Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

ResearchProposalonAssessmentofMarketingStrategyPracti
cesinDashenBreweryFactory

By:GetachewLemessa

January2024
AddisAbabaEthiopia

By: Getachew Lemessa Page 1

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Contents

CHAPTERONE 3
1INTRODUCTION 3
1.1BackgroundoftheStudy 3
1.2StatementoftheProblem 4
1.3ObjectivesoftheStudy 6
1.3.1GeneralObjective 6
1.3.2SpecificObjectives 6
1.4ResearchQuestions 6
1.5Scope/DelimitationoftheStudy 7
1.6SignificanceoftheStudy 7
1.7LimitationsoftheStudy 8
1.8OperationalDefinitions 8
1.9OrganizationoftheStudy 8
CHAPTERTWO 9
2REVIEWSOFRELATEDLITERATURE 9
2.1.TheoreticalLiteratureReview 9
2.1.1MarketingStrategyOverview 9
2.1.2ElementsofMarketingStrategy 10
2.1.3Segmentation,TargetingandPositioning(STP) 10
2.1.3.1BasesforSegmentation 11
2.1.3.2TargetMarketSelection 12
2.1.3.3Positioning 13
2.1.4MarketingMixStrategies 13
2.1.4.1ProductMixStrategy 14
2.1.4.2.MarketingThroughtheProductLifeCycle 15
2.1.4.3PricingStrategies 18
2.1.4.4MethodsofPricing 18
2.1.4.5PromotionalStrategies 19
2.1.4.6DistributionStrategies(Place) 22
2.1.4.7People 24
2.1.4.8Process 25
2.1.4.9PhysicalEvidence 25
2.1.5ThreeGenericStrategies 25
2.1.6CompetitiveStrategies 27
2.2.EmpiricalLiteratureReview 27
2.2.1TheMarketingStrategyPractice 27
2.2.2MarketingMixof4P’SforCompetitiveAdvantage 28
2.2.3StrategicMarketingandFirm’sPerformance 29

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

2.2.4TheEffectofMarketingMixinAttractingCustomers 29
2.2.5BrandEquityandBrandAwarenessonCustomerSatisfaction 30
2.3ResearchGaps 30
2.4ConceptualFramework 31
CHAPTERTHREE 32
3RESEARCHMETHODS 32
3.1.DescriptionoftheStudyArea 32
3.2.ResearchDesignandApproach 32
3.3.TargetPopulation 32
3.4.SamplingDesignandProcedures 33
3.5.TypesandSourcesofData 33
3.6.MethodsofDataCollection 33
3.7.MethodsofDataAnalysis 33
3.8.ValidityandReliability 34
3.9.EthicalConsiderations 35
CHAPTERFOUR 36
4RESEARCHWORKPLANANDBUDGET 36
4.1WorkPlan 36
4.2Budget 37
5REFERENCES 37
6APPENDICES 39

By: Getachew Lemessa Page 3

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

CHAPTERONE

1INTRODUCTION

1.1BackgroundoftheStudy

Homburg(2009)foundthatmarketingstrategyisaprocessthatenablesorganizationstofoc
ustheirlimitedresourcesonthegreatestopportunitiestoincreasesalesandachievesustain
ableadvantages.Themarketingstrategyincludesallthebasicandlong-
termactivitiesinthefieldofmarketing.Theseactivitiesinvolvetheanalysisoftheinitialsituati
onofthecompany'sstrategyandtheformulation,evaluation,andselectionofmarket-
orientedstrategies,thuscontributingtotheachievementofthecompany'sobjectivesandm
arketinggoals.

Weknowthatthedifferencebetweenmarketingandfunctionalareasisthatitisthemaincom
municationfocusthatoccursintheorganization'sexternalmarket,anditisakeypartoftheco
mpany'ssuccess.Therefore,tofindandretaincustomersbycreatingcompetitiveadvantage
s,companiesmustdesignappropriatemarketingstrategies."Marketingstrategyisakindof
marketinglogicthroughwhichthecompanyhopestocreatecustomervalueandachieveprof
itablecustomerrelationships"(KotlerandArmstrong,2012).Createcustomervalueandbuil
dlong-
termrelationshipswithahighlycapablebusinessenvironmentCompaniesmustcarefullyre
viewandobservetheenvironmentandtheirmarketingstrategies.

Themarketingstrategydeterminesthechoiceofmarketsegments,targetmarkets,positioni
ng,marketingmixandresourceallocation.Marketingstrategyincludesselectingandanalyzi
ngthetargetmarketandcreatingandmaintaininganappropriatemarketingmixthatmeetsth
etargetmarketandthecompany(Paul,1994).AsshownbyWindandRobertson(1983),mark
etingstrategiesclearlyfocusonseekinglong-
termconsumerandcompetitiveadvantages.Marketingstrategyistheboundaryfunctionbe

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

tweenacompanyanditscustomers,competitors,andotherstakeholders.

Marketinghasauniqueabilitytoevaluateconsumerneedsandbusinesspotentialtogainaco
mpetitiveadvantage.Themarketingdepartmentdevelopsstrategiesbasedoncompetitive
analysisfromconsumersandotherenvironmentalforces.Marketingstrategyisgenerallya"f
ourP"marketingmixdealingwithproducts,prices,promotions,andlocations.Allthevariable
softhemarketingmixcontributetothecompany'sformulationofmarketingstrategiesasac
ompetitiveadvantage(Jain,1997).

Theorganizationinquestion,DashenBrewery'swasestablishedin2000anditisownedbyEn
dowmentFundfortheRehabilitationofTigray(EFFORT)corporatewhichhas49%shareand
Duet,aUKinvestmentcompanywhichownsthemajority51%.TheDashenBreweryislocated
130kmnortheastofAddisAbaba,inDebreBirhanandoccupiesanareaof85,000squaremete
rsofland.ItalsostartedtoproduceDraughtbeerthatenjoyedpopularityandbigsales.

Therefore,thepurposeofthisstudyistoresearchDashenBrewery'smarketingstrategypract
ice.

1.2StatementoftheProblem

Itiswellnoticedthatweareliveinaverydynamicworld,especiallythebusinessenvironmentis
sodynamicandnewbusinessandmarketingmodels,strategiesandapproacheshavebeeni
ntheprocessofdevelopmentandimplementation.Copingonescomponytothosemodels,s
trategies,approaches,andtechnologiesisveryessential.Inresponsetothis,thisresearchwil
ltrytoinvestigatethestatusofDashenbreweryintheimplementationofmarketingmixesalig
ningitselfwiththecurrentglobaldynamicsanddevelopment.

Itisalsoverynaturalforanybusinessorganization,largeorsmall,privateorgovernment,natio
nalorinternational,tooperateinaturbulentanduncertainenvironment.Inthecontextofchan
gingcustomerexpectations,technologicaldiscontinuities,andincreasingenvironmentalu
ncertainty,businessmanagersarefacedwithmakingcorrectstrategicdecisionsandsetting

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

strategicprioritiestoeffectivelyallocateresourcestodifferentfunctionaldepartmentstoac
hievebusinesssuccessgreatchallenge.Therefore,managersmustdevelopnewtools,newc
oncepts,newstrategies,andnewwaysofthinkingtodealwiththeturbulentenvironmentthatl
eadstodiscontinuouschanges(Jain,1997).

Infact,whendoingbusiness,everythingmaynotbesmoothsailing.Marketingsuccessistheli
febloodofanybusiness.Everyoneknowsthatmarketingstrategiescanaffectacompany'sa
bilitytomakeaprofitormaintainbusiness.Similarly,DashenBeerfacessometroubletocom
pletethebrewingindustrystatusquowhenimplementingitsmarketingstrategy.Atpresent,f
oreigninvestmentinEthiopia'sbrewingindustryisexperiencingtremendousgrowth.Multin
ationalbeercompaniesareincreasinglyattractedtotheindustryandcontinuetoexpandtheir
influence.Localcompanieshavealsobeenacquiredbyinternationalcompanies.Dashen,He
inekenanddifferentproductsfromMeta,Raya,ZebidarandHabeshaaresomebrewingcom
paniesoperatinginEthiopia.DashenBreweryiscompetingwithexistingbrewingcompanies
andnewentrantsintermsofmarketvolume(Paloma,2021).

AlthoughDashenBreweryisoneofthelargestbreweriesinEthiopia,themarketingstrategypr
acticesofcompetitorshaveledcustomerstoswitchtonewproducts;newandexistingbrewe
riesareenteringthemarketinlargenumbersandexploitingtheirfullpotentialthroughpromot
ionandexpansionofdestinationstopenetratethemarket.Therefore,itisdifficulttoincrease
sales,profits,andcustomersatisfaction,andmayhaveanimpactonthecompany'smarkets
hare.Therefore,itisdifficulttomaintaincompetitivenessandmaintaingrowth.Inthiscase,c
ompaniesmustdesignappropriatemarketingstrategiesfortheirmainmarketingmixtoover
comefiercecompetition."Marketingmixisoneoftheleadingfactorsinmodernmarketing"(K
otler,Armstrong,Saunders&Huang,1999).

Inaddition,companiesneedtoproperlysegmenttheirproducts,targetmarketsandpositioni
ngtoformulateeffectivemarketingstrategythatenablesthemtoachievethecompany’sgoa
ls.Therefore,thecompany'smarketingstrategyneedstobereviewedandadjustedastheenv
ironmentchanges.

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Thisresearcharisesfromtheneedtoresearchthecompany’scurrentmarketingstrategypra
cticesmoreeffectivelyfromthecompany'sperspective.Theseindustryissuesrequirecomp
aniestocontinuallyevaluateelementsoftheirmarketingstrategiestomaintainmarketcomp
etitiveness.

