Assignment

Course Name: Marketing Management

Question 1 (70.0 Point)

1. Explain the importance of 4 components of marketing mix and use YOUR

organization as examples. (18 marks)

Marketing mix is a combination of four elements which are products, price, promotion
and place. Marketing mix refers to the tools or ingredients, which the marketer mixes
in order to interact with a particular market. The marketing mix consists of various
elements, which are classified into four categories, also known as '4Ps of marketing'.
They are such as below;

i. Product

Product means goods or services or 'anything of value' which is offered to the market
for sale. It is mixture of tangible and intangible attributes, which are capable of being
exchanged for a value. From the customer's point of view, a product is a bundle of
utility as it provides three types of benefits to the consumers which are functional
benefits, psychological benefits and social benefits.

It also includes the extended product or what is offered to the customer as after
sales services, handling complaints, credit services, etc. The product mix refers to
important decisions related to the product such as quality of product, design of
product, packaging etc.

ii. Price

Price of a product refers to the amount of money that the customer has to pay in the
market to obtain the product. The marketers have to take a number of decisions
regarding price level, pricing strategy, pricing objectives, discounts, etc, together
known as price mix.

iii. Place

Place or physical distribution covers all the activities required to physically move the
goods from manufactures to customers. The two major decision areas under this

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function are decision regarding channels of distribution and physical movement of
goods from the place consumption. Thus, place mix involves a number of decisions
relating to inventory control, intermediaries, negotiation, storage, warehousing,
transportation, etc.

iv. Promotion

Promotion refers to the process of informing the customers about the product and
then persuading them to buy the product. Most marketing firms use advertisements,
sales promotion, personal selling, and public relations to promote their products.
Therefore, the combination of any of these techniques to attain the marketing
objectives is called promotion mix.

Example of Organization / Company – Andrian’s Coffee House

The concept of marketing mix includes many aspects of marketing which are related
to the creation of awareness of a brand and consumer loyalty in the market. In the
promotion of Andrian’s coffee brand in the Vietnamese market, all the four facets of
the marketing mix , also referred to as the ‘four Ps’ of the marketing mix will be
employed.

The four components of the marketing mix are price, promotion, product and
placement. The blending of these four aspects of marketing mix will result in a
marketing strategy that will ensure that the Andrian’s coffee brand meets consumer
demand.

i. Product

The Andrian’s coffee brand will provide standardized and convenience products. The
Royal coffee brand is expected to go through all the four stages of product life cycle
development in a span of a decade. The four stages are brand introduction, brand
growth, brand maturity and brand decline.

The research and development team will be assigned the task of coming up with
new products under the Andrian’s coffee brand name in order to ensure that the
company meets the pressure of the competing brands in the market, meet the
changing tastes and preferences of the consumers, and ensure sustainable growth
and development of the company.

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At the initial stages (brand introduction), there will be a slow growth in the sales and
low levels of profits. The stage will be marked by fewer customers. This is because
the products would have not been adequately promoted and the customers are will
be still weighing on their purchasing decision. As a result, a slow market penetration
strategy will be employed. This strategy will ensure that the product is launched at a
relatively fair price.

The growth stage will have a rapid increase in the level of sales as the market for the
product will be opened up and more distribution channels will be in place. The
increased level of sales will be as a result of trial and repeat buys demonstrating that
the product will have satisfied the customers.

Product quality management strategies will be employed to ensure that the high level
of sales is maintained. The second last stage is characterized by a decrease in the
amount of sales. Market modification and product modification techniques, as well as
the marketing mix modification strategies will be employed in order to sustain the
level of sales in the company.

ii. Price

Andrian’s coffee shops and retail outlets will set prices, which reflect savings when
compared to the actual value of the product. The company’s brand products will be
priced at the upper edge to match the general positioning of the company as a high
quality product and service provider. At the initial stage, the company will set prices,
which will be 15% mark-up on the cost of production and later a mark-up of 25% on
the cost of production.

The setting of prices relative to those of competitors is expected to be effective since

the target market for Andrian’s coffee brand are mostly middle-class city dwellers. In
addition, low prices are associated with poor quality. These middle class city
dwellers will be the largest consumers of the Andrian’s coffee products in Bintulu
Sentral, Sarawak.

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 iii. Place

Companies normally use numerous strategies to penetrate the existing and

emerging markets taking into consideration the challenges and the opportunity they
present. Given the large number of well established companies in the target market,
the company will apply two strategies, that is, establishing own shops or retail outlets
and joint venture.

