Executive Summary
Ooredoo is an established telecom company in Qatar with a presence in almost twelve countries. This marketing plan provides a well-researched PESTE analysis of the United Kingdom market, a SWOT analysis of the Ooredoo, and marketing strategies that the company should deploy in the UK market for it to succeed. It comprises the target market, marketing strategy, marketing mix, and competitors in the market, and strategies that should be deployed to market the brand and improve sales of the company.
Introduction
OOREDOO was started in 1987 as a telephone exchange in Doha. It is one of the telecommunication firms based in Doha, Qatar, with a presence in the entire Middle East. The company was started to provide the best telecommunication products, services and branding across the Middle East and other regions. However, Ooredoo provides wireless, wireline, mobile, and customer services to both local and international markets. Ooredoo has grown to be one of the largest firms, which provides an opportunity for new investors to contribute and share the success of a company. The largest shares of the company are owned by the state of Doha. Ooredoo Corporation intends to enter the United Kingdom market so that it can expand its market shares and increase its profitability.
Marketing Environment (PESTE)
Political and Legal
The United Kingdom (UK) is a political monarchy that is influenced by the parliamentary system. The country is fairly stable with a proactive government. The country is split into levels the national and local administration. According to Khalif (2016, p. 23), the national government does not control businesses or corporations operating within the country, and therefore, it gives all companies an equal opportunity to compete effectively. The Brexit caused a lot of anxiety, but it has not raised any political temperature that could affect the operation of businesses in the country. Though the country has some cases of corruption, which is hidden cannot interfere with the Ooredoo Company.
Economic
The United Kingdom has a high GDP and diverse economy in Europe and globally as well. It is the fifth-highest GDP worldwide and the second in Europe after Germany. It has a strong economic position compared to other countries. As stated by Ali (2016, p. 30), the large population of the country allows it to provide better opportunities for small markets to be highly profitable. This makes it possible for new companies to perform well in the market. The UK is a free market economy with a diverse economy suitable for both private and public sectors. There has been a lot of direct foreign investment being realized since the end of the economic downtown, and therefore, this makes the UK market ideal for Ooredoo. The unemployment rate stands at 5.7% this is because of the slow economic recovery that has been witnessed since the economic downturn of 2008 and 2009, which affected several companies. It is also noted the inflation rate is also estimated to be 3.4% but it is expected to reduce due to the reduction of oil prices (Ali, 2016, p. 12).
Socio-Cultural
The United Kingdom is densely populated, with an estimated population of 64.1 million people. The country is open to immigrants from different countries, and therefore, it has increased the population of most urban environments. The majority of people have a high standard of living, and it is regarded to be one of the countries with the most highly literate citizens in the world. The presence of a lot of immigrants in the United Kingdom has lowered the cost of the workforce. It makes it possible to get affordable labor that can work effectively and efficiently work in most industries. It is, therefore, important to note that the majority of people have access to mobile phones, and the internet is one of the basic needs since it is used to drive business and also for communication purposes.
Technology
Research established that the United Kingdom has one of the best technologies in the region, and it plays a key role in its development. There are quality innovation skills driving almost every sector of the economy. According to Ooredoo (2017, p. 9), there are also several expertise in IT and science. The law of intellectual property is also clear and respected, and therefore, piracy is minimal. This makes it possible for an IT or telecommunication company to experience growth faster than in other countries where copyright laws are either available or not followed.
Environmental Concerns and Influences
The UK government has taken a crucial role in developing several environmental policies being applied in Europe and globally as well. It believes in a safer and more secure environment for business and living to increase growth. However, the country is implementing Defra, which regulates the food industry, environmental issues, and animal welfare in the country.
3.0. Company Overview
The Ooredoo has been operating in Qatar for the last thirty-five years. It has a wider market share in the Middle East, and therefore, entering the UK market prevail a challenging task for the organization to compete with similar corporations with larger market shares and strong financial backgrounds. Ooredoo has established operations in almost all countries in the Middle East and other countries in Europe and South America. It has almost 167 million subscribers, and it is one of the largest telecom corporations in the world.
3.1. Direct Competitors
The study has revealed that direct competitors of Ooredoo in the UK market are Vodafone, Virgin and Talk Talk. These are the known and well-established telecom firms in the UK. Vodafone is the largest telecom firm in the United Kingdom, with strong financial backing. The company has a presence in most countries across the globe, and therefore, it makes Vodafone has the highest market share in the telecom industry (Khalif, 2015, p. 21).
