This paper I will focus on marketing plan as an important tool in the marketing and financial growth of a business entity. I will create and explain various scenarios using two companies; Toyota Corporation and MYSpace.com and Movie John Carter from the Walt Disney Company in order to explain the importance of implementing a marketing plan. The case studies will prove helpful in the analysis of how these companies used their strategies, success or failure in their quest to becoming market leaders in their respective fields of operation.
Global businesses have become more systematically drafted with specific consideration and insight given to competitive edge of a company. Competition is based on advanced technological innovation and the need of the consumer. It is for this reason that business entities are constructing marketing plans in order to integrate their goals and objectives with the needs of consumers.
Marketing Plan
Marketing plan refers to a business document drawn with the aim of providing an extensive description of the existing market position of a business entity and its marketing strategy within an allocated duration normally between one and five years (Drummond & Ensor, 2005).
Usually marketing plans contain the following elements.
1) Critical description analysis of distinctive features of goods and services a business offers.
2) Marketing estimates such as promotional and advertisement plans.
3) pricing strategy
4) Market segmentation; including specific market niches and various variations between the segments.
5) The environment and factors to consider including government actions, emerging technology, cultural trends and demographic changes.
In this current business environment, a competitive marketing plan reinforces the needed consistent approach to production of goods and services that will outshine and outsell the competition. A well defined methodology implemented to the latter is the ultimate pre requisite to a successful marketing plan. Marketing plans are the foundations to marketing success (Drummond & Ensor, 2005). They are helpful in guiding the minds of companies and marketing departments on this exact crucial process of marketing.
Marketing Plans: an Example of Success
My focus analysis will be the Toyota Car Manufacturer. Toyota has invested in product differentiation as its key strategy in marketing, and we can all admit that it is working effectively. Since its establishment in 1937, it has risen to be the best performing famous brand in terms of sales volume in the United States during the 1980’s (Hino, 2006). It has continued growing, and in 2006, it was the second largest car seller globally with a convincing market share of more than fifteen percent. Market analysts believe that from 2008 to date Toyota is the number one car seller and producers of automobiles across the globe and the United States. This significant success is derived from implementing a proficient marketing strategy. Leaving us with the proof of how valuable market strategy can be to a company in its quest to be a market leader.
Marketing Plans: an Example of Failure
My focus analysis will be MySpace social interactive media. MySpace is an online social network that created a platform to share music, chat, dating, politics, pictures and pop culture all over the world. Founded in 2003, it took the U.S by a storm registering staggering 75.9 million visitors from the U.S (Its peak visitation ever) in 2008. In 2006; it was acquired by News Corporation (Petrini, 2008). It is obvious that during this period, MySpace was the most frequented site in the world overtaking Google in terms of visits to their websites. However, this growth could be maintained, and since 2008, MySpace monthly visitation dropped hugely to 34.8 million. The dominance and monopoly in the social Internet sites was collapsing, in 2008, Facebook emerged as the biggest gainer as it overtook MySpace in turns of membership and visitations. Example of how poor marketing planning strategies can lead to the crumbling of dominant business empire.
Analysis of the Toyota Automobile Marketing Plan
Toyota is guided by a unique philosophy of having the right car at the right place. Toyota has implemented psychographic and demographic forms of market segmentation and continued targeting its market on this basis (Hino, 2006). It has carefully segmented all the countries in the world as its focus markets. In all the different markets, it ensures that it invents a variety of automobiles that target different class status and groups of people with different needs. Its flexibility in satisfying the needs of a particular product is remarkably effective. For example, Toyota has models of Sports cars and SUVs for sports people, Prius model for environmental caring people, Trucks for professional s and recently unveiled a 100% bio ethanol fuel car in South America in Particular Brazil (Hino, 2006). As we can see its segmentation and targeting are facilitated by its vast array of product attributes and offers.
Moreover, its product strategy of mass production has enabled it to increase its global sales including the unveiling of its hybrid automobiles that have since gained popularity across Europe (Hino, 2006). Price strategy as a tool of marketing cannot be left out; Toyota’s ability to using tactful price differentiation where their vehicles are sold at a reasonable price range and still producing high quality vehicles has won the hearts of many.
Finally, it has created and upheld a strong promotional strategy through the integrated marketing communication and using its blog for successful promotion and advertising where it encourages feedback about its products (Doole & Lowe, 2008). Through the integrated marketing communication Toyota has earned competitive advantage against its chief rivals such the GM, boosts profits and sales and cements a relationship marketing whereby the bond between consumers and the Company increases.
Toyota’s Impressive Outlook in the last three years. Source, (Doole & Lowe, 2008)
Analysis of the MySpace Marketing Plan
It is clear that MySpace collapsed due to poor and ineffective marketing strategies. The marketing plan under looked several issues that would literally affect their operations and profitability. First the entire marketing team never understood the current needs of Internet users, ignoring conducting a situational analysis to fully understand what critical aspects of the business will attract more users (Petrini, 2008). Its collapse came after numerous complains of poorly arranged pages and crowded and overwhelmed advertisements.
