TOYOTA Globalization Strategy5.pdfVIP

An Analysis of Toyota’s Marketing Strategy - Surendra Bhandari1 [available at: /sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1624068 ] Abstract Toyota was established in 1937 in Japan. First time it introduced its product Corona in the US in 1965. By the 70’s, Toyota was the best-selling import brand in the US. During the 80’s, it started manufacturing vehicles in the US. In 2006, it had globally become the second largest car seller and third largest car sellers in the US having more than fifteen percent market share. It is estimated that by 2008 it is going to be the number one car producer and seller both in the US and across the world. This profound success of Toyota is associated with its most proficient market strategy. The case of Toyota notably proves that how important is market strategy in the life of a company to be a market leader. 1. Mission Toyota’s mission statement is as follows: “To sustain sustainable growth by providing the best customer experience and dealer support.” (Toyota, 2007) Customer satisfaction is the driving force for Toyota, which inspires it to provide the highest quality products and services. “Kaizen” is a word that Toyota upholds, which means “continuous improvement” of its technology, products, and services. In short, Kaizen for customer satisfaction is Toyota’s mission. Toyota further explains its mission as follows: 1 Dr. Bhandari can be contacted at: bhandarisurendra@ “Around here our values are just like yours. We are hard working. We are active in community. We are creating jobs. We celebrate our diversity. We are building cleaner greener cars. And this is just the beginning.” (Toyota, 2007) 2. Distinctive Competencies Among others, three distinctive competencies of Toyota a