Introductory letter
The Chief Executive Officer,
Lamington is an Australian dessert consisting of squares of sponge cake that are coated in two layers. The first is a layer of chocolate icing and the second layer is desiccated coconut. Sometimes, the dessert is served in two halves with cream or strawberry layer in between (Lepard 1). The dessert is sold mostly in outlets such as lunch bars, home industries, cafes, supermarkets and bakeries. The dessert has a rich history behind it. However, the dessert is used in the modern day as a popular fundraiser for Australian youth groups.
Lamington has been gaining popularity in markets outside Australian for the past few decades. Countries like South Africa and the United States of America find the dessert a delicacy. It is for this reason that we want to tap into those and other emerging markets outside Australia. In a campaign aimed at marketing Lamington outside Australia, we hope to roll out the food product into new markets. The campaign is tempered with entry strategies into new markets that are a product of market research.
In the report attached herein, you will find a description of the intended campaign to market Lamington in other countries. We are open to new insights into the campaign. More importantly, we hope for your support in the venture.
The Campaign Plan
In order to market Lamington internationally, we have vetted and ratified the following campaign plan. The campaign plan entails the use of the internet to market the product internationally. The internet is a very viable media to reach the prospective consumers of the product. Research shows that overseas consumers use the internet to look for products. Surveys carried out on statistics about internet usage show that Africa and the Middle East markets have the fastest increasing online populations. Other surveys show that the Asian continent accounts for more than 44 percent of internet users. These statistics favor our campaign plan because of the large populations from other countries using the internet.
As such, the campaign drive to market Lamington internationally will run advertisements in relevant sites on the internet. Google AdWords has a global reach; hence the decision to use it as our top marketing site. However, this site has fierce competitors in certain regions of the world. For instance, South Koreans prefer the use of Naver over other networks. The Chinese population prefers Madhouse and AdChina to other networks. Bearing this in mind, and the fact that these are some of the most populous regions in the world, advertisements will also be run in these networks.
In order to reach to a larger percentage, the advertisements will be drafted in different languages depending on the geographical location. Research has shown that even where literacy levels are high and people use English as their second language, majority of the web users would rather browse in their native language. According to the European Commission Survey, over ninety percent of web users in Europe prefer browsing in their native language. Therefore, drafting the messages run in advertisements in the native language of the targeted markets can help tap into those valuable markets.
Executive Summary of the Strategies to Achieve Success
Entry into international markets is very risky venture. Consequently, it is of paramount importance to choose effective but risk averse entry strategies. Cognizant of this fact, the strategies chosen to ensure the successful marketing of Lamington in the global scene are without doubt cautious but effective. Firstly, we will source an entity in a preferred market in order to form joint ventures. This will be of benefit because of access to already established distribution channels, political connections and other relationships. More than a market entry strategy, a joint venture will be of benefit because there is shared reward and risk and more importantly, technology sharing (Banalieva, & Dhanaraj 93). Entities approached for joint ventures have to have similar objectives and also run product lines similar to Lamington.
Secondly, licensing is another strategy to ensure that marketing Lamington internationally is successful. This strategy entails permitting other companies in various targeted markets to use our property. Once licensed, such companies will be allowed to use our production techniques, patents and trademarks. In return, the licensed company will pay a fee for the rights to use our intangible property and technical assistance. This strategy is feasible because it requires very minimal investment from us. As such, it has a potential to endow with large returns on investment (Tuschke, Sanders, & Hernandez 13)
Finally, we will undertake a direct investment in the most lucrative foreign market (Sola, Couturier, Jerome., Raiciu, & Cuzzolin 59). For instance, Lamington dessert is a delicacy in South Africa. It is used by youth groups like scouts to raise funds for various activities. Lamington dessert is also sold in cafes and lunch bars in the United States of America. After a careful review, the decision on the foreign market where the direct investment will be situated will be made. The direct investment will also double up as international headquarters for the business.
Works cited
Banalieva, Elitsa & Dhanaraj, Charles. Home-region orientation in international expansion strategies. Journal of International Business Studies 44, (2013), 89–116. Print
Lepard, Dan. Dan Lepard's lamington recipe. The Guardian. 25 Jan. 2013. Print.
Sola, Davide., Couturier, Jerome., Raiciu, Cristina., & Cuzzolin, Sandro. Market entry decisions in emerging economies: the choice of local intermediaries as key determinant of competitive sustainability. Examining the case of a leading MNC entering the Maghreb region. International Journal of Trade and Global Markets. 6:1 (2013) 51-65. Print
Tuschke, Anja., Sanders, Gerard., Hernandez, Exequiel. Whose experience matters in the boardroom? The effects of experiential and vicarious learning on emerging market entry. Strategic Management Journal. Added online on 8 Feb 2013. Print
