Marketing Model

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Strengthening Your Marketing Position
The objective of this module is to review a Market Planning Model that will:

• assist analyzing your current marketing position for expansion opportunities;
  
  
• develop tactics to strengthen and expand your market and secure tighter sales projections.

The strength of your markets will determine the overall value of your business. The stronger your marketing position, the greater value of your business and income opportunities.

About This Guide

This module will walk you through the marketing expansion steps:

Step 1: establish your marketing objectives
Step 2: analyze your current marketing position
Step 3: complete market segmentation and research
Step 4: select your marketing strategy
Step 5: set your product, price, distribution and promotion

Illustrative models can be downloaded as reference guides.

Marketing Objective
The first step is to establish your underlying objectives. What are you looking to do?

• increase sales
• introduce a new product line
• develop a new marketing segment
• open a new territory
• other: ____________________

The marketing objectives can be identified and listed using the following criteria:

Target Objectives

1. Sales Volumes
   
• dollars
• units
• territories
• markets
  
  
2. Share of Market
3. Distribution Expansion
4. Other:
   
   • market-need satisfying objectives
   • community-need satisfying objectives
   • corporate-need satisfying objectives

The Situation Analysis makes an assessment of your marketing strengths and capabilities. The analysis has eight components. You may review all eight or a combination of analytical components as it relates to your business.

Please download and print this section of the Market Planning Model as a guide.

Download Guide

Desktop Download Instructions Windows Users Right-click link and select "Save Target As..." or "Save Link as..." Macintosh Users Click and hold the mouse button down on link and select "Save this Link as..." or "Download Link to Disk..." PDF File You will need the Acrobat Reader to open and view download. FREE Software.	Download File
	Market Planning Model: marketing analysis

Assess Your Marketing Experience
How would you define your current marketing experience? Are you a prospector, defender, analyzer or reactor?

This will determine how execute your marketing strategy. A prospector takes many risks, explores new marketing opportunities, and thinks out-of-the-box on new concepts and developments.

A reactor on the other hand assumes little risk. They will take action only when the market or competition forces their hand.

Your business experience may fall under any one of these modes. But if you are looking to grow your business, you may need to move up the marketing experience chain.

Analyze Your Macro-Environments
The macro-environments that can impact your business include:

• change in demographics: i.e., baby-boom market near retiring
• change in technology: i.e., e-technology
• changes in political structure or business regulations
• changes in economics: i.e., interest rate drops
• change in socioculture: i.e., environmental products

You cannot control the macro-environments. You can only revise your business strategy to take advantage of macro-environmental changes.

Marketing managers will often perform a scenario analysis on macro-environmental changes. Their objective is measuring the probability that an event will occur that can impact their business plans.

Analyze Your Competition
The competitive analysis includes both primary and secondary competitors:

• the competitor growth and size
• the competitor share of the market
• the competitor strength and weakness
• the competitor's possible behavior when you make market moves

Factors that can impact your competitive position include:

• barriers of market entry and exit:
  the stronger the barriers, the less likely that new entrants or existing competitors coming into or exiting the market.
  
  the weaker the barriers, the more likely you will face new players that can play havoc on your marketing position.
  
  a prime example are Internet plays. There are zero barriers to entry or exit. Internet leaders are constantly battling upstarts that challenge their online position.
  
  
• the strength of your suppliers / buyers:
  what prevents your suppliers or buyers from moving forward or backward in the chain to compete in your market
  
  could these players become a competitor?
  
  
• industry rivalry:
  for example, the threat of a "Wal-Mart" moving into your area may force a shift in your product strategy to stay competitive
  

Analyze Your Value Chain Activities
This component applies to mid- to larger-size companies with complete integrated business infrastructures.

Briefly, mid- to large-size businesses operate in a value chain. Most notably:

1. in-bound logistics
2. operations
3. out-bound logistics
4. marketing and sales
5. service

The objective is to strengthen your core competency within the value chain and out-source other value chain activities to gain competitive advantage.