1.3ObjectivesoftheStudy

1.3.1GeneralObjective

ThegeneralobjectiveofthestudyistoassessthemarketingstrategypracticesofDashenBre
weryFactory.

1.3.2SpecificObjectives

Alongwiththegeneralobjectivespecificobjectivesoftheresearchare:
o TodeterminehowDashenBrewery'smarketingmixaspectsmeettheneedsofitscustome
rs.
o Toevaluatehowtheorganizationusesmarketsegmentation,targeting,andpositioningin
astrategicwaytoachieveitsgoal.
o ToidentifyissueswiththeDashenBreweryFactory'smarketingstrategyimplementation.

1.4ResearchQuestions

Thisresearchisdesignedtoanswerthefollowingresearchquestions.
1. HowareDashenBreweryfactory'smarketingstrategiesconnectedwithitsobjective,targetmar
keting,andmarketingmixtomeetclientneeds?
2. Whataretheaspectsofthemarketingmixthatareusedinmarketingstrategies?
3. HowdoesDashenBrewerysegment,position,andtargetitsproductstooutperformcompetitors
andmeetitsstatedobjectives?
4. Whatissueshaveyourunintowhenputtingthemarketingplansintoaction?

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

1.5Scope/DelimitationoftheStudy

Thestudy'spurposeistoexaminehowDashenBreweryimplementsitsmarketingstrategyto
achieveitsstatedgoals,whichwerealignedwithsegmentation,targetmarkets,positioning,
andthemarketingmix.Thisresearchislimitedtotheorganization'smarketingstrategypracti
ceswithconcernedpersonnel(marketingdepartmentstaffs).

Geographically,thisresearchwillonlyaddressDashenBreweryoffice,relevantdepartment
whohaveadirectexposuretothemarketingactivity.

1.6SignificanceoftheStudy

Thegoalofanybusinessorganizationistomaintainprofitabilitythroughtheproductionands
aleofproductsorservices.Oneofthemainactivitiesofatradingcompanyisdevelopingastro
ngmarketingstrategy.Themainsuccessorfailureofthecompanydependsonitsmarketings
trategy.

Therefore,theresearchisaimedathelpingcompanymanagementfocusitsattentiononthisi
mportantfunction,ithelpsbusinessesstrengthentheirposition,itminimizesanyinvestment
risk,anditidentifiespotentialthreatsandopportunities.Itwillalsohelptheorganizationwort
hpayingattentiontotheproblemsofthecompanyrelatedtotheimplementationofmarketing
strategies.

Theresearchwillalsocontributetotheadvancementoftheoreticalknowledgeandwillprovid
eusefuladditionalreferencedocumentsformarketingresearchers,consultants,andbusine
ssstudentsatdifferentlevelsbydeliveringthecurrentissuesandrelevantdataandinformati
on.

1.7LimitationsoftheStudy

Thepossiblelimitationsofthisresearchwouldbeinabilitytoaccesssecondarydocumentsa
vailableintheorganization,lackofaccesstoreachrelevantmanagersinpositions,wherethei

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

nformationtheyprovidedisvital,andemployee’slackofwillingnesstocompletequestionnai
res.

1.8OperationalDefinitions

Herearesomedefinitionsusedintheresearch.

MarketingStrategy:Amarketingstrategyreferstoabusiness'soverallgameplanforreachingpros
pectiveconsumersandturningthemintocustomersoftheirproductsorservices.Amarketingstrat
egycontainsthecompany’svalueproposition,keybrandmessaging,dataontargetcustomerdem
ographics,andotherhigh-levelelements.(Investopedia.com)

MarketingMix:Amarketingmixincludesmultipleareasoffocusaspartofacomprehensive
marketingplan.ThetermoftenreferstoacommonclassificationthatbeganasthefourPs:pr
oduct,price,placement,andpromotion.

1.9OrganizationoftheStudy

Thisstudyisorganizedintofivechapters.Thefirstchapterpresentsthebackgroundtheresea
rch,presentstheresearchquestion,thepurposeoftheresearch,theimportance,thescopeof
theresearchandthelimitations.Thesecondchapterisareviewoftherelatedliterature.Thethi
rdchapterfocusesonresearchmethodsandrelatedarguments.Thefourthchapterisdataan
alysisandresultsvisualization.Finally,Chapter5dealswithasummaryofthemainfindings,c
onclusions,andrecommendations.

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

CHAPTERTWO

2REVIEWSOFRELATEDLITERATURE

2.1.TheoreticalLiteratureReview

2.1.1MarketingStrategyOverview

KotlerandArmstrong(2012)definedamarketingstrategyasamarketinglogicthroughwhich
thecompanyhopestocreatevalueforcustomersandestablishprofitablerelationshipswith
customers.Fromtheabovedefinition,wecanunderstandthatmarketingstrategyfocuseso
nthecompany'slong-termgoalsandmaintaininglong-
termrelationshipswithcustomersisameanstoachievethecompany'sestablishedgoals.M
arketingstrategyinvolvestwokeyquestions:Whichcustomers(segmentationandpositioni
ng)willweserve?Howwillwecreatevalueforthem(differentiationandpositioning)?Then,th
ecompanydesignedafour-
Pmarketingplantoprovidetargetcustomerswiththerequiredvalue(Kotler,2012.)

Inanyenterprise,itisthecompanytoidentifyusersofproductsandservicesandatthesameti
mecreatesvaluethroughcustomersuccess.Key.Marketingstrategydeterminesthechoice,
positioning,marketingmixandresourceallocationoftargetmarketsegments.Marketingstr

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

ategyincludesselectingandanalyzingthetargetmarketandcreatingandmaintaininganapp
ropriatemarketingmixthatmeetsthetargetmarketandthecompany.Marketingstrategyisa
meanstoachievemarketinggoals.Itgenerallyreferstothefourelementsofthemarketingmi
x:product,price,promotionandlocation(McDonaldandDunbar,2007).Takingtheabovedefi
nitionintoaccount,thecompanydesignsanappropriatemarketingmixtodesignthebusines
stomaintainandmarketingstrategiestomeetcustomerneedstoestablishproductorservic
elines.

2.1.2ElementsofMarketingStrategy

Themarketingstrategyconsistsofseveralinterrelatedelements.Thefirstandmostimporta
ntthingistheselectionofthemarket,whichisdirectlyrelatedtotheselectionofthemarkettos
erve.Productplanningincludesthespecificproductssoldbythecompany,thatis,thecompo
sitionoftheproductlineandthedesignofindividualproductsintheproductline.Anotherelem
entisthedistributionsystem,thewholesaleandretailchannelsthroughwhichtheproductflo
wstothepeoplewhoultimatelybuyanduseit.Thegeneralcommunicationstrategyusesadv
ertisingtopresentproductstopotentialcustomersthroughradio,television,directmail,publi
cprinting,andpersonalsales,inordertodeploysalesteamstovisitpotentialcustomersande
ncouragethemtobuyandacceptorders.Lastly,pricingisanimportantelementofanymarketi
ngplanandthemostdirectmarketingelementthatcreatesshareholdervalue.Firmsmustset
pricesforproductstobepaidbydifferenttypesofcustomersanddeterminecommissionmar
ginstocompensateagents,wholesalers,andretailersfortransferringproductstoendusers(
Mongay,2006).

2.1.3Segmentation,TargetingandPositioning(STP)

Michael(2011)suggestedthat"almostallmarketingtextbookswilltellyouthatthekeytosuc
cessfulmarketingcanbesummedupinSTPstrategies,thatis,segmentation,positioningan
dpositioning."Thetermmarketsegmentationreferstosegmentingthemarketbasedoncert
aincommunities,similarities,oraffinity.That'swhatamemberofthemarketsegmenthasinc

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

ommon.STPmarketersattempttoidentifythosemarketsegments,conductmarketingactiv
itiesinmarketsegmentsthatmarketersbelievetheirbusinessismoresuccessfulthantheirc
ompetitors,andpositiontheirproductstoattracttargetmarketsegments.

Infact,eachbuyerhastheirownneeds,preferences,resources,andbehaviors.Sinceitisnoti
mpossibletoprovidethepersonalcharacteristicsofeachcustomer,marketersdividecusto
mersintomarketsegmentsbasedontheircommonvariables.Thesecommonfeaturesallo
wthedevelopmentofastandardizedmarketingmixforallcustomersinthismarketsegment.
Andrew(2010)ThegooduseofSTP(Segmentation,TargetMarketandPositioning)leadsto
marketsegmentationintohomogeneousgroups,andthenthesegroupscanbeprioritizedac
cordingtotheirpositionreturns,andthenoneormorecanbeselectedasservices/Becomean
objectofthetargetmarketandchooseamarketingmixtodothis.

2.1.3.1BasesforSegmentation

A. DemographicSegmentation

Inpopulationsegmentation,wedividethemarketintovariablessuchasage,familysize,famil
ylifecycle,gender,education;religion,race,generation,income,nationality,andsocialclass(
Kotler,2007).Gender,age,income,housingtype,andeducationlevelarecommondemograp
hicvariables.Somebrandsonlytargetwomen,whileothersonlytargetmen.Musicdownload
sareoftengearedtowardsyoungpeople,whileheadphonesaregearedtowardsolderpeople.
Educationlevelusuallydefinesmarketsegments.

B. GeographicSegmentation

Geographicsegmentationseparatesthemarketintogeographicalunitssuchascountries,st
ates,regions,cities,andneighborhoods(Kotler,2007).Thisisthemostprevalenttypeofmark
etsegmentation,inwhichcorporationsdividethemarketbyluringcustomersfromaspecific
geographicarea.Corporationsmay,forexample,choosetoselltheirbrandsinsomenationsb

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

utnotinothers.Abrandmayonlybesoldinasinglemarket,state,orregion.Geographicsegme
ntationcanbedoneinavarietyofways(urbanversusrural,northversussouth,seacoastsvers
usinterior,warmareasversuscold,highhumidityareasversusdryareas,highelevationversu
slowelevationareas,andsoon).

