Mini Case Study: BMW

About the Company:

• Bayerische MotorenWerke

(BMW) is a German luxury

vehicles, motor cycle and engine

manufacturing company.

• Was founded in 1916 as an

aircraft engine manufacturer.

• Internationally respected

company with $106 billion in

sales.

BMW’S Logo

• Originally thought to be a

tribute to the company’s

founding days as an aircraft

manufacturer.

• Meant to show the colors

of the Free State of Bavaria.

BMW’s growth exploded

when it successfully

targeted the specific

market segment.

So what is market

segmentation??

Market segmentation

divides a market into

well-defined slices.

How can a market

be segmented??

Target Marketing

Four Main Levels to Target Market

Mass marketing

Multiple segments

Single (niche) segment Individuals

What BMW

did??

BMW 3,5,7 Series

BMW X Series

Upper liberals

Questions raised

at the end of mini

case

How does BMW segment its consumers?

Why does this work for BMW?

The company has

used demographic

and geographic

market

segmentation. The

demographic

market segment is

divided into

income, age and

gender.

By segmenting

the market into

different

segments, it

successfully

targeted the

growing market.

What does BMW do well to market to each

segment group? Where could it improve its

marketing strategy?

BMW marketed to

each segment by

giving them what

they needed. Such

as, BMW created a

lower price SUV

that was targeted to

a group called

“modern

mainstream.”

It could improve

its marketing

strategy by

targeting females

and middle class

also.

Should BMW ever change its tagline, “The Ultimate Driving

Machine”? Why or why not?

I personally think that BMW

should not change their

tagline. Their tagline stays

true to their company and

BMW has backed up their

claim with their cars that are

thrilling to drive.

SummaryBMW’s Logo

So what is market

segmentation??

Target Marketing Questions

based on

Mini Case

About the Company

Created by Shashank Srivastava, IET Lucknow, during a

marketing internship under the guidance of Prof. Sameer

Mathur, IIM Lucknow.