EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This report intends to suggest a detailed marketing plan for the enterprise Mars and especially the chocolate bars offered by it. The report firstly offers an overview of the business activities of the concerned enterprise and also undertakes a situational analysis of the enterprise. The results of the situational analysis reveal that high competition and lack of brand awareness are two of the major issues that the concerned enterprise and its chocolate bars face in Singapore. Thus, enhancement of brand awareness and product diversification had been taken as two marketing objectives for the attainment of these two objectives the usage of the product diversification strategy and digital marketing strategies have been suggested. Furthermore, the report also proposes detailed tactics that the enterprise needs to follow through the usage of the tool of “7P’s of Marketing”. Lastly, the report concludes by outlining the action and control measures that the enterprise needs to use for the attainment of the marketing objectives.
Table of Contents
Introduction
As opined by Baker (2016), the process of marketing management had gained a substantial amount of prominence within the spectrum of the modern-day business world on the score of the fierce rivalry or the competition that the business enterprises face. Bagozzi et al. (2018) are of the viewpoint that the process of marketing management not only helps the business enterprises to formulate effective marketing plans which are likely to help them to market or promote their services or goods in an adequate manner but also to implemented them as well. More importantly, the marketing plans that the business enterprises formulate or design should take into account the requirements of the business environment, the demands of the market, the kind of business competition that the enterprises are facing and others (Baker and Saren 2016). In this regard, the idea that the marketing plans or the strategies used by the business enterprises should focus on the maximization of the benefits from the opportunities offered by the business market and mitigate the adverse effects of the threats offered by the same. This report intends to formulate a marketing report for Mars Chocolate on the basis of the results of the situational analysis of the same brand.
Overview of the business activities of Mars Chocolate Brand
The enterprise Mars founded by Forrest Mars in 1932 and headquartered in Slough, England, is one of the leading chocolate manufacturing brands of the world (Marschocolate.com 2019). As a matter of fact, it is seen that the concerned enterprise is known for the high quality of the chocolate bars that it offers to the customers and this in turn had enabled the enterprise under discussion here to gain a substantial amount of success over the years (Washingtonpost.com 2019). More importantly, over the years it had been seen that the concerned enterprise had focused only two varieties of chocolate bars which consist of “caramel and nougat coated with milk chocolate” and is often considered to be a replica of the Milky Bars which are sold in the nation of USA (Marschocolate.com 2019). However, in the recent times it had been seen that the concerned enterprise taking the help of the strategy of product diversification had substantially enhanced its product portfolio and presently offers different varieties of chocolate bars like Mars Almonds, Mars Dark and Light, Mars Gold, Mars Mini Eggs and others (Washingtonpost.com 2019). Furthermore, the enterprise under discussion here taking the help of the process of globalization had expanded its business in the different nations of the world like Canada, USA, Australia, New Zealand and others (Marschocolate.com 2019).
Situational Analysis
Market AnalysisPolitical Factors· The nation of Singapore has a very stable political environment with very few political struggles which in fact facilitates the conduct of trade and commerce and thereby helps the business enterprise to conduct their business operations in an effective manner (Gov.sg 2019).
· The liberal trade policies of the national government, low tax rates, low borrowing rates and others have given rise to an adequate market condition in the concerned nation wherein the different business enterprises are able to conduct their business operations in an adequate manner (Ibisworld.com 2019).
· The active trade relations that the concerned nation share with the Asian nations and others act as a boon for the business enterprises of the nation (Ibisworld.com 2019).Economic Factors· Singapore has one of the fastest growing economies of the world among the different developed nations and the different industries of the concerned nation adequately support the economy of the concerned nation (Ibisworld.com 2019).
· The business enterprises of the concerned nation had to pay very low tariff charges, subsidies, import and export charges and others for the conduct of their business operations in the concerned nation (Ibisworld.com 2019).
· These lenient economic policies by the national government of Singapore greatly supports the business activities of the different business enterprises of the concerned nation.Social Factors· The people of the concerned nation like to eat chocolates not only as desserts but also as a favourite past-time food which they like to eat at all times of the day
· Chocolate as a matter of fact forms an integral part of the daily lives of the people of Singapore and it is seen that the meals of the majority of the people are being followed by a bar of chocolate (Ibisworld.com 2019)
· This high demand for the chocolate bars as a matter of fact favours the business activities of Mars Chocolate which specialises in the manufacture of chocolate bars.Technological Factors· Singapore is one of the most technologically advanced nations of the world and these technological advancements are being used by the different business enterprises of the concerned nation for the improvement of their business operations (Ibisworld.com 2019).