C. BehavioralSegmentation

Inbehavioralsegmentation,marketersdividethebuyersintogroupsbasedontheirknowledg
eof,attitudetowards;useof,orresponsetotheproduct(Kotler,2007).Behavioralsegmentati
onisbasedonactualcustomerbehaviortowardproducts.Somebehavioralvariablesinclude
Benefitssought,Usagerate,Brandloyalty,Userstatus:potential,first-
time,regular...,Readinesstobuy,Occasions:holidaysandeventsthatstimulatepurchases.

D. PsychographicorLifestyleSegmentation

PsychographicorLifestyleSegmentationisamethodofsegmentingwhichseekstoclassify
peopleaccordingtotheirvalues,opinions,personality,characteristics,interests,andsimilar
elements.Itsnaturemakestheapproachdynamic,asitiselementschange,lifestylealsowou
ldbealtered,andthesegmentationbasedonthistechniquemustbedynamic(Koyade,2014).

2.1.3.2TargetMarketSelection

Oncethecompanyhasidentifieditsmarketsegmentopportunities,itmustdeterminethenu
mberoftargetsandtargets(Kotler,2012).Accordingtotheabovedefinition,aftersegmentati
on,themarkettobeservedmustbedeterminedinthechoiceofdestinationmarketing.Segme
ntationistheactualchoiceofsegmentation.Agroupofbuyerswhohavethecommonneedso
rcharacteristicsofthecompany'sservices.Kotler,etal.,(2010)believethatmarketsegment
ationrevealsthecompany'smarketsegmentationopportunities.Thecompanymustnowev
aluateeachmarketsegmentanddecidehowmanyandwhichmarketsegmentsitcanbestser
ve.

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Targetedmarketinghelpsmarketersbetteridentifymarketingopportunities.Sellerscanfor
mulateappropriatequotesforeachtargetmarket,wheretheycanadjustprices,distributionc
hannels,andadvertisementstoeffectivelyreachthetargetmarket.AsKotler(1999)said,obj
ectivemarketingrequiresthreemainsteps;thefirstismarketsegmentationthatis,identifyin
gandanalyzingthebehaviorofdifferentgroupsofbuyers,whomayrequireseparateproduct
sand/ormarketingcombinations.Thesecondstepismarketpositioning,thatis,theactofch
oosingoneormoremarketsegmentstoenter.Thethirdstepismarketpositioning,thatis,thea
ctofestablishingandcommunicatingthekeydifferentiatedadvantagesoftheproductinthe
market.

2.1.3.3Positioning

"Theproductiscreatedinthefactory,butthebrandiscreatedinthemind,"saidapositioningex
pert(Kotler,etal.,2010).Oneofthemostcriticalstrategicdecisionsacompanyfacesishowto
"position"itselfinacompetitiveenvironment.Fromtheperspectiveofmarketingfunctions,a
lternativesareusuallyexpressedintermsofproductpositioning:acombinationofproductde
signfeatures,pricing,distribution,andpromotion/disseminationmethodsthatdifferentiat
etheproductfromthecompanyandcompeteforrelatedservicesanddosuitablefordifferent
marketsegments(Ghose,2008).Similarly,asdescribedbyCravensandPiercy(2009),the4P
(product,distribution,price,andpromotion)strategyofthemarketingplanselectedforeach
marketgoalimplementspositioningstrategiestoachieveafavorablepositioning,andatthe
sametimefinancial,humanandproductionresourcesDistributetomarkets,customers,and
productsinthemosteffectiveandefficientway.

Positioninganswersthequestion:Whywouldpeopleinthetargetmarketbuymyproductorse
rviceinsteadofcompeting?Anequivalentquestionis:Whatshouldbetheperceivedvalueof
myoffercomparedtothecompetition?(Kotler,2007).Positioningistheuseofmarketingtoal
lowpeopletoformamentalimageofyourproductintheirminds(relativetootherproducts).P
ositioningreferstohowthetargetmarketshouldviewtheproductorservicecomparedtocom

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

petitors.

2.1.4MarketingMixStrategies

AsstatedbyKotler(2003)``Marketingmixdescribesthesetoftoolsthatmanagementcanus
etoinfluencesales``.Tomaximizesales,wehavedifferentkindoftools.Theformulationiscal
ledthe4Ps,price,place,andpromotion.

Itisaplannedmixofthecontrollableelementsknownasa“mix”becauseeachingredientaffec
tstheotherandthemixmustoverallbesuitabletothetargetcustomer.Kotler(2003)alsoadde
dotherthreePs:People,Process,andphysicalevidence.Aprofitableformulaformarketingo
perationismostlythatmarketingmixchangesaspermarketingconditionsandwithchangin
gmarketingfactors.

Themarketingtoolsareclassifiedintofourbroadgroups,calledthefourPsofmarketing:prod
ucts,price,place,andpromotion.Todeliveronitsvalueproposition,thefirmsfirstcreateanee
dsatisfyingmarketoffering(product).Itmustdecidehowmuchitwillchargefortheoffering(
price)andhowitwillmaketheofferingavailabletotargetconsumers(place).Finally,itmustco
mmunicatewithtargetcustomersabouttheofferingandpersuadethemofitsmerits(Kotlera
ndArmstrong,2012).

2.1.4.1ProductMixStrategy

Theproductmixofanindividualcompanycanbedescribedintermsofwidth,length,depth,an
dconsistency.Thewidthreferstohowmanydifferentproductlinesthecompanycarries.Thel
engthreferstothetotalnumberofitemsinthemix.Thedepthofaproductmixreferstohowma
nyvariantsofeachproductareoffered.Theconsistencyoftheproductmixreferstorelatethe
variousproductlineshowcloselyareinenduse,productionrequirements,distributionchann
els,orsomeotherway(Kotler,2007).

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Kotler(2000)definesthatproductisanythingthatcanbeofferedtothemarkettosatisfyawan
toraneed.Productsincludephysicalgood,services,experiences,events,persons,places,pr
operties,organization,information,andideas.Thecustomerwilljudgetheofferingbythreeb
asicelements:productfeaturesandquality,servicemixandquality,andpriceappropriatenes
s.Asaresult,marketersmustcarefullythinkthroughthelevelatwhichtheyseteachproduct`s
features,benefitsandquality.

Aproduct,serviceisthestartingpointofallmarketingactivities.Aproductisacombinationof
differentattributes.Itcomprisesofphysicalfactorssuchascolor,design,features,performa
nceandnon-
physicalfactorslikevalue,qualityetc.Productplanninginvolvesavarietyofdecisiontobetak
enfirmlytobringtheproductinthemarket.Whenwethinkaboutproduct,wehavetotakeconsi
deration:Designisveryimportantinatoday`sworldasitisallaboutgainingattention,focusing
itontheproductandinfluencingthepurchasedecisionofthecustomers.Thedesignisdirectl
ylinkedtoshowsuccessandmakesthedifference;Technologymustbeusedtodevelopuserf
riendlyproductswithproductdifferentiation.

Usefulnessofproductcanincreasemarketshareoftheproductasitisveryessentialcompon
enttohavecompetitiveadvantageinthemarketaproductshouldbedevelopedkeepingextra
usesincomparisontosametypeofproductavailableinthemarket.Productdifferentiationis
establishedinthemarketbyincreasingtheusefulnessofaproduct.Valueissomethingwhich
isalookaroundofcompanieswhiledevelopingaproductsothatifcustomersarepayingthen,
theyshouldnotfeelthattheyhavebeenchargedmorethanthemanufacturingcostoftheprod
uct.Hencehigh-
performanceproductwhichmeetsorexceedsacustomerdemandrelatedtoaproduct`sperf
ormanceshouldbedeveloped.

Convenienceisafactorrelatedtousageoftheproductandtheproductshouldbringeaseinlife
ofcustomer.Qualityproductisoneofthemarketers`smajortools(KotlerandArmstrong,201
2).Packagingisusedforraisingtheproduct`svalue.Packagingincreasestheperceptualexp
eriencesaboutthequalityoftheproduct.

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Packagingplaystheroleofattentiongetterwhichstartsthesalesprocess.Itprovidesinform
ationaboutproductattributessuchasprice,quality,quantity,instructionforuseandotherpro
ductinformation(Koyade,2014).Kotler,et.al.(1999)definesBrandinghasbecomeacentrali
ssueinaproductstrategy.Ontheonehand,developingabrandedproductrequiresagreatdea
loflong-
termmarketinginvestments,especiallyforadvertising,promotion,andpackaging.Brandin
gusuallyassureshighoratleastconsistentqualityandhenceencouragesrepeatpurchase.
Warrantiesgiveanassurancetothecustomeraboutaftersalesservicewhichassuresthecus
tomeraboutthedurabilityoftheproductandmaintainssatisfiedcustomersinthemarket.

2.1.4.2.MarketingThroughtheProductLifeCycle

Intoday'shighlydynamicmarketingenvironment,thecompany'smarketingstrategymustc
hangewithchangesinproducts,markets,andcompetitors.Here,wedescribetheconceptoft
heproductlifecycle(PLC)andthechangesthecompanymakesastheproductgoesthroughe
achstageofthelifecycle.Kotler(2007)saidthatthelifecycleofaproductincludesfourthingst
oconfirm.

 Productshavealimitedlife
 Productsalespassthroughdistinctstageswithdifferentchallenges,opportunities,andpr
oblemsfortheseller.
 Profitsriseandfallatdifferentstagesoftheproductlifecycle.
 Productsrequiredifferentmarketing,financial,manufacturing,purchasing,andhumanre
sourcestrategiesineachstage.

