Reference no: EM132172673 , Length: word count:3000

ASSESSMENT TASK: case study analysis

Learning outcomes

SLO1: Critically evaluate and apply marketing principles and theories to selected "real life" organisations and case studies
SLO3: Evaluate new social media and their value in a marketing context

DESCRIPTION

The Live Case Study aims to provide an opportunity for you to:

1. Demonstrate your understanding of the overall use of social media, and

2. Analyse potential effectiveness with regard to achieving marketing objectives.

Instructions: You are required to select a company or brand and it must be one that (a) has a presence in Australia (b) serves you as a customer and (c) is using digital media as part of its integrated marketing communications (IMC) strategy. The company or brand you select can be a small, local organisation that is attempting to develop a stronger social media presence or alternatively you can select a well-known brand, national franchise or global brand (i.e., Boost Juice, Lush cosmetics, Target, Uber, Airbnb, etc.).

Your task is to critically analyse their social media marketing activities. This includes commonly used social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Snapchat, as well as buzz or viral marketing, blogs and in-game advertising. As part of this analysis, you are expected to ‘follow' the company over an 4 week period.

You are also expected to make one (1) marketing recommendation, outlining a way to improve the effectiveness of their campaign; you are free to detail a social media option that was not considered by the organisation. In the world of marketing many options are possible, and just because a particular campaign was implemented, that does not necessarily mean that it was the ideal option - others may have been better, but we will never know!

This is an opportunity to apply your unique insights as a consumer and to be flexible in your marketing thinking. Having chosen a live case company to analyse, you will prepare a case study approximately 5 pages - approx. 3,000 words (excluding cover, tables, reference list and appendices), briefly describe the organisation, its brand/product/service, target market and the success (or otherwise) of its social 2 media marketing. Here, you form an assessment of whether the business is effective strategically and is meeting its objectives; for instance, does it encourage trial, increase desire, facilitate purchase, brand awareness and customer engagement? Does the company offer its audience compelling reasons to become a customer? You should include metrics such as total followers and customer engagement (i.e., positive or negative comments, sentiment).

Finally, you outline, and justify, one (1) marketing recommendation to help the organisation improve its social media marketing.

The report should include the following sections:

1. Report Cover Page

2. Executive Summary

3. Table of Contents

4. Report Introduction

5. Overview of company: Introduce the company, its brand/product/service and target market; what it is that they do and why social media is important to their business; HINT: Look at the industry they operate within as well as norms/standards for social media use in that industry. Be succinct.

6. Summary of social media use, objectives and effectiveness:
Briefly summarize the company's current use of social media. Are they using the different tools like Twitter, Instagram Pinterest etc. in ways that are unique or duplicative - of other companies or competitors? In other words are they saying the same uninspired things over and over again across platform or are they a unique voce that adapts to the platform/medium? What are the risks involved? Have their marketing efforts failed on a particular channel? How do they manage customer dissatisfaction? How do they leverage each tool? Do they offer deals? A chart that presents numbers of followers and frequency of posts is a good start for this sections If they are not on a specific platform, try to deduce why they are absent from this channel.

7. Recommendation: Make one (1) recommendation based upon your assessment and research. HINT: Consider a Social Media SWOT analysis that looks at strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats associated with the firm's use of social media which might points towards recommendations.

8. Report Conclusion

9. Reference List: Demonstrate that you used appropriate materials (i.e., the Dahl textbook and academic readings) with which to base your case study upon. (utilise APA6 referencing format).

Note: all external information must have an in-text citation and a full reference in the References section. All tables need to be numbered, have a title and have their sources referenced. 3 Useful Information: Some tips - this is a business report that presents evidence in an analytical way and arrives at a conclusion based upon that evidence. Avoid first person statements (I or we) in order to avoid poor analysis and defaulting back to belief or opinion. Avoid sweeping generalizations. Avoid over use of qualifying language (excellent, impressive, good etc.) or slang. Present the evidence and let the reader decide based upon your evidence.

Business to one choose from:

The Dog Mum - Clothing and Accessories for Dog and Cat lovers Male and Female
Fuschia Design - Ladies Clothing
Mama Ferrari's - Pizza and Cafe
Blue Poppy - Café
Millie Meets Lilly - Ladies Clothing store
Queenslands Reds - Rugby Union
DK Stainless - Dog hydration Station and food stations
Brisbane Heat - Cricket