Category: Target Market

Hyman Golden, Leonard Marsh, and Arnie Greenberg introduced the brand name Snapple in 1972 as a 100% natural apple juice. The three high school friends distributed the product to health food stores in Greenwich Village. The target of this business on health promotion beverages attracted the attention of consumers and by 1980 the brand had gained high market acceptance and recognition in the coasts of the United States.

The business took 15 years to achieve peak in its success. The success of the brand name attracted the interest of potential investors. Quaker purchased Snapple in 1994 at a cost of $1.7 billion with the vision of combining the brand name with Gatorade, another successful brand name to build a powerful business unit of beverages. Quaker made changes that destroyed the image of the brand leading to a decline in the company’s sales.

Quaker sold Snapple to Triarc in 1997 at $300 billion. Triarc worked out the strategy of developing and rebuilding new communication to restore the image of the brand. The communication messages would reconnect the brand with the customers to rebuild good relationships, loyalty, and success of the brand in the target markets essential for future stability of the business.

Internal and External Factors in the Market Environment of Snapple as a segment of Triarc’s Business Portfolio

Internal Factors

These factors create competitive advantage and help Snapple differ from the competitors in meeting the demands of the target market. Snapple’s success in creating competitive advantage arises from its ability to offer a variety of flavors to build a strong heritage of natural healthy ingredients, and to create a well-established brand. These factors guarantee success and sustainability of the brand name in the future.

Triarc manages the brand portfolio to ensure that the communication messages differentiate the products from those of competitors and that the messages create influence on potential consumers. Triarc had to overcome the gap created after the discontinuation of Wendy Kaufman and Stern that led to more losses in brand loyalty and decline in the financial performance of Snapple.

Triarc improved communication with distributors and consumers to improve their purchasing power. The company ensures a consistent brand transformation in image, reputation, and perception to survive in the competitive market of beverages. Snapple also strives to understand the nature of the market and implement marketing tactics, such as competitive pricing to make a business successful.

External Factors

The external marketing environment creates opportunities to help achieve organizational objectives. Snapple entry in the market was successful because there was low competition on health promotion beverages in the market. The success of the brand attracted the interests of new entrances and development of existing ones in the industry leading to high competition for market share.

Consumers have a buying behavior that involves recognition of the need, search for the product that satisfies the needs and available alternatives of the product, make the purchase, and evaluate the post purchase. The decision-making process of the consumer can involve influence from family, friends, and outside resources, such as media.

Triarc focuses on the teenagers or young adults. Therefore, Snapple has to acquire high acceptance in the target market, and this means high investment in media and peers because they are the major influencers on this target segment.

The company had to ensure high quality products, product features, designs, prices, and costs of production to improve brand loyalty, image, and equity for Snapple to be in the consumer purchasing decisions. The increase in competitor products and demand for health conscious beverages in the market have led to price sensitivity because consumers can easily switch from one brand to another with less differentiation on the products.

The teenagers don’t have high levels of income lowering the market potential of the target market. Triarc had to enlarge its target market segment to the professionals to increase return on investment. The company also invests in meeting the market demands by developing customer focus on experience and satisfaction to improve profits, sales, and market share. Snapple faces stiff competition from Sobe, Ocean Spray, Arizona, and Lipton.

Target Markets

Consumer Behavior

Snapple established non-carbonated beverages in the United States and has continued to dominate despite the high competition in the market. Consumers have different tastes and preferences making it essential for Snapple to have a variety of flavors. Snapple was introduced in the market as a healthy beverage attracting the interest of the market in which there was a high demand for such a product.

Customers switched from competitors increasing the financial performance and market share of the company. The success of the brand led to new entrances into the market with similar product features. This created a high competition in the market. Triarc had to apply unique strategies to attract customers during their decision-making processes.

Consumers tend to purchase products that have good images and reputation. Triarc had to make better its image through vivid promotions and improvement in quality and variety of its products to survive and maximize profits. Moreover, Snapple is a leisure product and the changes in the economic conditions reduce the purchasing patterns of consumers leading to higher competition for market share.

Market Segments

The Young Adults/Teenagers

The brand targets students in schools at the age of 13 to 22. The brand offers the students youthful, sweet taste and quirky image. The media and peers easily influence students making it necessary for Triarc to heavily invest in television advertising. Triarc targets this segment because it makes the larger market share for beverages.

Professionals

The brand offers the professionals or working class convenience at lunch breaks, quick options, and healthy image. Triarc had to integrate marketing efforts to ensure that the products are available at the flagship metropolitan stores where most of the working class spends their lunch breaks. The company focuses on this market segment because they have high disposable income to spend on the products.

Recommendations for a Strategy Implementation Plan

Product Renovation

The brand owner should establish new product lines and label designs. The ability to offer a line of quality and unique flavors improves the brands image and differentiates the brand from the competitors in the target markets. The brand owner should concentrate on innovating new and developing the existing products toward a healthy brand image.

There is a high demand for healthy products in the market and the creation of healthy drinks interests and attracts the attention of the market to the product helping attract and maintain large market shares in the target markets. The brand owner should use the natural energy boosting ingredients to create products that compete efficiently in the target markets.

Promotion

The brand owner should establish a label design contest and allocate a larger budget on television advertising. Snapple should introduce television advertising and engage the young viewership during the quirky shows. The brand communication messages should focus on value creation in the products to influence customers to purchase them. The promotional activities should gear at achieving a strong brand image in the target markets.

This will make it easy for the business to create high recognition and perception of quality and satisfaction to customers. The company should invest heavily in label design contest to re-engage customer base essential for building good relationship with customers and attracting customers’ interest and attention for the brand.

To succeed in this strategy, the company needs to create a new look for its products, especially on packaging to attract customers. These strategies will help the company improve its profits, competitive advantage, and market share in the short-run to avoid the downfall or losses of the company.

Placement

Triarc should supply Snapple to schools and metropolitan flagship stores to ensure availability to potential customers. The wide distribution will help attract customers from competitors and maintain its customers from switching to competitor brands. The new sale channels influences consumers to try the brand, as it is available. Constant supply of the products is essential to maximize satisfaction to customers.

