Assignment: Environment Analysis, Consumer Segmentation, Market Research;
Task Description +Template+ Rubric
Wordlimit: 2,600 (+/- 10% = 2,340 to 2,860words).
If you find that your draft is over the word limit then move extra material into appendices. Then, in the body of the Assignment, you can briefly summarize the key points of that extra material and refer the reader to the appendix concerned for further details. Remember; Charts, Pictures, Tables and Diagrams are not included Word Count.
This assignment will help you to achieve these Unit Learning Outcomes (ULOs);
1. Demonstrate a broad understanding of the major conceptual and theoretical principles upon which the practice of marketing is based.
2. Demonstrate a general understanding of marketing management tasks and of how marketing fits into the organisational environment and interacts with diverse environments.
3. Identify and evaluate secondary research from a variety of sources. As a reflective and critical thinker, use this research information to apply marketing concepts and principles to propose ethical, creative solutions to a range of marketing related problems that arise in business contexts.
4. Work effectively as an individual or a team member to communicate effectively whether orally or in writing.
Assessment Overview
Write your report as the same group of independent consultantswho worked. Here, in Assignment you are presenting an Environment Analysis, Consumer Segmentation and Marketing Research recommendations to your clients; the Marketing Managers of your Brand + Sub-Brand.
Overview of Structure
1. ExecutiveSummary(approx.200words) NOT INCLUDED IN WORD COUNT
a. there port's major purpose,
b. the analytical processes used,
c. the findings, and
d. Your recommendations.
2. Table of Contents
3. Introduction (approx.150words) Three parts are required here: -
a. The authorization and purpose of the report tells the reader who it was who commissioned the work and why it is being produced.
b. Limitationsyou encountered in relation to data collection, availability or access toinformation and information that might be confidential in nature.
c. The scope of the report summarizes what the report covers, how information will bepresented, where the information comes from and how it was gathered.
Section1: The marketplace and influencing factors (approx. 1,000 words)
In this section you will beconsidering themarketing environment inwhich thecompanyoperates, and you will analyse thefactorswhich might influencetheBrand + Sub-Brand.
The Micro-environment; (SIP-CCC; these players are often called "stakeholders".)
4. What industry are we in? (approx. 400 words)
At the beginning of any business report, state the scope of the report, before presenting the analysis.
• Identify the industry within which the company and the Brand + Sub-Brand compete.
• Includeanillustration of howthe company and Brand + Sub-Brandfitswithin theindustry; forexample, include atree diagram.
5. Competitors Analysis("C" for Competitors in SIP-CCC) (approx. 200 words)
Identifyat least twokeycompetitorsfrom the Strategic Group and include a Product Comparison Table of the type shown below:-
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P
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Our Brand + Sub-Brand
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Strategic Group Competitor 1
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Strategic Group Competitor 2
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Brand + Sub-Brand
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Brand Positioning
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Product Specifications
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Place
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Price
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Promotion
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Advantages &Disadv c/w our Brand and Sub-Brand
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Other factors important to prospective buyers
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Data was current as of (insert date/s). Sources; (insert sources).
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(Hint; you should expect to see that the Marketing Mix 4Ps for the competitors are very similar to those for your Brand + Sub-Brand. This will demonstrate that these competitors are indeed in your Strategic Group, because they will have the same or similar strategies to our Brand + Sub-Brand.Therefore, also try to identify those things that differentiate the competitors.)
6. Analysis of other Micro-Environment players (approx. 150 words) ("S, I, P and C for Company" in SIP-CCC).
Identify one key player of importance to your product. This will be from amongst Suppliers, Intermediaries, the Publics or internal Company factors. You will;
• Describe them and outline the role they play in relation to your company/ Brand + Sub-brand.
• Describe how they work with your company/ Brand + Sub-brand.
• Identify the key risks if the relationship between your company/ Brand + Sub-brand and this player broke down.
• Identify a way this player could be leveraged to provide your company/ Brand + Sub-brand with an additional opportunity.
• The Macro-environment; Other environmental factors influencing the company (approx. 250 words*) (Refer to Lecture 3.)
DENT-PC; provide an analysis of the three* macro-environment factors which you consider to be the most important ones impacting upon your Brand + Sub-Brand. You need to cover the following:
• Describe any recent trends in these three areas that might impact your company/Brand and Sub-Brand.
• Identify risks and opportunities these trends present for your Brand + Sub-brand.
• Recommend changes in strategy that counter the risks and take advantage of the opportunities presented by these trends.
• Include a Table of the type presented in Lecture 3 slide 15.
• *" three" means three out of D, E, N, T, P, and C. WITHIN each of these three you might mention several trends; for example, within "E" for Economic there might be several relevant factors; such as growing employment = more potential customers and rising discretionary income = ability to spend more on your product category and/or spend more on more expensive alternatives within your category
Section 2 Consumer segmentation (approx. 400 words)
Refer to Lecture 4 and Tutorials 4 and 7.
