CC BY
82
DOI 10.18551/rjoas.2019-07.34
MARKETING STRATEGY FOR START-UP: A STUDY OF HOME CARE BUSINESS
Kasuma Christina Yuandari S.*, Indrawati Ratna, Iswanto A. Heri
Master's Program of Management, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Esa Unggul, Jakarta, Indonesia *E-mail: [email protected] ORCID: 0000-0003-0158-299X
ABSTRACT
Every company that wants to start its business must create a strategy to market its products or services, one of them on home care business. The current fierce competition forces companies to adopt appropriate marketing strategies, to achieve the goals set by the company or to retain the company. The purpose of marketing activities here is to influence consumers to be willing to buy goods or services company when they need goods or services on offer. Home Care in Indonesia has been around since the year 1880 but until now there is only 50 Home Care business registered with the ratio of the number of hospitals there 2488 in Indonesian so the opportunity for Home Care is still very large. To achieve the target market for Home Care requester in need strategy, strategy used in marketing is Marketing Mix. Marketing Mix is a strategy to analyze four segments in terms of price, place, promotion, and product. And this concept is very supportive in marketing because by applying this strategy we can analyze about the price on the market, the location in accordance with the target / segment, proper promotion, and product desired by the customer. Therefore the company must be able to understand the consumer behavior as well as knowing marketing strategies that must be done so that we can achieve desired goals. So to achieve the company's goals it takes marketing strategies that are useful for monitoring what's happening and what's going on inside the company and anticipating problems and opportunities in the coming period in a rapidly changing corporate environment.
KEY WORDS
Marketing strategy, business, home care, marketing mix, risk, online media.
The increased life expectancy means the greater the likelihood that a person may live longer or become older, wherein an elderly person is found to be more susceptible to health problems caused by several factors (Elliott et al., 2010). In elderly individuals often face changes to their lives, such as physical incapacity, placement in the Wredha Home, where families do not support, retire, couple's death and family death (Fitria, 2010).
The disease that many suffered by the elderly in general is a degenerative disease. Degenerative disease is a disease that arises due to the process of deterioration of body cell function towards the worse. One of the degenerative diseases that require long-term treatment is stroke (Bassetti et al., 2006). Health facilities that can provide health services such as hospitals and home care, but the hospital has the ability to care for patients in a long time such as limited health workers and beds for the need of other health facilities that can provide services within a time Old Like Home Care, to solve the problem then there is home care business (Fletcher & Hirdes,).
Home Care is a health service provided at the home of patients, which became one option to make the sick become comfortable and not separated from the family. Our Home Care business has focused and targeted users of its service products, all of the population of degenerative diseases especially elderly people aged over 60 years but did not rule out also for the age before 60 years for those suffering from stroke or post-hospital treatment.
Technological developments are increasingly advanced, including in the medical field, indirectly can lead to an increase in life expectancy of a person so that population growth to increase. Current business trends are businesses that innovate with technology. The development of existing technology business in Indonesia is currently quite rapidly when
compared with several years ago. Currently, many people are aware of the importance of technology so as to provide positive feedback to various tech businesses.
Home care business care based on technology and provide convenience to those who need to access it will be needed by the community especially for patients who still need further nursing care assistance at home after the patient returns from hospital treatment, thus it is expected that sustained service in patient's home will lighten Suffering the patient and reducing her disability (Leatherman et al., 2003).
A marketing strategy can be expressed as a basis for action that leads to a marketing activity or business, of a company, in a state of competition and an ever-changing environment in order to achieve its intended purpose (Cravens, & Piercy, 2006). So in determining the marketing strategy that will run the company must first see the situation and market conditions and assess its position in the market. By knowing the circumstances and situation and position in the market can be determined marketing activities that must be implemented.
In Home Care business we use marketing mix. Marketing Mix is a tactical marketing tool that can be controlled, product, price, distribution, and promotion combined by the company to produce the desired response in the target market. Marketing mix is used as a method of analysis that can support the segment earlier from our business (Yoo et al., 2000).
LITERATURE REVIEW
Marketing identifies consumer's needs and supplies various good and services to satisfy those needs most effectively. So the businessmen need to produce or manufacture the product according to consumers' need; make available it at a price that the consumers' find reasonable; supply the product to the consumers at different outlets they can conveniently approach; and inform the consumers about the product and its characteristics through the media they have access to (Quester et al., 2007).
