Assignment Introduction and Purpose:
One of the key learning points of the course is for students to gain knowledge and practice applying marketing concepts. This project integrates the material you have learned through the course and gives you an opportunity to apply what you have learned. Your task is to create a mini-marketing plan for This Bar Saves Lives (TBSL) that presents the strategy and tactics TBSL would use to introduce a new bar to the market. You will decide what kind of bar, where to sell it, how much it will cost, how to sell it, and how to get customers excited about the new bar. Of course, you will also need to decide who to sell it to so you can create a marketing strategy that is appropriate for that specific target customer group. In addition, you will also need to consider TBSL’s current situation and its existing products to make sure your new product fits with the company mission and goals. For marketing majors, this project will provide an introduction to what you will be doing as you progress through your coursework and later enter your career. For non-marketing majors, this project will provide an understanding of what marketer’s do so you can work more effectively with the marketing function inside your company.
Grading and Expectations:
• Mini plan is 25% of course grade.
• Objective is to analyze TBSL market and identify a viable option for adding a new bar.
• Expectation is about 10 to 12 pages including any charts, tables, worksheets, etc.
• Students will find it helpful to a) read the end of chapter TBSL running cases for all chapters, b) view the TBSL running case videos for each chapter, c) visit the TBSL website and review information on the site, and d) search online for additional information about TBSL.
• Students are not graded for accuracy per se, but rather for completeness and fit. In other words, there is no right answer for a specific bar that will be successful or a specific target customer, promotion form, price, etc. However, the plan should be internally consistent based on the target market and bar for that specific target market. Decisions should make sense for the combination you choose.
• This is a mini-plan, not a full plan, so you will not be expected to develop each section in the detail for a full-plan. Rather, you will follow the template provided below to guide you as you make the key decisions for each decision area in the plan. You will have a set of questions to help you think through each section and answering these questions will provide the content for the mini-plan. You will also be provided with helpful hints and notes to guide you as you create your mini-plan. Tasks that would be beyond the scope of principles of marketing are not included in the plan (such as forecasting,
• You will learn more if you have fun so be creative and enjoy the process.
Marketing Mini-Plan Template:
There are 12 sections to include in your Marketing Mini-Plan. For each section, there is a brief description of what goes in the section and questions to help you fill in the content. The questions will guide you, but you do not necessarily have to answer each question. Marketing mini-plans vary and yours will be different from plans created by your classmates. You should use paragraph form for the written portions of the mini-plan, though bullet points can be appropriate for lists. Hint: Integrate the answers to the questions into logical paragraphs. When a list or table or chart is helpful, include it in the section. Make sure you explain your logic when you make points and back up your points with information and the source you used when possible.
1) Executive summary: This is an outline of the key elements of the mini-plan. This section offers busy executives an overview of the most important ideas in the mini-plan. THIS SECTION SHOULD BE COMPLETED AFTER ALL THE OTHER MINI-PLAN SECTIONS HAVE BEEN COMPLETED because then you will know exactly what is in the plan and what to emphasize as important.
a. The main company issue this plan addresses is……(new bar decision, growth)
b. The company’s current situation is ….. (3 to 4 main situation analysis points to consider)
c. The primary target market is…., the main idea of the new bar is…., and this is going to give us an advantage in the market because ….
d. The key product features are …. which offer customers these key benefits…..
e. The place strategy will be to sell …. (specific retailers, online, etc) Which is convenient for customers because….
f. The price for the new bar will be …. Which provides …. Unit contribution and ….contribution margin. This compares to our other bars …. (higher, lower, similar, be specific)
g. We will use ….. (media and specific options) promotion to communicate ….(message) to (target customers) because ….(rationale).
h. We will encourage customers to participate in the marketing process by ….(social/digital options you chose). This will help connect them to ….(product, brand, each other) by …(explain how your options will work with your target market).
i. The marketing plan for the new bar will total … dollars, the majority of which will be spent on ….
j. The marketing activities should be completed within ….. timeframe, with … and …. (most important/critical activities) completed ….
k. Potential problems we might encounter introducing this new bar include … and ….. If these problems occur, the contingency plan is to …. (what will you do if they occur).
2) Company background: This section highlights the most important information about the company that should be considered when making your plan. It is not a list of facts about the company per se, rather, you should include only the company information that will influence the decisions you will make for your plan.
a. Who created the company, when was it created, and why?
b. What does the company stand for or want to be known for?
c. How has the company changed since it began?
d. Is there anything special about this company?
