Implementation Evaluation Control

"Market segmentation plays a key role in the marketing strategy of almost all successful organizations and is a powerful marketing tool for several reasons. " (Chapter 8 pg 136). I plan to be sure I follow through on my plan by just constantly checking up on my product and seeing how it's selling. If it's overachieving, I'll set new goals so I'm still reaching to be greater. If I'm not doing good enough, I'll check everything and see exactly what's going wrong, then I'll fix it and find new, more innovative ways to market my product. "Few goods or services, no matter how well developed, priced, or distributed, can survive in the marketplace without effective promotion" (Chapter 16 pg 277).

Marketing Mix, Price

"The customer relationship management (CRM) process enables companies to prioritize their marketing focus on different customer groups according to each group's long-term value to the company or supply chain" (Chapter 13 pg 228). Using such research, the price of Chocomug will be $11.99 individually so it's affordable but people also know its not some cheap chocolate, there is some quality to it. Also, since it is affordable and it is a good treat for most people, it is going to sell at a very efficient rate, primarily during the holidays when the most focus is on Chocomug. The reason it isn't priced higher is because I want everyone to be able to afford and enjoy my product, and I know the rate it will sell at will earn me a very reasonable profit. It's a treat that will be enjoyed by every age, ethnic, and sex group, so pricing it perfectly for everyone to afford it is very important for me. "Price is the fourth way to position retail stores. Traditional department stores and specialty stores typically charge the full “suggested retail price”" (Chapter 15 pg 261).

Marketing Mix, Promotion

"Product lines provide economies of scale in advertising. Several products can be advertised under the umbrella of the line" (Chapter 10 pg 177). I will make sure I use as many forms of social media as I can when I am promoting my product. From Facebook and Twitter, to Snapchat and YouTube, I want to promote my product in as many useful ways as I possibly can without completely overwhelming my market with advertisements. "The use of the Internet to facilitate activities between organizations is called business-tobusiness electronic commerce (B-to-B or B2B e-commerce). This method of conducting business has evolved and grown rapidly throughout its short history" (Chapter 7 pg 118). I plan on not needing to come back from customer dissatisfaction because my customers will always be satisfied and pleased with my product. I will also give out a few free products to friends and family so they can show their friends how much they enjoy it, which is a way to get a few more people talking.

Marketing Mix, Distribution

"Most successful relationship marketing strategies depend on customer-oriented personnel, effective training programs, employees with the authority to make decisions and solve problems, and teamwork" (chapter 1 pg 9). For this reason, my product will be distributed to as many retail stores throughout the west coast of the United States as possible to begin sales, but may over time spread to the rest of the country. They will be sold in boxes of one, two, and three, and if there's ever a box bigger then three Chocomug's they will be limited and a special promotion, as the size of the Chocomug and the fact that it's made of chocolate makes it risky to add more then three mugs in one box. They will be stored in the fridges of each retail store, like the pizzas, chicken, and waffles are in most locations. "A new-product strategy links the new-product development process with the objectives of the marketing department, the business unit, and the corporation" (Chapter 11 pg 193).

Marketing Mix, Product

"Today's consumers are demanding, inquisitive, and discriminating. No longer willing to tolerate products that break down, they are insisting on high-quality goods that save time, energy, and often calories" (Chapter 4 pg 51). The product will be called Chocomug. It is a chocolate mug that will be sold all throughout the year, but will be focused on being a holiday treat. It will be a chocolate mug, or glass, that customers will drink whatever beverage they prefer out of, most likely drinks you would dip chocolate in or drinks that go with the holidays, and then they will proceed to consume the cup. My customers can drink hot chocolate, milk, or whatever else they wish to drink out of the chocolate mug, and then they can will the chocolate cup. "Advertising and marketing services, agencies, and other firms that provide marketing and communications services employ millions of people across America" (Chapter 17 pg 297).

Marketing Strategy, Target Market Strategy

"According to the concept of specialization and division of labor, breaking down a complex task into smaller, simpler ones and allocating them to specialists will create greater efficiency and lower average production costs via economies of scale" (Chapter 14 pg 243). I plan on appealing to the senses of children and people in relationships the most during the year, and during the holidays I plan on just using everyone's holiday feelings. During the holiday's, people are in a more "jolly" mood, and that's how I plan on promoting the Chocomug. Appealing to their happiness, and having people feel like they need the Chocomug in order to make their holiday's complete. I will appeal to children's desire to eat and obtain chocolate any way they can by using children in my commercials, and having them playing around and being happy. "Marketing research is the process of planning, collecting, and analyzing data relevant to a marketing decision" (Chapter 9 pg 152).

