Eurostar is a high-speed train plying between two European capitals, Paris and Brussels, with a stopover in London in the center, by using the Channel Tunnel (some other French destinations - figure 1 - are occasionally served such as the alpine ski resorts during winter or even the Avignon train station during the summer). Since the first passenger transport in 1994, the company offers its best service to customers in terms of travel.
This train reaches Central London in a very short duration. Major projects are still under process. Indeed, work on the British lines and a change in the arrival station in London (expected later in the year) will further reduce travel times while improving passenger's comfort. Eurostar, with this quality of service, will surely win on the travel segment in spite of numerous active competitors.
We will initially study the segmentation of the market supply of travelers between Paris and London. Then we will analyze how Eurostar makes the segmentation of consumer demand in order to meet their expectations. Using the positioning proposed by Kapferer, we finally analyze the positioning strategy adopted by the company.
When a passenger wants to travel to Central London, he has an array of offers available to him. The offer is very comprehensive and suitable for all applications.
Airlines
Many airlines offer flight from Paris to London, for instance, Skyteam (including Air France-KLM), British Airways, EasyJet BMI but also (Figure 2). These flights provide different levels of service ranging from economy to business class.The companies offer very attractive rates on these flights and can be compared to the rates charged by Eurostar. For example Air France, which offers round-trips from Paris to London for 100 euros or British Airways with a price of 94 euros.
The low cost airline EasyJet, offers even more attractive rates with a starting price set at 76 euros.This company alone accounts for 5% market share of passenger traffic between Paris and London. The strengths of this means of transport are speed of travel, and also especially the frequency of flights offered (up to 19 starts in the day for some companies!).The weak point is the accessibility of this mode of transport because of the location of the airports(Paris or London).
Tags: Eurostar, British Airways, EasyJet BMI, Air France-KLM, frequency of flights, segmentation, positioning strategy, Central London
[...] Eurostar uses icons such as Harry Potter One of the targets chosen by the company is the category of young travelers. We know that this is customer very attentive to fashion. We also know that this demographic segment is always on the lookout for "fun" activities. They enjoy free time and do not hesitate to go travel frequently on weekends. To reach out to them, one has to appeal to the references, which “speaks to them”. The age group between 15-30 years has a common language, shared by many and is very well aware of the products and services provided. [...]
[...] We can recognize certain cliches the French naturally assume to be part of the ‘London' way of life on the Eurostar Communication: the cheeky side of city life, shopping as a religion, the dynamic night life, etc. The website of the company in its part is devoted to leisure travelers and is entirely focused in that direction. Businessmen as consumers The second segment developed by Eurostar is the business clientele. Expectations are obviously very different and must be adapted to reach this population. [...]
[...] Airlines are the only true competitors for Eurostar. Indeed, it is unique in offering direct routes to London from towns served by the train at high speed.These are also the only ones to offer a travel time that is short and comfortable enough. When ? During a business trip or a romantic weekend; the Eurostar provides users with everything they may want while traveling between Paris and London Who?: The market for travel between Paris and London is the target of Eurostar. Specifically, the company focuses its [...]
[...] The segmentation of demand adopted by Eurostar To reach the widest possible customer base, Eurostar must segment its offer. For this, the company must understand the consumers of its service. It should identify the various groups of consumers that behave identically and then adapt its offer according to the criteria by which a rich and diverse communication will be presented to potential customers of Eurostar. In this case, the sociodemographic and behavioral problems are highlighted. The offer is therefore based on the idea that there are two types of customers in this market: pleasure seeking customers and called "business" customers. [...]
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