3) Situation analysis: This section outlines the current situation and sets the foundation for making the decisions you will make for your plan. Here, you should discuss anything that will influence your plan.
a. What is the company’s current competitive position (are they doing well or not compared to competitors)?
b. What strengths does the company have (personnel, financial, tech, products, other)?
c. What weaknesses does the company have (personnel, financial, tech, products, other)?
d. What potential opportunities could the company take advantage of given their current situation?
e. What potential threats does the company face given their current situation?
4) Segmentation, targeting, and positioning (Chapter 6): This section outlines the key strategy for the mini-plan. You will describe potential customer groups, choose a group to target with your marketing tools and tactics, and determine how you will differentiate the new bar from competitors’ products.
a. List the main groups of customers who currently buy the product and briefly describe what makes the groups different from each other.
b. What different customers might be interested in buying a new product that you create?
c. Which group from those you listed do you think gives you the best chance of success to target and why? Keep in mind competitors and your company mission.
d. Describe your target market you have chosen in as much specific detail as possible.
e. What will you offer this group that will give you an advantage over competitors?
f. Develop a positioning statement for your new product that states: TBSL will offer (benefits that target wants) to (target customer) better than (key competitors). You can vary the wording, but it should cover the advantage your new product will have, a brief description of target customer, and a reference to main competition.
5) Product strategy (Chapter 8): This section outlines the specific product features you will offer on your new product and ties these features to specific customer benefits.
a. Considering the target customer, list the main benefits they want in this product.
b. Are any of these benefits not being met by current products (either ours or competitors’)?
c. What specific benefits will your product provide to these customers?
d. Which specific features will you include in this new product and how is it different from your current products and competitors’ products?
e. What assortment will you use for this product (will you sell singles? Will you sell boxes? How many per box?) Note: this will also affect your other decisions below, especially for place and price.
f. Pick one metric you would use to determine if your product strategy was successful (Chapter 13). Give an example/goal.
6) Place strategy (Chapter 9): This section details the place options you will use to offer customers a desired level of convenience. Now that you have made product decisions, you can match the product you have created to the appropriate place option(s).
a. Considering your target customer, what level of convenience do they desire for bars? Hint: where, when, and how do these customers expect to find bars and in what combinations?
b. Think about how customers buy bars. Is there anything you could do to increase customer convenience? If so, what?
c. Where are your current bars sold?
d. Will you use the same sales channels with the new product? Why or why not?
e. Will the product assortment for this new bar be the same or different from TBSL’s other bars? Why or why not?
f. Pick on metric you would use to determine if your place strategy was successful (Chapter 13). Give an example/goal.
7) Price strategy (Chapter 10): This section details the price you will charge and how this price relates to customer cost perceptions. (Now that you have decided what your product will be and where you will sell it, you can set a price that is appropriate).
a. Considering your target customer, how much do they expect bars to cost? What is the minimum they would expect to pay and what is the maximum they would expect to pay?
b. What are the common prices of competitive bars that your target marketing would consider buying in the place option(s) you chose?
c. What are the existing prices for TBSL bars in the place option(s) you chose?
d. Will you need to offer an incentive to get customers to try your new bar? If so, what would you offer?
e. If the typical variable cost per bar is $.55, what do you expect your new bar to cost (deduct if it is very simple or add some if your ingredients will be more expensive)? Also, don’t forget to add the food donation for each bar which is another $.40 per bar if you plan to sell the bar through their traditional retailers (not included if they sell through Target or other discounters).
f. What specific price will you charge? Note: Online through their website they set their own prices to end consumer so the price you see in the cart is the actual selling price. However, when selling to retailers such as Whole Foods or coffee shops such as Starbucks, the price a customer pays is NOT TBSL’s selling price since Starbucks and Whole Foods also have to make some money on the sale. Assume the retailer gets 30% of the retail price you see so keep this in mind when you set your price for retailers as they will add a margin of about 30% to be happy and put your bars in their shelves.
g. Calculate the unit contribution and the contribution margin for each bar.