A. MarketingStrategies:IntroductionStage

Asittakestimetolaunchnewproductsandfillupdistributionchannels,salesgrowthtendsto
beslowatthisstage.Thereareseveralreasonsfortheslowgrowth:delaysinexpandingcapac

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

ity,technicalissues("fixingerrors"),delaysinobtainingsufficientdistributionthroughthepoi
ntofsale,andcustomers'unwillingnesstochangeestablishedbehaviors.KotlerandArmstr
ong(2012)insistthattheintroductionphaseisaperiodofslowsalesgrowthastheproductisi
ntroducedtothemarket.Duetothehighcostofintroducingproducts,thereisnobenefitatthis
stage.

B. MarketingStrategies:GrowthStage

Thegrowthperiodischaracterizedbyrapidsalesgrowthandbeingattractedbyopportunities;
newcompetitorsenterwithnewproductfeaturesandexpandeddistribution.Pricesremaint
hesameorfallslightly,dependingonthespeedofdemandgrowth.Thecompanymaintainsor
increasespromotionalexpensestorespondtocompetitionandcontinuetoeducatethemar
ket.

Kotler(2007)suggeststhatinthegrowthstage,companiescanusesixstrategiestoachieves
ustainablemarketgrowth:

 Improvingproductqualityandaddingnewproductfeaturesandimprovedstyling.
 Addingnewmodelsandflankerproducts.
 Enteringnewmarketsegments.
 Increasingdistributioncoverageandenteringnewdistributionchannels.
 Shiftingfromproductawarenessadvertisingtoproductpreferenceadvertizing.
 Loweringpricestoattractthenexclaimerofpricesensitivebuyers.

C. MarketingStrategies:MaturityStage

Atsomepoint,salesgrowthwillslowdown,andtheproductwillenterarelativelymaturestage.
Thisstageusuallylastslongerthanthepreviousstagesandposesastaggeringchallengefor
marketingmanagement.Mostproductsareinthematurestageofthelifecycle,andmostmar
ketingmanagersdealwiththemarketingproblemsofmatureproducts.

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Thethreestrategiesinthematurestagearemarketfit,productfit,andmarketingmixfit(Kotler,
2000).

Markettransformation:TheCompanycantrytoexpandthemarketofitsmaturebrandbyexp
andingthebrand'susers.Productmodification:Themanagertriestosimulatesalesbymodif
yingproductcharacteristicsbyimprovingquality.Modifythemarketingmix:Productmanag
erscantrytostimulatesalesbymodifyingotherelementsofthemarketingmix,suchaspricin
g,distribution,advertising,promotion,personalsales,andservices.

D. MarketingStrategies:DeclineStage

Assalesandprofitsfell,somecompanieswithdrewfromthemarket.Therestcanreducethen
umberofproductstheyprovide.KotlerandArmstrong(2012)pointedoutthattherearemanyr
easonsforthedeclineinsales,includingtechnologicaladvancement,changingconsumerte
stingandhighercompletionrates.Withthedeclineinsalesandprofits,somecompanieswith
drewtheircompaniesfromthemarket.

Theremainingpeoplecanreducetheirproductsupply.Theycanwithdrawfromsmallermark
etsegmentsandweakerbusinesschannels,andtheycancutpromotionalbudgetsandfurthe
rreduceprices.

2.1.4.3PricingStrategies

Priceistheonlyiteminthemarketingmixthatgeneratesrevenue,andallotheritemsrepresent
costs.Priceisalsothemostflexiblefactorinthemarketingmix(KotlerandArmstrong,2012).
Asmentionedabove,afterweproducetheproduct,wemustsellitaccordingtothesetprice.A
nimportantfactorinpricingistodeterminethecostoftheproduct,marketingstrategy,anddis
tribution-
relatedexpenses,advertisingexpensesoranytypeofpricechangeinthemarket.Themostim

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

portantelementofaneffectivemarketingstrategyistheabilitytomaximizeandprotectprodu
ctprices.Becausepriceistheultimatemeasureofcustomervalueandcompetitiveadvantag
e.

2.1.4.4MethodsofPricing

A. CostBasedPricing

Kotler,et.al(1999)definedcostpluspriceasaddingastandardmargintoproductcost.Tocalc
ulatethecostofaproduct,wemustincludethecostofproduction,promotion,anddistribution.
Addthelevelofprofityouwantfromthecompanytotheproductcostsubtotaltodetermineyo
urproductprice.

Theamountofprofityouaddtotheproductcostsubtotalcanbesetaccordingtothreedifferen
tmethods(thepercentageofprofitandproductcost,thepercentageofunknownproductcos
t,andthecombinationoftotalprofitandproductcost)cost).Eachofthethreecost-
basedpricingmethodsdescribedstartswithasubtotalofproductcosts.Therefore,thecomp
anydesignswhatitconsidersagoodproduct,calculatesthetotalcostofmanufacturingthepr
oduct,andsetsapricethatcoversthecostplusthetargetprofit.

B. CompetitionBasedPricing

Consumerswillbasetheirassessmentsofaproduct'sworthonthepriceschargedbycompet
itorsforsimilaritems(Kotler,et.al1999).Themainbenefitofcompetitivepricingisthatitkeep
syoufocusedonyourindustryand,asaresult,yourcompetitors.Anindustryemphasisexami
nesthevarioustypesofcurrentandemergingcompetition.Youcanbetterdecidehowyouwill
manageyourfirmafteryouknowwhatyourcompetitionsaredoing.

C. ValueBasedPricing

Value-

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

basedpricingmeansthatamarketercannotcreateaproductandmarketingstrategybefored
ecidingonaprice.Beforedecidingonamarketingstrategy,theprices,aswellastheothermark
etingmixcomponents,areconsidered.Customers'assessmentsoftheproduct'svalueguid
edthecompany'stargetpricing.Thedesiredvalueandpricearethenusedtoguidedecisionsa
boutproductdesignandtheamountofmoneythatcanbespent.Asaresult,pricingstartswith
ananalysisofcustomerneedsandvalueperceptions,andapriceissettomatchtheperceived
valueofthecustomers(Kotler,et.al1999).

2.1.4.5PromotionalStrategies

Promotionreferstoeffortsthatexplainaproduct'sbenefitsandpersuadetargetcustomerst
obuyit(KotlerandArmstrong2012).Promotionaidsthemerchantandsalesteamineffective
lyrepresentingtheproducttoconsumersandpersuadingthemtobuy.Promotionismadeup
ofvariouscombinationsofitscomponentsthatareutilizedtomeetthecompany'smarketing
objectives.

PromotionalMix

AccordingtoAndrew(2010)theelementsofpromotionalmixare:personalselling,salespro
motion,publicrelation,andadvertising:-

Advertising

Advertisingisanimportantpartofpromotionandoneofthemostvisibleaspectsofamarketin
gcommunicationsstrategy.Advertisingisaformofnon-
personalcommunicationthatispaidanddeliveredthroughmediasuchastelevision,radio,m
agazines,newspapers,directmail,outdooradvertisements,theInternet,andmobiledevices.
Advertisingpromotesavarietyofcommodities,services,ideas,causes,people,andanythin
gelsethatmarketerswishtoexpresstopotentialbuyers.Therearetwoformsofadvertising:i
nstitutionalandproductadvertising,whichareemployedinbothconsumerandcorporatema
rkets.

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

InstitutionalAdvertisingInstitutionaladvertisingpromotesafirm’simage,ideas,andcultur
e,withthegoalofcreatingormaintaininganoverallcorporateimage.

ProductAdvertisingProductadvertisingpromotesaproduct'simage,features,application
s,benefits,andqualities.Therearemanydistincttypesofproductadvertising.(2011,Ferrella
ndHartline)Marketingmanagersmustalwaysbeginbyestablishingthetargetmarketandbu
yermotivationswhencreatinganadvertisingcampaign.Thentheycanmakethe"fiveMs.,"or
bigdecisions,whichareasfollows:Whatarethegoalsofouradvertisingcampaign?Money:H
owmuchcanwespend,andhowcanwedivideitupamongdifferentsortsofmedia?Whatkind
ofmessageshouldwesend?Whatkindofmediashouldweuse?Measurement:

PersonalSelling

Personalsales:Anyoralstatementmadeinaconversationwithoneormorepotentialbuyerst
omakeasale(Kayode,2014).Personalsalesareaneffectivewaytomanagepersonalrelation
shipswithcustomers.Theselleractsonbehalfoftheorganization.Theyareusuallywell-
trainedinpersonalsalesmethodsandskills.Personalsalesareveryconvincingandareoften
usedinmarketswherepersonalchoiceshaveagreatinfluenceonpurchases(Andrew,2010).
Comparedwithothertypesofpromotions,personalsalesarethemostaccurateformofcom
munication,becauseitcanensurethatthecompanyhasdirectcontactwithexcellentpotenti
alcustomers.Althoughone-on-
onecontactisverybeneficial,itisnotwithoutitsdrawbacks.Themostseriousdisadvantageo
fpersonalsalesisthecostpercontact.Staffsalesarealsoexpensiveduetothecostsassociat
edwithrecruiting,selecting,training,andmotivatingsalesstaff.(FerrellandHartlin,2011).

SalesPromotion

Promotionalactivitiesareakeycomponentofmarketingactivities,consistingofaseriesofin
centivetools,mainlyshort-
term,aimedatstimulatingconsumersorindustriestobuyspecificproductsorservicesfaste

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

rormore.Advertisingprovidesareasontobuy,whilepromotionsofferincentives.Promotion
sincludeconsumerpromotionaltools(samples,coupons,cashbackoffers,pricereductions,
giveaways,prizes,sponsorshiprewards,freetrials,warranty,jointpromotions,cross-
promotions,point-of-
saledisplaysanddemos.purchase),commercialpromotions(pricediscounts,advertising)
andexhibitionbonuses,aswellasfreemerchandise),aswellascommercialandsalesforcep
romotion(fairsandconferences,salesrepresentativecompetitionsandprofessionaladver
tising).