· The high usage of internet by the people of the concerned nation actually supports the e-commerce business model used by the different business enterprises of the nation.Legal Factors· Singapore had stringent corporate legislations related to employee management, market regulations and others that the different business enterprises of the concerned nation are required to comply with for the purpose of conducting business in the nation (Gov.sg 2019).
· The business enterprises operational in the concerned nation are required to undergo different kinds of quality, safety and other kinds of checks so as to procure the license which is required for the purpose of transacting business in the concerned nation.Environmental Factors· Singapore is a signatory member nation of the Paris Agreement of 2016 which requires the different business enterprises of the concerned nation to reduce the amount of harmful pollutants released by them by more than 2.1% (Gov.sg 2019)
· There are other environmental regulations related to pollution, waste management and others that the business enterprises operational in the concerned nation are required to comply with.
Competitor AnalysisBargaining Power of the BuyersThe buyers or the customers in the nation of Singapore had large number of options related to the chocolate brands because of the large number of chocolate manufacturing companies which are there in the concerned nation like Aalst Chocolate, Cocoa, Fossa Chocolate and others (Ibisworld.com 2019). This in turn had significantly enhanced the bargaining power of the customers related to the chocolate products.Bargaining Power of the SuppliersIn the particular context of the enterprise Mars, it is seen that the bargaining power of the suppliers is very low because of the fact that the concerned enterprise over the years had formulated its own supplier system to ensure the timely delivery of raw materials (Gornall 2015). More importantly, the concerned enterprise also takes the help of the processes of e-procurement and time-based competition for the improvement of the supply chain system which it is presently using (Miazga-Bedrick and Miller 2017).Threat from New EntrantsThe concerned enterprise on the score of the positive brand image that it boasts of, its long past history, the wide array of chocolate bars that it offers to the customers faces a very low level of threat from the new entrants in the highly competitive chocolate industry of Singapore (Wilner and Ghassan 2017). As a matter of fact, it is seen that the new entrants find it very challenging to even retrieve the cost of start-up that they spend for the establishment of their business venture on the score of the high competition in the concerned industry.Threats from SubstitutesThe cost of brand switch in the chocolate industry is very low which in turn had enhanced the brand switch tendencies on the part of the customers (Ibisworld.com 2019). More importantly, it had been seen that the customers at different points of time like to try out new varieties of chocolates offered by diverse enterprises and it is because of this the enterprise under discussion here faces a high level of threat from substitution (Gallo, Antolin-Lopez and Montiel 2018).Industry RivalryA high level of rivalry or competition exists within the chocolate industry of Singapore because of the presence of large number of chocolate manufacturing companies like Aalst Chocolate, Cocoa, Fossa Chocolate and others. Furthermore, it had been seen that these enterprises are taking the help of competitive price strategies, digital marketing strategies and others for the mitigation of the high business competition that they face.
Company Analysis
Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning of Mars Chocolate
Mars for the chocolate that it offers to the customers focuses on customers related to all age brackets as well as regions because of the high demand shown by the customers for the chocolates over the years (Washingtonpost.com 2019). However, an interesting trend seen in the present times is the fact that the concerned enterprise is specifically focusing on the younger customers, particular the female teenagers for the chocolate that they offer. As a matter of fact, it had been seen to make the concerned chocolate bars more appealing for the customers related to this age bracket, the enterprise is taking the help of different celebrities like Betty White and others (Marschocolate.com 2019). More importantly, over the years it had been seen that the enterprise under discussion here had tried to create an emotional appeal for the chocolate bars that they offer to the customers. Furthermore, over the years it had been that the enterprise had substantially changed the positioning of the chocolate bars offered by it through the usage of different advertisements. For example, in the earlier times it was seen that the concerned enterprise tried to position the chocolate bars offered by it as a candy bar however in the present times it is seen that it is trying to position the chocolate bars as a hunger satisfying bar or for that as an instant source of energy because of the high calorie intake of the chocolate bars which in the present times had become the unique selling proposition of the concerned product (Washintonpost.com 2019). On the score of these, it can be said that the concerned enterprise had been largely successful in gaining a unique position for the chocolate bars offered by it on the basis of the quality of the chocolate bars.