The company will introduce school vending machines to appeal to parents and school boards to introduce the beverage as a healthy alternative in the saturated market of soda products. This will enable the potential consumers to have a choice on the beverage to take with Snapple in mind. The company’s target on the flagship metropolitan stores will be to integrate marketing efforts in improving sales.

The company will make the information about the brand available in the flagship stores to create awareness and attraction on the brand. The company’s messages on the distribution activities should be effective to differentiate the products from those of the competitors and have the potential of influencing and attracting customers to the purchase and use of the products.

Pricing

The current prices of the brand should be maintained in order to prevent customers from shifting to competitors and to satisfy customers. Snapple should constantly review its pricing strategy to ensure that its remains competitive in the target markets and that the prices match the value it creates to consumers.

Control of the Strategy Plan

The company should prepare for the label design contest and the product line renovation as it is the first strategy to attract the interest and attention of potential consumers in the target market.

The company should introduce the television advertising and vending machine to boost the impact on consumers of the products. The company introduced the Snapple brand in stores to make the products available to customers. These actions of the company will be the root to the success trying to improve performance in sales, profits, and market share in the target markets.

Conclusion

Triarc takes time to understand the target market, its segments, and customer demands to make effective strategies. The company ensures quality brand management that is necessary for acquiring understanding and knowledge of essential elements of improving the brand image and equity. It ensures effective communication and building of strong customer and supplier relationships for sustainability of the business.

Triarc relies on wide range of flavors, health promotion beverages, and quality customer services to succeed in creating competitive advantage. Snapple has a good chance of influencing on consumer buying behavior to sell its products. It targets at teenagers and professionals who have high influence from the media and peers. The company has to take advantage of this market segments to maximize its profits.

Recommended Target Markets for Aqualisa

The most convenient markets that the company could target include direct consumers, the Do-It-Yourselfers, and the plumbers. Direct consumers comprise of an enormous potential market that is currently controlled by Triton Company, despite the fact that Aqualisa’s products are more superior and modernized.

This target market requires information on the products through vigorous advertisement. Tapping this market would mean controlling the largest target market, and could result to a big rise in sales. It had worked with Triton before, though their products were not as consumer-friendly as those of Aqualisa.

The Do-It-Yourselfers prefer showers that are cheap and easy to install. Quartz brands do not require technical skills to install, although their prices are relatively high. However, with Gainsborough line, which is an inferior product in this market; Quartz, which is a premium product, could still be acceptable due to its distinctive features and efficiency.

The plumbers are a conservative market as they do not readily change brands. However, their ability to influence the market is high. Independent plumbers account for 54% of all installations of showers in the U.K. (Moon 2006).

Moreover, most consumers tend to seek a plumber’s advice when selecting a shower or even leave it to the plumber’s choice. Winning the plumbers’ market could serve Aqualisa well in the long-run because plumbers tend to be loyal to brands due to their conservative nature.

Target Market Profiles

Direct consumers are mainly the end users of the product. On one side, they understand their needs and, therefore, are likely to be in favor of brands which best meet their needs. Direct consumers will always influence the kind of products that are in the market. In U.K., most direct consumers depend on plumbers’ advice to know the brands to install.

The greatest potential is in replacement of showers, which accounts for 44% of all installations. New buyers are fewer, comprising only 25% of the installations (Moon 2006). The easiest ways to tap into this market would be through major product campaigns and advertisements, and through the plumbers who are their main advisers

The do-it-yourselfers comprise of a market that Aqualisa could easily control. The ease of installation of the Quartz showers could work positively for Aqualisa since no exceptional skills are required, and independent plumbers are very few; about 10,000 in the entire U.K (Moon 2006).

Hiring a plumber is extremely expensive since plumbers are usually paid on an hourly basis. Many consumers would willingly pay for the premium involved with knowledge that they will skip the cost of the plumber’s services.

Aqualisa Quartz Shower

Quartz shower comes out as more efficient and advanced as compared to other brands. It is easy to install and addresses the problems of fluctuating water temperature and low pressure positively. Aqualisa Quartz combines innovation with simplicity, and this works for the product.

Although the shower has not gained the desired acceptance in the market due to late entry and high cost as compared to the competitors’ products, Aqualisa could still take advantage of the high effectiveness of its products. This would increase its market share.

Strategy for Aqualisa Quartz to Create a Unique Point-of-Difference

The best strategy for winning consumer acceptance is concentrating on the efficiency of the Quartz shower. The unique features that maintain water temperature and pressure to consumer-friendly levels should be strong points in a campaign to popularize the product. Since plumbers are generally expensive, it could work positively for Aqualisa if ease of installation is demonstrated to potential customers.

Reference List

Moon, Y 2006, Aqualisa Quartz: Simply a better shower, Harvard Business School Publishing, Boston, MA.

Introduction. Facing the End of an Era: Pfizer, Inc

Moving in the fast lane with the currently developing world is quite an uneasy, though doubtlessly rewarding task. Because of the changes which the economical society and the world market are undergoing, companies are forced to change their strategies to adapt to the new conditions, as well as withstand the increasing competition.

One of the most graphic examples of the given phenomenon, Pfizer Inc., was forced to change its marketing strategy to adapt to the current standards of marketing.

However, according to the case study, despite the changes, the company is still in a losing position. Unless new ways of development are suggested, the company is bound to face certain difficulties; however, reconsidering the current marketing strategy, one can possibly suggest new means of boosting the company’s success.

A Description of the Target Market: When the Supply Meets the Demand

To assess the efficiency of the changes which Pfizer Inc. has decided to apply to increase their revenues, the target market which the company aims at winning must be considered. Once the target audience is defined, it is considerably easier to analyze their demands and come up with peculiar propositions.

It is obvious that the company aims at delivering products for the people of middle and high class, offering the medicine which is rather expensive, yet innovative and efficient: according to the case study, the key goal of the company is “to persuade medical professionals the world over to make Pfizer drugs the treatment of choice for their patients’ aches and pains” (Case 2–1. Pfizer, Inc., n.d., 156).

Thus, it is clear that the company’s target market is the people who suffer from the diseases which require rare and expensive medicine. However, according to the report, the company has decided to change the given niche – rather unwillingly, though – to another one. “Normally a new entry creates new interest in the market.

