Exxon Mobil Marketing Mix

Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) is one of the largest publicly traded oil companies in America. It ranked number three in the Fortune 500 list of 2020. The company has its headquarters in Irving, Texas, United States.

The company was incorporated in the state of New Jersey in 1882. In its more than 135 years of existence, the company has come far from being a regional marketer of Kerosene in the United States to become one of the largest publicly traded petroleum and petrochemical companies in the world.

Today, Exxon-Mobil operates in almost all the countries throughout the globe and is known by several of its familiar brand names including Exxon, Esso, and Mobil.

The main businesses operated by Exxon Mobil include exploration for, and production of, crude oil and natural gas and manufacture, trade, transport, and sale of crude oil, natural gas, petroleum products, petrochemicals, and a wide variety of specialty products. It also produces several petrochemical products that are used as raw materials in various industries. 

2019 and 2020 were tough years for the company. Operating revenues of the company have declined heavily during these two years and in 2020, the company reported a heavy net loss of around $22.4 billion.

The company’s total debt has also grown rapidly over the past two years. The company is operating in a highly competitive environment and has to focus a lot on research and development in order to achieve continuous growth.

In this marketing mix of Exxon Mobil, we will analyze the four Ps’ including Products, place, price, and promotion.

Product:-

The company has divided its business operations into three main segments that include upstream, downstream, and chemical. 

The upstream business of Exxon Mobil is organized into five businesses. They include unconventional, deepwater, heavy oil, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and conventional. The upstream global value chain of Exxon Mobil includes exploration, development, production, and marketing. The company produces around 4 million oil-equivalent barrels of net oil and natural gas per day. 

The percentage of upstream oil production by value chain in 2020 were as follows:

Deepwater: 11%

LNG: 22%

Heavy OIl: 11%

Unconventional: 25%

Conventional: 31%

Exxon Mobil is also an industry leader in liquified natural gas and contributes to around 25% of the global LNG demand or 86 million tonnes per year. 

Downstream:

The downstream segment of Exxon Mobil mainly includes fuels and lubricants. The company is among the world’s largest manufacturers and marketers of fuels and lubricants.

It sells almost 5 million barrels per day of petroleum products. Its integrated fuel value chain includes crude acquisition, manufacturing, distribution, and sales of fuel products through retail, commercial, and supply channels. 

The company is among the world’s largest refiners and has a distillation capacity of nearly 5 million barrels per day at 21 refineries. The lubricants value chain of Exxon Mobil includes the development, production, and sale of base stocks and finished lubricant products. 

Chemical:

Exxon Mobil is also among the largest chemical producers in the world.  It has annual sales of chemicals of more than 25 million tonnes. For more than 80 percent of its chemical product portfolio, Exxon Mobil is either the number one or number two producer in the world.

Apart from basic chemicals like Olefins, Aromatics, and Glycols, the company also makes performance products that are used across a wide range of consumer applications including food packaging, vehicles, and diapers. 

Place:

Exxon Mobil is a global company and sells in almost all countries throughout the world. It has its headquarters in Irving, Texas, United States. It sells about 5 million barrels per day of petroleum products, through a global network of more than 20,000 retail stations and commercial channels.

It has established refineries in various parts of the world including the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East. In the United States, it has refineries in Joliet, Baton Rouge, Billings, Baytown, and Beaumont. In Canada, its refineries are located at Strathcona, Nanticoke, and Sarnia. 

Price:

Apart from costs of production, the other factors that affect pricing strategies include government policies, taxes, level of production and demand as well as competition, and various other factors. As a result, petrochemical businesses do not follow a uniform pricing strategy.

Exxon Mobil also prices its products considering these various factors. In recent years, the company has experienced a sharp decline in revenue and growth in debts and losses driven by lower oil prices. However, the company sells a large range of products that are not priced uniformly but on the basis of market dynamics as well as level of demand and the costs of production. 

Promotion: 

Exxon Mobil is a well-known brand in the petrochemical industry and enjoys a strong global presence. The company has also successfully managed a strong brand image. The brand focuses on various aspects of marketing to maintain a strong social image and to grow brand awareness.

Apart from sustainable business operations, it also invests in CSR to maintain a strong social image. However, this is the era of digital marketing and the use of digital channels for marketing and promotions across industries including petrochemical industries has grown.

Companies like Exxon Mobil are using digital channels including a set of company-owned websites, social media, and paid online advertising to grow brand awareness globally and drive higher sales. Exxon Mobil is now actively using social media channels like Facebook and YouTube to grow brand awareness and actively engage customers.