8) Promotion strategy (Chapter 11): This section outlines how you will communicate with customers using traditional promotion.
a. Considering your target market, what do you think they want from communication with them about your new bar? What do they want to know and how do you think they want to get this information?
b. What is your most important message to communicate to your target market about your bars?
c. Which traditional promotion options are most appropriate for reaching your target customers AND appropriate for delivering your most important message? (Television ads, radio, outdoor such as billboards, other)?
d. Which traditional media would you choose (if any) and for each one you choose, pick one specific option you would use to communicate with your target audience. For example, you might use television to communicate with older consumers and pick the Food Network since older consumers might watch this channel AND it would be food related do would be a good option for communicating a message about your new bars and how gourmet or tasty they were. Another network might be more appropriate if your main message was “heart healthy” for example. Hint: It will help if you do a quick online search for appropriate shows, radio programs, outdoor advertising trends etc. to get a better idea about what does/doesn’t work with traditional media for different customer groups.
e. Pick one metric you could use to determine if your promotion strategy was successful (Chapter 13). Give an example/goal.
9) Participation strategy: This section identifies your social/digital activities you will use to encourage customers to participate with the brand to build connections.
a. Considering your target market, what social/digital sources do they use?
b. Which social/digital sources could you use to connect with these customers effectively?
c. What could you do to encourage your target customers to take an active role (participate) in some way in the marketing process? Hint: other companies have used naming contests, post pics for merchandise, likes for chances to win something, etc.)?
d. Are there any social/digital sources you would NOT use for this group because you think it would not be effective?
e. What specific social/digital efforts would you use and how would each increase the chances for TBSL to engage your target customers to connect them to the bar, the brand, or each other?
f. Pick one metric you would use to determine if your participation strategy was successful (Chapter 13). Give an example/goal.
10) Implementation budget: This section describes your planned budget for marketing the new bar. This is typically a difficult, but important section of the mini-plan since it forces you to think about how much things cost and prioritize marketing activities to use your marketing resources as effectively (and efficiently) as possible.
a. Look through the decisions you have made for the 5Ps and Cs in sections 5-9. List all the activities you have included that will cost additional money, most of which will come from the promotion and participation sections (8 & 9 in the plan). Note: In a full plan you would also include estimates for other marketing resources such as employee time for certain tasks (such as creating a logo and designing packaging if these were to be done by someone in the company). However, for our purposes it is important to give you a sampling of how budgets are created so we will focus only on specific monetary costs.
b. For the items that will cost money, build a budget that lists each item and estimates how much it would cost for that activity. Hint: This task is easier in a spreadsheet so here is a great place to practice Excel or another spreadsheet option. Note: It is not important to be 100% accurate for the costs as this is beyond the scope of the mini-plan. Do a brief search for the items on your list online and estimate each item’s cost. In the spreadsheet indicate where your estimate came from.
c. Make sure you calculate a total for the budget.
d. Now go back to the pricing section (Section 7). Given your calculations for price, how many bars would you have to sell to break even given your budget total for the new bar marketing activities? (Calculate a break even using your budget total for Fixed Costs and the unit contribution for your new bar (Price per bar – Variable cost per bar). Look at how many bars they have sold to date (go to website where they track it). Does your new bar look like it might sell enough to at least cover the costs of marketing it initially?
11) Implementation timeline: This section describes the timeline for the major activities in the mini-plan.
a. List the main activities in your plan that require some type of action.
b. Prioritize the action items in a sequence (what needs to be done first and what can wait until later?)
c. For the action items, make a general estimate for how long the activity will take (a week, a month, 3 months, 6 months, up to a year).
d. Now make a general calendar that includes 12 months. Put a general timeline on the activities in terms of how long it should be before each is completed. This can also be done in a spreadsheet and might even be something you could combine with the budget if you are familiar with Excel. Again, this is not something that you have to be 100% accurate about. Rather, it is important that you go through the exercise of building the timeline to see how it would work.
12) Contingency plan(s): The purpose of this section is to try to identify potential problems that might occur when implementing the plan to try to determine possible options if problems arise.
a. Make a list of all the things that could go wrong when implementing your marketing mini-plan. For example, recall TBSL’s issue with their vanilla supply in Madagascar described in chapter 3. (Good idea to review the running case from Chapter 3). Obvious things to consider for this plan would be ingredients, costs, cooperation from retailers, etc.
b. Rank order each of the potential problems you listed in terms of importance from most important to least important.
c. For the two (2) most important potential problems on your list, make a contingency plan that spells out what you recommend the company do if the problem occurs.