That doesn’t seem to be happening here” (Case 2–1. Pfizer, Inc., n.d., 157), McKinnel says. However, the company y seems to keep to their blockbuster strategy, which means that the current trend to offer medicine for “the diseases that remain without satisfactory treatments” (Case 2–1. Pfizer, Inc., n.d., 157) seems to be the current niche.

Analyzing the above-mentioned, one has to say that the key problem of the company is that they are hesitant about their further course. Although the old strategy has been used to death, Pfizer Inc. still cannot change its course because of the success of the previous strategy.

Therefore, the company needs to aim at wider target audience and offer not only the medicine for a very specific group, e.g., Viagra, but also the medicine which can be used by people of both sexes and embrace the age group ranging from, say, 10 to 70.

Discussing the Positioning Strategy: Pfizer, Inc. and the Current Solutions

It goes without saying that positioning of the produced goods is as important as meeting the customers’ demand, mostly because a good positioning strategy not only helps people find the products which they are looking for, but also to drive their attention to the innovations in the given sphere.

Regarding the current positioning strategy which the company follows, one must mention that Pfizer Inc. It seems that the company needs to pick a more subtle positioning technique, since “Overly aggressive marketing also has made drug companies easier targets politically” (Case 2–1. Pfizer, Inc., n.d., 161).

Hence, a more subtle and less loud publicity should be adopted. For instance, the company can develop an advertising campaign with a show-do-not-tell principle, since the last attempt of the kind was quite successful: “The company invested nearly $20 million in a program in Florida that was intended to show that better utilization of drugs would actually save the state money. It did” (Case 2–1. Pfizer, Inc., n.d., 161).

The Changes to Targeting and Positioning: Reasonable Suggestions

As it has been mentioned before, the current positioning strategy which Pfizer Inc. follows leaves much to be desired. However, it is also necessary to keep in mind that the company y has sufficient reasons not to change the existing strategy.

As the report says, the company is currently focuses on the development of “another HDL -raising drug” (Case 2–1. Pfizer, Inc., n.d., 159). Therefore, the company has changed its target clientele, since the HDL deficiency can occur at literally any age. However, the company still focuses on developing a certain “blockbuster” medicine.

Hence, it is necessary to develop the strategy which will keep the basic premises of the current one, yet be targeted to more general public and offer the medicine for the diseases which a lot of people suffer from. As one can see from the facts provided above, the company has met the first condition, broadening the target group, yet still offers the “panacea” for a “topical” disease.

What Needs to Be Done: Watching the Competitors, Planning the Moves

With the help of the above-mentioned plan, Pfizer Inc. is most likely to withstand the rapid changes and even succeed in attracting even more clients. However, it is also worth keeping in mind that other fields apart from marketing should be taken care of.

One of such fields, the aspect of the company’s competitiveness, should be considered as soon as possible, given that Pfizer Inc. is going to enter the global market and, therefore, face a number of rivals.

According to what Hooley, Piercy & Nicoulaud (2008) claim, it is also crucial to assess the strategies and objectives of the competitors, taking into account their strong and weak points to fill in the niche which they have not noticed yet or cannot fill themselves in. However, the analysis of the existing competitors might take considerable time, since it consists of several stages:

Competitor analysis, therefore, involves evaluating a series of concentric circles of adversaries: innermost and the direct competitors within the strategic group, next come companies within the industry that are driven to overcome the entry barriers to the strategic group, and then the outermost potential entrants and substitutes. (Hooley, Piercy & Nicoulaud, 2008, 119)

Therefore, the numerous rivals of Pfizer Inc. must be taken into account. Once Pfizer Inc. Learns its key adversaries, the company will be able to assess its potential more objectively. Moreover, a certain niche for the company will be found faster.

Taking into account the above-mentioned, it is most reasonable to suggest that the company should analyze the score and the achievements of the competitors, as well as check whether it is possible to attract their clientele to Pfizer Inc.

Conclusion: Further Recommendations and the Future Prospects. Pfizer Will Live

Thus, it is obvious that, despite the complexities which Pfizer is currently handling with, the company has an alternative way of development, which not only incorporates the elements of the preset-day strategy, but also suggests the solutions to the current problems.

However, it must be admitted that the suggested plan requires certain compromises and changes in the course which the company is currently taking, which means that considerable losses are going to be taken in the process.

Reference List

Case 2–1. Pfizer, Inc. (n.d.). Retrieved from ProtectedPDF database.

Hooley, G., Piercy, N. F., & Nicoulau, B. (2008). Marketing strategy and competitive

positioning (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Executive Summary

This report provides the data describing the target market for the company’s potential “do-it-yourself” magazine, and, on the basis of that data, supplies rationale for further funding of the research of this market.

Rooms that are often remodeled by homeowners

Our study has found that nearly 60% of homeowners plan to remodel their kitchens and other parts of their dwelling, which presents us with a major opportunity to launch a DIY journal. However, it is crucial to identify the final aims of remodeling that homeowners carry out, so that we may address their tastes more specifically.

The amounts of money that homeowners are planning to spend on remodeling

Nearly 39% homeowners plan to spend $10,000-20,000 on remodeling. This data supplies critical guidelines for our future magazine, showing us what audience we should expect. However, more detailed research is needed to further segregate the target audience and not to lose this major opportunity to launch a new magazine.

The tasks that homeowners are planning to do

Virtually all the surveyed homeowners plan to paint (100%) and demolish something (98%) in their flats or houses; many also wish to do plumbing and tile work and to conceptually design their dwellings. This provides the basic information for the future contents of our magazine, but it is paramount to gather more detailed information (e.g., about the types of conceptual design preferred nowadays).

Research Cost

Therefore, it is essential to conduct a further study if the DIY magazine is to be successful. We cannot neglect such an opportunity in the situation that the company is currently in. The research will require nearly $18,000.

Introduction

The research conducted by our specialists has revealed that many homeowners are currently planning to rebuild or redecorate their homes, or even are carrying out these tasks. These homeowners intend to make the changes themselves, which opens a window of opportunity for our organization. More specifically, it is possible for us to start a new “do-it-yourself” (DIY) magazine aimed at homeowners planning the heavy-duty projects. However, further market research is needed in order to more precisely identify the editorial direction of the magazine, as well as to confirm the size of the target market. For this purpose, additional funding is required.

