MARKETING
Introduction:
This report aims to design a marketing plan for undergraduate students to enhance the growth of enrollment for the sake of enhancing revenues of the organization.
The marketing plan includes product, pricing, promotion, place, and positioning. Each strategy is associated with other and change in one factor has a significant impact on other. Designing of strategies varies with the objective of the organization. Here, the objective is to attract the undergraduates therefore strategies have been designed by considering undergraduates.
Market segments:
Market segmentation is a strategy of dividing a broader target market into small segments of customers. It is about differentiating one portion of customers from others and allows organizations to satisfy the current and potential needs of customers. The market segment of University of Idaho can be divided according to the similar course needs. These would include education, business and economic students, art and social sciences, graduate studies, engineering, life science and agriculture, and so on (Bloomberg, 2015). There is no single way to segment the market (Armstrong, 2007). The University of Idaho offers its students more than three hundred degrees. The University segments it market into five broader segments. These segments are master students, doctoral students, students of certificate programs, specialist degrees, and undergraduates’ students (Young, 2009). The University of Idaho makes several offers for its segments and offers them a wider range of options that help the university in retaining the student and not let them switch to another institute or university.
Target market:
It has been determined that where all universities have growth in enrollment, University of Idaho is declining with 2.9 percent rate. The enrollment of the campus was 11957 in 2009, and it has decreased to 11884 in 2013 and 11534 in 2014 (Rudd, 2015). If the enrollment numbers are considered from winter 2013 to spring 2014 then male, were 53 percent and the female was 47 percent of total population. During this period, the population of students was 12420 from which undergraduate enrollments were 9929 that were representing79.94 percent of total population (Forbes, 2015). These facts indicate that the university had more facilities to serve undergraduate as compare to graduate and occurred as a reflection of capabilities of the organization. Therefore, by taking the university capabilities into contemplation; it has been decided that the university, to gain growth in enrollments, will target undergraduates. Therefore, all service offering of product offering efforts, promotional strategies, and pricing strategies will be designed by considering undergraduates. The one more reason to target this specific segment is that this segment has been the priority of the university. The university has been made offers for this segment for years that would help in designing the strategies (Rudd, 2015).
Product offering:
Can they afford the university?
What they will get from the university at the end
Whether the majors they want is available there. The ease of enrollment process matter
Therefore, it has been decided that ease will be provided to students in the enrollment process; the University will offer the opportunities for practical applications of learning through offering the students internship. Online courses will be offered as well that would help in enrollment growth. Job seminars will be held that will separate the Institute from the competition. Top companies will be called to recruit talent and students will get the opportunity to get hired according to their capabilities. University will enhance its scholarship programs and will eliminate the programs that are not generation even equal to their cost. The issue that is the most avoidable in universities is the retention of enrolled students. Many students leave universities because they are not satisfied with the quality of education, or they are not served with, they have been communicated. It will make sure that appropriate technologies are deployed to improve the environment, and quality of studies; and teachers will be held accountable for their responsibilities. Teachers will be accessible to students in their free hours so they can gain assistance from teachers. The major focus of the university will be on graduating the students rather recruiting them (Raisman, 2009). 72 percent of undergraduate students leave universities because they do not get appropriate academic customer services. Students will be offered the opportunity to change the courses and timing, and will be guided sufficiently regarding their course choice and its scope.
Place:
Place refers to the channels of distribution that are used to get to the customers. The nature of service or product has an immense influence on the way of distribution. Distribution channels play a critical role in making the organization successful. If people do not have access to services, no matter how great services are being offered to them; they will not prefer to go for them. The role of distribution channels is to serve as a bridge between customer and producer with the purpose to connect them. When selling services or programs the university has two main options for sale either directly or through intermediaries. Each medium has its limitations. Therefore, it has been decided that the University will place its services and products (degree programs, certificate programs, diplomas, and other) to customers through both direct and indirect channels. Using both these methods is helpful in getting better results (Lahiri & Ghosh, 2012). The university will sell its services through online mediums and its campuses directly. Secondly, the university to reach to foreign students will make contracts with consultants who guide students regarding the admissions. Distribution channels also play the role of the information source, identifying a prospect, and promotion of company’s offerings.