So the marketing manager concentrates on four major decision areas while planning the marketing activities, namely, products, price, place and promotion. These 4 'P' are called as elements of marketing and together they constitute the marketing mix. All these are interrelated because a decision in one area affects decisions in other areas (Cunningham et al., 2008). Marketing involves a number of activities. To begin with, an organization may decide on its target group of customers to be served. Once the target group is decided, the product is to be placed in the market by providing the appropriate product, price, distribution and promotional efforts.
These are to be combined or mixed in an appropriate proportion so as to achieve the marketing goal. Such mix of product, price, distribution and promotional efforts is known as 'Marketing Mix'. According to Philip Kotler "Marketing Mix is the set of controllable variables that the firm can use to influence the buyer's response". The controllable variables in this context refer to the 4 'P (product, price, place and promotion).
The marketing effective program should be able to integrate all elements of the marketing mix into an integrated marketing program designed to achieve the company's marketing goals by delivering value to consumers. After building and implementing the above 4 P, marketers should consider these four things consisting of: Customer Solutions that is products can help and solve consumer problems, customer Cost that is the price paid by consumers to purchase the product according to their needs and wants, Convenience that is the product is able to please the consumer because it is easily obtained everywhere and Communication that is producers communicate products to consumers properly and on target.
Each firm strives to build up such a composition of 4'P, which can create highest level of consumer satisfaction and at the same time meet its organizational objectives. Thus, this mix is assembled keeping in mind the needs of target customers, and it varies from one organization to another depending upon its available resources and marketing objectives. Four components of marketing mix are product, price, place and promotion.
METHODS OF RESEARCH
We used qualitative method through literature study or desk research. This study is data on problems that are experiencing the environment with business, industry analysis, market analysis, and market segmentation. In addition, this study also uses a variety of literature related to the problem to be studied. In addition, research is also available in the form of data and information from existing care home care in Jakarta, Tangerang City, and South Tangerang.
This research uses the method and technique of data by doing observation, that is seeing the direct object that is needed, and then do documentation with record every report that produced and researcher also collect data through question and answer directly to the owner either by phone or home business that already exist.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
We use marketing mix analysis in starting home care business. Marketing mix divided into four components that can achieve the target marketing. These 4 'P' are called as elements of marketing and together they constitute the marketing mix. Four components of marketing mix are product, price, place and promotion.
Product refers to the goods and services offered by the organization. All these are purchased because they satisfy one or more of our needs. We are paying not for the tangible product but for the benefit it will provide. So, in simple words, product can be described as a bundle of benefits which a marketer offers to the consumer for a price. Product can also take the form of a service like an air travel, telecommunication, etc. Thus, the term product refers to goods and services offered by the organization for sale.
The product segment from Home Care we offer is divided into two segments namely regular package that is Home Visit and premium that is Home Stay. Regular package that can be ordered according to patient's wishes wherever and whenever. As well as a premium package that provides two packet options for patients one month and two weeks with a partial and total treatment classification that the nurse needs has been determined by the physician according to the patient's condition.
For patients with partial classification requires only one nurse and for patients who can totally use the services of two nurses depending on the needs of patients and families. The development of the medical field in line with the fast running time, and for Home Care services is still not too well known, but look at the experience that is already there At ODIS Home Care present to offer Home Care services with two different types of products and can be accessed online for patients Degenerative diseases especially elderly people who have a stroke and need care at home. Where by offering optimal service with qualified medical personnel as well as ease in ordering process, accuracy and service.
Price is the amount charged for a product or service. It is the second most important element in the marketing mix. Fixing the price of the product is a tricky job. Many factors like demand for a product, cost involved, consumer's ability to pay, prices charged by competitors for similar products, government restrictions etc. have to be kept in mind while fixing the price. In fact, pricing is a very crucial decision area as it has its effect on demand for the product and also on the profitability of the firm. Our Home Care charges the prices according to the middle and upper middle class patient classification as well as the insurance.
Goods are produced to be sold to the consumers. They must be made available to the consumers at a place where they can conveniently make purchase. The organization has to decide whether to sell directly to the retailer or through the distributors/wholesaler etc. It can even plan to sell it directly to consumers. On home care business we plan to sell services directly through the online system that will facilitate customers to place an order. After analyzing the environment, we choose to establish home care in Tangerang city. The location was chosen based on observations of the need for considerable Home Care services both in the hospital setting and personal demand and within easy reach.