Data Review

Rooms That Are Often Remodeled by Homeowners

The study conducted by our researchers unveiled which rooms the homeowners most often aim to remodel or redecorate. The results of the study can be found in Table 1 below. It is easy to see that most homeowners are planning or are currently working on such rooms in their homes as the kitchen (60%), the bathroom (48%), and the home office/study (44%). Also, the popular rooms to be remodeled by the owners of dwellings are the bedroom and the media room/the home theater.

Therefore, Table 1 clearly demonstrates that at least 60% of the surveyed homeowners are planning repairs in their homes; this number is quite likely to be considerably greater, for the 40% who do not plan repairs in the kitchen might be included in one or more groups that plan to tackle a remodel or are already doing so.

However, the results of this study are not abundant in detail; for instance, it is not known what the final aims of the homeowners are, i.e. what results they wish to obtain after the remodeling. Thus, a further study aimed at finding out the final aims of the remodeling planned by the homeowners is required for our company to be able to more specifically address the needs of our potential customers (McQuarrie, 2015).

Table 1. Rooms Which Are Most Often Remodeled by DIYers (Thill & Bovee, 2016, pp. 483-484).

The Amounts of Money That Homeowners Are Planning to Spend on Remodeling

Our researchers have also estimated the amounts of money that homeowners are planning to spend on remodeling their homes. Many individuals (39%) wish to spend nearly $10,000-20,000 on repairs (see Table 2). Approximately the same proportion of homeowners – 21% and 22% – are going to spend $5,000-10,000 and $20,000-50,000 to remodel their dwelling. Finally, nearly 13% of respondents desire to use $50,000 or more on remodeling and redecoration. This means that our journal should primarily be oriented on individuals who plan to utilize approximately $10,000-20,000 on their home’s redecoration, but the persons who are going to spend $5,000-10,000 and $20,000-50,000 should also serve as the target audience (Percy & Rosenbaum-Elliott, 2016). However, it is still unclear how the estimated amounts of money are distributed in the given categories; for instance, it is unknown whether out of 39% of owners planning to use $10,000-20,000, most of them are willing to spend sums closer to $20,000 or to $10,000. Therefore, further research is needed; it will also allow for more precisely assessing the size of our target market (Wenzel, 2012).

Table 2. Mean Amount of Money Spent on Remodeling (Thill & Bovee, 2016, pp. 483-484).

The Tasks That Homeowners Are Planning to Do

Our study also found that virtually all the surveyed homeowners are planning to paint their flats (100%); see Table 3. Also, many individuals who own houses or apartments plan to demolish something in their dwellings (98%), to perform some plumbing (91%), as well as to do tile work (90%) and to conceptually design their interiors (90%). Thus, our future magazine should include an adequate amount of information related to painting, demolishing walls, and plumbing; the issues of tile work and of conceptual design should also be covered. On the other hand, such activity as heating/cooling (22% of respondents) might be omitted.

However, it is crucial to be aware of the plans of the homeowners in more detail. For instance, it is yet not known what types of conceptual design the majority of the homeowners prefer (Sully, 2015). An additional study is needed to shed light on these problems (McQuarrie, 2015).

Table 3. Tasks Done by Owners of Homes in the Process of Remodeling (Thill & Bovee, 2016, pp. 483-484).

Conclusion and Recommendations

Therefore, the analysis supplied above demonstrates that there are a large number of individuals who wish to remodel or redecorate their houses or apartments. This fact reveals the opportunity for our company to launch a DIY magazine helping the homeowners to carry out the repairs. However, further research is needed:

• to find out the final goals of remodeling;
• to discover in more detail what percentage of the population are planning to spend which amounts of money on redesigning, as well as to confirm the size of the market;
• to specify the tasks that the home owners wish to carry out in their dwellings.

Unveiling these aspects should permit us to better grasp the opportunity of launching a DIY magazine by more specifically aiming it at the most prevalent groups of homeowners (Phillips, Bothell, & Snead, 2012).

Therefore, the editorial board of this company is asked to provide funding which would be adequate for conducting the specified research: $18,000; nearly $6,000 on each of the three items listed above.

References

McQuarrie, E. F. (2015). The market research toolbox: A concise guide for beginners (4th ed.). New York, NY: SAGE Publications.

Percy, L., & Rosenbaum-Elliott, R. (2016). Strategic advertising management (5th ed.). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

Phillips, J. J., Bothell, T. W., & Snead, G. L. (2012). The project management scorecard. New York, NY: Routledge.

Sully, A. (2015). Interior design: Conceptual basis. Cambridgeshire, UK: Springer.

Thill, J. V., & Bovee, C. L. (2016). Excellence in business communication (12th ed.). London, UK: Pearson.

Wenzel, A. M. (2012). The entrepreneur’s guide to market research. Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger.

YHGP Market Size

Norwalk’s idea regarding his business’s target market includes primarily the consumers with a high level of income. To be more precise, only the households with about $100 000 annual income are planned to be targeted by YGHP (Your Home Is a Good Place, Inc. 325). In addition, Norwalk also noted that his business would operate in two counties in Michigan and five counties in Indiana. According to the reported provided by Census Bureau, median household income in the state of Michigan in 2015 estimates $49,576 and in Indiana – $49,255.

Also, the populations of the counties targeted by Norwalk vary from about 300 000 people to about 23 000 (Census Bureau). The percentage of households with income over $100 000 is about 2 or 3 which would give Norwalk a couple thousand potential consumers in larger counties and several hundred in smaller ones. For a firm working with large long-term construction and renovation projects, this is a small market.

The actual consumers ready to hire Norwalk would represent only a small percentage of the groups targeted by YHGP. The factors impacting their readiness to purchase YHGP services include seasons, consumers’ age, their homeownership status, marital status, and the need for renovation itself. These factors limit the viability of the selected target market increasing the likelihood and low demand.