Promotional mix
The selling and advertising part of the marketing mix are recognized as promotion mix. It is about the way the organization communicates its offerings to its customers. The aim of promotional strategies is to inform people of the product, its advantages, and need of the product or services to them. Promotional strategies play an immense role in selling the services to customers. Therefore, it is crucial to design the compelling advertisements that can attract and convince students to join the University. To promote the services offered the university will use multiple forums such as social media advertisements, newspaper, television, YouTube tutorials, Facebook, and Twitter. The University will design newspaper advertisements and television advertisements with compelling slogans (See Appendix 1). The advertisement through making the statement that “our degrees mean business” shows that the development of capabilities required for doing business is a mandatory element of all courses. The statement, “the world needs more graduates with more expertise” explores that the university used to build expert graduates. The statement “what will you do?” elaborates that the university offers a wider range of courses for undergraduates. The courses differ for bachelor program with the university to university. Therefore, second advertisement will mention the importance of students to the university. Moreover, this advertisement will let them know that they can choose the courses of their choice from the wide variety, of course, the University offers to its students. The university will share university inside experience with target market through YouTube tutorials. University environment, classroom experience, and high technology deployed will be mentioned in YouTube advertisements.
Price:
As it has been defined that when students search universities to take admission the major question that come in their mind is the affordability of university. Therefore, pricing is an important factor that can make or break the success of the organization. Pricing is a risky factor as it could influence the decision of the customers. If the price is far lower as compared to competitors, then clients can think that the quality of education is not good. On the other hand, if the pricing is far higher as compared to the competition then clients may not afford the program. Therefore, it has been decided that the price will be neither the higher nor far lower against competitors. The University will offer all its programs at competitive pricing. Discounts will be offered on lump sum payments. Students can choose to pay in installments or can pay lump sum amount. Scholarships will be offered to quality students, and if more than one student takes admission from one family or a group of students, 10 percent discount will be offered to them.
Positioning:
Positioning is a marketing strategy with the aim to occupy a distinct position in the mind of the customer as compared to competitors. Positioning can be done in some ways. Different approaches to positioning include by the user, by attribute, by use, by price and quality, by competitive positioning, and by product category (Harrison-Walker, 2009). The University will position itself on attribute basis. Many students argue that what they learned in school is different from the practical world. Many of them find difficulties in applying the concept in their professional lives. The University of Idaho will position itself as a place where students will not gain knowledge from books only. Moreover, the students will be served with the opportunity of the practical application of learned concepts under the guidance of big multinational companies. Through this way, students will be able to utilize their knowledge in best manners to develop their careers. The University will position itself as an innovator in searching news ways of improving the quality of education and improving the university experience of students.
Conclusion:
Marketing the university services is much complicated as compared to the product. Each marketing strategy has been designed after having through research of several factors. It has been considered important to use the mix of promotional and placement strategies due to the limitation of separate strategies. University will position itself as highly technological university and as an innovator of ways that help in improving the quality of education and preparing quality students.
References
Armstrong, K. (2007). Marketing: An Introduction. 7th E.d. India: Pearson Education India.
Bloomberg. (2015). Company Overview of University Of Idaho. Retrieved July 15, 2015 from: http://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=4218393
Forbes. (2015). University of Idaho. Retrieved July 15, 2015 from: http://www.forbes.com/colleges/university-of-idaho/
Harrison-Walker, L. J. (2009). Strategic positioning in higher education. Academy of Educational Leadership Journal, 13 (1).
Lahiri, I., & Ghosh, S.K. (2012). Principles of Marketing and E-Commerce: For University of Calcutta and WB India: Pearson Education India.
Raisman, N. A. (2009). Retain Students Retain Budgets: A How. To. UB Business University, Retrieved July 15, 2015 from: http://www.universitybusiness.com/article/retain-students-retain-budgets-how
Rudd, E. (2015). UI Faces Enrollment Decline. Magic valley, Retrieved July 15, 2015 from: http://magicvalley.com/news/local/ui-faces-enrollment-decline/article_be4b1cc3-ef1a-52fd-bffd-7b0c4b182e1a.html
Young, S. T. (2009). Essentials of Operations Management. USA: SAGE Publications Inc.
Appendix
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