If the product is manufactured keeping the consumer needs in mind, is rightly priced and made available at outlets convenient to them but the consumer is not made aware about its price, features, availability etc., its marketing effort may not be successful. Therefore promotion is an important ingredient of marketing mix as it refers to a process of informing, persuading and influencing a consumer to make choice of the product to be bought. Promotion is done through means of personal selling, advertising, publicity and sales promotion. It is done mainly with a view to provide information to prospective consumers about the availability, characteristics and uses of a product. It arouses potential consumer's interest in the product, compare it with competitors' product and make his choice. The proliferation of print and electronic media has immensely helped the process of promotion.
Promotion is all the activities the company does to inform, persuade the market about new products or services in the company through advertising, personal sales, sales promotion and publications. There are several concepts that are used to do the promotion, including the above the line, below the line and the latest concept of Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC). At Home Care that will be established will use the concept of promotion using Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC).
Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) is a concept whereby a company integrates and coordinates various communication channels to send a clear, consistent, and convincing message with respect to the company and its products (Kotler et al., 2005), to be able to achieve communication goals. Companies can use a tool called promotion mix. The elements of promotion mix are advertising, personal selling, direct marketing, public relations, and promotion through events, word of mouth, and sales promotion.
The business Home Care in word of mouth has various ways to create issues for Home Care to be established to build image and brand equity. Some issues that can be made for the application of word of mouth include marketing with word of mouth already exists with classical methods such as delivery of issues made to existing communities such as health centers and elderly communities and recitation, so that the conversation for the community.
The business home care also uses direct marketing method, which is on this method of home care we work together on the first level health facility to establish a stand in partner hospital that serves as an activity of introduction of home care to prospective customers.
The business home care also takes advantage of the Tools event, for the sixth month after the opening of home care counseling with some topics, on counseling which invites the experts as speakers, for example elderly gymnastics, at the Home Care seminar we invite doctors and nurses at the end The event was created with a promotional insert about home care to be established.
In the next event held customer gathering, the event is in order for the regular customer who uses Home Care services regularly in home care. The last event is to celebrate the holiday together; the event is intended for all internal and external parts that have a relationship with home care.
Advertising on home care to be established is divided into two, namely online and conventionally. Online method of advertising home care create a website with a company profile, how to register. In the conventional method, advertising is done by making a brochure to be distributed to the booth that is held in first level fasces
Public relations is the last tool in use in promotion activities home care on this activity public relations is done at the opening invites several press including the online press from the website of the government of Tangerang City and the bloggers who already have a good reputation with the number of followers above ten thousand. By using the services of blogger blog marketing word of mouth can happen by itself so that the public can be more familiar with home care.
The Risk on marketing is a potentially adverse event and it is known how many chances that the event will actually occur and how big the impact would be if the event actually happened.
The steps in minimizing the risk of product failure include market understanding, for example with qualitative research, categorization and segmentation to find out the competition map in the industry, the reasons why consumers buy certain products, how they
use a product and what needs are not met and when approaching a category assessment research, you examine consumer behavior toward products and product usage in a category, how consumers evaluate brands based on product attributes, what drives consumers to make purchases, and identifies consumer needs and fulfills their needs.
Home Care on marketing there are risks that can occur when sales targets are not achieved in the years that the solution has been set when normal sales targets are not achieved within a year there will be more regular promotions to various places such as health facility, radio, and some targeted Home Care target communities. And in the long run if the target is not achieved in marketing then there will be research on Home Care market in each target location such as in Tangerang City, South Tangerang, Tangerang Regency, and West Jakarta as a basis for the company in exploring the market understanding of the products we offered, Knowing the customer experience when using the product, evaluating the price with competitors, and how the product sell.
The risks can be anticipated by raising promos and making MOUs to partner hospitals, and offering to send each patient to Home Care will earn points for later seminars and training of the partner hospital. And in any agreement if in the emergency situation the Home Care will also direct and send patients to the hospital partner. The marketing risks that have been described can be anticipated by the company with a consideration when there are changes or constraints that exist in the Home care business environment.
CONCLUSION
The results of the analysis and discussion qualitatively conclude that Marketing Mix is a tool or tactical marketing strategy that can control product, price, distribution, and promotion combined by the company to produce the desired response in the target market". Marketing mix is used as a method of analysis that is able to support in starting a business as well as business development that will have a good impact to the success of the company. So to achieve the company's goals it takes marketing strategies that are useful for monitoring what's happening and what's going on inside the company and anticipating problems and opportunities in the coming period in a rapidly changing corporate environment.
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