Moreover, they overlooked the following aspects, profile appearance, user names, feature development and simplicity. Lack of introduction of new products negatively affected the company’s image and immediately led to its collapse. Situational analysis and pilot innovations should be performed in order to understand consumer psychology. This is the greatest mistake that MySpace under looked and faced the wrath of ignoring excellent marketing planning. MySpace methodology in implementation of their marketing strategy failed from the beginning (Petrini, 2008). Its majority staff had no expertise in consumer behavior and market analysis coupled with inadequate information in page encoding for their sites (Petrini, 2008). This essentially left MySpace at the mercy and control of people with inadequate expertise to run the company.
The Box Office Flop: a Marketing Application
My movie Analysis is titled John Carter, released globally on the 9th march 2012 by the Walt Disney Studios. This movie cost an approximate $350 million to produce and hence all people including all stakeholders were optimistic that it will be a success during its debutante. This was not to be John carter made a meager $30million in its release date. This mega loss highlights John Carter as among the greatest box office bombs in modern history. Its failure coupled with $200million losses forced the head of the Disney (Dick Cook) to resign and a subsequent exchange of blame games from the production house.
It is intriguing to note that Disney Company through a statement reinforced that the entire blame was squarely on one of the film director Andrew Stanton. Even, though he made some numerous mistakes Andrew was allowed by the Disney executive to continue directing the movie giving him too much money and freedom in bringing the movie to life (Sehlinger, Ridge & Testa, 2011).
In a movie situation, there are several elements that will aid in the success of the film. Extensive marketing from the day of first screening is crucial to a movie debut. Secondly, timing of the release date of a movie is by far significant, for example, by checking the current relevant theme in the marketplace. Finally, by collectively using a marketing plan in order to collect peoples’ perception concerning a product will aid in the changing of strategy and tactics to increase brand acceptance.
Marketing Analysis: What Went Wrong?
John carter’s marketing strategy was doomed from the word go, I will start by highlighting the title of the movie. The title of the movie does not reflect its plot. In the early stages, the title of the movie was changed from John Carter of mars to read John Carter. This is a poor and costly decision since it portrays a dull movie; people had no idea what or whom John carter was this in turn made people lose interest (Sehlinger, Ridge & Testa, 2011). Movie title should be catchy and create more suspense to people for them to watch the movie.
Secondly, Walt Disney ignored the Movie’s pedigree. John Carter is based on a book written by Burroughs. It is so unfortunate that one would never know this from the marketing of the movie. It is clear that there is no mention on the plot by Disney Company, and it did not weigh the expectation that it is based on a classic literary works. The Disney executives toned down Burroughs work in trying to make it family friendly (Sehlinger, Ridge & Testa, 2011). Disney furthermore never made use of the achievements of the team who put this movie together although they were experienced and successful in their previous movies.
Furthermore, the movie is different from the initial Edgar Burroughs book. Disney totally changed the earlier concept of the movie. For example, the book was rated as R (violent and sexy). Disney tries to fit an explicit movie into a family friendly movie that becomes difficult and automatically lose in trying to explain the story line of the movie. Thus, the target audience of the movie was misunderstood and misinterpreted by the marketing analysts of the movie. Poor target audience or consumers leads to a product failure in this case the flop of the movie in terms of sales volume.
John Carter failure was also due to lack of promotion. Promotion is one of the key marketing strategies in a movie success. Disney Company had the ability to promote the movie but opted to entrust the main details with Stanton who totally rejected all other marketing ideas and insisted on his personal views. The trailer of the movie was boring with classical sound tracks and did not include some characters that were considered necessary by audience. Its advertisement was poor and ineffective as witnessed on its opening day (Sehlinger, Ridge & Testa, 2011).
John Carter would be still considered a failure due to its exorbitant budget of $250 million. The movie yielded a loss of $200 million nearly twice of the production cost. This is because the Disney executives let one person manage the entire budget without considering the consequences. Lack of using marketing strategies and implementation of marketing tools during the production of this movie was obvious.
Conclusion
Marketing plan is ultimately basic component of business survival and excellence in this era. It is used to revise the other marketing strategy and also measure the performance of key practices of a company including its product and services. In the current competitive marketplace, a strategy that will deliver a consistent approach to offering services and products in a method that will outsell the competition is significant.
Drummond, G., & Ensor, J. (2005). Introduction to marketing concepts. Oxford, UK: Elsevier.
Hino, S. (2006). Inside the mind of Toyota: Management principles for enduring growth. New
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Doole, I., & Lowe, R. (2008). International marketing strategy: Analysis, development and
implementation. London etc.: South Western Cengage Learning.
Sehlinger, B., Ridge, M., & Testa, L. (2011). The unofficial guide to Walt Disney World 2012.
Hoboken, N.J: Wiley.
Petrini, Catherine. (2008). MySpace. Norwood House Pr.
