Aqualisa Quartz Low Sales - Essay Example

Executive Summary Problem Identification- Aqualisa Quartz low sales. Key Issues-Price; skeptical consumers who want a bargain, instead of a premium product; distrust by plumbers. Alternatives-Workshops for plumbers, breaking into the DIY market. Recommendations/Plan of Action Pricing the Aqualisa Quartz at a perceived bargain price to introduce the product to more households. Workshops to instruct plumbers on installations. Breaking into the DIY market to prove the product is so easy to install, anyone can do it. Expected Outcomes and Impact-Higher sales due to bargain prices, more plumber recognition and recommendation, and more sales through DIY markets. Problem Identification Aqualisa Quartz Low Sales There is no question that the Aqualisa Quartz Standard/Pumped has the superior edge over the competition in terms of performance. The problem becomes convincing the public of this superiority. In order to understand Aqualisa Quartz’s low sales, the market must be examined in order to find the key issues behind the low sales. The shower industry in the UK has three channels of distribution. Trade shops, showrooms, and DIY sheds are the channels of distribution for the Aqualisa products. Trade shops carry plumbing supplies for plumbers. Trade shops normally only carries what will sell, or in essence what is in demand. Showrooms are supplied by distributors. This channel is for high end customers. When an individual buyer comes to a showroom, they tend to not be concerned with price. DIY sheds are supplies for do-it-yourselfers. B&Q is like Home Depot. This market is for bargain hunters and home improvers. These three channels of distribution are where Aqualisa Quartz will be marketed. The best channel of distribution for the Aqualisa Quartz is the showroom. The reason for the good showroom sales for the Aqualisa Quartz is the digital features on the showerhead. Individuals walk into the showroom and see the red light that stops blinking when the shower is the right temperature. This novelty alone sells most of the units in the showroom. Aqualisa Quartz is easier to install and more efficient than other showers, but plumbers are skeptical of using new products. This lowers the sales in the trade showrooms. Aqualisa Quartz has been marketed properly for the DIY sheds, due to the fear that it would lessen the product value. All of these factors have led to lower sales than expected for the new innovative Aqualisa Quartz. In order to raise sales, the key factors must be looked at. Key Issues Price Since the Aqualisa Quartz is an innovative new product, Aqualisa priced the product higher as a premium item. The Quartz Standard is 850 pounds and the Quartz Pumped is 1,080 pounds.1 This makes it the highest product sold by Aqualisa. It also makes it the highest money maker for the company, but only when sold. If Aqualisa Quartz was marked down, consumers might feel they are getting a bargain and quality. As it stands, only showrooms with wealthy customers feel they can afford the Aqualisa Quartz. Since Aqualisa Quartz is not a brand name, the sales do not cross over the distribution channels. Cutting the price for regular consumers would be a must for this venture. Skeptical Consumers Consumers are not familiar with the new technology of Aqualisa Quartz. This makes them more skeptical, especially with the high prices mentioned above. Consumers want a bargain. Quality goods for a cheap price make consumers buy. Without knowledge of the new technology, consumers can only understand the showers they are familiar with. Thus consumers are skeptical of showers that do not have a long self life. The key to making consumers less skeptical is more information about the Aqualisa Quartz. The more the public knows about the Aqualisa Quartz, the more likely the consumer is to understand the benefits and pricing of the new shower. Plumbers Plumbers are the key to boosting sales of the Aqualisa Quartz. Around 54% of new showers are installed by plumbers.2 Replacement showers are influenced by plumbers 73% of the time.3 In order to sell Aqualisa Quartz to the public, plumbers must be sold on the product first. The plumbers influence on the market is clear from research. Consumers will trust a plumber before their own knowledge or judgement. Alternatives Workshops for Plumbers One alternative is a workshop for plumbers. Once plumbers understand the time saving method of the Aqualisa Quartz and the quality, they would recommend it to more consumers. The half day spent installing the Aqualisa Quartz will help the plumbers do more jobs and increase their profits. Especially since Aqualisa Quartz is so easy to install, a plumber’s apprentice can be sent. The plumber receives the same pay with a less skilled worker. Workshops for the plumbers can help them understand the product’s simplicity and technological superiority. The plumbers will also gain more confidence when being called to replace the Aqualisa Quartz in new homes. The workshops would help win plumbers over. Since plumbers are the backbone of the industry, the Aqualisa Quartz must have their support to survive as a product. The DIY Market Since the Aqualisa Quartz is so easy to install, the DIY market needs to be exploited. If more consumers buy the Aqualisa Quartz, more plumbers would be familiar with the product. Word of mouth would spread on how good the product works. Marketing in the DIY market is not a step down, but a sales technique. Like the workshops for the plumbers, workers at DIY sheds could teach customers how easy it is to install. By ignoring this market for fear of low product quality perception is ridiculous. The more Aqualisa Quartz sold, the more well known the product will become. Recommendations/Plan of Action 1. Pricing the Aqualisa Quartz at a perceived bargain price to introduce the product to more households. Temporarily lowering the price of the Aqualisa Quartz would create the opportunity for more consumers to try the product. Once the product is tried, a consumer will fall in love with the new technological, installation, and quality of the product. The Aqualisa Quartz needs exposure. When the demand increases, then a price increase can be considered. The problem is the company thinks highly of the product, but the consumers do not. The change in price can help expose the product. 2. Workshops to instruct plumbers on installations. In order to convince the plumbers a workshop must be conducted. Any hall could be rented out. An incentive could be free food or samples. A salesman would show and demonstrate the product. Questions could be answered, and doubts could be erased from the plumbers’ minds. An open forum or presentation format could be used. It could vary from workshop to workshop. This method could be expanded to trade shows and other exhibitions. Plumbers must be the focus of this technique, in order to improve sales. 3. Breaking into the DIY market to prove the product is so easy to install, anyone can do it. If the Aqualisa Quartz is pushed in the DIY market, the product will get more exposure. If a plumber sees the common consumer buying the product and installing it themselves, he will become intrigued. If anyone can install the product, then the product must be easy to use. Then the exposure of the product passes through word of mouth. Breaking into the DIY market is critical for free exposure to the product. It is a critical marketing strategy to market to these venues. Using workshops in these venues, like Home Depot or Lowes does in the United States, would work wonders as well. Expected Outcomes The expected outcome would be higher sales for the Aqualisa Quartz. The higher sales would be due to bargain prices and high quality being exposed by plumbers and DIY markets. The prices could help create a new brand name for Aqualisa. Bargain prices would help the consumer at least try the product. Many consumers only look for the bargain, and then find they like the quality. Then Aqualisa could raise the price on the Aqualisa Quartz. The plumber and DIY market needs to be exploited. If done right, the Aqualisa Quartz could sell as many units as the Gainsbourough.4 The goal would become a reality if the plumbers and DIY markets are catered efficiently. The more sales would mean more exposure, free word of mouth recommendations, and familiarity with the product. Showrooms would not be the only major seller of Aqualisa Quartz.5 The Aqualisa Quartz would no longer be a niche product. Expected Impact If there was enough exposure of this product, more people would buy the product. This would allow for more marketing dollars for the Aqualisa Quartz. This could impact the way Europeans take showers for a long time. No bulky boxes in the shower, a shower in every home, and water pressure/heat could be adequate for all. Aqualisa Quartz could revolutionize the shower industry. Everyone from the poor to the rich could have showers that are easily installed. The dream with which the Aqualisa Quartz creators started with could be a reality across the UK and even Europe. Work Cited Moon, Youngmoon and Kerry Herman. “Aqualisa Quartz: Simply a Better Shower.” Harvard Business School. 10 July 2006. Read More