Excluded Customer Groups

Norwalk is clearly omitting consumers from households with levels of income lower than $100 000. These households represent the majority of counties’ populations and could serve as sources of orders. At the same time, the consumers targeted by Norwalk represent a rather small base of consumers in the selected counties that may not generate stable demand, especially in colder seasons when construction businesses usually experience a slowdown.

In that way, there exists a potential threat to Norwalk’s business to face some quiet times of low or lacking demand during which they would need to search for alternative sources of income. As a result, Norwalk could benefit from expanding his target market to the consumers with average income levels. This could be done by means of adding low-cost services or service packages and offering additional products and services such as minor or short-term repair and renovation works, for example.

Recruiting Contractors

Searching for the professionals and business to collaborate, Norwalk engaged a wide range of contracting firms who benefited from cooperation with YHGP. The benefits received by the contractors included the promotion of their services, the improvement of the flows of orders and cash, and the opportunity to present their works and portfolios in the YHGP showroom. These activities helped the engaged businesses and workers to strengthen their brand reputation and attract new consumers. At the same time, there were direct competitors who did not wish to cooperate with YHGP.

Recruiting contractors for his projects, Norwalk would need to take into account their levels of excellence because one of his major goals is the provision of a good customer experience. In that way, contractors who are unreliable, messy in the workplace, lack construction site “etiquette” should be viewed as deal killers. Additionally, attempts to steal consumers from YHGP need to be seen as another immediate red flag.

Staffing of YHGP

YHGP has a rather small staff comprised of only six employees some of whom lack certain valuable skills that could definitely improve their performance (Your Home Is a Good Place, Inc. 325). The job performed by Rowdy, who lacks initiative, could be contracted out as it does not require any high-level skills. Most of the other employees could use some professional coaching and training in order to grow as professionals and eliminate the present weaknesses.

Moreover, the small team of six employees needs to be stable, loyal, and trusted by Norwalk, so it would not be reasonable to contract outcomes of these jobs. However, a couple of management and customer service coaches could be hired for a training program helping to improve the performance, approaches, and vision of the current workers.

Costs and Revenues

Norwalk estimated that the average total bill of $10 000 with a customer segment including only households with $100,000 of income was enough for YHGP to succeed (Your Home Is a Good Place, Inc. 325). However, he seems to miss several factors. First of all, in order to succeed with his established bill cost, he says to require a minimum of orders per month. This will give YHGP a total of $50 000 of monthly income which will have to pay for the firm’s needs and the employees’ salaries. Also, Norwalk would not be able to afford any additional costs, staff expansions, or emergencies.

As it was specified earlier, according to the Census data from 2015, the average annual incomes in the states of Michigan and Indiana equal about $49 000 (Census Bureau). This would mean that that the average monthly pay should be around $4000. YHGP’s estimated average monthly income would be $50 000, which will need to be divided among 7 major employees and leave each of them with an average salary and some additional maintenance costs. The level of profit for this income size would be minimal to non-existent in cases when YHGP would not be able to secure five orders a month which could be quite a common situation knowing that Norwalk only wants to target customers with the level of income higher than $100 000.

Approaching Female Customers as Decision Makers

Approaching female consumers as decision makers presents a limitation of Norwalk’s business by means of choosing a narrow focus. In this way, the target customer segment of YHGP that is already rather small and limited becomes even smaller.

By means of isolating female consumers from male ones, Norwalk risks to fragment his potential client base and alienate male customers. Even though a significant percentage of orders are made by women, it does not mean that male clients are interested in home improvement, decoration, and renovation. In fact, this could mean that the market of home-improvement has been orientated at female decision makers for a long time. Consequently, Norwalk could choose to pursue a different strategy by adding flexibility to his approach and engaging a larger base of consumers.

YHGP’s Brand Identity

In order to build a strong brand identity, Norwalk has to ensure that only the best contractors are engaged in the projects. This needs to be dome due to the high level of excellence and a good customer experience at which Norwalk aims. Satisfied customers would be likely to help promote the firm by recommending it to their friends and family members. Additionally, the firm leader has to compile an impressive portfolio to be used as evidence of its successful projects. Moreover, an active promotion and advertising campaign is required in order to keep the potential consumers aware of YHGP and the services that it provides. With a relatively small and limited customer base targeted by Norwalk, the firm cannot afford idleness.

Works Cited

Census Bureau. “QuickFacts”. Census.gov, n.d. Web.

“Your Home Is a Good Place.” Product Strategy, 2009, pp. 321-327.

The development of a target market for the low-cost generic detergent would involve some steps before eventually getting into the market to sell the product. First of all, it is important to mention that the market has been identified to be Las Vegas Nevada. The new product will be sold throughout Las Vegas which is the market that has been identified by the company. This is because Las Vegas is the most populous city in the United States with a high potential for shopping.

The population of this particular market of over 478,434 people has the required potential basing on its size, to consume the new detergents and enable the company to achieve its targets in terms of sales. This is because of the new fragrances that would be associated with the product.

The company is in a better position to effectively market the new detergent in the target market. This can be looked at the resources the company has at its disposal. There are adequate human resources to develop the strategy and see its implementation and success in the market. The company has been producing this product for quite some time and addressing the needs of the consumers in the target market would therefore not be an issue.

Market segmentation

The development of this market would begin with segmentation.

Segmentation of this market will be undertaken based on some factors. This will include age and annual income. The first segmentation of the market will comprise the high-income earners, the middle-income earners, and the low-income earners. The supply of the new detergents to the market would be greatly influenced by the segmentation in the market. Low-income earners have been targeted especially with low quantity packaging with very attractive prices. This would help to raise the sales volumes in such segments. The low-income earners have habits of buying in small packaged quantities and this would have to be addressed.

Middle-income earners have the habit of buying both in large and small quantities. Therefore all the packaging would be undertaken to meet their demands.

The high-income earner’s segment will be useful for bulk buying hence quantity would be kept in check to ensure adequate supplies.

Age segmentation would also be instrumental in this market with the bracket between 16 and 40 and the other segment between 40 and 70 years.16-40 years will carry most of the detergents and thus their needs will have to be identified and addressed.

The over 40 years segment is not associated much with the detergents and is therefore not expected to contribute much to the sales targets. Therefore focus will be much on the younger age group.

