Market oriented definition
The sporting goods store is operating in an athletic wear oriented market. Central users of our products are individuals (men, women, and kids), corporations as well as institutions who care about being fit and healthy or also having fun.
The product is a store of sporting goods. The product, sporting store, is multifunctional. The primary focus of the product is the warehousing of an athletic wear that is specifically designed for a given sport as well as for leisure use or uses. It stores the footwear, caps, body suits, tracks, swimming costumes, sports graphics and e.t.c. The store generally targets athletes as its vital market.
Factors influencing behaviour
The consumer purchase behavior is clearly illustrated in the general buyer purchase decision making process. Their behavior is typified by the selection, purchase and the consumption of any product or service offered for sale to the market basically for the satisfaction of a defined want or need. Our consumers’ behavior towards our product will be affected by both internal and external factors. The behavior is basically influenced by age, gender, economic level, income distribution, marital status, size of household as well as ethnicity.
Economic factors
Our consumers’ purchasing power and patterns of spending will definitely influence the buying behavior of our customers. For instance, customers’ income distribution and levels of consumers’ debt will greatly influence their buying behavior towards our product. Besides, the prevailing economic productivity and the level of economic growth in the country will determine the rate of our customers’ spending.
Potential customers with higher level of income will tend to have higher frequency of purchase than those with lower income level. Consumers with higher levels of consumer debts will be forced to spend less towards our product. Those with employment will have more income to spend than the unemployed. Therefore, prevailing economic factors in the country will have an upper hand in influencing consumers’ buying behavior towards our products.
Shifts in the USA’s demography
Constant variation in the USA’s population structure is likely to influence the buying behavior of our customers. The aging population will tend to purchase less of our products. Emerging demographic trends like varying age structure, majority being the aged, population diversity and continuous geographic shifts in population will definitely affect the buying behavior of our potential customers. These factors is likely to influence customers purchase of athletic wears as for example, a behavior of a given customer is typified by the buying behavior of family members. The influence may come from relatives, husband, or wife.
Technological environmental factors
The USA’s level of knowhow will have an upper hand in customers’ choice for our product. For example, technological advancements in the country that leads to the creation of new products that meet the ever changing customers’ needs and wants is likely to negatively influence the buying behavior of our potential customers. New developments in product designs, production standards as well as information technology will greatly influence our customers’ buying behavior. The integrated marketing communication strategies are as well likely to influence our buyers buying behavior. Intensive integrated marketing communication, basically resulting from technological advancements, for instance use of social networks like twitter and facebook are prone to affect the buying behavior of our esteemed customers. Besides, emerging technological trends like the application of internet, cellular networks, medical needs, as well the need for body fitness will definitely influence our customers’ buying behavior.
Political environmental factors
Our customers buying behavior is dependent on the political environment factors. Political environmental factors like laws, government agencies and pressure groups do have influence on customer purchase behavior. Also, customers do face different forms of legislative regulations that do affect their buying behaviour. Governments formulate public policies that guide business. It sets laws that legalize company operations and consumers’ purchase trends. Any breach of law is liable for damages in form of fines. Laws enacted by the government concerning the antitrust, consumer liability as well as safety, private communication has a greater influence in customers purchase trends. Nevertheless, emerging political trends like the need for corporate social responsibility, children and consumer rights as concerns product provision will affect our customers’’ buying behavior.
Natural factors
The customers’ buying behavior is dependent on the emerging natural trends. Customers will for instance evaluate the environmental sustainability of our product before making a purchase. As well, the influence of political and social activism will influence our product purchase on the face of our potential customers.
Personal factors
Our consumer’s economic situation, age, personality, lifestyle and occupation will be a determining factor in his/her purchase behaviour. In essence, consumers with high level of income are likely to undertake frequent purchase as opposed to those with lower earnings. As well, our consumers’ occupation is will greatly influence their behaviour towards purchasing from our product. The majority of our purchasers will be athletes and therefore non-athlete users will be locked out. Our consumer’s personality will also be vital in their buying behavior. This implies that the buying behaviour will vary accordingly based on a given circumstance of the need for purchase.
Habitual decision behavior
Our product will require habitual buying behavior. The product does not need consumer involvement but the purchase will definitely happen due to our recognized brand. The consumer involvement is very low and therefore information search is limited. With an exception of unique brand, our products are similar to other products and therefore consumers will essentially find it habitual to make a purchase. Buyers will tend to undertake in limited information search and evaluation as the purchase will definitely have no or little buyer involvement. Our products purchase decision will be made simple further by repeat buyers who are likely to make a purchase based on their knowledge. We intend to make our consumers adopt this buying decision behavior due to the existence of athletic products loyalty. Athletes tend to be loyal shoppers due to high level of satisfaction derived from unique trendy brands. Our consumers will need to neither carry out an extensive information search about the brands nor conduct thorough evaluation of our products’ brand characteristics. In addition, the purchase will not involve complex decisions. But, the information will reach them as they listen to radio or read newspapers. The buying process is dependent on our product brand belief which is formed via passive learning.
Marketing Intelligence
The marketing intelligence is the process of collection and analysis of information that is significant to an organization’s supply markets categorically for purposes of enhancing accurate decision making. Be it as it may, our business will make decisions relating to the macro environmental factors. These will encompass decisions that concern economic factors, political factors, cultural environmental factors and technological environmental factors.
Cultural environmental factors
The cultural environmental factors encompass forces and institutions that affect our consumers’ perception, values, preference and behavior. The marketing intelligence that regards our business cultural environment basically seeks to access the information that relates to our consumers cultural beliefs and values, how customers perceive our products as well as how the customers perceive themselves. The information gathered is of great benefit as it enables our business undertake consumer level of satisfactory assessment as well as the level of our business acceptability. Marketing intelligence on cultural environmental is very essential in that these factors are the core determinant of our potential customers’ behaviour and wants.