Situation or SWOT Analysis

"When examining internal strengths and weaknesses, the marketing manager should focus on organizational resources such as production costs, marketing skills, financial resources, company or brand image, employee capabilities, and available technology" (Chapter 2 pg 22). My strengths would have to be the fact that there are a lot of people who love chocolate, and the combination of chocolate with whatever drink my customers put in the cup would taste good to them. Also, since my cup isn't to expensive, they will continue going back to buy more Chocomugs. "When examining external opportunities and threats, marketing managers must analyze the collection and interpretation of information about forces, events, and relationships in the external environment that may affect the future of the organization or the implementation of the marketing plan" (Chapter 2 pg 22).  I have several opportunities being in this business, I can make partners with companies who see the potential my company and products have, as well as the rare opportunity I have to give back to my community and the environment. My only threat are people who try to make their own version of the Chocomug, and that's not a very big threat. I wouldn't put out a product unless I knew it would be hard to top my product, and that means every product released needs to have incredibly quality and taste terrific to people.

Objectives

"If marketers do not properly understand the target market's needs, the right good or service will likely not be produced. An excellent way to understand needs is to view them as job statements or outcome statements" (Chapter 6 pg 92). My objectives are to get my products sold, maintain a relationship with my customers and employees, and to give back to the community, primarily the community that raised me. In order to get things sold, I need to understand what my customers need, or create something that they haven't thought about before but instantly feel as if they need it after thinking about it. That product that my target audience will say they need after hearing about it is the Chocomug. I want my customers to hear about my product and instantly be interested, research it and find out how they can get a Chocomug. "Standardization and training help increase consistency and reliability. In the information technology sector, a number of certification programs are available to ensure that technicians are capable of working on (and within) complex enterprise software systems" (Chapter 12 pg 211).

Business Mission Statement

My business wants to give back to the community around us while making a reasonable profit. We want to maintain healthy relationships with each other, and more importantly, maintain healthy relationships with our customers. Without our customers, we're just a group of people making chocolate to make chocolate, and spending money instead of making it. We want everything we do to be ethical, positive, and to remain a healthy and positive role model for families everywhere. "The law typically relies on juries to determine if an act is legal or illegal. Society determines whether an action is ethical or unethical" (Chapter 3 pg 36). We plan to stay both ethical and legal within the law and within society. "Relationship selling, or consultative selling, is a multistage process that emphasizes personalization and empathy as key ingredients in identifying prospects and developing them as long-term, satisfied customers" (Chapter 18 pg 320).

Week 7 EOC: The Pitch

My product will be called Chocomug, a combination of chocolate and a glass of milk. Except instead of glass, it will be a mug made out of chocolate. It will be a holiday delight like hot chocolate, and my customers will be able to eat the cup after they use it to drink milk, hot chocolate, or any other beverage of their choice. It will cost around $10 for every chocolate cup, and will be available in most retail stores across the United States. My target audience will be everybody, as the Chocomug is a nice holiday commodity that everyone will enjoy, just like all ages enjoy things such as candy or hot chocolate. Everyone will be able to eat this, so I will target every age group, every ethnicity, every American citizen. It can also be bought when it is not holiday season, but this is the season approaching and this is when my cup will get its most sales. Corporate priorities will to get things sold at a reasonable market value while to maintaining a positive and strong work ethic. We will also give back to society as much as we can while still making a reasonable profit, so we want to keep our marketing team working good enough to get our products sold fast. "Central to any society is the common set of values shared by its citizens that determines what is socially acceptable. Culture underlies the family, the educational system, religion, and the social class system" (Chapter 5 pg 73). My company prides ourselves on our contributions to society and the environment, so we do what we can whenever we can. I will promote the product on social media, both through uses of my page, my company’s page, and my friends’ pages. We will also post advertisements on different social media platforms to show people the product and to show how much people enjoy having and eating the chocolate. "Social media have changed the way that marketers can communicate with their brands—from mass messages to intimate conversations" (Chapter 19 pg 366).

Week 5 EOC: This is what has my interest

https://twitter.com/davidconner1031/status/785475840398155777   
    This tweet interests me because it talks about different modern trends in marketing. My major is Marketing and Entertainment Management, so most things involving marketing management or entertainment management relate to me. I first learned about relationship marketing here, a marketing style based on the customers having a good relationship with the company. It also discusses business marketing, otherwise knows as industrial marketing, which is when a business sells its merchandise to another company for resell or to be part of their products. The last thing it describes is the current trend of societal marketing, which is a company that focuses on the needs, interests, and wants of its market better then its competition. It's important for me to know the differences between each of the marketing types and the direction each type of marketing is heading.
https://twitter.com/davidconner1031/status/785865598907613184
    This article describes changes in the way entertainment and media is used today. Companies are adapting to what the consumers are starting to want, like phone companies such as AT&T and Sprint are emphasizing the fact that they have unlimited data. Companies are also using social media more to release news, since customers are most likely on there and will definitely see it, instead of the greater possibility of people missing the news by releasing it on television. Its useful for me because it lets me know how rapidly trends can change, and how adept you need to be at changing with them. I also know that social media is even more important then I realized, and I'll need to become more accustomed with it if I really want to be successful in my field.(272 words)
https://twitter.com/davidconner1031/status/786921766253895680
    This article is useful because it shows me mistakes other have made, and what I need to learn from. I know not to make the same mistakes they did, and to use their experiences towards my own knowledge of my field and future..