Promotionalactivitiescarriedoutinamarketwithhighbrandsimilaritycangenerateagreater
salesresponseintheshortterm,butinthelongtermthebrandpreferencehasalmostnoperm
anentbenefits.Inamarketwithverydifferentbrands,theymaybeabletopermanentlychange
marketshare.(KotlerandKeller,2012).Promotioninvolvesactivitiesthatcreateincentivesf
orbuyerstobuyproductsoraddvaluetobuyersortransactions.Promotionscanbetargeteda
tconsumers,channelbrokers,orsalesteams.Promotionincludesavarietyofpromotionalel
ementsbecauseitincludesactivitiesotherthanadvertising,publicrelations,andpersonnels
ales.(FerrellandHartlin,2011)

PublicRelations

Publicrelationisdefinedasaconscious,planned,andcontinuousefforttoestablishandmain
tainmutualunderstandingbetweenanorganizationanditspublicandpublicrelationsresear
chinstitutes.Publicrelationscanbedividedintoactivecommunicationaimedatgeneratingu
nderstandingandpassivecommunicationaimedateliminatingmisunderstandings.(Andre
w,2010.)Notonlymustthecompanyinteractconstructivelywithcustomers,suppliers,anddi
stributors,butitmustalsointeractwithmanyinterestedaudiences.Theaudienceisanygrou
pthathasrealorpotentialinterestorinfluenceinthecompany'sabilitytoachieveitsgoals.Pub
licrelationsincludevariousprogramsthatpromoteorprotecttheimageofacompanyorindivi
dual'sproducts.Smartcompanieswilltakeconcretestepstomanagesuccessfulrelationshi
pswithkeyaudiences.(KotlerandKeller,2012).

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

PromotionalTools

Mediacommunicationisveryimportantinoursociety.Throughthemedia,wecanbeaffected.
Themediacanmakepeopledrinkjuiceoralcoholorgotoacertainstore.Advertisingandconti
nuedattentionandinterestinsomethingwilleventuallygetotherstofollowortry(McGraw,20
04).Somemediacommunicationtypesshownbelow:

Televisions-
Televisionnewsusuallytellsfewerstoriesinfewworlds.Andtheproducerdecideswhichstor
iestoincludeinnewscasts,howlongtheyshouldbeandinwhatordertheyappear.

Radio-
radiostationscanbegreatforreachingawideaudiencetheirnewsdepartmentsusuallycover
newswiththesmalleststaffs,intheshortesttimeforeachstory,andwiththemostfrequentde
adlines.

Magazineandotherpublication-
areawaytoreadaveryspecificaudiencewithastory.Thesepublicationsaretypicallyorganiz
edaroundaninterestgroupsuchasbusiness,healthcareorhighereducation.

NewspaperandInternet-
Itisthemostsimpleandcheapwaytofindoutlatestnews.Tosupporttheaboveidea,commun
icationthroughthemediaindicatesthepublicandtheinformationwegatherandsenttothepu
blic.Themassmediacaninfluenceanentirenationveryeasily.Therefore,thecompanyusingt
hesemediashouldcareintransferringtheirproducts.

TradeFairsandExhibitions-
Thegoaloftradeshowsandexhibitsistoraiseawarenessandencouragetrial,mostlythrough
directinteractionbetweentheproviderandthecustomer.Theyprovidecorporationswiththe
opportunitytoconnectwithboththetradeandthepublic,andforbothtodeveloptiesoutsideof
regularsalesmeetings.They'reoftenemployedinbusiness-to-

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

businessmarketing,particularlyfortechnologyandengineering-
relateditems.(Andrewetal.,2010).

2.1.4.6DistributionStrategies(Place)

Distributionisthephysicalmovementofgoodsfromproducertowholesaler,fromwholesale
rtoretailer,andfromretailertoconsumer(Manmohan,2012).Itincludesdistributionchannel
s,warehousingfacilities,transportationmethods,andinventorycontrolmanagement,maki
ngitamechanismfortransferringgoodsandservicesfromserviceprovidersandmanufactu
rerstoconsumers.Iftheproductisacommercialproduct,acommercialteamisrequiredtoint
eractwithdifferentcustomersandensuretheavailabilityoftheproduct.Distributionhasalar
geimpactonprofitability,sothecompanymusthaveanexcellentsupplychainmanagement
andlogisticsplanfordistribution.Thefourvariablesofthemarketingmixareinterrelated.Ast
hepriceoftheproductrises,thedemandfortheproductwilldecreaseandadistributionpoint
willbeneeded.

Kotler(2003)recognizedthatdistributionchannelsaredynamic.Ifusedproperly,theycancre
ateacompetitiveadvantage,butifdebtisused,itwillbecomeacompetitiveliability.Theovera
llmarketingmixcangenerateadynamicmodelbasedoncustomerfeedbacktoimprovethepr
oduct,anditcanbereleasedasanupdatedproduct.

ChannelofDistribution

Thedistributionchannelconsistsofanetworkofintermediarieswhomanagetheflowofgoo
dsandservicesfromtheproducertotheendcustomer.Thedistributionsystemconsistsofint
ermediarychannelsthatprovidelinksbetweenproducersandfinalconsumers.Thechannel
susedbythemarketingsystemcanmaximizeefficiencyandeffectiveness,minimizecosts,a
ndprovidemaximumcustomersatisfaction(KotlerandArmstrong,2010).

Commercialintermediaries:includingwholesalersandretailerswhoownandresellgoods.A
gencyintermediaries:includingsalesbranchesandofficesofagents,brokersandmanufact

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

urersthatdonothaveownershipofthegoodsinvolved.Theyprefertonegotiatepurchases,sa
les,orboth.

Thelongestandmostindirectchannelsincludeproducers,oneormorewholesalersoragent
s,retailers,andconsumers.Thischannelismostsuitablewhenthemanufacturer'sgoalistoa
chievemaximummarketpenetrationthroughintensivedistribution.

Theshortestchannel,fromproducertoconsumer,providesthemostdirectandfastestwayof
distributionbecausethereisnointermediaryinvolved.Itiseasiertomanageandcontrol(And
ersonandVince,2000).

FerrellandHartlineoutlinedthoseindustrialusershavedifferentpurchasingmethodsandco
nsumerneeds;theyusedifferentdistributionchannels.Thefivecommonchannelsforgoods
are:

ChannelA:ProducerIndustrialuser:Thisisthemostcommonmethodofdistributionformajo
requipmentusedinmanufacturingandotherbusiness.Themanufacturer’ssalesforcecalls
ontheindustrialusertosellgoodsandservices.

ChannelB:ProducerIndustrialdistributorsIndustrialusersthischannelisusedmostoftenfo
rsmall,standardizedpartsandoperationalsuppliesneededtorunabusiness.Industrialwhol
esalers(distributors)takeownershipofproducts,stockthem,andsellthemasneededtoindu
strialusers.

ChannelC:IndustrialdistributorsProduceragentsUsersintheindustrialsectorThischannel
maybeusedbysmallproducerswhodonothavethetimeorresourcestoinvestinadirectsales
team.Thecommoditiesaresoldbytheagencytoanindustrialwholesaler,whothenwarehou
ses,resells,andshipsthemtoindustrialusers.Thebenefitofthisstructureisthatboththeage
ncyandtheindustrialwholesalersarelikelytobeindustryspecialists.Asmallmanufacturer
maynotbeabletomatchtheirreputationorservicesonitsown.

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

ChannelD:AgentsforManufacturers/ProducersUsersintheindustrialsector:Whenamanu
facturerdoesnotwanttohireitsownsalesforce,thisisanotheroption.Theagentactsasasale
srepresentativeforthecompanybutdoesnotholdanypositionortitle.Theindustrialuserrec
eivestheproductstraightfromthemanufacturer.Thisisacommonapproachtopromotecon
structionequipment,farmproducts,anddrycommodities.Infact,accordingtoFerrellandHa
rtline(2011),directdistribution(channelA)isthemostregularlyutilizedchannelintheindustr
ialmarket,whereasitistheleastcommonlyusedchannelintheconsumermarket.

2.1.4.7People

Individualsbuyfrompeopletheylike;thus,allemployees'attitudes,talents,andappearance
mustbetop-
notch,accordingtoAndrew(2010).Thequalityofserviceprovidedtoconsumersisdetermin
edbythepeoplethatworkforafirm.Thisistrueforservices,butitalsoaffectsbusinessesthat
producetangiblegoods.Customersarehappywhentheiremployeesarehappy,skilled,andd
riven.Iftheyarewelltaughtandhiredfortheirpositiveattitudetowardconsumers,theyaremo
relikelytothinkaboutthecustomerandprovidegoodcustomerservice.Asaresult,ahighdegr
eeofpre-salesandafter-
salessupportandadvicecangiveacompanyacompetitiveadvantageovercompetitors.

2.1.4.8Process

Processisaserviceaspectinthemarketingmixthatinvolvestheclientexperiencinganorgani
zation'soffering.(Andrewetal.,2010).Customers'perceptionsofthecompany'sbusinesspr
ocessareinfluencedbytheprocessofdeliveringproductsandservicestothem.Byexaminin
galltheprocessesinvolvedinbringingproductstocustomers,thecorporationcanidentifydif
ficultiesandservecustomersinamorestructuredandappealingmanner.