Marketing Objectives
Objective 1: Enhancement of the brand awareness of the customers so as to mitigate the adverse effect of the fierce business competition that Mars faces in the market of Singapore for the chocolate that it offers.SpecificThe specific goal that the enterprise Mars had formulated is to enhance the brand awareness or the brand perception of the customersMeasurableThis can be measured through an analysis of the extent to which the customers are aware regarding the products offered by Mars and the different aspects of the enterpriseAttainableThis is a completely attainable goal provided the enterprise takes the help of the right kind of marketing strategies or campaigns or advertisementsRelevancyThis is a completely relevant goal since it is likely that the enterprise through the enhancement of its brand awareness among the customers would be able to mitigate the adverse effects of the fierce competition that it faces in the nation of SingaporeTime-Bound1 year
Objective 2: Enhancement of the product portfolio or the diversity of the chocolate bars offered by the enterprise as a way to mitigate the high competitionSpecificThe specific measure that Mars intends to take is to enhance its diversity in terms of the chocolate bars that it offers to the customersMeasurableThis can be easily measured in terms of the calculation of number of chocolate bars that the concerned enterprise offersAttainableThis is a completely attained goal provided the enterprise undertakes adequate market research and uses the results obtained from the same for the development of new chocolate barsRelevancyThis is a completely relevant goal since it is likely that the concerned enterprise through the enhancement of the number of chocolate bars would be able to mitigate the adverse effects of the business competition that it facesTime-Bound1 year
Marketing Strategies for the achievement of Marketing Objectives
Ansoff Matrix: Diversification
Villeneuve and Pasquier (2017) have articulated the viewpoint that the product diversification enables the business enterprises to enhance the range or the scope of their product portfolio or the number of products or services offered by them to the customers. As discussed by Wang, Van Fleet and Mishra (2017), for the enhancement of their range of their product portfolio the business enterprises need to undertake effective marketing researches so as to understand the needs or the requirements of the customers and thereby integrate the same within the spectrum of the new products or services launched by them. The objective of the enterprises behind the usage of this strategy is to cater to the needs of different segments of the population and thereby substantially enhance their profitability or mitigate the fierce competition that they are facing. Thus, it is likely that through the adequate usage of this strategy the enterprise under discussion here on one hand would be able to significantly enhance their product portfolio and on the other hand would be able to increase their profitability or mitigate the adverse effects of the fierce competition by catering to different segments of the population.
Digital Marketing Strategies
Bagozzi et al. (2018) are of the viewpoint that the usage of different kinds of digital marketing strategies like social media marketing, content marketing, social media marketing and others are not only cost-effective in nature but also help the enterprises in reaching out to a much larger segment of the population in comparison to the traditional marketing or promotional strategies. Recent researches have indicated the fact that the enterprises taking the help of digital marketing strategies are not only able to enhance the brand awareness or the perception of the customers but at the same time able to attain a higher level of success as well in comparison to the enterprises which rely on traditional marketing strategies (Chernev 2018). Thus, it is likely that through the adequate usage of the above-mentioned marketing strategies the enterprise under discussion here would not only be able to enhance the brand perception or the awareness of the customers but would also be able to effectively market or promote the chocolate bars offered by it and thereby mitigate the adverse effects of the business competition faced by in the nation of Singapore.