Auto manufactures are a prime example. Almost all of their in-bound logistics are outsource to auto part manufacturers using just-in-time operations and logistics.

Access Your Internal Capabilities
This requires a SWOT analysis, meaning:

• S=Strength: clearly define your business strengths. It could be your product line, sales force, location, operation efficiency or other.
  
  
• W=Weakness: in comparison, you need to outline your business weakness. This too may by your product line, sales force, location, operation efficiency or other.
  
  
• O=Opportunities: list the opportunities that may be available under a strategic play. This could include a product line expansion, opening a new market, streamlining an operation for better efficiency, etc.
  
  
• T=Threats: in comparison, you need to also list the potential threats. This may include price competition, new competition from a major player, etc.

Appraise Your Corporate Structure
Generally referred to as the 7-S Framework. A strong business structure allows you to implement a successful marketing plan. The determinants:

1. Structure:
   • single management
   • multi-management
     
2. System:
   • reporting
   • budgeting, etc.
     
3. Style:
   • leadership
   • vision, etc.
     
4. Staff:
   • selection
   • training, etc.
     
5. Skills:
   • new capabilities vs. old capabilities
     
6. Shared Values:
   • attitudes
   • beliefs
     
7. Strategy:
   • business
   • marketing
   • operations

Segmentation Profitability
Are you making money? Most likely if you are still in business. But if you were to segment your markets or products in another way, would that segment be profitable?

Segmentation profitability allows you to analyze the following:

• Where do you hold the competitive position?
• Which segments are most profitable?
• Which segments should be strengthen?
• Which segments should be discontinued?
  
  Completing a segmentation profitability will pin-point areas that support a marketing decision and strategy.

Appraise Your Business Life Cycle
There is a generic life cycle that all businesses follow:

• Cycle 1: Introduction or Emerging Markets
  This is when a business first comes into the market. The market is fairly new and needs to be developed.
  
  
• Cycle 2: Growth
  This is the period when the business begins experiencing rapid growth. The business will expand its operations, hire new people, and move into new markets and territories.
  
  
• Cycle 3: Maturity
  This is when the business begins to mature. Competitors have entered the market to challenge the market leader. To stay competitive, the business tightens its operations, increases productivity, and sheds unprofitable operations.
  
  
• Cycle 4: Decline
  This is when the business begins to decline due to competitive pressures or changes in the market.
  

There are different marketing strategies that work for different life-cycles. Understanding your business cycle will help define your marketing play.

After you have analyzed your market position, the next step is to research new marketing segments. These segmentation studies are often supported by marketing research and analysis.

Download Guide

Desktop Download Instructions Windows Users Right-click link and select "Save Target As..." or "Save Link as..." Macintosh Users Click and hold the mouse button down on link and select "Save this Link as..." or "Download Link to Disk..." PDF File You will need the Acrobat Reader to open and view download. FREE Software.	Download File
	Market Planning Model: market segmentation

An effective marketing plan will likely require a segmentation of your current markets. Each market segmentation may have its own "product-price-place-promotion" to maximize sales.

Segmentation comes in many forms. The most common include:

1. Physical Description Segmentation:
   
   • Industry Markets: SIC code, size, usage rate, location, etc
   • Consumer Markets: age, sex, income, family life cycle, etc.
     
2. General Behavioral Segmentation:
   
   • Industry: Industry buying situation
   • Consumer: life-style
     
3. Product-Related Segmentation:
   
   • product usage
   • loyalty
   • product influence
     
4. Customer-Needs Segmentation:
   
   • benefits sought
   • choice criteria
     

Most small businesses use physical descriptors for segmentation. Large corporations use a combination of segmentation strategies depending on brand and product.

The objective of segmentation is to develop a market within a market to maximize sales.

For example, we completed a segmentation strategy for a carpet-cleaning franchise. There were two distinct segments that we identified:

1. Residential Household
2. Hospitality Industry
   
   we further broke these segmentations down using physical descriptors and customer-needs segmentation.
   