Economic factors
These factors will include basically those factors that directly have an effect on the purchasing power and spending behaviour of potential consumers. Important determinants of decision making here will be the income distribution among the consumers, customer personal consumption along with their personal debts, as well as the systems policies in place. Our marketing intelligence in essence will be interested in collection and analysis of information that pertain the economic conditions, economic systems, international economic environments as well as the economic policies. For our product, three major economic factors will directly influence our prospective customers’ purchasing power. Marketing intelligence that encompasses economic policies is of importance to the company as it will enable the company understand monitory policies, fiscal policies and the industrial policy as a whole. For instance, information gathered on economic systems will help make decision relating to economic relations of our consumers. With vast knowledge of the purchasing power and spending behaviour of potential consumers as well as those factors behind their level of consumption, our business is likely to make accurate pricing decisions.
Political environment factors
Marketing intelligence will also be focused to the political environment on matters pertaining to laws, government agencies and pressure groups. Marketing intelligence will focus political environment due to the fact that for instance, the government formulates public policies that guide business. It sets laws that legalize businesses operations. Any breach of law is liable for damages in form of fines. Besides, the government enacts laws and regulations that guide marketing activities of businesses. Therefore, carrying out marketing intelligence will help our business enact decisions that are in line with the business legal and political environments without a hitch. Information relating to political environment will be gathered basically to aid in understanding how better our business should conduct its obligations. Law and regulatory systems protects consumers from unscrupulous business. The legislature, judiciary and the executive do influence company’s operations. In essence, our business will need to formulate rules and regulations that are in accordance with the government and political rules and regulations hence the need for political environment marketing intelligence.
Direct competition
Our business stands to face a stiff competition from two major competitors, the Dick’s Sporting Goods Incorporation and Sports Authority. Top competitor is nevertheless the Dick’s Sporting Goods Incorporation. The level of competition is stiff because of the profitability of the industry. Dick’s Sporting Goods Incorporation is the top competitor because of its domination of the athletic wear industry as well as its brand name which is common with athletes. Its economies of scale and customer loyalty with well established market brand earns it an upper hand in the market.
Indirect competition
The company will face indirect competition from the Summit sports. They are likely to be indirect competitors since their business majors in the provision of fitness equipment whereas ours basically offer athletic wears like sporting equipment, apparels, and footwear.
Strength
Dick’s distinctive competency is found in the areas of marketing, specifically with respect to customer brand recognition and brand power. Brand names like Dicks Sporting Goods, Golf Galaxy stores, and Chicks Sporting Goods make it stand tall against its competitors. Also, Dick’s is the world’s biggest company with well established global name and better reputation for athletic and sporting wears. Besides, it boasts of innovative retail culture, superb management skills as well as pricing advantage over its suppliers.
Weaknesses
They lack online presence as well as the scale limits.
Demographic Family Life Cycle (FLC) Stage
Family life cycle will influence the purpose and regularity of product purchase. The segment will be actionable and measurable hence valid segment. Segments will be age, income and social class; young single; young married; Older, married with grown children; Older, with grandchildren; Other.
Geographic segmentation
The market will be divided into different units like cities, states, regions, and streets.
Psychographic: Lifestyle
Our customers’ living patterns will definitely influence the benefits sought from our product. The segment is however not easily measurable but is actionable and easily differentiated. Lifestyle segments will include believers, strivers and experiencers.
Behavioral: User Rate
User rate influences attitude and approach towards a re-purchase. Regular users of our product will view this as a more routine purchase. These segments are as well measurable and actionable.
User rate segments will be categorized as ones a year, twice a year or four to eleven times a year.
Target Markets
Target markets will be athletes and users who care about being fit and healthy or those who are fun loving.
FLC Stage: Young, married and medium wage earners
Lifestyle: Achievers
User Rate: 6-12 times a year
Satisfaction -Seekers
FLC Stage: Young married, children, corporations
Lifestyle: Achievers
User Rate: 2-4 times a year
Positioning strategy
Our business intends to employ positioning strategy by our product pricing. We intend to offer quality products at a relatively cheaper price. our products will be offered at a very competitive price.
Product plan
Product will be of specialty classification. It will be of distinctive kind.
Attributes:
Our product will be of high quality with high level satisfaction.
Branding:
The product will have a licensed brand that will offer brand equity to our potential customers.
Packaging:
A secondary package will be used to deliver the product to the customers. Besides, delivery package will be used for storage, and identification of the product to customer locations.
Labeling:
Simple tags and complex graphics will be used as labels to describe product features and name of manufacturer, when it was made, its contents and user guidelines.
Labeling:
Our business plans to endlessly get feedback and cautiously address any dissatisfaction arising from our customers.
Pricing strategies
Our business intends to use cost plus pricing strategy by computing the advertising costs, sales and distribution expenses before factoring in a given percentage on the products unit cost.
Advertising concepts
Our business intends to use covert advertising. It will be advertised via movies and television shows. Besides, audio visual as well as media advertising will be used. Adverts will major on our brand name as well as our higher quality product at a lower price.
Sales promotion tools
We intend to use coupons and discounts, basically printed in magazines with a picture of our store and products offered. This will be coupled with periodical discount rates. We also intend to offer money back offers inform of product guarantees.
Public relations tools
Core public relations tool will be our business identity materials like our logos. We will also continuously issue annual business reports and newsletters.
Labeling:
Kotler, P. & Armstrong, G. (2011). Principles of marketing. 14th edition. Prentice Hall.
