The organization will be of a retail nature and it will be named Taste’s Locality. The naming of the organization is based on the products and services sold in this organization. This organization will actively serve baked potato sticks on the go and this will allow consumers to get a quick bite snack, which contains baked potato chips on a barbeque stick. The organization’s mission is to change the general outlook of the consumers of consuming potatoes and offer them a more healthy and convenient way of consuming potatoes (Alexander, 2011, pp 17). However, the organization’s vision is to accumulate diverse range of talented individuals who would help the organization to attain the purpose of eating potatoes in a healthy outlook. This will help in generating the lost energy within individuals and help them to deal with their busy schedules with a rebooted enthusiasm.
The organization will have a limited ownership with its funds contributed from the owner’s account with or without the partnership of a suitable person. The physical availability of the organization will be on conventional roads such as Jemeirah roads, Sheikh Zayed road and other similar localities. An easy access for those consuming the product will be made through carts, which will be placed in supermarkets, malls and food courts. These carts will be similar to those of the crazy corn, which will be served hot and spicy on the go. The brand will be popularly known “Curly Potato” which will be served in combination of t flavors amongst the many others offered.
Q1. Formulate budget for the promotional plan; use any two different methods for budget formulation.
The budget is a framework to help plan, manage and evaluate public expenditure to implement government policies. It is crucial in maintaining overall fiscal discipline, allocating scarce resources in line with a government's strategic policy priorities and improving the efficiency and effectiveness of implementing a government's policies. Therefore, a budget formulation would be created for the same purpose for Curly Potato. There are four types of budget formulation but only a combination of two will be chosen for the product chosen. The two methods are;
Zero-based budgeting
Zero-based budgeting requires that expenditure of the Curly Potato is above a zero base will be justified and that costs be estimated for differing levels of output and service, i.e. that all expenditures be justified, not just additional expenditure. The major advantage of zero-based budgeting is that all proposed expenditure can be judged consistently and that optional and flexible operations can be more closely analyzed (Alexander, 2011, pp 27). It does, require significant management effort to evaluate each cost centre by service level and expenditure, which will be done by the finance department of the company. The required level of data and number crunching can mean that the effort can obscure the purpose. Some organizations perform this type of budgeting for selected cost centers and profit centers as a separate cost reduction exercise, maintaining regular financial control using traditional budgeting methods. For instance, if we earn from our Curly Potato $100 weekly, we will spend precisely $100 weekly as well. Therefore, this method is called “zero based” because if we subtract our expenses from our income, the total amount is exactly zero ($0.00).
Priority-based budgeting
Priority-based budgeting is designed to produce a competitively ranked listing of high to low priority discrete bids for resources, which are called "decision packages". A method of budgeting whereby our all activities are re-evaluated each time a budget is set. Discrete levels of each activity are valued from a minimum level of service upwards and an optimum combination chosen to match the level of resources available and the level of service required (Alexander, 2011, pp 33). The concept of ranking bids for capital expenditure is well known; priority-based budgeting applies a similar process to more routine expenditure. It is similar to zero-based budgeting but does not require a zero assumption
How Does Priority Based Budgeting Work?
1. Set the ‘price of government’ which includes total taxes, fees and charges
2. Determine the key results that citizens expect from county government - their priorities
3. Choose indicators to monitor progress towards those results
4. Identify proven/promising strategies the county should pursue to achieve the results
5. Ask for "offers" to advance each result
6. Allocate expected county resources across the results - the "price" for each priority
7. Prioritize the purchase of activities to best accomplish the results
Firstly, we will set the price according to the government, which includes total taxes, fees and charges. So let us take the price including all taxes approximately $100. Once the price is set, it will lead us to an analysis of how much customers do expect from their government. So let us assume the customers’ expectations would be obviously cheaper than this approximately $50. Since the price has set to $100, we must now keep a track on the results we get on the Curly potato. As our mission is to change the customer’s way of consuming potatoes by providing them in a healthy and convenient way of consuming potatoes, our strategy is to provide the potatoes in a healthier way and we need to make sure that we stay on track and achieve results.
Q2. Develop a complete promotional plan using AIDA, DAGMAR and 4MS and SOSTAC.
AIDA:
Firstly, AIDA stands for Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action.
Attention:
Attention is the first phase that will spark the interest of a consumer. Consumer’s attention can be gained by exposing them our USP. In this case, we must show the consumers our strategy as mentioned earlier that our main aim is to provide them potatoes in a healthier and convenient way (Jack, 2005, pp 16). Secondly, we can set the price of our product at a reasonable cost, which is quite common way nowadays to get consumers attention. We can also put up a banner which says “Healthy Curly Potatoes at $xx”.
Interest:
This is the second phase that can create a desire for the product/service. Once our customers gain interest and start questioning about our way of serving the potatoes, which is in a healthier way, by boiling and serving rather than frying it (Jack, 2005, pp 16). This way we consumers will question us about the product and we can, may be ask them to try to help them to gain more interest in our product.
