shipping industry, ecommerce has matured to the point where it is now a vital part of a carrier’s value added services,” (Kotler & Sheff, 1997). In this aspect, “GT Nexus has succeeded in delivering a proven solution that delivers value to all stakeholders. We are looking forward to working together with our customers as they continue to automate their global supply chains, and are pleased to now offer the GT Nexus Portal in addition to our existing in-house ecommerce solutions.”This advantage has improved the performance of the company to a great level where supply is done even to other nations. However, “Increasingly, customers are moving towards the on-demand delivery model,” added Urban. “In this economy, they have to. The time-to-value, cost and risk benefits that come with on-demand, Web-based technology is simply too compelling when compared to traditional software” (Xiao, 1991).
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