Introduction
A producer produces a product by investing in it some value, and the producer intends to regain that value with the profit earned through the sale of that particular product. A product reaches the customers from the production line traversing a set of steps. Notably, the most critical stage of this is the marketing process. Marketing a product is the aspect of a business that brings profit to the organisation by identifying the customers, presenting the product in the right place, and closing the sale. The whole process of marketing involves some pre-set principles and techniques. An organisation must be wise when applying these techniques, as it needs to find the most appropriate approach for itself. The regulations related to the marketing process are collectively the different shareholders of the marketing process and a system to manage those to increase the organisation’s sale and profit. This assignment concerns explaining the various aspects of marketing principles and techniques to the critical staff of Dounout Corner. This small family run business produces excellent quality doughnuts but is not aware of marketing.
Task 1
LO1: AC 1.1 Describing the diverse activities carried out in the marketing department.
According to Hsu et al. (2012) marketing, a product is a vast process with many aspects that collectively make the marketing process an effective one for an organisation. The marketing department in the first place has to research the market. They need to find out the choice of the customers and what the customers do not want in the product. In this particular product, doughnut, the entity has to find out the market demand about the doughnut and what other entities are failing to provide the customers. Market segmentation is essential as it enables the entity to identify the target market for a particular product (Cronin et al. (,2011). Doughnut Corner has to select that section of the market which prefers to buy doughnut most. The management of Dounout Corner must focus on proper promotional planning for their products as part of the marketing process. The customers have to be informed about the positive aspect of this particular doughnut and must present why the consumers should have this and not the others. Chabowski et al. (2011) put that establishing an effective relationship with the customers is a significant marketing activity. Through establishing an effective relationship with their customers, an organisation will easily know about the changes taking place in the taste of the customers and will get feedback regarding their particular product.
An effective way of marketing is to adopt an online course on product promotion in the present business scenario. An entity must start to promote its product in the online medium to reach more excellent customers directly. Doughnut Corner should traditionally promote its creation and use the power of the internet in promotional activity. An organisation must evaluate the effectiveness of the different marketing tools regarding their efficiency and cost-related (Vargo et al., 2011). For Doughnut Corner, online marketing will prove to be an effective and cheap way of promoting their doughnut and attracting a more significant number of consumers.
AC 1.2 Explaining market segmentation as a tool to identify customers
Market segmentation is practical to select the right market for a product. Market segmentation is done based on the socio-economic status of the market, demographic diversity of the market, the behavioural pattern of the customers, psychographic condition of the market and the geographical specification of the market, asserts Abratt and Kleyn (2012).
Socio-economic | In socio-economic segmentation, the social and economic tradition and capabilities of the market are taken into consideration. A buyer may be influenced by the social patterns he or she follows. Financial capacity is the primary determiner of the purchasing decision of a purchaser. |
Demographic | The demographic diversity of a market sometimes has a substantial impact on a call. An entity must be careful while designing and placing their product in a market about the demographic aspect (Prothero, 2011). Religion, age, sex are a few aspects of the demography of a particular market. |
Behaviour | Specific buyers have certain behavioural patterns regarding purchasing decisions. These are changing variables of a market. |
Psychographic | A market can be segmented on the specific personality traits of the customers, their interests, the value they possess, the attitude of the customers and the type of lifestyle the consumers lead (Michaelidou, 2011). This type of segmentation helps the entity configure the product according to the minor details of the market. |
Geography | A market may be segmented depending on the geographical condition of the customers. Products can be differently configured for customers according to the place of their residency. A market can be segmented also as a rural or urban market. |
Table 1: Basis of market segmentation
For the business of Dounout Corner, the target market is the consumers with low purchasing power and primarily the busy persons who prefer to have their breakfast on the go. Hence, the market should be segmented based on the socio-economic condition of the customers and their lifestyle.
AC 1.3 Explaining the marketing mix
The concept of marketing is a set of tools that help the organisation find a proper market for a product by assessing different aspects of the development.