Desire:
This is the third stage where the consumers will figure the pros and cons of the product say like, potatoes are being served in a healthier way but on the other hand, they also contain many fats (Jack, 2005, pp 17). Therefore, those who are conscious about their weight loss they might not purchase our product but if they compare with French fries, which contain more fats and cholesterol, then they might end up buying the Curly Potato.
Action:
This is the fourth and final phase of AIDA where consumers will purchase our product going through all the three phases. Desire makes a conclusion to the action of the purchase of the product. Therefore, the desire phase is the most important at this stage as it leads to action and this can only happen if we have successfully made the consumer satisfied about the Curly Potato and made them realized how healthy is our product to them (Jack, 2005, pp 17).
DAGMAR
DAGMAR is Defining Advertising Goals for Measured Advertising Results. It is an approach to advertising planning and a precise method for selecting and quantifying goals and for using those goals to measure performance.In this case, we have to follow the above flow chart, which exactly shows what we have to do to advertise our product/service. Comparing this with the product produced we will discuss how to set up the DAGMAR model of advertising.
Firstly, the customer is obviously unaware about our product and therefore it is our duty to make them aware about our product. In this case, with the help of communication means we can make our product aware to the consumers. As mentioned everywhere about our USP which is serving potatoes in a healthier way we can aware our consumers and also by communicating with them by spreading flyers which talks about our mission and vision as mentioned introduction. We can also have a face-to-face conversation with them and tell them about our uniqueness. Once the customers are aware of the product, we need to talk about our benefits, such as; by serving consumers the Curly Potatoes, they can have a healthier diet rather than having a junk food. Some people are conscious about weight gaining so we can also tell them that it is healthy and not like other potato products like oily French fries. This will let them know what product is and what benefits they get. Also mentioned earlier about our cost this is comparative very much cheaper than any other company is. T
his also covers the comprehension of the benefits of the product as mentioned earlier, that other product like oily French fries, frozen potatoes etc. are considered as junk diet and it is not as healthy as what kind of potatoes we provide our consumers. Moreover, even brand image is also a part of it but since we are new into this field in the beginning, we might not be able to take such a brand positioning as our competitors might have. However, with the help of the USP we can reach to our customers and create a niche, which will automatically make a brand image in the field (Jack, 2005, pp 18). Based on transformation above directs the customers to the purchase of the product. This gives them the confidence to buy the product and it can be only done if we are successful in convincing them about our product. Finally, it is the action where they have made the purchase of the Curly potato and have been successfully satisfied. 4M’s:
The 4 M’s of marketing are;
1. Market
2. Message
3. Media
4. Measurement
These are the 4 M’s of marketing which we have to follow in order to complete our promotional plan. Firstly, we need to look at where do target, as in customers or industries. In our case, we are serving snack to the customers so it is directly to customer. Then we need to outreach our message to our consumers/customers that why should they go for our product, for which the reason is it is healthier than any other snack provided in the market. This can be emphasized by providing different attractive styles of fonts for our product, or we can spread a good smell around our stall or outlet and we offer customers to try out free (Jack, 2005, pp 20). Furthermore, we can take the help of the media which is; news, newspapers, radio etc. with the help of these media techniques we can aware the customers about our product. In today’s time, the best example of media is social networking which is Face book where millions of people are enrolled and they see live advertisements. Finally, we have to measure the effectiveness of advertising our product. This helps prevent further wastage of money and helps make corrections that are important for further advertisement campaigns. Researching the effectiveness of the advertisement is the most used method of evaluating the effectiveness of the Advertisement Program.
SOSTAC
SOSTAC focuses on the six most important elements of any business SOSTAC is an acronym for these six elements: That may look intimidating at first glance. However, each element asks a simple question and provides an easy starting point.
Situation analysis, asks what the current state of the business is.
Objectives, helps list an overview of goals for the business.
Strategy helps provide a ³big picture´ plan to achieve the goals
Tactics breaks down the ³big picture´ strategy into smaller details
Action helps assign responsibility and deadlines for certain tasks
Control offers an easy way to track the progress of the plan
Q3. Apply any three integrated promotional techniques.
Integrated promotional techniques refer to the use of multiple selling means when communicating with the set targets. Promotion of the “Curly Potato” will require the use of integrated marketing techniques in order to reach a large number of people in the market (Malcolm, & Hugh, 2011, pp 56). Promotion is one of the four elements of the marketing mix. The other elements of the marketing mix are price, place and product. It is a communication link between the sellers and the buyers for the main purpose of influencing, informing or persuading a potential buyer’s purchasing decision (Dawn, 2002, pp 23). In order to choose the right integrated promotional strategies for the Curly Potato product, it is good to know the target customers’ characteristics, number of customers and the geographical dispersion of the customers in order to use the right promotional techniques.
There are two types of promotion. These are the above the line promotion and below the line promotion. Above the line, promotion involves selling in the mass media in which the seller pays the selling agency to place the product promotion in their media. Below the line, promotion on the other hand involves any other form of product promotion apart from the one done via the media (Dawn, 2002, pp 23). Below the line, promotion is meant to be subtle enough for the consumer to be unaware that promotion is taking place. It can include things such as direct mail, public relations, sponsorship, product placement and merchandising among others.