3.2. Substitutes
The VOIP provider and other virtual telecom providers are some of the substitute competitors of the Ooredoo in the UK market and therefore, needs to be addressed so that the company would be able to experience growth and stability in the UK telecom market.
SWOT Analysis
Strength
Ooredoo has strong financial backing and has been realizing profit in all the markets it operates since it was established. It is the third-largest telecom firm in terms of financial growth and status. It has the largest market share in Qatar and the Middle East, which makes stable and reliable telecom company, and therefore, it can finance and compete effectively with other firms such as Vodafone. It is well well-established brand in the market that consumers can easily associate with, and this can make it easy to penetrate the UK market.
Weakness
The company has a higher group debt which occurred after issuance of bonds. The political issues can affect the operation of the company and hence affect its growth strategies.
Opportunities
The company launched Ooredoo 4TV, which can revolutionize the entertainment industry. The FIFA 2022 in Qatar prevails as an opportunity for the company to experience growth since it will bring tourists and other fans to Qatar. The company needs to upgrade its infrastructure so that it can cover larger regions and expand to other markets such as Africa and South America.
Threat
The main threat to Ooredoo is the political instability in the Middle East and the terrorist attack in Europe. It can reduce the company’s performance and scare investors as well. The success of Ooredoo depends on the economic performance of Qatar and the existence of Oil which is dangerous for the future performance of the company (Barrie, 2016, p. 12).
5.0. Target Market
The Ooredoo is strategically targeting middle-class and business-class individuals in the market. It intends to deploy its fibre and wireless products, which can be used to inspire business growth. Most customers are expected to be aged between 18 years to 35 years and 40 to 55 years, who are business owners in the United Kingdom. It also targets college students using social media more often with its mobile internet so that it can expand its market share in the United Kingdom.
6.0. Marketing Objectives
Ooredoo’s marketing objective is to put the brand and products at the heart of the digital world, able to make sure that the value of a global, converging communication market is realized. The company intends to offer efficient services and offer reliability in the field of telecommunication in order to have a competitive advantage in the market.
7.0. Marketing Strategy – Positioning
The company intends to deploy different marketing strategies to make sure that it creates a brand position in the market. It shall be efficient, provide high-speed internet, and offer effective and better customer support for all issues to make sure that customers are satisfied.
8.0. Marketing Mix
8.1. Product
Ooredoo intends to provide high-speed internet to the market through its newly launched 5G. It shall offer wireless, wireline network services to corporate and small traders or SMEs. In order to increase its sales, the company shall also offer mobile internet to college students and other mobile users in the UK. Therefore, Ooredoo shall offer wireless and wireline internet, mobile internet, 4TV services to households, and VoIP services to customers.
8.2. Pricing
The price of all its products shall be very competitive and considerable based on the market price. It prices shall be affordable and competitive as well so that the Ooredoo does not lose customers to its competitors in the market (Ooredoo, 2017, p. 12).
8.3. Promotion
In order to reach customers, Ooredoo shall such advertisements in print newspapers and TV, conduct sales promotion of its products, sponsor activities and games as part of CSR, and build an active social media platform to engage customers and promote its products and brand as well. The company shall spend on TV advertisements to make aware of the products offered by the company and influence them to purchase the product ( BI-ME Staff Report, 2015, p. 5). However, it intends to use social media and print advertisement to build the brand in the UK market. The intention of the company is to build the brand and improve its sales, and therefore, it uses sales promotion, advertisement, and social media as the recommended techniques in the UK market.
8.4. Place
Ooredoo shall have stores in a major street and open others across the UK to increase the accessibility of its services.
9.0. Monitoring and evaluation
The company performance and impact of marketing strategy shall be monitored and evaluated based on performance and feedback from customers. The improved performance, such as an increase in sales of products in the UK market, means the recommendations are working since the intention of the company is to increase sales and build its brand.
10.0 Bibliography
BI-ME Staff Report. 2015. Ooredoo’s strategy focused on social media. http://www.bi-
me.com/main.php?id=62608&t=1 , 2-15.
Ali, O. 2016. Ooredoo Announces Strategy to Be “Leading Integrated ICT Provider in Qatar and
in the Region”. Ooredoo Report , 4-38.
Barrie, G. 2016. Connected Women : A case study of Mymmar.
https://www.gsma.com/mobilefordevelopment/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Ooredoo-Myanmar-Case-study-30March15-FINAL1.pdf , 2-38.
Khalif, M. 2015. Ooredoo Mymmar Case Study. Financial and operational management report
, 2-38.
Ooredoo. 2017. Ooredoo SWOT and PESTEL Analysis .
https://www.swotandpestle.com/ooredoo/ , 2-35.
