Part A: Evaluation of the business

This report is focused on a business “Honest Jim’s Cars” to determine their current business position and evaluation of the business from different perspectives. In this report, the evaluation of the business has been done with the help of SWOT and Porter’s Five Forces analysis. The business model that will be suitable for the business has also been presented in this report. Further, the sales data of past 12 months has been analyzed to determine current position of the business and the margin of profit. Some prototype pages have also been designed in this report as there is no online presence of the business.

The business that has been chosen for analysis in this report is “Honest Jim’s Cars” that focuses on providing high quality and affordable used cars to the customers. The business is based in Melbourne and provides unbeatable deals as well as services to the customers. The founders Jim Smith and partners opened the first car yard in the year 1972 however they had to struggle much for three years. In 1975, they gained popularity as one of their most loyal customers became a famous TV and film star. Their business is well spread in Melbourne but now they have also decided to expand in other two states that is Queensland and New South Wales. The business is also facing many challenges and they also do not have online presence so they have decided to develop their online presence for promoting their products. The present owners that is sons of the original owners are not experienced thus it is affecting the business significantly.

The best suited model for the business of Honest Jim’s is Direct Sales business model which will help them to increase their competitive advantage. The business will be able to increase their sales through proper promotion and marketing of their products. This model is suitable for the business as it is focuses on target audience. The target audience of the business is interstate customers as the demand from interstate markets is growing rapidly.

The business needs to develop a website so that the customers could easily get information about the products or services being offered by Honest Jim’s Cars. A business website will also help the business to increase awareness among the customers. The customers will be able to stay connected with the business through website.

The SWOT analysis is carried out in context to the Honest Jim’s Cars business as presented below:

Strengths	Weaknesses
Provides quality as well as affordable cars. Large customer base. Affordable rates as compared to competitors. Brand image of the company. Adequate availability of showrooms. Facility of car loans.	The sons of the original owners run the business who are inexperienced. There is no online presence of their business. The cost for purchasing used cars is high. The buyers do not have access to adequate information. Luxury cars are not included in their stock.
Opportunities	Threats
Increase in population. Rapid growth in demand for used cars. Increase in demand for quality and affordable cars. First hand cars are much expensive in Australia.	Change in market regulations or standards for second hand products. Proper handling of customer information. Unavailability of skilled labours for repairing used cars. Inability to meet the international standards.

Industry Background

From the above analysis on current position of the business, it can be said that there are various difficulties and challenges faced by the business however there are some strong points and opportunities to improve the business performance. The issues within the business have to be mitigated to ensure success of the business.  

Bargaining power of suppliers: This aspect relates to analyzing the supplier power and how they could develop pressure on the market for changing price, quality or product availability. The suppliers in context to this business are the first hand users or car dealers in the local market that purchases car from the owners and sell to the business. In context to this business, this aspect is less dominant as the car dealers have less influence in the market as compared to the business.

Bargaining power of customers: This aspect relates to power of customers with regards to bargaining for price while purchasing a used car from the business. The customers have high bargaining power so the business has to set some standard limit for prices at which a particular car could be sold based on the condition.

Rivalry among competitors: The competition among the rivals in the market has reduced but it could anytime change if the business does not consider it as a major concern. Some companies are still existing in the market that could take over their business if not handled properly. The business should introduce more attractive and innovative ways to engage their customers to the business.

Threat of Substitution: A substitute product in the automotive industry is not possible however there are chances that customers could get attracted towards other type of cars rather than those sold by the business. The business has cars of all three fuel types so there is less chance of substitution but they have to increase their stocks also for hybrid cars.

Threat of New entrants: This aspect refers to entry of a new business competitor in the market with same type of products or services being offered by Honest Jim’s Cars. A new business company could overtake the market by providing exciting offers or discounts so that business should analyze the present market condition at a regular basis.

The spreadsheet with past 12 months’ data of the Honest Jim’s Cars sales has been completed as presented below:

Figure 1: View of the completed spreadsheet with provided data

Business model and environment

(Source: Created by Author)

From the above information, it is found that the total profit being earned by the business over past 12 months is $414,287.10.