Product | The product is the thing that is to be sold in the market; it may be any goods or service. The product should be designed in the proper way to fit the demands of the market. There are many aspects of the development, such as the brand, packaging of the product and managing the product life cycle. |
Price | The price of the central aspect when the product is presented on the market for sale. The cost of the product can be fixed using several pricing strategies. The price of the product must not exceed the purchasing power of the targeted customers and, on the other hand, must make sufficient profit for the organisation. |
Promotion | The customers must be aware of the specifications of the product. Promotional activity is the only way to inform the customers about the various aspects of the development that will drag customers’ attention towards the product. |
Place | The place where the product is sold impacts the success ratio of the product greatly. A high-cost product is not wise to sell in a low purchasing power market, and similarly, a low-cost product creates a negative impression in the niche market, opines Mitchell et al. (2011). |
Table 2: Porter’s five forces
Doughnut Corner has to configure its product to fit the market in the best way. The organisation has to produce the doughnut as per the market demand in terms of size and weight. The product’s price must be fixed to focus on the cost-related and the purchasing power of the targeted customers. The attractive aspects of the doughnut must be communicated to the customers through practical promotional activities. Finally, the organisation has to select the market wisely and respect the market’s feelings in marketing.
Task 2
LO2: AC 2.1 Explaining the aims of market research and market analysis
Market research and market analysis are essential for an organisation to identify the market’s demand and what customers need in a particular product (Hanna and Rowley (2011). The impact of macro and micro environmental aspects on a business may be detected by researching the market. An organisation must design their product according to the needs of the customers. The entity can understand the qualities a customer wants in a product only identified through market analysis. A product must be improved timely to survive in a competitive market for a long time. In this process, market research plays a significant role.
Market research gathers information, and the production department can improve the product accordingly. To achieve a competitive advantage over the competitors, an organisation must monitor the present market and look for the scope of improvement in its creation. Market analysis can be very effective in this regard. Market research and analysis turn to be of utmost significance when the organisation intends to expand its business to a new market. Market research in such time can provide an organisation with that vital information that will enable the organisation to run its business in that respective market successfully.
AC 2.2 Describing market research methods.
An entity may find two types of information from the market using different research tools. Primary data is directly collected from the consumers of a product or service. An organisation can collect preliminary market information by interviewing their customers using questionnaires devoted to finding valuable inputs from the consumers (Mitchell et al., 2010). The entity can also engage with the focus group in an interactive discussion to gather their feedback about service. Secondary market information can be beneficial to understand the norms and present trends of the industry. Collecting secondary data can be done by communicating with similar business entities who deal in the same business. Interviews, questionnaires and discussion with the focus group will provide the organisation with qualitative information about the market. Qualitative data will help the organisation to assess its rank in the industry in comparison to other competitors.
AC 2.3 Outlining market analysis tools and techniques
Market analysis tool: Micro
The last two variables of SWOT analysis effectively research the market and use the finding toward enhanced productivity and profit of the organisation.
Opportunity | Through market analysis, an organisation should find out the opportunity available in the market and utilise that to increase the productivity and profit of the company. The options that are present in the market need to analyse the market extensively to be found out. |
Threat | Identifying the market threats that can negatively impact the business also needs to research and analyse the market thoroughly. The threats in the market should be mitigated with the organisation’s strength and by utilising the available opportunity in favour of the organisation. |
Table 3: Partial SWOT
Market analysis tool: Macro
Analysis of the macro-environment is essential to understand the market properly. The PESTLE analysis will be helpful to analyse the macro factors of the market.
Political | The successful operation of an organisation is mainly dependent on the political aspects of the market. Political will and the respective regulations and rules that can impact the process of a business are regarded in this section. |
Economical | A business needs a favourable economic condition to flourish best. The rate of inflation, the rate of economic growth and the purchasing power of the customers are very significant for thorough market analysis. |
Social | The social traditions of a market should be read before starting a business in a place. The reason for this survey is to understand whether the product will match the social traditions and customs of that particular market. |
Technological | The technological advancement of a market can impact a business in a particular need in various ways, including influencing the promotional activities of the entity. |
Legal | The legal aspect of a market is responsible for the performance of a business in that market to a great extent. |
Environmental | The environment, in this case, does not only mean the climatic condition of a market. It also asserts all those factors that can impact the business, like the presence of a favourable labour market. |
Table 4: PESTLE
Competitor analysis: Porter’s five forces analysis
Porter’s five forces analysis is an effective tool to analyse the competition present in the market. Three elements of this analysis are devoted to this purpose. A profitable industry attracts many new entrants that increase the competition level in the market. The availability of substitutes in the market enhances the competition in the market in an indirect way. Through competitor’s analysis, an organisation can gather information about the competitors in the market and hence plan to counter them and sustain the competitive advantage.
Task 3
LO3: AC 3.1 Describing the methods used to e-market products and services.