In this section, you will present your consumer segmentation analysis - how the consumers could be split into smaller segments for the purposes of marketing. This will NOT be what the company is doing now - it will be YOUR consumer segmentation analysis.
In your report, you will provide the following information:
• You will select ONE-only segmentation base and at least three profile elements that you believe will be important things to know about the current and potential consumers in this product category.
• Explain why you have chosen these bases and profile elements. Why are they useful for this particular product category? Justify using the Criteria (Lecture 4 slides.)
• Include a Segmentation table containing at least three segments and at least three profiling elements.
Section 3 Assess the attractiveness of each consumer segment (approx. 300 words)
You will assess the attractiveness of each consumer segment for your Brand + Sub-Brand. "Attractiveness" refers to the likelihood that a consumer segment will provide profitable sales for your Brand + Sub-Brand. You will be measuring "How attractive is the segment as a market for the Brand-and-Sub-brand?" - This is where you apply the Three Criteria - see below and Lecture 4 slides.
• NOT "How attractive (as a product to buy) is the Brand-and-Sub-brand from the point-of-view of the consumers in this segment?"
Attractiveness is based upon the three factors;
• Size and growth - a large, fast-growing, low-margin segment might be a good match to a strong brand with abundant resources that can afford to target a low margin segment. On the other hand, a small brand with limited resources and the need to make profits in the short term would be better-matched with a smaller, high-margin segment.
• Structural attractiveness - Can we communicate with the consumers in this segment and deliver the product to them? Does this segment already have strong, entrenched competitors?
• The degree to which the segment matches the Brand + Sub-Brand's resources and objectives - Does the brand have substantial resources and very high sales and share objectives? If so then big, fast-growing segments would be a good match. Or is it vice-versa?
Section 4 Recommendations for additional research (approx. 500 words)
After reviewing the information you collected in section 2, you will decide on what additional information you would like to know to fill gaps in your knowledge about consumers.
What key questions do want answered:
• What information do you want to find out? What are the 3 - 4 key questions you most want to answer.
• How would this information help you to make decisions regarding marketing strategy. Be specific in describing these decisions and explaining how this information would help with the decision-making.
How would go about gathering information for ONE of your key questions using marketing research techniques.
• Propose one research methodology that you could use to gather this information. MUST be Primary Research (that is, research to gather new data to answer your question).
• Explain why this research methodology will get you the information you need. You can choose any Primary research method you like but you must justify your choice with relevant references.
• Explain the main advantages and disadvantages of your proposed methodology.
• Research design; Describe research method specifics such as questionnaire design, focus group assemblage and conduct, sample size, sampling method and/or other specifics.
Conclusion (approx. 150 words)
Concisely summarize all four sections of the report. Then write a section which answers these questions: -
• What do the findings mean?
• Was the purpose of the report fulfilled?
• Have the specified sources of information been used?
• Have the areas stated been adequately tackled?
Recommendations (100 words) You will include here a brief summary of your recommended actions. In this Report your recommendations will be about your suggested strategies from your analysis of the Marketing Environment, Consumer Segment Attractiveness and
Marketing Research.
Referencing - You will be penalized (marks reduced) if you do not provide references. You need to provide both citations (in-text references) and List of References.
For your Group as a whole, you should aim to reference a MINIMUM* of at least 2 Academic References and at least 15 Business
References for Credit grade - see Rubric > more than 30 to get top marks for Referencing. References will be about your industry, product category, your brand and sub brand and the competitors, the marketing environment and marketing research including recent trends and consumer behavior.
• "Where to get information" - refer to Tutorials 4 and 7.
• "How to reference" - refer to Tutorial 4.
• How to Demonstrate the Application of Theory - Refer to Tutorial 5.
D and HD assignments will also include substantial amounts of Data - How to present data.
• Charts and tables and other data visualisation methods make it much easier to effectively communicate numerical data.
• Data is much more meaningful when a trend over an extended time period is presented. Preferably three or up to five years of data is preferred.
• You need to include the source reference, and the terms and units and time period of the data. For example, terms could be 000's or millions, units could be Australian dollars or square metres or tonnes, and time period could be a particular calendar-year or financial-year or some other time period.
• Data needs to be consistently presented throughout your report. For example, if in one part of the report you state that ABC holds 6.5% market share then it is absolutely essential that anywhere else in the report where you mention ABC's share you must use the same number; 6.5%.
• Pricing data from retail outlets; Always state the name and location of the store, and the date of purchase or data collection.
• Comparison data; If comparing prices, make sure that the prices are presented for the same package size, or in standard units (e.g. cents per millilitre), in the same terms (litres, tonnes etc.) or as an Index where your brand = 100.
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
1. The answer should be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides.
2. The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
3. Also include a reference page. The Citations and references should follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.