Trends or insights identified to gain a competitive advantage

Trend 1 – Highest profit making car (Make)

Figure 2: Total Sales information as per Make of cars from the provided data

(Source: Created by Author)

From the above diagram, it can be said that the highest sold cars by the company is of Toyota and it has contributed the most towards profit. The sale of Toyota cars has remarkably increased profit margin of the company with a value of $ 131829.80 which is much higher than the other cars.

Trend 2 – Highest selling car (Fuel)

Figure 3: Total Sales information as per Fuel type of cars from the provided data

(Source: Created by Author)

In the above diagram, the total sales of cars as per fuel type has been illustrated which demonstrates that Diesel type is most sold car by the company. From the data, it can be also said that customers prefer diesel cars more than petrol or hybrid cars.

Trend 3 – Highest selling car type (Type)

Figure 4: Total Sales information as per Type of cars from the provided data

(Source: Created by Author)

From the above diagram, it can be said that the most preferred type of car is Ute as it has the most selling value that is 15 in numbers while others have a low value. The Ute type cars are more preferred by the customers rather than Sedan, Sport or SUV. The Ute cars are most selling as those vehicles are mostly used as utility vehicles.

Affordance: The designed pages for the business website are such that it could easily meet the expectation of the users. The elements being used such as the toolbar for search, navigation bar in every page could be easily identified by the users with or without technical knowledge and expertise. The pages have been designed with familiar elements so that the users do not have to spend more time in determining the functions of each element and use the interface with ease.

Consistency: For maintaining consistency in the website, the interface has been designed with commonly used UI (User Interface) elements that is buttons, navigation and menu bars. The elements have been placed in such a manner that the users could easily view the options available in the website. The products have been categorized with the help of vertical and horizontal navigation bars so that users could easily find their desired cars without applying filters.

Value proposition

Constraints: This principle has been applied while designing the prototype pages such that the users could stay focused on the required actions. The system will prompt the user to provide input or take necessary action where required. The designed interface will make the users proceed to next step only after completing the required actions at previous step. The interface will also ensure that less chances of error while the users performs a certain action as it will request for confirmation at every step.

Visibility of system status: The designed interface will offer the users with constant communication and feedback while operating the commands performed by the user. The interface will provide the users with feedback so that the users could easily understand progress being made by the system. The interface will also help the user to determine the next step that is being performed by the system while the user performs an action.

Error prevention: The interfaces being designed has been provided with a button so that the users could easily revert back to their previous action in case a wrong action is being taken by the user. The designed pages are embedded with a “Back” button at the topmost left corner to ensure that it is easily visible to user as well as the user will be prompted at every step to confirm their actions.

Consistency and standards: The interfaces have been designed maintaining the consistency and standards of web design. The elements being used in the interface are common and typical as used in almost every website so that the users do not have to think much while performing actions in the system.

Figure 5: Home page for “Honest Jim’s Cars” business website

(Source: Created by Author)

Figure 6: Purchase/Bookings page for “Honest Jim’s Cars” business website

(Source: Created by Author)

Selected output product page

Figure 7: Selected product page for “Honest Jim’s Cars” business website

(Source: Created by Author)

The additional tools or engagement methods that will be included in the website to increase its competitive advantage are discussed as below:

Linking the main business site to social network site: This tool could be used in the website so that more people could become aware of the business. It will also help the business to increase their customer base through advertising and marketing with the help of social networking sites.

Better website search engine presence: This tool will enhance the customer experience as the users will not have to search throughout the entire website to find their preferred car. The interface has already been implemented with a “Search” bar so that users could easily find the right option from the entire website.

SWOT analysis and discussion

Customer enhancement options: This tool will include implementing various options for enhancing the customer engagement. A map facility will be included in the website so that the customers could get easy access to the showrooms along with purchasing and payment options could be included so that the customers could purchase their desired car through online. Further, feedback and customer support facility will be included in the website so that the customers could easily get support and express their opinion on the services.

Conclusion

From the above discussions carried out in this report, it can be concluded that the business performance could be improved with the help of online presence. A website for the business will help them to carry out their operations easily and increase awareness among the customers. The threats and challenges faced by the business have to mitigated with the help of training sessions or recruiting skilled professionals with better business ideas. The handling of information is another concern that should be considered by the business so that they could improve their business performance. The trends being found from the provided data reflects that the business should focus on procuring Toyota and Diesel cars as it contributes to a significant amount of the profit.

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