Developing and Managing New Products New Balance Hubway

APA Format 6th Edition Template

DEVELOPING AND MANAGING NEW PRODUCTS 2

Marketing channels and retailing
Kachi Odinkemere
Kaplan University

MARKETING CHANNELS AND RETAILING

Question 1
New Balance Hubway has used the online platform in different ways. They keep information to their customers and followers and mostly provide them with updates through Facebook. Everything they do is online since they also have a twitter account and use it so that customers and visitors can post their insights and thoughts of the company. In case an issue needs to be shared, the company sends out bulk emails and also posts the issue on Facebook. They give all of you the advantages that are being offered on their site. They additionally permit you to purchase items through their site, so in the event that you require a head protector you can get one and they will send it to you. They likewise keep up on another page that is on their site and that permits anybody to peruse article on specific themes about their organization or different organizations. They utilize web-based social networking for promoting however they likewise us it to give redesigns and too let clients see more data on the business. I additionally observed that they were doing an amusement that you could have the opportunity to win and that will hold clients returning to their site. Through they online consolation I would love to attempt Hubway even without going to a Booth first. I think it is an incredible approach to get around outside of having a go at traversing surge hour times and it gives individuals an approach to get over into shape without stressing over working out. It is an awesome approach to get around place and not need to stress over battling individuals in line or need to sit tight perpetually for a taxi organization to lift you up.
Question 2.
Despite the fact that Hubway does not have a counter with somebody remaining behind it doesn’t mean they would prefer not to give their clients a decent administration. They make the way toward getting a bicycle an effortless as they can. They additionally have courses for you to get it the procedure as consistent as could be allowed for anybody to get it. In the event that there is a major issue with the bicycle they make it basic for you to tell them. You should simply push a catch and the mechanics will get the bicycle and settle it without you doing a pack of printed material or experiencing a noteworthy procedure to tell them about the issues. With everything being on line or finished with the sun based power station there is no requirement for somebody to be there constantly. They make the administration as simple as would be prudent and straightforward. They give the clients benefit by giving them minimal measure of time of exchange.
1. c. Intensive distribution
According to Lamb (2014) definition, Hubway uses the intensive distribution level in a way that it deliberately position in different areas in Boston where customers can find them. It is evident that the new Hubway is aimed at intensive distribution when we base on the number of bike stations it has. Hubway has a total of about one thousand six hundred bikes. There are one hundred and eighty stations in four municipalities of Boston. All the sixteen-hundred bike stations of the new Hubway are distributed equally throughout the four municipalities of Boston. One can barely go two kilometers without coming across a bike station belonging to the new Hubway. This ensures that the service is readily available almost everywhere This is an intensive distribution since there are numerous stations in different parts of Boston.
2. a. Automatic Vending
The New Hubway is a non-store retailer type based on automatic vending. This is because there is no person standing at the stations to offer customer service. A person becomes a member of Hubway by buying a pass from one of the Hubway’s bike station kiosk or registering online at their website. Once a person has registered, they can now unlock a bike at a nearby preference by getting a ride code or using their membership key to unlock one. There are automatic card readers that accept Hubway’s cards to unlock the bike. After unlocking a bike, you can take as much ride as you want for as long as your membership and unlock key is active.
3. a.
It is true to say that the level of service by Hubway is of low level and has got a product line which is very narrow. The business model of Hubway promotes low prices for the services they offer. However, their service, especially the customer level is low. This may cause their customers not to return in the future to access their services. Their product line seems to be very narrow since they only offer bike services.
4. a. Direct channel
From the video, it is easy to identify that Hubway uses a direct channel for distributing consumer products. This is because Hubway offers their services directly to their consumers without the help of intermediaries or middlemen. The consumers directly unlock the bikes and take rides. After that, they return the products to the stations. Throughout this process, there are no intermediaries.
5. a. Market factors
Market factors are the ones that are most likely to have influenced the distribution level, intensity and the method used by Hubway to offer its rental service. Hubway has built its stations in strategic places where there are potential consumers to their products. Their main target is college and university students who travel long distances to their lecture halls. Therefore, setting stations near colleges is their key point as well. Hubway also sets most of its stations in urban places to make them easily accessible to the population in urban areas.
6. d. Specialty store
The operation of the New Hubway is a specialty store because they focus on specific category of products. Bikes are the main commodity of trade for New Hubway. Therefore, their main focus is bikes where they source their revenue. To emphasize on that, Hubway has built bike stations which act as the store to their products.
7. b. Managing service capacity
New Balance Hubway focuses on managing service when they discuss the number of bikes in their various stations. When the business expands, it is easy for mismanagement to occur therefore Hubway has to ensure that there is equal distribution of their products throughout the Boston. They also have to instill automatic counters which will help them to manage the bikes in their numerous stations.
8. a. True
Saying that the advancement of the application Spotcycle, that will make clients have the capacity to see where the most reasonable station to give back their bicycle is by rating how full, exhaust, or close-by stations are one way that empowers New Adjust Hubway to minimize hold up times is valid. This is on account of one can undoubtedly follow the courses without fundamentally looking for bearings from individuals in transit.
9. a. True
It is valid and simple to recognize that New Adjust Hubway is a noteworthy player in non-conventional administration retailing, and showing how new innovation can offer better approaches for giving awesome administration. This is on account of it uses cutting edge frameworks to offer its administrations. The card swiping and programmed installments demonstrate innovation progression.

References
Lamb, C. W. (2014). MKTG (7 ed.). Mason,OH: South-Western, Cengage Learning.
New Balance Hubway. (2011-2016). Retrieved from Hubway: http://www.thehubway.com/