Reference no: EM132621915 , Length: word count:2800

MKT4001 Principles of Marketing - Arden University

Assignment Brief

As part of the formal assessment for the programme you are required to submit a Principles of Marketing assignment. Please refer to your Student Handbook for full details of the programme assessment scheme and general information on preparing and submitting assignments.

Learning Outcome 1. Explain the marketing process, with particular reference marketing audits, orientation, environmental analysis, marketing planning

Learning Outcome 2. Distinguish the contribution of the elements of the extended marketing mix to effective marketing planning

Learning Outcome 3. Use the concepts of segmentation, targeting and positioning to respond to marketing problems

Learning Outcome 4. Apply the marketing mix in selected situations.

Learning Outcome 5. Show situational awareness when applying the extended marketing mix.

Assignment Scenario - ‘Hill's Vineyard'

Jamie and Megan Hill own a small, family run vineyard in Hampshire, England.

The vineyards of the Hill's Estate are situated on the North Downs with its famous chalky soil, and approx. 20 acres of land have been planted which are producing sparkling and table wines which have been well received locally - their clients consist of local consumers, and small retailers in the UK. Recently a reporter from a large national UK newspaper came to visit the vineyard whilst he was staying with friends nearby and he has included a very favourable article on the vineyard and its wines in a well-known national UK newspaper.

Instead of just selling the wines in the UK Jamie and Megan believe that their sparkling wines can rival the champagne produced in France and would like to capitalise on the exposure that the article in the national newspaper has given them and expand their business to supply their quality English wines to overseas customers. In their discussions the reporter suggested that one way to do this would be to develop an online retail arm of the business but the couple have no idea how to go about setting up a website etc. They would also like to start offering ‘vineyard tours' to both UK based visitors and tourists and realise that in order to make these changes to the business they would need to seek some outside help.

You and Megan have been friends since school and as she and Jamie have no real understanding of marketing Megan has asked if you will meet with her and Jamie to discuss / explain what marketing is and what the key marketing issues that they need to consider for the business are.

Assignment Task

You are required to prepare a discussion document that you are going to use in your discussion with Megan and Jamie. The discussion document should include the following:

Part 1 - Marketing Environment and Planning Process

a) Explain the components of the marketing planning process and outline the marketing context for the vineyard offer, with particular reference to the role / importance of adopting a marketing orientation and its application to the business.

b) Carry out an environmental audit in the form of a PESTEL analysis for the business ensuring that you detail specific market / organisational related facts that are fully referenced where possible. Additionally, you should highlight relevant micro-environmental aspects such as dominant competitors within the industry and recent competitor activity.

c) Outline* the extended marketing mix 7Ps and explain how the development of the extended marketing mix could contribute to effective marketing planning for the new product.
* a fully detailed marketing mix analysis is NOT required here - that is required in Part 3 here you are explaining the importance of building a strong and coordinated marketing mix.

Part 2 - Segmentation, Targeting & Positioning

a) Explain how the overall market could / should be segmented for ONE of the following:

- Tourists coming to the UK looking to book a vineyard tour

OR

- UK based customers looking to buy Hills wine online

b) Identify your B2C target market as to who you would primarily target with the tour in terms of characteristics including demographics, behavioural, benefits sought and lifestyle.

c) Explain what is meant by the term ‘positioning' and suggest how the vineyard tour would be positioned in the consumer market.

Part 3 - Marketing Mix Analysis

Using the table format below provide ‘creative' details of the extended (7Ps) marketing mix for the vineyard demonstrating original thought in your proposal, whilst explicitly taking into account the environmental factors identified in Part 1 in order to justify your approach.

	Hill's Vineyard
Product Explain how products are developed to sustain competitive advantage - consider the market and competition here
Place Explain how distribution is arranged to provide customer convenience at an efficient cost. Include distribution of tour details.
Price Explain how prices are set to reflect an organisation's objectives and market conditions
Promotion Illustrate how promotional activity is integrated to achieve marketing objectives - the communications mix including social media.
Analyse the additional elements of the extended marketing mix:
People How important are the staff to brand purpose and brand image (even if they are not all customer facing?)
Physical Evidence What significance will the visible elements of the brand take to ensure positioning and consistency?
Process Getting the product to the customer, ordering, booking tours etc

You should write in as much detail as possible (within word count expectations) ensuring that your work is not just descriptive in nature but also uses academic referencing where appropriate to show how relevant marketing principles and theories support your analysis of the new vineyard offer. A balance of theory and practice is required - ensure use of the text in the elibrary.

Maximum word count: 3,000 words