Gojek Singapore Marketing Case

Gojek Singapore. Market research take role in Gojek’s expansion plan to Singapore where customer behavior, cultural norms and economic characteristics may be different between Indonesia and Singapore.

To expand its business in Singapore, Gojek must carry out market research to strengthen its business position and create the best business model to be applied in Singapore. By doing market research, the project will find out the risk and profit potential that will be obtained by knowing the characteristics of competitors, the market, consumer behavior, revenue projection, and strategic planning. I think Indonesia and Singapore markets have any differences due to culture, customer and economic characteristics. Here are my analyzes about the differences:

Customer and driver behavior

a) Gojek users in Singapore are older than other markets, 35-44 (https://www.synthesio.com/blog/audience-analysis-gojek-way-success/). Younger people prefer to use mass transportation because the mass transportation facility is guaranteed. Unlike in Indonesia, Gojek users are more dominated by the age of 24-35 years. Mobile work and more use of go- ride (motorbike) because of the condition of the road traffic jam compared to in Singapore, motorbikes are rarely and prefer to use the taxi or car.

b) Consumers in Singapore are very loyal to a brand, will give honest feedback that is different from the customer in Indonesia which can still think that something that is not appropriate is not a problem. Clear feedback will affect the assessment performance of the Gojek application including customer satisfaction and loyalty. The more brands provide a good experience, the more loyal consumers in Singapore.

c) One of the Gojek’s mainstream revenue in Indonesia market is go-food, but in Singapore, there are already 2 big players for food delivery service with a 30% discount and 40% promo, it means that Gojek must give a bigger or minimum discount to compete.

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Cultural norms and government regulation

The insurance policy set by the Singapore government is very beneficial, therefore Gojek must pay attention to insurance guarantees for both the driver and the customer. Maybe this is a little different from Indonesia, although there is an insurance program in Gojek Indonesia, Indonesian people themselves are not too focus on the insurance. In Singapore, the Gojek competitor, Grab is already providing driver health and insurance guarantees.
There is a Private Hire Car Driver’s Vocational License in Singapore that requires drivers to have a minimum of 2 years driving experience to apply, So the driver’s supply in Singapore is limited.
Drivers in Singapore little bit different from drivers in Indonesia. Indonesia drivers still want to use a credit system with a pay later scheme. But in Singapore, the drivers are concerned with operating expenses. (Update information from edb.gov.sg, Gojek has a program for Singapore drivers, GoalBetter program, which offers fuel rebates, insurance, and medical consultation services).
As we know, people in Singapore are more orderly, especially for public facilitation. Gojek must pay attention to these norms by giving attention to the drivers to be more orderly, this may be very different from in Indonesia where drivers and customers can still make stops anywhere.
Every building in Singapore uses a zip code, this is certainly new for Gojek because in Indonesia when searching for locations no zip code is needed.
Singapore Government is intent on reducing its carbon footprint and vehicular population. (https://www.marketing-interactive.com/go-jek-in-singapore- caution-needs-to-be-exercised-in-order-to-not-look-too-cheap), So Gojek should consider their policies related to the vehicle driver and how to anticipate it.

Economic characteristic

Aspirational consumerism. Singapore people think that they have become more secure in their wealth. So their buying behavior related to their lifestyle choices. The ability to pay is high as long as the value and service the brand to them is valuable. (https://www.ricemedia.co/commentary-current- affairs-grab-v-go-jek-say-singaporean-consumer/)
Due to grab and uber merger, grab had pivoted to their market. There was a complaint from the ride-hailing consumer about changes in Grab’s pricing. The Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) found that Grab increased its price after the merger (10-15%) and the rewards for loyal customers were decreased as well as driver incentives. Its change customer demand to Grab service due to bad impression. Customers look for lower prices and service satisfaction so is the driver who looks for better incentives. It’s an advantage to Gojek, but they should have lower pricing and better incentive rather than Grab.
According to the payment method in Singapore, Gojek should adjust to payment characteristics in Singapore. (Gojek has a make a deal with DBS (Singapore Bank) for payment method. It gives exclusive offerings for DBS cardholders in Gojek application usage. The collaboration has started since Gojek launch their alpha application in Singapore)
Some people in Singapore would prefer to pay with EZ-link.

Should Gojek modify it’s app for Singapore market?

Yes of course, because adjusting to customer and driver behavior, economic, culture and government policy in Singapore will determine what business model and strategy will be applied. As explained in point a, the characteristics of the market in Singapore are quite different from those in Indonesia. Even the Gojek market in other South East Asia countries.

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