E-marketing is the most effective way of marketing a product in the contemporary world. There are various methods of e-market a product. The website, at first, has to be designed in such a way it shows at first when the keywords are searched on the web, opines Lipsman et al. (2012). The organisation can adopt pay per click marketing where the entity has to pay the agency as per the number of times the advertisement on the web is viewed. The organisation can promote the product on the web to reach more excellent consumers. A new method of e-marketing is viral marketing (Colliander and Dahlén, 2011). In this method, the users are encouraged by the organisation to share the advertisement number of times. Hence, the information reaches the maximum number of web users. The organisation can promote its product by sending emails to prospective customers. All the activities mentioned above collectively help the organisation told a positive online reputation, enabling the entity to create a positive image among the consumers about the product.
AC 3.2 Explaining how companies manage their online image
An organisation can efficiently manage its online image by using social media effectively. In the words of Valos et al. (2010), the company can update its day to day development regarding customer-related issues in social media and hence establish an effective relationship with the customers, which will, in turn, benefit the organisation. A positive image of the organisation among the consumers helps the organisation in various ways. Online marketing is more efficient than traditional marketing methods from multiple aspects. In a recent incident, Dounout Corner has experienced it by receiving a bulk order from a distant consumer who comes by their product on social media and is impressed by the qualities of the doughnut. The company could have lost the order if online marketing was not implemented. Online marketing is a cost-effective way of marketing that enables the organisation to reach a larger number of consumers at a lesser cost than traditional marketing methods (De Mooij and Hofstede, 2010.). An entity can promote its product worldwide with just a click when it adopts the e-marketing methods. Social media marketing also enables organisations to receive the customers’ feedback who cannot send their input to the organisation by any other means. A social media interaction with the organisation allows the entities to receive their feedback immediately, which may help them configure the products according to the customers’ demand (Chu and Kim (2011).
Task 4
LO4: AC 4.1 Using market analysis tools to research the target market
The SWOT analysis of the company Dounout Corner shows that the company being a small entity, may implement a cost-effective production process. The entity also faces huge competition from the already established brands. The market has ample opportunity for this entity as the quality of the doughnuts is very high. The primary weakness of this company is the lack of promotional activity.
Applying PESTLE analysis on the market reveals many aspects of the market that may be helpful for the growth of Dounout Corner. The market consumers are mainly busy and middle-class people who have the purchasing power to buy doughnuts. The cultural and traditional aspects of the market also are helpful for the growth of this business. The main recurrent political issues of the UK, Brexit, will not affect this entity as it is dependent on the local suppliers and customers. The technological advancement of the market will effectively help the company adopt online marketing, which is cost-effective and closer to the customers (Truong et al., 2010).
Doughnut Corner being a small organisation, does not enjoy enormous bargaining power over the suppliers. The existing big brands in this industry like Dunkin’ Donuts pose a large threat to the company as strong competitors.
AC 4.2 Interpreting the findings of market analysis and market research
The present market analysis and market research have been conducted to assess the opportunity of Dounout Corner in the confectionery business. In doing so, the primary focus has been on the ways and means to enhance the organisation’s promotional activities and select the most appropriate form of product promotion for their product. The data that has been collected from the market is extensively researched and interpreted to find the best way out for the company. Assessing the power and threats from the competitors has been another objective of this research and analysis. The analysis has revealed a certain pattern in the confectionery business. The larger entities assert the product quality and the number of products, but they are ignorant about the organisation’. Doughnut Corner can use this gap in the market to expand its own business.
AC 4.3 Presenting the finding to the marketing team
The research and analysis done on the market have found out much useful information which may be used for enhancing the condition of Dounout Corner in the confectionery industry. The first thing that this analysis has surfaced is the importance of marketing for a successful business. The research process has also found that e-marketing will be a better promotional option for this organisation.
- The organisation should effectively indulge in promotional activities.
- Doughnut Corner has to focus on its service quality to counter its competitors effectively.
- E-marketing will be more effective as a promotional option for this company.
- The company should develop their products based on the findings of the market research.
Conclusion
The confectionary industry deserves quality products as well as a good marketing strategy for survival. Product promotion is a vital part of a successful business. The marketing mix is very effective in segmenting the market and selects a target market as well. An organisation can effectively position its product in a market by using market research findings in its organisational activities. As a small entity in the confectionery industry, Doughnut Corner has to face hard competition from its competitors; hence, the organisation must develop a concrete strategy to face the threat of competition. The organisation should configure their product according to the market research findings and must utilise the opportunities in the market to strengthen their business. The focus of Dounout Corner has to be creating awareness among the consumers about their product and thus try to expand their business.
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