Since establishing businesses from the scratch is very costly, the company will enter
into agreements with some of the local shops and retail outlets to market or sell a
number of their products. Andrian’s coffee will only form joint venture with companies
whom they share strategic goals. This will also help the company to penetrate the
market.

iv. Promotion

In order to further the growth and development of Andrian’s coffee brand, the
activities of advertising, sampling, discounting, word-of-mouth and publicity will be
used in enticing the customers. Promotional strategies are used in defining and
locating the target audience for the product and clearly passing specific messages.

The promotional strategies will be employed in creating an awareness of the

presence of the Andrian’s coffee brand in the Sarawakian market. The promotional
strategy that will be used will ensure that the targeted customers get the right
information about the Andrian coffee brand product and accessories. This will be
achieved through the use of right medium and strategy to reach targeted consumer.

By promoting the product, the level of visibility of the product will be maintained and
the volume of the demand for the products and accessories will be set to an
expending margin. The concept of Andrian’s coffee will be introduced in the
promotions. A hygienic slip of paper will be attached to one of the Andrian’s coffee
products. This paper will contain the fortune of the day and an interesting message
to the customers. This could be present in the advert in order to entice the customers
to buy the product.

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2. Explain 3 importance of branding to the corporation and provide examples.
(9 marks)

Branding is everywhere, from the clothes we wear, to the food we eat and the
products we use, there’s no escaping it. For that reason, branding plays an
extremely important role in business, corporation and in the choices that consumers
make. Branding used to be a simple concept defined by a logo, design, imagery and
slogan.

However, the progression in marketing has led to branding becoming far more
complex. Branding is now about the perception that a consumer has of a company.
For example, the perception a person has when they see, hear or think of a certain
brand, and their feelings towards them. A brand is no longer recognisable just for its
logo, but for everything that surrounds it that makes it a whole.

With so many different brands around, the quest for consumer attention is becoming
more and more difficult. Therefore, to ensure that your company doesn’t get lost in
your competitors’ shadows, it’s important to spend time researching and building
your brand. A strong brand is essential to brand positioning, and towards creating an
effective marketing plan. A well-developed brand with fantastic ethos and values is
far more likely to build loyal relationships with their customers, as research shows
that 94% of consumers are loyal to brands that offer complete transparency.

Here are three (3) importance of branding:

i. Branding helps consumers identify and recognize the products and

organisation

By branding the business, giving it an identity, and just like people and places, a
well-designed brand has the ability to be instantly recognisable. This, of course,
helps consumers to identify who you are, what you do and what your products
are, all from either seeing or hearing about you brand. The more recognisable
you are as a brand, the more engagement and loyal customers you will have.

An example of a brand with a strong defining image and sense of personality is

the popular fast food chain, KFC. What makes KFC’s branding so iconic and
identifiable is the brand’s use of colour, tone of voice, humour, and character. In a

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 recent mishap that lead to many KFC restaurants closing due to the lack of
chicken, the brand responded with a playful, yet apologetic, ‘FCK’ advert that
became a work of PR genius. The reason for such a successful response was
greatly due to KFC’s ability to remain on brand whilst making light of their mistake
and maintaining sincerity about their values.

ii. It helps your consumers to know what to expect from you

Branding is also important to your consumers, as they know what to expect from you
as a brand. For example, if your branding evokes a sense of luxury, but your
products don’t match that description, you risk selling a false pretence to your
consumers. Not only does this make positioning your brand far more difficult,
consumers won’t know what to expect from you and therefore you’ll lose business to
your competitors.

A popular brand that excels at this is IKEA. Throughout their branding and
messaging, IKEA makes it clear to their consumers that the products they offer are
modern, easy to ensemble and affordable. By stressing this message consistently
across their marketing, IKEA are able to target their ideal audience, and consumers
know exactly what to expect from the brand. It’s what makes them such a success.

iii. Branding helps to build trust

Trust is highly valued in branding and marketing, especially as consumers become

more sceptical about where their products are coming from, their quality, and the
ethical and social issues surrounding market industries. Consumers are also now
looking for brands that go out of their way to deliver quality service and excellent
products, time and time again.

One of the UK’s leading trusted brands is department store John Lewis, popular for
its range of high quality products, excellent customer experience, as well as overall
integrity as a brand: ‘Never knowingly undersold’. This also creates a sense of trust
between consumers and the brand, and a feel good factor.

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3. What is market segmentation and market positioning? Explain with
appropriate examples. (10 marks)

Market Segmentation

Market segmentation is a marketing term that refers to aggregating prospective

buyers into groups or segments with common needs and who responds similarly to a
marketing action. Market segmentation enables companies to target different
categories of consumers who perceive the full value of certain products and services
differently from one another.