2.1.4.9PhysicalEvidence

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Physicalevidencereferstothetypeofimagethatacompanyprojectsthroughitsphysicalpre
sence,suchasitslocations,theappearanceofitsemployees,anditscars.Customerswhodo
nothavetheabilitytosee,touch,andtrybeforetheybuyaremoreinclinedtojudgeyoubasedon
theimageyoupresent.Andrew(2010)considersphysicalevidencetobeanimportantcompo
nentofaservice.

2.1.5ThreeGenericStrategies

CostLeadership

Porter(1990)pointedoutthatchoosingalowercoststrategymeansthatthefirmcanproduce
theproductcheaperthanitscompetitorsandtherecanonlybeonecostleader.Thesourcesof
costadvantagedependonthestructureoftheindustry.Itisnecessarythatthefirmhasabroad
targetandservesmorethanonesegment.Alotofcompaniesmayevenoperateupordownstr
eamsintheindustry.Thefirmoftensellsstandardatacceptablequalityandservice.

AccordingtoShapiroandVarian(1999)afirmthatcansellmorethanotherFirmswillhavethel
owestaveragecost.Thisallowsthefirmtomakemoneywhenotherscannot.Buttosellmoret
hefirmwillneedtolowertheprice;thisalsomeansthatthefirmhasasmallerprofitoneachunit
sold.IfthisworksoutthefirmhastomakeupforthelostRevenuesinvolume.Intraditionalindu
striesreducingtheaveragecostofproductionisfocusingoncuttingdowntheunitcostofprod
uction.

Differentiation

BychoosingadifferentiationstrategyPorter(1990)meansthatthefirmcanprovideuniquea
nd/orsuperiorvaluetotheproductmoreefficientlythroughquality,specialfeaturesorafters
aleservice.Therecanbemanydifferentiatorsinanindustry.

Differentiationallowsthefirmtoaddapremiumvaluetotheproduct,whichleadstoahigherpr

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

ofitthanthatofthecompetitors.Thedifferentiatedfirmmakeshigherrevenueperunitthanth
ecompetitors,becauseofthebuyer`sspecialdemand.

ShapiroandVarian(1999)pointedoutthatifthefirm`sstrategyisdifferentiation,thefirmmus
taddvaluetotheproduct,therebydistinguishingtheproductfromthecompetingproducts.

Focus

AsPorterpointedout,companiesinthesameindustrycanchoosedifferentareasofcompetit
ioninthesamemarketsegment.Thebasicchoiceisbetweenwidetargetsandarrowtargetsi
nthesameparagraph.Thestrictlydefinedtargetisaclearlydefinedmarket,whilethebroadly
definedtargetisabroadermarketdefinedfromabroaderperspective.

AccordingtoShapiroandVarian(1999),theapproachisachievedthroughpersonalizedprod
ucts.Ifabusinesssucceedsincreatinguniqueproducts,itwillhaveabreatherincustomizing
pricinganddesigningproducts.Therearetwowaystoaddmorevaluetoauniqueproductsoth
atyoucanfocusonalimitedgoal.Oneispersonalizationorpersonalization,creatingmoreval
ueforcustomers;providingvalue-
addedservicestoachieveacloserrelationshipbetweencustomersandpersonalizedproduc
ts.Thesecondistoestablishapricingagreementtogetasmuchvalueaspossible.

2.1.6CompetitiveStrategies

Porter(1990)arguedthateverycompanyhasacompetitivestrategy,whetherofficialorunoff
icialforthemarket.Thereisaframeworkoffourkeyfactorsthatcompaniescanformulateasa
competitivestrategy.Thefirstisbasedonthestrengthsandweaknessesofthecompanyand
describestheassetsandskillscomparedtocompetitors.Thiskeyfactorincludesfinancialre
sourcesandtechnicalskills.Anotherkeyfactoristhevalueofthecompany'semployees.

Thisfactorprovidesthecompanywiththemotivationandtheneedtoimplementthestrategy.
Togetherwiththestrengthsandweaknesses,itdeterminestheinternallimitsofthestrategyt

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

owhichthecompanycansuccessfullyadapt.Externalconditionsaredeterminedbythebran
chandthesurroundingenvironment.Thepossibilitiesandthreatsofthedevelopmentofthec
ompanyuserisksandpossibilitiestosolvethecompetition.Thelastkeyfactorincludessocia
lexpectations,governmentpolicies,socialcommitments,andthedevelopmentofnorms.

AccordingtoDavidson(2001),thecompany'scompetitivestrategyistoselectfavorableindu
stries.Therearetwomainproblems,theyallmustwork,otherwisethecompanywillnotmake
anysensetoenterthisindustry.Thefirstislong-
termprofitabilityandthefactorsthatdetermineit.Thesecondisthecomponentthataffectst
hepositionofthecompanyinthemarket.

2.2.EmpiricalLiteratureReview

2.2.1TheMarketingStrategyPractice

Abeselom(2013)conductedasurveyentitled"EthioTelecomMarketingStrategyPracticeEv
aluation".Thisstudyusesacombinationofprimaryinformationandsecondaryinformation.
Themaindataiscollectedthroughclosedquestionnairesdistributedtoemployeesinthemar
ketingdepartmentandpersonalinterviewswiththecompany'stopmanagement.Theselecti
onofrespondentswasconductedusingacensus.From52questionnaires,50availableques
tionnaireswerecollected,andinterviewquestionsweresenttothecompany's3CEOsforfilea
nalysis.

Theresearchresultsshowthatthemainreasoncustomersbuythecompany’sproductsands
ervicesisbecausecustomersdidnotchoosetobuyfromothercompetitors,andthecompany’
sproductandservicequalitywasratedasbelowaverage.Thecompany’sproductsandservic
esareaffordable,thecompany’sproductsandservicesareavailableandaccessible,andthe
communicationefficiencybetweenthemarketingdepartmentandotherdepartmentsisbel
owaverage.Thereisnosegmentationbetweenresidentialcustomersandthecompanythati
sfacingtheimplementationofmarketingstrategiesproblem.

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Amongmiscommunicationproblems,structuralproblemsofthemarketingdepartment,lac
kofcoordinationandnetworkqualityproblemsarethemainproblems.Overall,researchsho
wsthatmarketingelementsareimportantdeterminantsofmarketingstrategies.Themarket
ingmixwillalsoincreasecustomerengagementandenhancethesenseofpartnership.Onthi
sbasis,itisrecommendedthatEthiopianTelecomresearchitsmarketingstrategyandre-
examineitscurrentperformanceinresponsetothisissue.

2.2.2MarketingMixof4P’SforCompetitiveAdvantage

Meera(2012)alsoconductedastudycalled"4pmarketingmixforcompetitiveadvantage".A
ccordingtoresearch,themarketingmixisthebasicvariablebeforelaunchinganewproducto
rservice.Thecompanymustalsoplanforthesedifferentcomponents,whichareproducts,pri
ces,promotions,andlocations.Themainobjectiveofthisarticleistodescribetheimportanc
eoftherelationshipbetweenthedifferentcomponentsofthemarketingmixtoobtainacomp
etitiveadvantageinthemarket.Theresearchfocusesonthebroadvisionofthe4Pmarketing
mix,becausethebiggestchallengemarketersfaceintoday'sworldisdesigninganoptimalm
arketingmixthatconsiderscustomersatisfactionandorganizationalgoals.Therefore,aco
mpanythatcanpulloffthebestmarketingmixintheworldtodaywillsurelyachieveitsstatedor
ganizationalgoalsandsatisfyitscustomers.

Theresearchersconcludedthatallelementsofthemarketingmixmustbecarefullymodified
andintensivelystudied.Thepromotionaltoolsdependonthetypeofproduct,thepriceofthep
roductandtheproceduretoreachthecustomerwhiledeterminingthepriceoftheproduct;Th
eimportantthingstoconsiderarethecostofmanufacturingtheproduct,thecostofpromotio
nandtheamountofmoneygeneratedbytheproductanddistributionchannel.

2.2.3StrategicMarketingandFirm’sPerformance

Akinyele(2011)conductedresearchtoinvestigatetheimpactofstrategicmarketingandco
mpanyperformanceonNigeria’soilandgasindustry.Intheirresearch,ahypothesiswasform

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

ulatedfromtheproblemstatementthat"theorganizationalstructureandthestrategyadopte
dwillnotaffectthemarketshareofNigerianoilandgastradingcompanies",asseenintheirres
earch.Theoverallresultsshowthatstrategicmarketingisadrivingfactorfororganizationalp
ositioninginadynamicenvironmentandhelpstoimprovethedevelopmentofnewproducts/
servicesinexistingmarkets.Thesefindingsarediscussed,aswellasotherinterestingfindin
gsfromthestudy.Thehypothesisputforwardbytheresearcherhasbeenrejected.Thesurvey
resultsshowthattheorganizationalstructureandstrategyadoptedbyoilandgastradingco
mpanieshaveapositiveimpactonmarketshare.

Studyconcludedthattheevidencefromthesurveyresultsshowedthatoilandgasmarketing
companieshaveacomparativeadvantageinvariousmarketingstrategiesusingdifferentte
chnologies.Oilandgasmarketingcompaniesseemtoexclusivelyusetraditionalmarketing
methods,thatis,basedon"soft"informationgatheredfromclosecontactsbythemarketinga
ndsalesdepartments,ratherthanusingspecializedstrategicmarketingmethodsbasedoni
n"hard".Afterhisconclusion,theresearcheralsoapprovedhisrecommendation,recommen
dingtheconceptsandprinciplesoftotalqualitymanagement,aswellascontemporarymark
etingmanagementtopicssuchasrelationshipmarketing,valueanalysis,andbusinessproc
essreengineering.Inadditiontothesuggestionsabove,theresearchersalsoorganizemarke
terstoworkhardtounderstandtherelevantfactorsthataffectcustomerbehavior,aswellasst
rategicoptionsfordealingwiththosebehaviors.