In the first segmentation, the middle-income earners will remain attractive in the market because of their buying habits. They will be taking both large quantity packages and smaller quantities. This makes it the target segment in developing this market.

In the second category, the younger age group between 16 to 40 years will also be attractive in marketing our products.

In terms of positioning, the middle-income earners would be found in all the major grocery stores in the metropolitan city. The younger age group would also be found in the main grocery store where most of the supplies of the low-cost detergents would be found.

Marketing mix for the segments

Middle-income earners

The product would be tailored to suit their needs by additional quality measures for instance a variety of fragrances. The price of the new detergent would be much reduced to attract them more into bulk buying. The reduced price would be a very instrumental factor in meeting the demands of this market segment. Promotion of the product would be undertaken throughout the middle-income earners in a variety of ways. T.V, Radio, and print media advertising would be given the emphasis that is required.

The location for the new detergents would be accessible to most of the middle-income earners. This would be achieved through the distribution channels to the grocery store in the city.

16- 40 years age group

The product would also be having additional attractants in terms of quality for instance variety of colors and fragrances that would be important in meeting the needs of consumers. The product would also be packaged in attractive bags to ensure that consumers like the packages.

The price of the detergent would also be lowered and this would influence the purchasing habits of the detergent as compared to the competitors. Price in the stores would be an attractant into buying the detergent.

The detergent would be promoted in the segment using a variety of ways ranging from gift packs and also through the media both print, T..V and Radio which are accessed by this particular group. The detergent would be available for this group in all the grocery stores and this would ensure that there is adequate stock for purchases.

References

Barlon, Kimuli. (2006) “The concept of the marketing mix” Presentation on marketing management, vol 1, September 2006, pp 2-7-Turku university.

McCarthy, J. (1960 1st ed.), Basic Marketing: A managerial approach, 13th ed., Irwin, Homewood Il, 2001.

Frey, A. (1961) Advertising, 3rd ed., Ronald Press, New York.

Lauterborn, R (1990) “New Marketing Litany: 4 Ps Passe; C words take over”, Advertising Age, pg 26.

Unisex Fashion Accessories

Target: Hispanic Teen Aged 13-19 years, Female

Hispanic teens are of special interest to marketers as they consist of a large part of the emerging US youth population. According to Hispanicad.com, Hispanic teen market has a spending power of $20 billion and a projected growth rate six times higher than the rest of the teen market. To target this segment we need to understand correctly the multicultural markets, celebrating distinct cultures for targeted products, services and communications. With teens the trend is toward ‘intraculturalism’- the combining, sharing, and recreating of multiple ethnic identity influences.

We target this segment to advertise our product which is a new teenage unisex fashion accessory. We target the Hispanic teens because they have a high degree of affiliation for fashion items and are found to be very fashion conscious. Further this target group has brought about the concept of “interculturalism” among American youths. This implies that they can adopt and adapt to different aspects of cultures into their identity.

For instance, a young girl of Hispanic descent may combine hip-hop fashion with Mehndi-stained hands when she goes out dancing to her favorite Reggaeton artists. The next morning she sits down with her grandmother to watch a daily soap before logging onto MySpace.com to catch up on her diverse network of friends.

Hispanic teens, a demographic that is growing six times faster than other market segments and, by 2020, will account for 24% of the population aged five to 19 years. They currently control $20 billion in spending power and influence over $200 billion in household spending.

The media that we adopt to advertise our product to the Hispanic teens are: teen fashion magazines, television, internet, radio.

We choose the following media for advertisement of our products. This is so because Hispanic girls are a major reader of fashion magazines. Magazines appeal to Teens, with eight out of ten Teens reading magazines. That translates into 19.3 million readers today who strongly influence fashion and purchasing trends for the rest of society. In addition, more Teens trust magazine advertising than advertising in other media, and they do not tend to spend time with other media when reading magazines. They are a voracious readers of teen magazines especially fashion magazines. Hispanic teen girls trust magazine advertising the most.

Further prime time television ads attract 22% of Hispanic teens in America. So we choose it to be our second option of media outlet. Radio ads too have a share of 22% teen affiliation. So both these mediums are a lucrative way of attracting Hispanic teen girls to use our products. Further internet is used by 18% of the target group. This shows that advertisements through internet in forms of direct mails or instant pop ups will be a lucrative method of media outlet.

Health Drinks

Target: 23-30 year old, female, Asian, married, 1 child, $75,000 income, healthy lifestyle

Asian-Americans are considered a “model minority” (Cohen 1992; Delener and Neelankavil 1990) whose premium demographic profile (Fisher 1994) – affluence, high education, and managerial/professional occupations – and rapid growth in number make them an attractive market. The number of Asian-Americans in the U.S. population is predicted to jump from a current 9.4 million (3.6% of the total) to 16 million (6%) in 2010 and to 20 million (8%) in 2020 (Bureau of the Census 1996). This market has a purchasing power of $125 billion. Further, Asian-Americans have a median household income of $44,460 a year, 19% more than the national average, which includes white as well as minority households. This target group is a small part of the Asian community in America, but the target group has a huge potential for products like health drink for children. As Asian females are the decision makers in the house regarding what kind of feed items will be bought for their families they need to be targeted for selling health drinks. We target to sell health drinks to the Asian females aged between 23-30 years with single child. Research shows that they are more concerned about their child’s health and will be the right target for health drinks. Further due to their society being more interdependent they are more concerned about their families and tend to spend more for their families.

The media outlet that we choose for this group of target customers is television, newspapers, magazines, direct door-to-door promotion, and internet. In order of preference the media outlets gains prominence as internet, newspaper, door-to-door promotion, magazines, and television. This is so because research shows that Asian Americans spend 50% more time on internet than average Americans and 9% more time in reading newspaper than average. They spend 10% less time in watching television and 15% less time in reading magazines.

The Asian mothers of one child are viewers of televisions and rely a lot on television advertisements to make decisions regarding their purchase of daily necessities. They are regular viewers of prime time programs and the ads should be aired during these programs. Asian women read a lot of women’s magazines and rely on the ads that come in the magazines. Direct promotion is a good option for health drinks as they provide an opportunity for the target customers to taste the product which is very important for Asian mothers. Though internet is not a very used medium for Asian housewife, recent study shows that this media is catching up with the target groups.