What we have found was distinct marketing components that helped our client to target and grow their business.

• Consumer Market
  
  We targeted high-income households within a geographic area. Price was the segmentation strategy. Even though the target could afford multiple carpet cleanings, the business wanted to convey to the target that they were getting great value at a minimum price.
  
  We used selective coupons and seasonal incentives in print media and direct mail campaigns.
  
  
• Hospitality Industry
  
  Service was the segmentation strategy for hotels and restaurants. They needed carpet cleaning that can be performed in the off-hours with the least amount of interruption.
  
  Our client assigned a dedicated service professional to each respective account. That person was on the job almost daily building the reliability of their dedicated team.
  
  From this segmentation came a new product opportunity: concrete washing and cleaning. Our client was able to expand their service offering to the hospitality industry using customer-needs segmentation for reliable and dedicated service.

Segmentation marketing allows you to develop a product service that addressed different needs. Segmenting your market can open business expansion opportunities.

Segmentation strategies are often supported by marketing research and positioning analysis. This is very common with brand marketers such as Kelloggs, General Mills, and other brand-oriented companies.

They use segmentation research to determine whether a market exists. Often, new product concepts may be discovered and tested.

This component is beyond our brief discussion, but included in the download for review. We have within our network marketing research experts who can address any marketing research project.

We now reach the guts of your market strategy. Finding the right strategy will depend on your market, segmentation, and business analysis. We have for review the following:

Entry Marketing Strategies for New Markets

• Reviews market entry strategies for new products and services. Addresses marketing plans for market pioneers and fast-followers.

Market Strategies for Growth Markets

• Reviews market expansion opportunities for market leaders and market challengers.

Market Strategies for Markets in Mature/Decline

• Reviews market plans to maintain competitive advantage in a mature market. Reviews how to avoid shake-out and exit strategies when the market declines.

Market Strategies for International Markets

• If your plans have you moving into international markets, this outline raises issues that can formulate your plan.
  

We now turn to the tools that will be used to execute your marketing strategy — the 4-Ps of marketing:

1. Product
2. Price
3. Place (or distribution)
4. Promotion
   
   a 5th P will been added to the mix:
   
   
5. Pamper — meaning quality service

These are the working components of your marketing strategy.

Desktop Download Instructions Windows Users Right-click link and select "Save Target As..." or "Save Link as..." Macintosh Users Click and hold the mouse button down on link and select "Save this Link as..." or "Download Link to Disk..." PDF File You will need the Acrobat Reader to open and view download. FREE Software.	Download File
	Market Planning Model: the 4-Ps of marketing

Product Development / Maintenance
Your marketing strategy may have you developing or expanding your product lines. Some ideas for product development:

• new-to-world product development / services
• new product or service lines
• additions to existing product or service lines
• improvement in / revisions to existing product lines or services
• repositioning
• cost reduction

Setting Your Pricing Strategy
Pricing strategies are influenced by four distinguishing factors:

1. costs
2. customer perceived value
3. economics
4. competition

Building Your Distribution Outlets
Distribution channels are becoming an important play in many marketing strategies. With the advent of the Internet and online auction houses, businesses are expanding operations that reach around the world.

• Did you know that our Executive Director is a strong e-business marketing consultant? If you need an e-business review, drop him a line at guide@nbuy.com. You will be surprised how e-business can open new markets and reduce operation expenses.

Promoting Your Product
Increasing your advertising dollars will increase your sales. The challenge is selecting the right promotion that will maximize sales and target the right segmentation.

There are four components of your promotional plan:

1. Advertising: television, radio, direct mail, internet, etc.
2. Promotional Activities: coupons, samples, etc.
3. Public Relations
4. Personal Selling
   

Service Quality
Any successful marketing strategy requires quality management. The determinants of service quality include:

• reliability
• responsiveness
• competence
• access
• communication
• courtesy
• credibility
• security
• understanding / knowing the customer
• tangibles.