2.2.4TheEffectofMarketingMixinAttractingCustomers

ThestudybyPour,NazariandEmami(2013)iscalled"TheRoleofMarketingMixinAttractingC
ustomers:ACaseStudyofSadratBankinKermanshahProvince".Theresearchisdescriptive
becausetheresearchersattemptedtousesurveymethodstoexploretherelationshipbetwe
enthecombinationofmarketingelementsandtheattractivenessofcustomerstoKermansh
ahbanks.Thestudyusedanassumptionthat"therelationshipbetweentheelementsofthem
arketingmixandbankcustomersisimportant."

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Aftertesting,theresearcherscametothefollowingconclusions.Theyconcludedthatthereis
asignificantpositivecorrelationbetweenthebank’scustomersandtheelementsofthemark
etingmixtopromotethebank’sgoals.Marketinginvolvesmanyactivities.First,theorganizat
ioncandecidewhichofitstargetcustomergroupstoserve.Oncethetargetgroupisdetermin
ed,itisnecessarytoputtheproductonthemarketbyprovidingsuitableproducts,prices,locati
ons,andpromotions.Mixormatchtheminproperproportionstoachieveyourmarketinggoal
s.

2.2.5BrandEquityandBrandAwarenessonCustomerSatisfaction

AstudydonebyBilalandMalik(2014)titledImpactofBrandEquityandBrandAwarenessonC
ustomerSatisfactionstatesthatthereisarelationshipbetweenbrandequityandcustomers
atisfactionsuchthat“brandequityisthecompleteprofileaboutthecustomersatisfactionon
aparticularproductorbrand”.Theyprovedthatthereisadirectrelationshipbetweenbrandeq
uityandcustomersatisfactionsuchthatifbrandequityishighthencustomersatisfactionisal
sohigh,andthishasbeenprovenstudybecausetheyhaveseencompanieswiththispatternof
relationshipdescribedas“companiesthathavehigherbrandequityalsohavecustomersatis
faction”.Aaker’sresearchasmentionedinBilalandMalik(2014),impliesthatbrandswithhig
herbrandequityaffectsacustomer’sperceptiontowardsaproductorservicebyassociating
brandequitytoqualityofaproductorservice.Theresearchhasconcludedandrecommended
thatcompanieshastohigherattentionforbrandingintheirmarketingstrategy,sinceithasadi
rectandindirectlinkwithcustomersatisfactions.

2.3ResearchGaps

Mostofexistingresearchandtheoriesdon’tshowthecurrenttrendintheresearcharea,especiallyinth
einvestigatedprivatecompany.So,thereislackofresearchinthecompanyaboutthetopic.So,thisres
earchisdesignedtoaddressrecentprogressandachievementsaroundmarketingstrategypracticei
ntheinvestigatedcompany,DashenBrewery.Sincemanyrelevantresearcharealreadyconductedan
dreviewed.

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

2.4ConceptualFramework

Theresearcherinvestigatedmarketingstrategypracticeasadependentvariabletomarketingmix,
marketsegmentation,targeting,positioning,andmarketingstrategyimplementations.

Marketing Strategy

Marketing Mix Marketing Strategy

Market Segmentation, Implementation.
Targeting, and Positioning

CHAPTERTHREE

3RESEARCHMETHODS

3.1.DescriptionoftheStudyArea

DashenBrewerywasestablishedin2000and49%ownedbyTigrayRehabilitationEndowmen
tFund(EFFORT)and51%-
ownedbyBritishinvestmentfirmDuet.DashenBreweryisinDebreBirhan,130kilometersnor
theastofAddisAbaba,coveringanareaof85,000squaremeters.Italsostartedproducingdra
ftbeer,whichisverypopularandsellswell.

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Therefore,studyareawillbeentireemployeesofDashenBrewerymainoffice,sothatresearc
hthemarketingstrategypracticeofDashenBeeranddeterminewhetheritisconsistentwitht
hetargetmarketing,marketingmixandcorporatemissiontomeetcustomerneeds.

3.2.ResearchDesignandApproach

Toachievetheobjectivesoftheresearch,theresearchconductedadescriptivestudyanduse
dqualitativeandquantitativeapproaches.Tosolvetheevaluationofthecurrentmarketingstr
ategyimplementedinDashenBrewery,openandclosedquestionnairesurveysareused.The
prerequisiteforchoosingthismethodisthatithelpstogatherenoughinformationaboutther
esearchproblem.Second-
handdatawillbecollectedfromvariousbooks,researchpapers,articles,magazines,andwe
bsites.Thestudyisdescriptive,itsobjectiveistoevaluatethepracticeofDashenBreweriesm
arketingstrategy.

3.3.TargetPopulation

ThecurrenttotalnumberofDashenBrewerymainofficestaff,72employeesarethetargetpo
pulationsofthisstudyortheentireemployeesofDashenBrewerymainoffice.

3.4.SamplingDesignandProcedures

Sincethetotalpopulation,72isnotabignumberwhichrequiresample,censusmethodwillbe
employedtogathererinformation.

3.5.TypesandSourcesofData

Thedatasourceultimatelydeterminesthevalidityoftheresearch.Itisbelievedthatallemploy
eesofthemarketingdepartmentarefamiliarwiththemarketingstrategyofDashenBrewery.
Fromcensusrespondents,Primaryandfromcompanydocumentation,secondarydatawillb
ecollectedandused.Themaindatawillbecollectedthroughopenandclosedquestionnaires.

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Thesecond-
handdatacomesfromvariousbooks,researchpapers,articles,journals,andwebsites.

3.6.MethodsofDataCollection

Toobtaindataontheevaluationofmarketingstrategypractice,theresearcherwilluseprimar
yandsecondarydatasourcesintheresearch.Themaindataiscollectedthroughquestionnai
reswithopenandclosedquestionsfortheemployeesofDashenBrewery.Beforedistributing
thequestionnairestotherespondents,theresearcherpilotedtheresearchtoolbydistributin
g3questionnairestosomesamplerespondentstoimprovetheclarityoftheresearchquestio
ns,andthendistributedthequestionnairetotheinterviewees.

3.7.MethodsofDataAnalysis

Thedatareceivedfromtheintervieweeswillbeanalyzedwiththehelpofstatisticalsoftware:t
herecenteditionoftheStatisticalPackageforSocialSciences(SPSS,version21)willbeused.
Thedatacollectedfromthequestionnaireisthoroughlycodedandcheckedforconsistencya
ndenteredtheSPSSspreadsheet.Descriptivestatisticalanalysistechniqueswillbeusedtoa
nalyzethedataanddescribetheresultsusingfrequency,percentage,mean,andstandarddev
iation.Inaddition,tablesareplacedtoshowtheresultsofmanyvariables.

3.8.ValidityandReliability

Reliabilityandvalidityaddressissuesaboutthequalityofthedataandappropriationoftheme
thodsusedincarryingouttheresearch.

Validity:Effectivenessreferstothedegreetowhichatoolmeasureswhatitshouldmeasure.T
hedatamustnotonlybereliable,butalsotrueandaccurate.Ifthemeasurementisvalid,itisals
oreliable(Joppe,2000).Theeffectivenessofthedatacollectiontoolsisdeterminedbydiscus
singtheresearchtoolswithexpertsandresearchersintheresearchfield,especiallywiththere
searcher'ssupervisor.Valuableopinions,correctionsandsuggestionsputforwardbyresear
chexpertswillhelptheverificationoftheinstrument.Apilotstudyisdefinedasaminiaturever

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

sionofthestudyoratestruninpreparationforafullstudyandcanbeusedexclusivelyforpretes
tingofresearchinstruments(TeijlingenandHundley,2001).‗`...Theimportanceofconducti
ngapilotstudyisvitalforanyinvestigationbecauseithelpstodetectpossibledefectsinthem
easurementinstruments”(Teijlingen&Hundley,2001)Watson,Atkinson,&Rose,2007)andi
ftheconceptisfullyoperational.Thisisachievedbypre-
testingthetoolonasmallnumberofparticipantswiththesamecharacteristicsasinthemains
tudy.

Reliability:Reliabilityreferstotheconsistency,stability,orreliabilityofthedata.Areliablemea
surementisifitisrepeatedasecondtimetogivethesameresultsasthefirsttime.Iftheresults
aredifferent,themeasurementresultsarenotreliable.Tomeasurethereliabilityofthedataco
llectiontool,theinternalconsistencytechniqueofCronbach'salphaisused(Mugenda,2008).
Cronbach'salphaisareliabilitycoefficientthatgivesanunbiasedestimateofthegeneralizab
ilityofthedata.Analphacoefficientof0.75orhigherindicatesthatthecollecteddataarereliab
lebecausetheyhaverelativelyhighinternalconsistencyandcanbegeneralizedtoreflectthev
iewsofallrespondentsinthetargetpopulation(Zinbarg,2005).Reliabilityisestablishedbyre
testing,wherethesametestperformedonthesamerespondentatdifferenttimesyieldsthes
ameresultsorparallelreliability,andthesametestwithdifferentwordingorsequenceofques
tionsalsoproducesthesamedata.(Sekaran,2003)Toseeifthedatacollectiontoolisreliable,
59respondentswereincludedinthetest.TheresearchersusedtheSocialScienceStatistical
Package(SPSS)totestthereliabilityofthedata.TheresultsofCronbach'salphacoefficientar
eshowninthetablebelow.

3.9.EthicalConsiderations

Thereareseveralfactorsthatmakeresearchachallengeandaproblem.Amongthem,thesiz
eanddepthoftheinformationrequiredrequiresaccessibility,financialdeficiencies,andinsu
fficienttimeforin-
depthandextensiveconsiderationoftheinformationandanalysis,etc.,whichcanmakerese
archdevelopmentchallenging.(BickmanandRog,2009)Withthisinmind,moralconsiderati
ons(suchasmoralconsequences,harmtoothers,privacyconcerns,voluntaryparticipation,

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

anddeception)shouldnotbeconsideredmoreimportantatanypointintheprocessandshoul
dbeatthesametimethroughoutthisinvestigation.