Luxury Retirement Resorts

Target: 55-65 year old, retired, $200,000 annual income, enjoys traveling

With an aging American population this segment will form a major part of the American population. The target group are retired Americans who have a good financial backing and are willing to go ahead to stay in lush style during their retirement years. This is so because this generation belongs to the baby boomers. Baby boomers have the following characteristics. This cohort began life in an idyllic Father Knows Best conformity in the 1950s and came of age in the 1960s rebelling against the world that their earlier generations had built for them. This generation is often associated with an outspoken idealism and a somewhat self-absorbed “Me Generation” attitude. Primarily in their late 40s through early 60s, this generation is the largest generational group in the workforce. Boomers are competitive, value expertise, and believe in paying their dues. However, Boomers also retain 1960s-era idealism and daydream about leaving the corporate world in search of more meaningful, spiritually fulfilling work, as mentioned above. Two decades ago, Baby Boomers expected to live the good life, and were willing to work long hours to attain it. As Boomers have matured, their focus has shifted to more quality time with family and an interest in experiences rather than material goods. This generation continues to define itself by its youth. Retirement has become a way to combine new interests with a continued paycheck.

This generation needs to be approached through mediums like the newspapers, televisions, radio, billboards, and magazines. They being a materialistic generation have their interest in watching news in the television. So the advertisement for this product ahs to be done during such news programs, or through news channels. Newspapers are a daily requirement for this generation. So advertisements in newspapers are inevitable. Further, the degree of trust on newspaper ads is more than on any other medium. Baby boomers have a traditional loyalty to mediums like televisions, newspapers and radio. The use of satellite radio is gaining popularity with the baby boomers and they are a new target for marketers to advertise their products but traditional radio continue to hold interest among Boomers. So cohesive marketing needs to be used to target this group of customers. So the programming content needs to be simple and representative of the facilities that are available to capture this audience.

Reference

Teen Market Profile, Magazine Publishers of America, Web.

Jupiter Research, Pew Internet and American Life Project, Global reach and Knowledge Networks, Web.

The Baby Boomer Media Consumption Study – 2007, the Mature Market. Web.

The residents of Yulee are identified as potential customers composing the target market for the First Coast Wellness. The business plan review shows that the company aims to focus on all the residents, from children to older adults to provide them with special and alternative medicine services, such as cognitive therapy, pain management, cosmetic injections, et cetera. The size of the target market seems to be sufficient to make the given business successful and improve the lives of the residents. The business plan also identifies the details of the target market, focusing on racial, ethnic, educational, and health insurance, employment characteristics. Considering that the majority of residents have health coverage, the services of First Coast Wellness seems to be demanded and beneficial for them. For those who have no insurance and live under the poverty line, there will be low cost or free services. Accordingly, pain management will be important for veterans and geriatric patients, cosmetically procedures – for women, and behavioral therapies – for adolescents.

One may state that the given business plan provides a comprehensive evaluation of the target market since it integrates relevant demographic, geographic, residential, and health-related data. The combination of the above issues allows for concluding that Yulee is an attractive location for the First Coast Wellness. The noticed shift towards more healthy lifestyles is another advantage of the identified target market, which would allow for focusing on preventative services. However, it would be better if the business plan also included brief information about the expected distribution channels and their relevance to the target population’s needs and preferences. For instance, it is important to understand whether potential customers are comfortable with online channels or more likely to use traditional media to learn about new trends.

Once an entrepreneur has selected a product or service to deliver, questions about choosing effective market targeting strategies and location arise. These factors help build the image and maintain the organization’s reputation; thus, many businessmen focus on both areas to ensure customer satisfaction and profit. Since business location and target market are increasingly important for any company, it is necessary to identify selection criteria.

Primarily, the importance of choosing the right place strategy should not be understated. For example, the right location for a small business is vital because it ultimately determines its income. Therefore, some researchers suggest that a business owner should aim to appeal to local demographics and conduct market research. Moreover, considering the surrounding amenities such as parking or other infrastructure is essential to attract customers.

Yet, not solely location conditions a business success – it is also indispensable to implement targeting strategies. As it is known, an entrepreneur should identify their product feature, which would be beneficial to the customer. Moreover, a proper analysis of such factors as age, income, marital status, gender, ethnicity, and several others will indicate which category has the greatest need in a product. Undoubtedly, studying the competitors’ target market will also help discern the advantages and disadvantages of a business.

In summary, it should be stated that a company’s success depends on various factors, but the location and proper targeting remain the pivotal force of creating a business. The assignment will help me find the right place to situate my venue, taking into account selection criteria. Furthermore, understanding the rules of targeting will facilitate identifying customers’ needs. In general, these guidelines are essential to do a profitable business.

UK is a competitive economy with several players from different countries. Therefore, Anthony will be investing in a competitive market with a large population. The targeted region, Greater London within the M25, has a large population given that it is bordered by some of the largest districts in the UK such as Kent, Surrey, Berkshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, and Buckinghamshire.

Technically, the new product will have an extensive ready market. It would be advisable for Anthony to target women of between 10 and 45 years of age. This is because the target group is growing at a fast rate, not to mention that it appreciates shopping. Anthony can supply the new clothing line which includes shirts, skirts, pants, and dresses for ladies in small, medium and large sizes.

Compared to men, women like shopping and appreciate shopping collective products under one roof. Therefore, as women go about their shopping, they will also be attracted to purchase products for their younger ones.

This will effectively increase the target market. While designing the market segment, target and position of the new product, Cant, Strydom, and Jooste (2006) advise that the adopted marketing mix adopted should be aligned with the formulated objectives.

The new products which are of different design will be adopted in order to strategically position the retail in the Greater London. According to Jackson (2006) the rationale behind positioning is with a view to creating an experience upon the purchase of a product.

Therefore, the target market which comprise of ladies of different ages, offers a unique market and a strategy that would position the company in the market. This is because shopping under one roof offers consumers an unforgettable experience.

