Strategic Management Business 599

Assignment 2: Marketing Plan
This assignment consists of two sections: a marketing plan and sales strategy and a marketing budget. Note:You must submit both sections as separate files for the completion of this assignment.
For the first 6 months your company is in business—to give you time to perfect your product and to learn from actual customers—you will start marketing and selling in your own community, a radius of 25 miles from where you live. 
For most non-alcoholic beverages, marketing (as opposed to the actual product itself) is key to success. Cola drinks, for example, are fairly undifferentiated, as are many energy drinks, juices, bottled water, and the like. Companies producing these types of beverages differentiate themselves and attract market share through marketing and brand awareness—both of which are critical to success. 
Section 1: Marketing Plan and Sales Strategy (MS Word or equivalent)
Write the3–5-page marketing plan and sales strategy section of your business plan, in which you do the following:

Define your company’s target      market.

Analyze the types of consumers       who will be drinking your beverage in demographic terms (i.e., age,       education level, income, gender, ethnic group, etc.). Outline the       demographic information for your company specified on the worksheet in       the course text (p. 107 | Demographic Description). 
Support your analysis with       actual data on the size of the demographic groups in your local community       (nearby zipcodes). 

Hints: At American FactFinder (http://factfinder.census.gov),        you will find demographic information on potential consumers in your        area. If you are selling through other businesses (such as grocery        stores), indicate the number of those businesses in your local area. You        will find information about such businesses in your local area at County        Business Patterns (http://www.census.gov/econ/cbp/). Check        Chapter 2 of Successful Business Plan for more research        sources. 

Assess your company’s market      competition.

Use the factors listed in the       course text graphic (p. 123 | Assess the Competition) to       assess your company’s market competition.
Defend your plan to       differentiate yourself from the competition using the information       detailed on the worksheet in the text (p. 131 | Market Share       Distribution).

Hints: Every business faces competition, and the        non-alcoholic beverage market is an especially crowded market. 
Hints: For example, in the soft drink market, it is        intimidating to try to compete against Coke and Pepsi. Newcomers in        mature markets typically must pursue niche markets or even create new        market categories, as Red Bull did with energy drinks.

Clarify your company’s message      using the information provided on the worksheet in the text (p. 160      | The Five F’s). Create a marketing slogan/tagline for      your product.

Hints: Before you choose your marketing vehicles, you must       determine the message you want to convey through those vehicles.

Identify the marketing vehicles      you plan to use to build your company’s brand. Justify the key reasons why      they will be effective. 

Hints: If you plan to use online marketing tactics,       refer to the worksheet in the text (p.171 | Online       Marketing Tactics) to aid your response. Remember that even       if you’re selling through grocery stores, you need to build your       brand and social media is a major part of that in regard to       beverages.Some of the marketing tactics that beverage companies       use include sampling in grocery stores, building a following on       social media, sponsoring events, and exhibiting at trade shows       attended by retailers. You will use a combination of these tactics. For       example, if you decide to give out samples in grocery stores, promote       your sampling on your social media networks and those of the grocery       store.
Hints: If you are planning to distribute through       resellers, describe how you plan to reach them, for example, through       industry trade shows or by establishing your own sales force. For       information on trade shows, visit the Trade Show News Network (http://www.tsnn.com).You       can exhibit or network at these shows.

Format your assignment according to these formatting requirements:

Cite the resources you have      used to complete the exercise. Note: There is no minimum      requirement for the number of resources used in the exercise.
Be typed, double-spaced,      using Times New Roman font (size 12), with 1-inch margins on all      sides; references must follow APA format. Check with your      professor for any additional instructions.
Include a cover page containing      the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the      course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not      included in the required page length. 

Section 2: Marketing Budget (MS Excel worksheets template)
Section 2 uses the “Business Plan Financials” MS Excel template (see: Required Course Files in Week 1). Use the Business Plan Financials Guide (see: Required Course Files in Week 1) to support your development of the marketing budget.

Complete the “Marketing      Budget” worksheet for your company. 

Hints:The goal of the marketing budget is to help you      determine how much it will cost you to reach your market and achieve your      sales goals. 
Hints: When filling out the “Marketing Budget”      worksheet in the Excel spreadsheet, do the following:

Begin in the current year and       complete a marketing budget for the first year of your business. The       information you enter in the marketing budget spreadsheet will flow       through to your “Income Statement” in the “Business Plan       Financials.”
Leave the number at zero       (0) for any marketing vehicles you do not intend to use. 
Remember that all marketing       activities involve costs. If social media represents a significant       portion of your marketing, assume you will incur costs of       advertising and these should be reflected on your budget. Even       if a social media site charges nothing to use it, you will need to use       company resources to manage the site, pay someone to execute your social       media marketing campaigns, and most likely pay for ads on that site.
Do not leave the       “Marketing Budget” blank assuming you will not have any marketing       costs. 

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are as follows:

Recommend effective business      strategies based on an analysis of domestic and global operating      environments, market dynamics, and internal capabilities. 
Produce a comprehensive      business plan.