the viability of segways for college students
TRANSCRIPT
Segway LLCPresented by Kelly Morris
Would you sport this?
Quick Facts 85- Pound Scooter
Top Speeds of 12.5 MPH
Carries up to 250 pounds
Operates on battery
Tsk Tsk:Problem Definition
• Consumer Recall• Faulty Batteries &
Internal Software Imperfections
• Price Issue• Marketing Strategy• Target Market
Would this fulfill your need for speed??
A Possible Solution?
Expand Market Segment to Include College Students<Generation Y>
Research Questions
R1: Would expanding Segway’s target market to include college students increase use of the product?
– H1a: Students would be more willing to purchase a
Segway at a lower price than they had been offered in the past.
– H1b: Students will only buy a Segway if they are able to test drive it first from a reputable vendor that is easily accessible would provide an incentive to purchase the product.
R2: What specific needs of the student population could Segway Fulfill?
– H2a: Segway will help solve the widespread parking issues that plague college campuses.
– H2b: The use of Segway will aid student financial problems with respect to gas expenditures.
R3: Would students be willing to utilize Segway scooters as an alternative form of transportation
to/from/around campus?
– H3a: Students will be willing to utilize Segway scooters as an alternative form of transportation to/from/around campus.
R4: How much would students be willing to pay
for a Segway?
– H4a: Males will be willing to pay more than females for a Segway.
– H4b: Students will be more willing to pay for a Segway if a payment plan is available to them that is flexible and fits their needs.
R5: Would customization of Segways affect the willingness of students to purchase the product?
– H5a: Students would be more willing to purchase a Segway if
they were able to customize the product.
Research Design
Target Population:College Students
Sample Population:
VT Students
Sampling Method: Non-Probability Convenience Sample
Benefits2. Largest Sample Size3. Fast4. Low Cost
Limitations2. Not representative
of population
2. Self-selection bias&
Data Collection Method: Online Survey
Benefits2. Cheap3. Reach larger number
of people4. Fast5. No interviewer bias6. Take at leisure, not
rushedThreats to Validity
1. Maturation Effect2. Mortality Effect3. Auspices Bias
&
Sampling Frame: VT Listserves
1. Pi Sigma Epsilon2. Delta Sigma Pi3. Pi Kappa Alpha4. Delta Zeta5. Delta Delta Delta6. Management Society7. Marketing Major8. Marketing Club
Ta Da!Research Results
RQ1: What would increase the attractiveness of a Segway?
3 options were given to choose from72.4% - Change Color
33%- Add a Decal24% - Personalize the License Plate
Change Color
Add Decal
License Plate
RQ2: How much are students willing to pay for a Segway?
– 62 respondents did not answer this question! Why?– # that would actually buy a Segway: 2– # willing to use a Segway around campus: 33.
H2A: Students’ reservation price is less than the market price.
-Mean reservation price: well under $2000 vs market price: between $4000 and $5000.-Lack of responses caused by: lack of product demand or
the inability to place a specific price on the product.
RQ3: Would students be more willing to purchase a Segway if they were able to test drive it first?
Yes. 90.9% of students who said they were willing to use a Segway chose to test drive the product first before deciding to purchase.
RQ4: What specific needs of the student population could Segway fulfill?
H4A: Segway will help solve the widespread parking issues that plague college campuses.
– We wanted to know if students who described parking as poor or fair would be more willing to purchase the product for more parking convenience.
– This was not significant
RQ5: Will the use of Segways aid student
financial problems with respect to gas expenditures?
– Minimal correlation between students willing to use a Segway on campus and those affected greatly by rising gas prices
– Majority of students were not affected by rise in gas prices
RQ6: Would upperclassmen be more willing to use Segway scooters as a form or transportation
to/from/around campus more than underclassmen?
– Problem: Only 1 freshmen answered our survey– Junior and seniors showed similar results so they were
grouped together as upperclassmen, and remaining respondents were classified as underclassmen.
– Of the 30% of students willing to use a Segway on campus, 50% of those were underclassmen
H6A: Males will be willing to pay more than females for a Segway.
– No significance between gender and maximum cost willing to be paid for a Segway.
H6B: Students will be more willing to pay for a Segway if a payment plan is available to them that
is flexible and fits their unique needs– On a 10 point scale:
• Gas cost: mean 7.8• Convenience of parking in motorcycle spots: mean 7.4• Flexible Payment plan: mean 6.6
* Compares only those students willing to use a Segway on campus
Oops!
• Topic– Pick one that better relates to college students– Interesting but unreasonable for this research project– Difficult problem definition & scope
• Research Questions and Hypotheses– More specific – Should have linked each stage in the project together more closely with the
problem definition• Survey questions
– Form to directly correlate with the research questions and hypotheses– When coming up with research questions and hypotheses keep the data
analysis stage in mind
for Segway:
Present as originally intended• Specialized product
Stick with original target marketAddress price concerns Product awareness campaignAddress all possible areas of use…be creative !
Take-Away…
Big Picture: Research as a StairMaster…each stage builds on the step before (and increases in difficulty)
No I in TEAM…5 heads are better than 1!!!
Minor changes in design = major changes in results
Marketing Research is an essential ingredient for the recipe of any company’s product strategy.
(and Segway’s may not be as cool as we thought)