Duringtheinvestigation,theintervieweewillinformofthepurposeoftheinvestigationbefore
distributingthequestionnaireandacceptingtheinterview.Researchersnotonlyseektoobtai
ntheconsentoftheparticipantsbutmustalsoinformpotentialintervieweesthatparticipatio
nisvoluntary.Respecttheprivacyandanonymityoftherespondent.Thepersonalinformatio
noftheintervieweeswillnotbedisclosedtothepublic.Researchersalsoensuredthatintervie
wees'participationintheresearchwillnotcausephysical,social,orpsychologicalharmtothe
m.Distributequestionnairesandconductinterviewsonlywhentheresearcherobtainstheco
nsentoftheinterviewees.

CHAPTERFOUR
4RESEARCHWORKPLANANDBUDGET
4.1WorkPlan
Period Activities
January20- Designandsubmitresearchproposal
Febrwary05,2024
February06-15,2024 Collectcommentonresearchproposal
February16-30,2024 Producefinalresearchproposal
March01,2024 Receiveresearchproposalapproval
March02-20,2024 Collectsecondaryandprimarydata
March21-30,2024 Analyzecollecteddata

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Period Activities
April01-15,2024 Prepareresearchreport
April16,2024 Submitresearchreport
April17-23,2024 Collectresearchcomments
April24-30,2024 Produceandsubmitfinalresearchreport
May01,2024 Defendresearch

4.2Budget
Budgetlineitems BudgetinBirr
AdvisoryFee 10000
Researchproposaltyping,printingandbinding 400
Questionnaireandchecklisttypingandprinting 1200
Dataentryandanalysis 1000
Researchpapertyping,printingandbinding 600
Transportation 1200
Stationeries 1100
Internetservice 750
Total 16250

5REFERENCES

Akinyele,S.T.(2011).StrategicMarketingandFirmsPerformanceaCaseStudyofNigeriaOil
andGasindustry.Schoolofbusiness,covenantuniversity,Ota-Nigeria.vol.10,pp61-77.
CravensDavidW.,&PiercyNigelF.(2009).StrategicMarketing,NewDelhi:TataMcGraw-
HillPublishingCompanyLimited.
Davidson,S.(2001).Seizingyourcompetitiveadvantage:Journalofmanagement,Vol.10,N
o.8:Communitybanker,PP32.
Ferell,Michael,&Hartline.(2011).MarketingStrategy(5thed.):USA,South-
WesternCengagelearning.
GhoseAmitabha(Ed),(2008).ImpactofGovernmentPoliciesonMarketingStrategies,India:

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

TheIcfaiUniversityPress.
Homburg,Christian,Sabinekuester,Harleykrohmar.(2009).marketingmanagement:Aco
ntemporaryperspective(1sted.).London.
JainS.C,(1997),Marketingplanningandstrategy(5thedition).Cincinnati,southwesterncol
legeispublishing.
Kotler,P.,andArmstrong.(2012).PrincipleofMarketing,14theditionNewJersey:Kotler,P.(
2007).MarketingManagement12thedition.PrenticehallInc.
Koyade,O.(2014).MarketingCommunications1’stedition.VentspublishingAps.
Armstrong,Saunders,andWong(1999).Principleofmarketing2’ndedition.New
Jersey:PrenticeHallInc.
ManmohanJ.(2012).EssentialsofMarketingventpublishingAp.
Moggahadam(2012).TheInfluenceofMarketingStrategyElementsonMarketShareofFir
ms.
InternationaljournaloffundamentalpsychologyandsocialscienceVol.2,pp19-24.
McDonaldandDunbar(2007).MarketingPlan:HowtoPrepareThem,HowtoUseThem6the
dition,Oxfordprintingpress.
MongayJ(2006).StrategicMarketingConceptsandBoundaries.AnthonomusUniversityo
fBarcelona,SBSswissBusinessschool.
Paulfifield.(1994),MarketingStrategy:oxford,Linacrehouse,Jordanhill.
Pour,NazariandEmami(2013),theeffectofmarketingmixinattractingcustomers:casestu
dyofsaderatBankinKermanshahprovince,publishedresearch.
Porter,M.E.(1990).TheCompetitiveAdvantageofnations:MacMillanPressltdLondon,ISB
N0-333-51804-7.
RogerBrooks’sbank(1994),FrameworkofMarketingStrategy,pp.1014.
Wind,Y.,&Robertson.(1983).MarketingStrategy:NewdirectionsforTheoryandResearch,J
ournalofMarketing,Vol.47,No2,PP12-25.
Shapiro,C.,&Varian.(1999).Informationrules:Astrategicguidetothenetworkeconomy,Ha
rvardbusinessschoolpress;Boston,ISBN0-87584-863-X.

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Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

6APPENDICES

DearRespondents,

Iwouldliketoexpressmydeepgratitudeinadvanceandthankyouforvoluntarilytakingthet
imetocompletethisquestionnaire.Themainpurposeofthisresearchquestionnaireistoa
ccessthepracticeofDashenBrewery'smarketingstrategytopartiallycompletethegener
alcourseoftheMasterofBusinessAdministration(MBA).Therefore,Ikindlyaskyoutohel
panswerthefollowingquestions.Anyinformationyousubmitwillbekeptcompletelyconf
identialandusedforacademicpurposesonly.Yourcooperationandpromptreplywillbegr
eatlyappreciated.

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

GeneralInstruction
 Writingyournameisnotnecessary
 Put“√”foryourchoiceintheboxprovided

ThankYouinadvance!
PartOne:-GeneralInformation
1. Gender
Male Female

2. Age
Under25 36-45 Above55
26-35 46-55

3. EducationalLevel
Diploma Degree Masters
Ifanyother,Pleasespecify .

4. Position
Manager Supervisor SalesOperator
Ifanyother,Pleasespecify .

5. HowlonghaveyoubeenemployeeofDashenBreweryFactory?

Lessthan1year
2-5years
6-10years
Morethan10years

PartTwo:-SpecificQuestions

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

6. Whatmarketingmixstrategiesdoesthecompanyuse?(MultipleResponsesarePossible)
Pro
duc
t
Pri
ce
Pro
mo
tio
n
Place/Distribution
AlltheaboveMixes

7. Whatarethecustomers’primaryreasonsforbuyingorwantingtousethecompany’sproducts?
Qualityofprodu
ct
Proximityofsup
ply
Lowerpricetha
nothers
Effectivepromo
tion
Customerprefe
rence
IfanyotherPleasespecify .

8. Whatisyouropinionabouttheproductsquality?

Verygood
Go
od

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Me
diu
m
Po
or
Ve
ryp
oo
r
9. Whatisyouropinionconcerningthepriceofthecompany’sproducts?
Veryexp
ensive
Expensi
ve
Afforda
ble
Che
ap
Ver
ych
eap

10. Whichofthefollowingmarketingchanneldoesyourcompanyusetodistributeyourproducts?(M
ultipleResponsesarePossible)
Directpersona
lselling
Directonlinesa
les
Indirectthroughthec
hannels
Telemarketing

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

Ifanyother,Pleasespecify .

11. Thecompany’sproductavailabilityandaccessibilityare?
Exc
elle
ntV
ery
go
od
Go
od
F
a
i
r
P
o
o
r

12.Whichofthesepromotionalactivitiesdoesyourcompanyundertake?(MultipleResponsesareP
ossible)
Media(TV,Radio,New
spaper)
FreeSampling
Inter
net
Billb
oard
sEx

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

hibit
ions
Ifanyother,Pleasespecify .

13. Ontherate1to3,where1represents“leasteffective”2represents“effective”and3represen
ts“mosteffective”,howwouldyouratetheappropriatenessofthefollowingpromotionalmi
xestothecompany?

(Pleaseputatickmarkforeachprovidedbox).

PromotionalTools 1 2 3

Advertising

SalesPromotion

PersonalSelling

PublicRelation

14.Whatarethebasesofsegmentingthemarket?(MultipleResponsesarePossible)
GeographicL
ocationDem
ographicBeh
avioral
PsychologicalorLifestyle
Ifanyother,Pleasespecify .

15.Whoarethecompany’smajortargetgroups?(MultipleResponsesarePossible)
IndividualCustomers/Co

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

nsumersHotels,Restaura
ntsandGroceriesOtherInt
ermediaries
Ifanyother,pleasespecify .

16. IbelievethecompanyusesDashenbrandimageeffectively.
Stronglyagree
Agr
eeU
nde
cid
ed
Dis
agr
ee
Stronglydisagree

17. Howwouldyouratethecommunicationeffectivenessbetweencorporatesalesandmarketingd
epartmentandotherdepartments?
Verygood
GoodSo
mewhat
goodPo
or
Verypoor

18. Icanperformthemarketingstrategypracticesofthecompanyeffectively.Stronglyagree
Agr
eeU
nde
cid

By: Getachew Lemessa Page

Research Proposal on Assessment of Marketing Strategy Practices in Dashen Brewery Factory

ed
Dis
agr
ee
Stronglydisagree

19. Ontherate1to3,where1represents“leasteffective”,2represents“effective”and3“mosteffectiv
e”howwouldyouratethecompany’soverallmarketingstrategies?
1. 2. 3.

20.Whatarethemajorchallengesintheimplementationofmarketingstrategyofthecompany?

.
21.Ifyouhavefurthercomments,pleaseindicateinthespaceprovidedbelow.

ThankYouforYourCooperation!

By: Getachew Lemessa Page