Normally, product positioning is based on consumers’ beliefs about the benefits, features, and values of a product (Jackson 2006). With respect to this notion, the retail shop can benefit from the unoccupied niche in the mind of the consumers, thereby making a credible decision to shop under one roof.

Location of the store

The location of a retail store plays an integral role in the success of the store. Additionally, it necessitates proper implementation of retail strategy since the location of a store plays a major part in as far as branding and image of the store is concerned.

Furthermore, location influences the adopted merchandising mix as well as the store’s layout. The anticipated retail shop should be located in such a way that it positively impacts consumers. The difference between a poorly located store and a well located store defines failure and success of a business.

The location of the retail store should be strategically located in an area which is accessible and easily noticeable. Based on the geographical representation of the Greater London region, M25 is served well by the transport system which means that consumers from outside the area but who borders M25 will be shopping at the specified store.

The store should be located in such a manner that it is differentiable from the rest of the clothing stores in the region. A retail store needs to be located in an area which is visible and with high consumers’ traffic.

In other words, Anthony should locate the retail store in a walk-in place that is also accessible to a large number of people. Furthermore, such an area should also be easily accessed by a reliable transport system.

The retail store should not be located in an isolated place, but in an area near competitors. Establishing a store in an area that has competitors offers consumers the opportunity to choose the best alternative based on factors like product quality or the price of the products (Jackson 2006).

In addition, the area should have complimentary outlets that have high consumer traffic. This offers the new entrant the opportunity to use marketing strategies to gain a share of the market.

Since Anthony will be dealing will imported products in a new market, the store should be located in an area that has adequate parking space. Parking space will make it possible for Anthony to load and download his merchandise.

The design and ambience he should create in the store

Before locating the store, Anthony should understand the aspect of design and ambience. Ambience is the degree of lighting in a room or the mood and the atmosphere created in a room through design. In this context, it implies that ambience is usually artificial.

It is important for Anthony to design the interior and exterior parts of the store in such a way that it creates a positive ambience. Given that the retail store mainly targets women as its consumers, a cool and calm atmosphere should be created.

With regard to design, the clothes should be arranged in such a way as to consider the different consumers based on factors like age, taste, and preferences. For example, clothes meant for children, youths, and adults should be located separately in the same store. This will offer the consumers convenience as they can walk into the store knowing where to locate products meant for a certain age group or size.

The atmosphere of the store should be appealing to the consumer’s eyes and impact a memorable picture in the consumer’s mind (Putatunda 2012). That experience of appeal will not only attract a consumer but will retain the customer and influence other consumers through word of mouth or referrals.

This has been supported by Collins (2002) who adds that the initial thing that a store has to do is to pull customers and persuade them to buy the products being offered. In addition, the attraction creates an experience which is more important than the quality of the products being offered.

In Anthony’s case, the retail store should have display windows outside and throughout the store. It is advisable to undertake research and hire an interior designer to carry out the design and instil ambience in the retail store. Anthony should be willing to spend in designing the store as this will help to create an appeal and image thus selling the store to willing consumers. Image projection is vital in customer attraction.

Although majorly neglected and ignored, the first impression created in a store is considered as the last impression created after the consumer exits a store (Putatunda 2012). This implies that even the staff should create an atmosphere which attracts consumers into the store and hence increase their possibility of making a purchase.

The staff should be dressed well, enthusiastic, clean, and customer-oriented, thus creating a happy and positive ambience (Putatunda 2012). An important part of management is to ensure that the products are well displayed. The implication made is that the clothes should be displaced in a manner in which is attractive, easy to find, and uncomplicated.

This not only saves time but encourages a consumer to buy more products. If there are clothes with premium prices or under discount, they have to be located in a separate section from the fixed price products. Similar items should be placed in the section same.

The products should be placed in such a manner that they attract the attention of the consumers. Hiding or over stacking the products will chase customers away instead of attracting them to the retail stores hence low market share. But avoid this, the products should be placed at eye level and in addition use signs and placards to attract the consumers eye.

Spangenberg, Sprott, Grohmann and Tracey (2004, p.2) acknowledge that ambient scent application in retail environment has the ability to influence consumer’s buying habits. In addition, ambient olfactory cues through the use of ambient scents have positive impact on the behaviour and the perception of the consumer.

Ambient scents in a clothes retail stores should not necessarily emanate from the products but from artificial scents. Women and attractive ambient scents are inseparable and should be considered.

Some of the effects of ambient scents on customers include influence on purchase intentions, altering consumer behaviour, influencing affective and evaluative responses, and elicit cognitive elaboration to the customer (Spangenberg et al. 2004, p.4).

Therefore, positive ambient scent creates different arousal in customers thus influencing their purchasing patterns. Anthony needs to consult a scent ambience specialist so as to be offered with the most appealing and affective scents for the store.

Reference List

Cant, M C, Strydom, JW & Jooste, C J 2006, Marketing management, Juta, Cape Town.

Caruso, A & Marchiori, M 2003, The Adoption of information systems in SMEs: Organizational issues and success factors. Web.

Collins, M 2002, Outfitting retail: Design and experience. Web.

Jackson, J B 2006, Product positioning strategies. Web.

Kurnia, S, Swatman, P M C & Schauder, D 2010, Efficient consumers response: A Preliminary comparison of USA and European experience, Bled’98” — 11th International Conference on Electronic Commerce, Bled, Slovenia, June 8-10.

Kurnia, S, Betts, J & Johnson, R B 2001, Understanding the diffusion of efficient consumer response: An Australian Survey Study, CollECTeR, pp. 42-51.

Niranjan, T T, Wagner, S M & Aggarwal, V 2011, ‘Measuring information distortion in real-world supply chains’, International Journal of Production Research, vol. 49, no. 11, pp.3343–3362.

Peppard, J, Ward, J, Daniel, E 2007, ‘Managing the realization of business benefits from IT investments’, MIS Quarterly Executive, pp.1-22.

Putatunda, R 2012, Store management tips. Web.

Spangenberg, E R, Sprott, D E., Grohmann, B, & Tracy, D L 2004, Effects of gender congruent ambient scent on approach and avoidance behaviours in retail stores, 7^th Annual Retail Strategy and Consumer Decision Research Symposium 2004 Consumer Decision Track. Web.