Market segmentation seeks to identify targeted groups of consumers to tailor

products and branding in a way that is attractive to the group. Markets can be
segmented in several ways such as geographically, demographically, or
behaviourally.

Market segmentation helps companies minimize risk by figuring out which products
are the most likely to earn a share of a target market and the best ways to market
and deliver those products to the market. With risk minimized and clarity about the
marketing and delivery of a product heightened, a company can then focus its
resources on efforts likely to be the most profitable. Market segmentation can also
increase a company's demographic reach and may help the company discover
products or services they hadn't previously considered.

Example of Market Segmentation

For example, an athletic footwear company might have market segments for
basketball players and long-distance runners. As distinct groups, basketball players
and long-distance runners respond to very different advertisements. Understanding
these different market segments enables the athletic footwear company to market its
branding appropriately.

Market segmentation is an extension of market research that seeks to identify

targeted groups of consumers to tailor products and branding in a way that
is attractive to the group. The objective of market segmentation is to minimize risk by
determining which products have the best chances of gaining a share of a target
market and determining the best way to deliver the products to the market. This

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allows the company to increase its overall efficiency by focusing limited resources on
efforts that produce the best return on investment (ROI).

Market Positioning

Market Positioning refers to the ability to influence consumer perception regarding a

brand or product relative to competitors. The objective of market positioning is to
establish the image or identity of a brand or product so that consumers perceive it in
a certain way.

Examples of Market Positioning

 Tesla and Audi position themselves as a luxury status symbol

 Starbucks positions itself as a trusted source of upscale quality coffee and
beverage
 McDonald’s positions itself as a place to get quick and cheap meals
 Microsoft and Apple position themselves as a tech company that offers
innovative and user-friendly products.

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4. Explain 3 major factors in influencing consumer purchasing behaviour,
provide examples. (9 marks)

Consumer behaviour is the study of individuals, groups, or organizations and all the
activities associated with the purchase, use and disposal of goods and services.
Consumer behaviour consists of how the consumer's emotions, attitudes, and
preferences affect buying behaviour.

Consumers spend time carrying out research and comparing multiple products. They
check product ratings and also ask friends or sales professionals. The process takes
longer to complete. For example, when buying a TV, people spend a long time going
to different shops and comparing products.

Consumer behaviour can indicates different things like how individuals or groups
choose to buy, use and dispose goods or services, to satisfy their needs and
desires. Hence it is important to understand that the consumer behaviour is affected
by several factors.

There are three (3) major factors in influencing consumer purchasing behaviour.

i. Economic Factor

The most important and first on this list is the economic factor. This one is the main
foundation of any purchasing decision. The reason is simple people can’t buy what
they can’t afford. The need of a product also doesn’t play a role here, but the most
important thing is affordability.

The purchasing quirks and decisions of the consumer largely rely upon the market or
nation’s economic circumstances. The more that a nation is prosperous and its
economy stable, the larger will be the money supply of the market and the
consumer’s purchasing power.

A strong, healthy economy brings purchasing confidence while a weak economy

reveals a strained market, marked by a weakened purchasing power and
unemployment.

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Some significant economic factors include:

 Personal Income
- Personal income is the criteria that dictate the level of money we will
spend on buying goods or services. There are primarily two kinds of
personal incomes that a consumer has namely disposable income and
discretionary income.
- Disposable income is mainly the income that remains in hand after
removing all necessary payments such as taxes. The greater the
disposable personal income the greater would be the expenditure on
several products, and the same would be the case when it is the other way
round.
- Meanwhile, discretionary personal income would be the income that
remains after managing all the basic life necessities. This income is also
used when it comes to purchasing shopping goods, durables, luxury items,
etc. An escalation in this income leads to an improvement in the standard
of living which in turn leads to greater expenditure on shopping goods.

 Family Income
- Family income is actually an aggregate of the sum total of the income of all
our family members. This income also plays a considerable role in driving
consumer behaviour. The income that remains after meeting all the basic
life necessities is what is then used for buying various goods, branded
items, luxuries, durables, etc.

 Income Expectations
- It's not just our personal and family income that impacts our buying
behaviour, our future income expectations also have a role to play. For
instance, if we expect our income to rise in the future, we would naturally
spend a greater amount of money in purchasing items. And of course, in
case we expect our income to take a plunge in the near future, it would
have a negative influence on our expenditure.

