CASE STUDY Assignment: Export Unlimited (EU) - Exporting Apples to Taiwan
Instruction: Assignment must be written following APA formatting guidelines for research papers (essay style) with appropriate headings used to segment each major section of paper. DO NOT use Q&A format. The paper must integrate assigned readings, peer-reviewed resources, and personal/professional experiences.
Situation Analysis
It is your first day at work and you are already confused. Export Unlimited (EU), one of the world's largest shipping companies, hasjust hired you. EU ships goods all around the world by ocean, air, and train. It has offices in many cities in the United States and in other countries. You have been hired to work in EU's Seattle office as an "Account Executive" for refrigerated goods. That is, you are hired to manage perishable goods (like apples or cherries) that need to be shipped from Seattle in refrigerated containers. It hasbeen a quiet first day until your boss givesyou the first big assignment. "Apples are one of Washington State's biggest crops," your boss says, "and I want EU to ship more apples to other countries. I want you to focus on Taiwan. One week from today, I want you to give me a marketing plan about what you are going to do to help EU carry more apples to Taiwan. If you have a good plan, you will receive a $10,000 bonus." You think to yourself, "Now what?"You don't have the first idea how EU could carry more apples to Taiwan.
What should you do? You decide to do some research.
• You speakto other people in the office to learn what they knowabout shipping apples.
• You e-mail Bruce Lee, EU's sales representative in New Taipei, Taiwan, and ask him about EU's business in Taiwan.
• Youusethe Internet and the library to learn more about exports from Washington State.
• You read everything you canfind at the office about EU's history and itsbusiness.
It takes a few days, but you finally areable to answer yourthreequestions:
1. What does EU do to get apples from Seattle to Taiwan?You learned that EU sends three ships a week from Seattle to New Taipei, Taiwan: one on Monday, one on Tuesday, and one on Friday. Because some of these ships go to other places first, one ship each week takes 21 days to get to Taiwan,one takes 17,and one takes 15.
You learned that appleskept in a refrigerated container canstay fresh for a 22-day trip. However, most customers of perishable goods want the 15-day trip. You alsolearned that EU's refrigerated containers guarantee EU customers their apples willstay at exactly the right temperature, neither frozen nor too hot. Finally, you learned that EU can promise customers exactly when their goods will leave Seattle and when they will arrive in New Taipei.
2. What is Washington State's apple business like?You learned that farmers in Washington State grow twelve different kinds of apples. Washington apples are sold around the country and around theworld.You also learned that Washington State sells 15% of all fruit exported from the United States to othercountries.
3. Do people in Taiwan want to buy apples? You learned that people inTaiwan do indeed buy Washington apples. Their favorite is the Fuji, a spicy-sweet apple. Unlike Americans, who often buy apples in big bags, youlearned that people in Taiwan tend to buy apples one at a time, paying specialattention to how ripe, shiny, and well-shaped they are.
You also learned that people in Taiwan buy more apples during holidays or festivals, using these apples for gifts or as offerings at shrines or temples.Washington apples can be sold year-round because those that aren't sold atharvest-time are kept in controlled atmosphere warehouses to "put the apples tosleep" until they are needed. Taiwan's biggest apple-buyingholiday is the Chinese New Year, which usually falls around the end of January.
You have learned a lot of information in just a few days, but you still don't know enough to write a marketing plan. What should you do next?
Next Steps
"Of course!"youthink, "I need to figure out who my customersare. I have to write this plan for my boss, but it is my customers who will decide whether or not to ship more apples."You decide to do somemore research. Youdeterminethat youhavethree kinds of customers:
• First, there are the apple farmers in Eastern Washington. Youhaveto convince them totrust their apples to EU.
• Second, there are the apple traders who buy and sell the apples.
• Third, you will work with the grocery store owners in Taiwan who willsell the apples oncethey arrive in Taiwan. Youhaveto convince them that apples shipped by EUwillarrive in good condition.
You would have to get to know each of these types of customers and convince them that EU could do the best job.
• You have to convince the apple farmers that EU could deliver their apples safelyand quickly to Taiwan. You have to convince them that EU would do a better jobthan any other shipper.
• You have to convince the apple traders that EU would not only deliver the apples safely, butalso that EU hasgood connections in Taiwan. You want them to see thatworking with EU would make a trader's job easier.
• Finally, you have to convince the grocery store owners in Taiwan that EU would shipthem only the finest Fuji apples and that those apples would arrive in goodcondition just at the time they were needed.
Now you just have to turn all of this into a presentation for your bossandhopefully receivea $10,000 bonus.
Getting the basic information or doing research is the first step in this or any other problem when you donot know enough to solve the problem by yourself.
Task #1: Prepare detailed answers to the questions below (follow APA guidelines for written assignments; DO NOT use Q&A method for this assignment). Use additional sources of information as necessary to obtain export marketing information. Support your responses with evidence based research.
Information about EU
1. What do you know about EU?
2. What kind of services does EU offer to Taiwan?
3. Is EU good at shipping apples? (research & analysis required to support response)
4. How often does EU send ships between Seattle and Taiwan?
5. How long does it take a ship to get to Taiwan?
6. How is it possible to ship apples that far withoutspoiling? (research & analysis required to support response)
Information about Washington Apples (evidence based research required)
1. When are apples harvested, and what happens to them after harvesting?
2. How are the apples shipped?
3. What kinds of apples do Washington State farmers grow?
4. What is the volume of apples thatare exported on an annual basis from Washington State?
5. What are the primary export markets (top 10) for apples and how manyapples are exported to each market (volume)?
Taiwan Expectations of Apples
1. What is the current consumption rate for apples in Taiwan? What kinds of apples do they prefer and why?
2. What are the Taiwanese buying habits, with respect to apples? How are they different than US consumers?
3. What times of theyearare Taiwanese consumers most likely to buy apples?
Information Tools to Help Solve Problems
1. How can you get the information you need?
2. Identify at least six sources of export marketing information.
Explaining the Export Marketing Plan
1. What do these customers want to know about EU?
2. How can youconvincethem that EU could do the best job or better job than any other shipper?
Task #2: Write a Memo Outlining Your Plan of Action
Write a 1-page memo to the boss outlining the stepsyou will take to get Washington apple farmers, traders and Taiwan grocery storeowners to use EU (Would you meet with them, send them information aboutEU, take out ads, and try to match up buyers and sellers, etc.?). Present your marketing tactics to win each of these clients.
Task #3: Write a personal reflection on the topic addressing the main objectives of your export marketing plan. Consider the key factors that influenced your plan for the company's market expansion. Also, reflect on the role of the Christian employee and discuss key biblical principles that support your position.
For your marketing plan to be a good one(and for you to get your$10,000 bonus) youreallyneed to gear it to the needs of your customers: the apple farmers in Washington State and the grocery store owners in Taiwan.
Bibliography
(At least 3 scholarly sources must be referenced in APA format)