Implementation Plan
7P’s of MarketingProductThe chocolate bars offered by Mars are high in calorie content and thus they can be used as instant sources of energy, food to quench hunger and others (Marschocolate.com 2019). Furthermore, over the years the Mars had been able to maintain a positive brand image and also the packaging plastic which is being used by it are made by used plastic (Washingtonpost.com 2019). In this regard, it needs to be said that the enterprise would have to diversify its product portfolio to appeal to the different sections of the population.PriceMars follows a mid-premium policy so as to maintain an adequate level of quality and also to ensure that the majority of the segments of the population are being able to purchase the chocolate bars offered by it (Ibisworld.com 2019). However, the usage of the cost leadership is likely to help the enterprise to grab a larger number of customers.PromotionMars takes the help of the tagline “A Mars a day helps you work, rest and play” to create a special appeal for the chocolate bars offered by it (Marschocolate.com 2019). Furthermore, it had been seen that over the years the concerned enterprise had relied heavily on traditional promotional measures. However, it is likely that through the usage of digital marketing strategies the enterprise would be able to reach out to a larger customer base and also to effectively promote the chocolate bars offered by it.PlaceAn important aspect of the enterprise Mars is the fact that over the years it had established its business headquarters in the different nations of operations and this in turn had helped it to develop a “robust distribution channel” (Washingtonpost.com 2019). Furthermore, the enterprise needs to take the help of the processes of e-procurement, time-based competition and others to make its supply chain more effective and efficient.PeopleMars had an effective marketing team which formulates different kinds of marketing campaigns or advertisements taking into account the target market or the customer base that the enterprise focuses on (Gornall 2015). In addition to this, the concerned enterprise needs to develop an effective customer care department, the phone number of which would be mentioned on each of the chocolate bar wrappers wherein the customers can call and get their queries resolved.Physical EvidenceThe chocolate bars are being packed in wrappers which are manufactured from used plastic and the presence of a robust sales team ensures that the enterprise is being able to offer the right kind of experience to the customers (Washingtonpost.com 2019). Furthermore, the enterprise needs to create online portal or its website wherein the customers would be able to order the chocolate bars.ProcessThe chocolate bars offered by the enterprise are customer-focused and business lead. More importantly, the concerned enterprise needs to regularly undertakes market researches to improve the quality of the chocolate bars offered by it and also to integrate the requirements of the customers within the chocolate bars offered by it.
The marketing budget for successful launch of Mars Chocolate Bar in the target market is indicated in the table below. Monthly budget has been scheduled for allocating the estimated amount of expenses that is deemed necessary in promoting the product and to attain growth in the revenue and the market share by estimated growth rate of 10% within the 12 months span of marketing plan implementation. From preparing the projected marketing budget below it is gathered that the estimated budget set for launching marketing campaign of the product successfully is $ 240040 in the 1st year of product launch.
Action
Mars for the effective attainment of the above-mentioned tactics needs to take different actions for each of the tactics which are listed below-ProductMars needs to take the help of the product diversificationPriceUsage of cost leadership strategyPromotionUsage of digital marketing strategiesPlaceUsage of e-procurement, time-based competitionPeopleDevelopment of an effective customer care departmentPhysical EvidenceCreation of an online portal from where the customers would be able to order the chocolate bars offered by the enterpriseProcessUsage of the processes of market researches to improve the quality of the chocolate bars offered by it.
Control
The two key performance indicators (KPIs) that the enterprise Mars needs to formulate on the basis of the marketing objectives that have been formulated are listed below-
Collection of customer feedback: This is likely to enable the enterprise to understand the extent to which the customers have become aware of the concerned enterprise and also the chocolate bars offered by it. Thus, the results of the feedback would help the enterprise to know the extent to which the customers have become aware regarding the enterprise and the services offered by it.
Analysis of customer acquisition: The product diversification will be used by the enterprise to enhance its customer base. Thus, an analysis of the new customers that the concerned enterprise had been able to acquire in 6 months would give an idea about the success of the usage of the strategy.KPIMonth 1Month 2Month 3Month 4Month 5Month 6Collection of customer feedback5%10%25%40%55%80%Analysis of customer acquisition10%15%20%25%35%50%
Conclusion and Recommendations
To conclude, the process of marketing management had become an important one that the different business enterprises needs to use for the attainment of the desired level of success. Furthermore, for the effective usage of this process the business enterprises need to formulate different marketing objectives on the basis of the results that they have got from the analysis of the external environment of their business operations. More importantly, the enterprises are also required to formulate or design strategies or tactics for effective attainment of the marketing objectives that they have formulated. In addition to these, the enterprises also need to take the help of adequate control measures and also formulate KPIs to analyse the success that they have attained. These aspects of the process of marketing management become apparent from the above analysis of the enterprise Mars and the chocolate bars that it offers. Two of the most important measures that the enterprise can use for the enhancement of its business prospects in Singapore are listed below-
Mars can take the help of the product diversification strategy to enhance the variety of chocolate bars offered by it which in turn will enable it to attract more customers and thereby overcome business competition in Singapore.
Mars can take the help of different digital marketing strategies for effectively promoting the chocolate bars offered by it which in turn would enable it to mitigate the adverse effects of the fierce business competition in Singapore.
References
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