Applied business projects (MBA 795): why sales of Proton declined / Maria Kamarulzaman, Khairulaniza Khairuddin and Nor Hamimah Hamidun

The Malaysian automotive industry and car market had grown to a stage where it had gained recognition and the participation of principals directly from Germany, Japan and the United States. With the entry of more renowned foreign-made cars into the Malaysian market, automotive companies need to promote their brands more aggressively, as it is the key to gaining sales turnover and market share in an increasingly competitive environment. The purpose of this research was to highlight the declination in the sales of Proton cars for the past few years and to determine the factors contributing to the declination. As an established carmaker, Proton is a full-fledged car manufacturer with the capabilities to design, invent, engineer and build their own cars and engines. They have become less dependent on others but still do not have the vast resources of some of the global players. Being a national car, Proton's performance in sales for the past few years has been discouraging. From the research conducted we also examined some theoretical considerations such as SWOT Analysis, PEST Analysis, Porter's Five Forces Model and the Value Chain Model, which are relevant and useful for the study. This is particularly important for the car manufacture to have a good framework and concept in reviewing a situation, planning for strategic directions and marketing proposition. Apart from that, customer satisfaction will also represents a profitable competitive strategy.