Reference no: EM132419101

MKT10007 Fundamentals of Marketing - Swinburne University of Technology

Assignment objectives:

- To develop understanding of marketing management tasks and of how marketing fits into other business functions within an organisation

- Use research information and apply marketing concepts to propose ethical, creative solutions

Assignment Overview

You will be grouped with 2-3 other people in your tutorial. The assignment will be in two parts. First, as a group you will decide on what industry/product category you would like to focus on. Each group member will then choose a brand within that industry and do a report on that brand. This will be your individually graded component of the assignment and submitted early. It is a document of 1,400 words.

The pitch will be in these main parts:
- A section that contrasts the marketing mix and positioning of the existing brands in the market for that product category
- A section proposing what new product should be created that exploits an underserved area in the market
- A section that details the target market for this new product, and the marketing mix plan of selling it to them

Key facts Assignment format

Submit a 1,400 word document (+ 10%) for your individual group report. Submit a link of the video of your group pitch as a submission comment.

Submit a soft copy of your presentation sources, data, research, relevant appendices, and references.

Part 1. Brand report (Each Individual in the group).

Companies are always trying to stay up to date with what is going on in the market, and the strategies of their competitors. The first part of this assignment is you conducting this "marketing intelligence" exercise.

In Week 3, you will be assigned into groups of 3 or 4 people to form a company. You will then agree to choose one industry/product category from a predetermined set of choices during the tutorial (for example: male perfumes). You will then discuss among yourselves which brand within that product category each individual would like to do their marketing intelligence report on. Keep in mind that one company may have different brands and product lines in the same category, targeting different markets in Australia.

IMPORTANT: Avoid choosing a product category that is too niche (e.g "horse food") because your chosen brand and product category will be an important part of Assignment 1b. You might be painting yourself into a corner by choosing a category that is too specific.

You will coordinate with your team, but each will work on their respective brand individually. The brand report must contain:
a. A summary of the brand with relevant background information of its presence in Australia. This may include things such as the brand's history in Australia, market size, recent performance trends, and other relevant marketing information. The analysis should also include a display of all relevant offerings (sub-brands, product lines, variants) that the brand (or its parent company) has in the product category that you have chosen. You should also present a marketing mix analysis of the brand of your choice*.
b. An analysis of at least one micro and one macro environmental factors from the

SIP-CCC & DENT-PC framework, that currently has the largest impact for the brand of your choice* in Australia. You may expand sub-factors in your analysis (e.g Demographic may have decreasing family size and shift in age-group as two separate trends), but you still have to retain at least two main factors in your analysis.
c. A ‘persona' of the ideal target market for that brand of your choice* in Australia. A persona is a fictional character sheet representing a consumer segment who would be most attracted to the brand of your choice. Your persona must have the consumer's demographic characteristics and a picture of a person that represents that segment. In addition, the persona sheet should also list the consumer's motivations, frustrations, and life goals that are relevant to the product category you are researching. We expect that the information given should be sensible and supported by evidence wherever possible, and not just a product of your imagination. Below are two examples of the variety of ways the persona could be presented.
d. You must also accompany your persona with an explanation of how the brand is triggering need recognition for that consumer segment. In other words, you need to answer the question "what is the brand doing to make the persona notice that they need what the brand is offering?" We encourage you to use parts of the Consumer Decision Making Process (CDMP) framework to guide your work in this section.

*If there are multiple brands by the same company, or multiple target markets feasibly targeted by one brand: Choose only one by coordinating with your groupmates to try and cover as much variety, e.g if one person does a perfume brand that is low-end and targets adolescent males, then another could do a high-end perfume brand targeting mature males.

Part 2. The New Product Plan

Now that you have done a marketing intelligence analysis on the existing market individually, now it is time to regroup. You must share your individual work with your team (if you have not done so already), and together you have to create a creative video to entice investors to fund a new product your company will launch in that category. You are encouraged to be creative in your presentation, but overall the video must explicitly provide the following information:

a. A positioning map of your analysed brands plus other prominent brands you did not analyse, constructed using data from surveys conducted on real consumers.

b. A summary of contrasts on the different brands (i.e ‘the competitors') your team have researched. This will include a strategic explanation on the differences between the brands you've individually analyzed, their unique selling proposition, and place on a positioning map.

c. Based on the above, you should be able to find a gap in the market where you could launch a product. You must then propose a new product that your company plans to launch and justify its positioning in the market.

d. Based on your understanding of the competitive landscape, you need to also create a persona of the ideal consumer segment for your company's new product. You will also present your positioning strategy to that target market. This strategy should be supported by your understanding of that ideal consumer's characteristics.

e. Lastly, use your positioning strategy as the basis to propose a marketing mix plan of selling your product to this segment. This plan will include product elements (i.e what will your product actually look like?), place (how and where will you sell it?), promotion (what will be your advertising theme? Where will you place your message?), and price (how much will you sell it for in the market? What pricing strategy are you going to use?)

You are strongly encouraged to be creative in your presentation. However, it is important to note that we are looking for creativity that makes sense. Your product plan should be solidly grounded by your analysis of existing products and your understanding of the target market. We are expecting that you provide sources and evidence for your analysis, as well as demonstrate relevant theories and frameworks you've learned as the guide for your work.

Attachment:- Fundamentals Of Marketing.rar