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  Consumer Credit
- The credit facilities at our behest also impact our purchasing behaviour.
This credit is normally provided by sellers, either directly or indirectly via
banks or financial institutions. If we have flexible credit terms as well as
accessible EMI schemes, our expenditure on items is likely to increase
and in less flexible credit terms would result in the opposite.

 Liquid Assets
- Even the liquid assets we’ve maintained influence our purchasing
behaviour. In case you are wondering, these are the assets that get
promptly converted into cash such as stocks, mutual funds, our savings or
current accounts. If we have more liquid assets, there is a greater
likelihood of us spending more on luxuries and shopping items. Lesser
liquid assets meanwhile result in lesser expenditure on these items.

 Savings
- The savings generated from our personal income are also regulating our
buying behaviour. For instance, if we take the decision of saving more
from our income for a certain period of time, our expenditure on goods and
services would be lesser and for that period and if we wish to save less,
our expenditure on such items would increase.

ii. Cultural Factor

Cultural factors have a subtle influence on a consumer’s purchasing decision

process. Since each individual lives in a complex social and cultural environment,
the kinds of products or services they intend to use can be directly or indirectly be
influenced by the overall cultural context in which they live and grow. These Cultural
factors include race and religion, tradition, caste and moral values.

Our behaviour is consciously or subconsciously driven by the culture followed by that

particular community. For instance, let’s take the example of McDonald's India

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India has a massive consumer base with McDonald’s has adjusted its menu to
match the tastes and preferences of the local community in whose vicinity it resides.
For instance, on account of cows being sacred and widely worshipped in India,
chicken has been put in place of beef. The fast-food corporation introduced McCurry
Pan in India, a baked menu item consisting of curried vegetables.

A few significant cultural factors include:

 Culture
- Our cultural factors are basically basic requirements, values, wants
behaviours, and preferences that are observed and absorbed by us from
our close family members as well as other significant people around us.

 Subculture
- Amongst a cultural group, we have several subcultures. These groups
share a common set of values and beliefs. They can consist of people
from varied nationalities, religions, caste, and geographies. An entire
customer segment is formed by this customer segment. We’ve taken an
easy example of Burger King here. In their advertising strategy, the
platform wished its “Ramadan Kareem” implying to have a generous
Ramadan. Burger King has adapted to the Muslim culture and created its
advertisement in Ramadan style by showing a mostly eaten burger,
presented in the shape of a crescent moon.

iii. Social Factor

Social factors include reference groups, family, and social status. These factors too
affect the buying behaviour of the consumer. These factors in turn reflect an endless
and vigorous inflow through which people learn different values of consumption.

As a result social factors influence our buying behaviour regarding items. Some of
these factors include:

 Family
- Our families actually have a considerable role to play in impacting our
purchasing behaviour. We form an inclination or aversion towards certain

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 products from our childhood by observing our families use that product
and persist in using those products as we grow up. For instance, if our
family members are fond of Papa Jones, we would subconsciously end up
choosing Papa Jones over say, Pizza Hut or Domino’s.

 Reference Groups
- Reference groups are basically groups of people with whom we associate
ourselves. These include clubs, schools, professional or playgroups,
churches, and even acquaintances or a group of friends, etc. The people
in the reference groups normally have a common pattern of purchasing
and an opinion leader who influences them in terms of their buying
behaviour.

 Roles and status

- We are all of course influenced by the role that we hold in society. The
higher position we hold, the more our status affects what and how much
we purchase. For instance, the CEO of a company and a normal
employee would have a varied buying pattern.

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5. Describe 3 main objectives of advertising and give effective examples used
by the any identified company. (15 marks)

Advertising is the action of calling public attention to an offering through paid

announcements by an identified sponsor. According to Kotler, “advertising is any
paid form of non-personal presentation & promotion of ideas, goods, or services by
an identified sponsor’. Simply, advertising is a process of developing a paid
communication message intended to inform people about something or to influence
them to buy, try, or do something.

There are three (3) main objectives of advertising which are to inform about the
brand or offering, to persuade to buy or perform a task and to remind and reinforce
the brand message.

i. To Inform

Advertisements are used to increase brand awareness and brand exposure in the
target market. Informing potential customers about the brand and its products is the
first step toward attaining business goals.

ii. To Persuade

Persuading customers to perform a particular task is a prominent objective of

advertising. The tasks may involve buying or trying the products and services
offered, forming a brand image, developing a favourable attitude towards the brand
etc.

iii. To Remind

Another objective of advertising is to reinforce the brand message and to reassure

the existing and potential customers about the brand vision. Advertising helps the
brand to maintain top-of-mind awareness and to avoid competitors stealing the
customers. This also helps in the word of mouth marketing.