Integrated promotional plan
An integrated promotion plan, which can also be termed as a promotional mix, involves five elements. These elements are personal selling, advertising, sales promotion, public relations/publicity and direct marketing. An integrated promotional plan will specify how much attention ought to be given to each of the five elements of integrated promotion and how much money to budget for each (Dawn, 2002, pp 24). Such a plan can have a wide range of objectives, which will include creating brand equity, increasing sales, new product acceptance, positioning and competitive retaliations. However, the three main objectives of promotion are to increase demand, differentiate a product and present product information to consumers.
Application of three integrated promotional techniques
Integrated promotional techniques must take the advantage of a combination of various communication tools as well as the media to pass message to the target customers. By combining diverse tools, the marketers will be able to ensure that their audience is reached and the marketers can leverage the marketing tools in the most appropriate manner (Dawn, 2002, pp 27). For example, integrated promotion can rely upon traditional advertising and publicity, which can be achieved through the internet in order to meet diverse customers. Promoters will also use special events, print media and endorsements in order to advertise their products. Promotion will help in increasing the sales of a given product. As a result, the best promotional techniques will be the most appropriate for the selling of the Curly Potato product.
The use of advertising and Publicity
Advertising and publicity are two elements of integrated promotional mix, which can be used jointly in the marketing of Curly Potato. The two promotional techniques can be used together because the difference between the two strategies is blurred. As a result, the two can be used in the promotion of Curly Potato in order to ensure that it reaches many target customers. It will make sense for the company to leverage the two promotional strategies because this will help the company to increase its sales volume (Dawn, 2002, pp 34). Advertising and publicity of the Curly Potato product will be done through various media means such as radio presentations, Television shows, newspaper, direct mail and use of magazines among other communication strategies. The main issues in promoting the product through advertising and publicity will be the time or media space and the sponsor who has control over the entire promotional activity. In this connection, the use of advertising and publicity will help in marketing Curly Potato.
Personal Selling
Personal selling is the other integrated promotional technique, which can be used in selling the Curly Potato product. It involves the oral presentation of the product in a conversation to the target customers with one or more prospective buyers in order to make a sale. It represents the most popular promotional effort in terms of financial expenditures and number of people employed (Dawn, 2002, pp 36). Personal selling is essential in the promotion of Curly Potato product because it is flexible, dyadic, personalized and it in most cases results to a direct sale. In addition, personal selling can be done through organized events and networking which are easy for most sellers. During personal selling, product promoters can solve target client problems and educate them on how to use the product. In this connection, personal selling is a good integrated promotional technique.
Sales promotion
This involves the marketing strategies, which stimulate customer purchasing and dealer effectiveness. They include coupons, shows and exhibitions, displays, contests and samples. Growth in sales promotion is enhanced through accountability, short-term focus, consumer factors, increased retail power and the impact of technology. Sales promotion helps to stimulate product trial, encourage purchase, enhance product consumption and neutralize competitors (Dawn, 2002, pp 40). Sales promotion is essential in the marketing of Curly Potato because it will help in enhancing the popularity of the product in the market. In this connection, sales promotion is an integrated promotional technique, which will help in presenting the new product to the target market.
Suggest how will you measure your campaign effectiveness?
Measurement of the campaign effectiveness will be done in line with the integrated promotional techniques chosen for marketing the Curly Potato product. The integrated promotional techniques selected for the marketing of the Curly Potato product are advertising and publicity, personal selling and sales promotion. In order to measure the effectiveness of the product advertising and publicity campaign, the company will have to monitor the current sales volume, number of new customers, information requests, phone inquiries, web traffic and retail store traffic among others (Paul, et al, 2010, pp 45). Another method of measuring the effectiveness of the advertising technique is to compare the previous sales with the new sales volume. Such measures will also be used in measuring the effectiveness of sales promotion and personal selling integrated promotional techniques. The success of all the promotional techniques will result to increased sales volume and product knowledge among the target customers. In this connection, it is appropriate for the company to check all the fresh product factors, which will indicate success in promotion (Paul, et al, 2010, pp 46). Moreover, the company can also give incentives to the clients to help them reveal their response to the product promotion. Such measures will help in knowing the product campaign effectiveness.
References:
Alexander, C. 2011. The Marketing Plan Handbook, 3rd Ed. New York: Cerebellum Publishers
Dawn, I. 2002. Kellogg on Integrated Marketing. New York: Wiley Publishers
Jack, R. 2005. Budgeting: Formulation & Execution. New York: McGraw
Malcolm, M. & Hugh, W. 2011. Marketing Plans: How to prepare them. How to choose them. New York: Penguin Publishers
Paul, W. et al. 2010. Marketing Metrics: The Definitive Guide to Measuring Marketing Performance (second Edition). New York: Penguin Publishers
