Business and Management

Business Plan Instructions

Assignment Brief

Scenario: Hollister is looking to expand and enter into different countries. Now you have selected a possible country for expansion you must now develop a marketing plan to help them enter this market. This assessment builds upon the previous assessment in which you delivered a PEST analysis of the proposed marketplace for Hollister.

The plan must reflect a consideration of the 4P’s; product, price, place and promotion. It should also discuss any cultural differences that may affect proposed strategies for entering the new market including the specific product diversification that might address needs/gaps in the new market.

Task:  Individual market plan

Perform a marketing plan for your chosen business addressing the 4P’s (Product, Price, Promotion and Place) of marketing.  Remember that the marketing plan must take into consideration the new country as a context. Your plan should also take into consideration the outcomes of the previous assessment; the PEST analysis for your chosen country.

The plan must include:

1. What does the company produce (product or service) and why this is appropriate for the new market (diversification or changes required to suit new market).
2. How much it is going to charge (price; price sensitivity of the market; market entry strategy).
3. How it is going to deliver products or services to the customer (distribution channel).
4. How it is going to tell its customers about its products and services (promotion; advertising and incentives; market entry strategy).

.Core learning outcomes:

• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of key sociological theories and how they relate to everyday examples

• Apply theory to real-life examples and issues within a chosen subject area

Instructions:

• This is an individual
• The report should be a maximum of 1000 words [+/- 10%] excluding the bibliography.
• Assignments should be submitted electronically through EMA found on the BREO course webpage.
• When submitting your work it is essential that you use your student ID number as the title of your work (NOT your name).
• Late assignments beyond the submission date will not be accepted or marked.
• This coursework is subject to University Regulations, attention is particularly drawn to the regulations on late submission, CAAS and plagiarism.
• Coursework should be properly referenced using the Harvard Referencing System and should include a bibliography. Students should note that correct referencing and bibliography are one of the assessment criteria.
• It is the responsibility of a student who registers for a UK programme of study to learn about the academic practices they are required to follow. I would recommend that you seek guidance on academic writing.  The library resources have information to help you on the following webpages:
• Guide to referencing : http://lrweb.beds.ac.uk/guides/referencing
• Avoiding plagiarism : http://lrweb.beds.ac.uk/guides/avoid_plagiarism

Study Hub also provides assistance at the following web page: http://lrweb.beds.ac.uk/studyhub http://lrweb.beds.ac.uk/studyhub/appointments Study Hub is also available through BREO.

Solution Paper Sample

4P of Marketing

Name

Date

Product

          The company largely deals with clothing and other accessories including perfumes, cologne, flip-flops as well as the slim jeans. Over the years the company has been able to succeed in the clothing sector since it has been able to identify the target market and tailor the products to meet the needs of the customers in those markets. The company produces both clothings for both men and women, and this is necessary for the company especially if the diversification and largest market share is to be achieved in the long run. Even though the company largely targets the middle-income customers due to the price points of the clothing, there is a need to adjust this strategy in order to include high-end consumers in China. The Chinese market is largely symbolized by the consumers who value prestige, and therefore there is a need to create a market where all the needs of the consumers are addressed (Emery, 2012). Diversification in terms of price will be vital to help in achieving market segmentation and expand the target market. Since the company has a reputation of providing the products at lower prices when compared to other companies including the parent company Abercrombie & Fitch Co there is a need to change the strategies in order to address the change in customer social and economic class in China. Therefore, the company, therefore, should divert from the low-income target market to include high-end consumers in order to ensure that it fits as per the customer segments in the Chinese market. In order to suit the new market, there is always a need to ensure that the products are structured according to the market demands and also to ensure that the company remains competitive in the process (Egan, 2008).

Price

          The company will target middle and high-end income consumers who are the majority in the Chinese market.  In China, only 3.3% of the overall population can be considered to be below the poverty line which makes the middle-income earners who are the majority in China the appropriate target market. Focussing on high-end consumers is essential especially for those customers in the Chinese market who value prestige and therefore may need a premium form of clothing. This is important if the company is to attract a wide range of customers. Through this, the company will be able to ensure both middle income and high-end customers can afford the products being offered in the market (Constantinides, 2006).

Place

          The distribution of the product will rely on both the online as well as the retail sector. Establishing the retail business is costly especially in a new market and therefore requires the incorporation of different distribution strategy. Even though the use of retail centers helps in providing the consistency needed in the market due to the movement of goods but the major limitation is the geographical coverage given that the retail centers cannot be established across China at the entry level (Zineldin, and Philipson, 2007). Therefore the use of the company website will allow the customers to order the products across China and at the same time will help the company to achieve high margins. This is necessary since it will help in improving accessibility and maintaining high-profit margins. The use of retail centers is essential, but it decreases the company profit margins. India is characterized by high population and large geographical region, and therefore the use of the company website will help in making sure that the products are available to the customers and the consumers will only incur shipping charges.

Promotion strategy

          The promotion strategy will incorporate digital, print and the social media strategy (Zhou, and Wang, 2014). The use of digital and print media will incorporate aspects such TV advertisement to help in reaching a wide range of audience. The use of the social media strategy includes the use of Weibo, Renren, and WeChat among others to help in attracting large customers’ base since the target customers are those between the ages of 19-50, they primarily rely on the digital and the social media platform. Increasing the online presence helps in minimizing the cost associated with the use of traditional advertising channels such as television and the print media since they are expensive to sustain in the long run (Tingchi Liu, Huang, and Minghua, 2007). Even though the traditional platforms will be used, the use on the online platform and the social media strategy will be the most dominant strategy. This will allow the use of videos and the descriptions to educate the potential customers on the importance of the product and the role it is likely to play in the market (Perreault, Cannon, and McCarthy, 2011). Therefore, the promotion strategy will incorporate a wide range of strategies which will be instrumental for the long term operation of the company in China and the success of the product. There is a need to ensure that different and wide range of promotional strategies is used to improve the probability of succeeding in the market. The company will also offer incentives to customers by providing the products at a competitive strategy to ensure that the company is competitive in the long run.

Bibliography

Constantinides, E., 2006. The marketing mix revisited: towards the 21st-century marketing. Journal of marketing management, 22(3-4), pp.407-438.

Egan, J., 2008. Relationship marketing: Exploring relational strategies in marketing. Pearson education.

Emery, B., 2012. Sustainable marketing. Harlow, UK: Pearson.

Perreault, W.D., Cannon, J.P. and McCarthy, E.J., 2011. Basic marketing: A marketing strategy planning approach. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Irwin.

Tingchi Liu, M., Huang, Y.Y. and Minghua, J., 2007. Relations among attractiveness of endorsers, match-up, and purchase intention in sport marketing in China. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 24(6), pp.358-365.

Zhou, L. and Wang, T., 2014. Social media: A new vehicle for city marketing in China. Cities, 37, pp.27-32.

Zineldin, M. and Philipson, S., 2007. Kotler and Borden are not dead: myth of relationship marketing and truth of the 4Ps. Journal of consumer marketing, 24(4), pp.229-241.