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Example of Effective Advertisement by Company

i. Coke : Share a Coke

Here is one of the other branding advertising examples that highlight the iconic
status of Coca-Cola in branding and marketing. #ShareACoke is one of the perfect
advertisement examples of brand engagement and how far branded hashtags and
personalization can go. Coca-Cola launched this campaign ad first in Australia in
2011, which prompted users to share their own content with the “Share a Coke”
hashtag on social media.

The ad campaign revolved around customers’ love of personalization. The brand

personalized the wrapping around each Coca-Cola bottle with one of the 150 most
popular names in the country. Customers were encouraged to look for a bottle with
their name in the store or share the coke they got from the vending machine with
their friend whose name was printed on the bottle.

They could even order custom bottles on Coke’s website to request things like
nicknames and college logos. It was among the brilliant product advertising
examples that, by personalizing Coke, got people excited about their product.

ii. Nike : Just Do It

Nike has been saying “Just Do It” for 30 years now, and nobody really remembers
that their products once catered almost exclusively to marathon runners. And they
weren’t even the market leader in that field – Reebok was way ahead.

Nike established this slogan in 1988 during a meeting with the advertising agency
Wieden & Kennedy. Professional and amateur athletes spoke about their
achievements and the emotions they experienced while exercising as part of the ad
campaign. One of the campaign’s earliest television advertisements featured a video
of Walt Stack, an 80-year-old marathoner who explains how he runs 17 miles every
morning.

iii. Starbucks : #WhatsYourName

One of the other best examples of commercials is for Starbucks. Starbucks debuted
its now-iconic “What’s Your Name?” campaign in February 2020.

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The advertising campaign’s goal was to represent the transgender community and
motivate them to find their voice using their preferred name rather than their given
name. This ad campaign sets the scene where new members of the transgender
community are putting their new identities, for the first time, on a Starbucks drink.

Giving your name to a barista may seem unimportant to other people, but for the
transgender community, it can be the moment where they cement their new identity.
And this it caused the campaign to be named among the top campaign ad examples.

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6. Describe the meaning of Unique Selling Point (USP) and provide relevant
examples. (9 marks)

In marketing, the unique selling proposition (USP), also called the unique selling
point, or the unique value proposition (UVP) in the business model canvas, is the
marketing strategy of informing customers about how one's own brand or product is
superior to its competitors which in addition to its other values.

A unique selling proposition (USP) refers to the unique benefit exhibited by a

company, service, product or brand that enables it to stand out from competitors.
The unique selling proposition must be a feature that highlights product benefits that
are meaningful to consumers. USP focuses on explicit claims of uniqueness
involving an objectively verifiable product attribute or benefit-in-use.

Each advertisement must make a proposition to the consumer, not just words,
product puffery, or show-window advertising. Each advertisement must say to each
reader: "Buy this product, for this specific benefit." The proposition must be one the
competition cannot or does not offer. It must be unique, either in the brand or a
claim, the rest of that particular advertising area does not make. The proposition
must be strong enough to move the masses, i.e., attract new customers as well as
potential customers.

The following are examples of Unique Selling Propositions. What is commonly

considered a slogan is enhanced with a differentiating benefit of the product or
service. Typically, the uniqueness is delivered by a unique process, ingredient, or
system that produces the benefit described.

 Anacin "Fast, incredibly fast relief." In 1952, Rosser Reeves created a TV

commercial that capitalized on Anacin's "special ingredient," caffeine, by
suggesting limitations of other aspirin and repeating, three times, the
differentiation proposition: fast.
 M&M's: "Melts in your mouth, not in your hand”, (1954). M&Ms use a patented
hard sugar coating that keeps chocolate from melting in one's hands, thus a
chocolate soldiers could carry, compared to other brands.
 Head & Shoulders: "Clinically proven to reduce dandruff." (1961). Pyrithione
Zinc was found, after 10 years of research, to be an ingredient that was

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 actually effective in eliminating dandruff where other products were not
effective. Adding the name "Shoulders" to the product name also indicated
that the product eliminated the tell-tale white marks on clothing caused by
dandruff flakes falling from the hair.
 Domino's Pizza: "You get fresh, hot pizza delivered to your door in 30 minutes
or less—or it's free." 1973-1993 "You Got 30 Minutes" 2007- Domino's uses
what it calls the "make line" and other systems to make pizzas quickly.
 Starbucks- The unique selling proposition for Starbucks is simple enough:
“Love your beverage or let us know. We'll always make it right”. Starting off as
a small coffee shop in Washington, Starbucks had a long way to go in order to
become one of the most recognised brands in the world.

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