“Price” and “Promotion” decisions are part of the 4P’s of the marketing mix. To form a cohesive marketing strategy, we need to define Price and Promotion strategies to ensure they align with the customer profile and they help achieve the overall goals of

LOOK AHEAD FOR FINAL PROJECT

Teams should look ahead to Week 8 to understand the requirements of the final team project and what is included. While some of the content of the final paper has been developed through your weekly team papers during the past weeks, some modifications may be necessary to fully comply with the required material for the final paper assignment. You will also be adding new budget information in Week 8 so be sure to allow time for your team to prepare.

PROMOTION DEBATE (LO 3)

Context: In addition to promotion strategies associated with particular products or solutions, some organizations conduct promotion efforts designed to promote general awareness of the company “brand.” Creating awareness of an organization or its brand is not focused on solving a particular problem or addressed to a specific customer profile but is intended to create general awareness of the organization.

Assume your organization has moved to implement the definition of marketing that states Marketing is planning and implementing solutions to problems that create sustained value for customers, business, and society.

The organization has typically conducted promotion for “brand awareness” as part of its promotion strategy.

• The CEO states branding promotion should continue.
• The CMO (Chief Marketing Officer) says that it is not necessary to create sustained value.

TASK DESCRIPTION

Your facilitator will assign students to either the CEO Team or the CMO Team. If the class is large there may be two teams assigned to each position.

Hypothesis: Promotion of “Brands” or branding are not necessary if the strategy is focused on problem-solving for specific customers.

DEBATE RULES

• The debate(s) will take place in the Discussion area.
• The instructor will begin a new discussion thread for each debate.

Teams will “meet” via phone conference, email, Zoom, Skype or other methods chosen by the group. As a team, you will discuss the topic, develop your key positions and points, add reference facts that support your argument and anticipate the counter arguments from the other team.

Decide who will post the arguments for your team as the “debater”. It can be one person or a different person for each post. Once your team has determined who your “Debater” will be, that person(s) will post your team’s opening argument, rebuttal statement, and closing argument (one post per argument per team) to the appropriate Discussion area thread to meet the time requirements set by the facilitator. Note that the teams may need to arrange brief second and third meetings following the deadlines of the opening arguments and rebuttal arguments in order to develop compelling counterpoints after you see the posts from the opposing team.

Each team will develop and post an Opening Statement, Rebuttal Argument, and Closing Argument. The rebuttal and closing arguments should address key points to support your view and also counter relevant points made by the opposing team.

• Arguments must be supported by concepts from valid sources and the required reading assignments.
• All posts should represent the team’s collective view, not the view of only one or a few members.
• Each team post must be fewer than 300 words, but source citations are not included in that word count. Word count limitations are similar to time limitations in face to face debates.
• Each team post must be made before the deadlines established by the facilitator.

The instructor will assess how well the team arguments meet the rubrics shown below. The quality of the team arguments and the peer ratings will both be considered for individual grades. The facilitator may also require students to complete a Peer Review evaluation of their team members. The instructor may use feedback from peer reviews to adjust the grade of individual students. Your instructor will provide deadlines and details about submitting this form.

Peer Assessment Form

ASSESSMENT

TEAM WRITTEN PAPER – PRICE AND PROMOTION STRATEGY. (LO1,2, 4)

Context: “Price” and “Promotion” decisions are part of the 4P’s of the marketing mix. To form a cohesive marketing strategy, we need to define Price and Promotion strategies to ensure they align with the customer profile and they help achieve the overall goals of the marketing strategy.

Step 1 – Same Team/ Same Problem

Working with the same team and problem statement used in prior weeks, teams will build on the Product and Place strategies established last week and create Price and Promotion strategies to complete the marketing mix that will effectively reach the customer group you intend to serve.

Step 2 – Define the Price Strategy

Collaborate with the team to define the specific objectives the Price Strategy will achieve for the business, customers, and society. Prepare a paper that summarizes the team’s decisions on:

• Price objective(s) and measurement(s) that you will use to meet the stated goals of your marketing strategy and provide value for the company
• The primary price setting tactic or method you will use for this marketing strategy
• Rationale for why the price strategy balances company need and customer perception of value
• Explanation of how or why society value is considered or addressed in your chosen Price strategy

You may include matrices, tables, or reference materials that support your analysis and decisions made for making the Price Strategy decisions.

Step 3 – Define the Promotion Strategy

Using the example of the Decision Matrix for Promotion Strategy in the course material, collaborate with your team to identify and assess different promotion methods to be used for your marketing strategy. Your team will establish your list of different Promotion methods that should be placed in the first vertical column of the matrix. You may use the promotion criteria shown in the course example or modify the list to help you analyze which promotion method is a good fit for your project.

After completing the Promotion Decision matrix, develop a Promotion strategy paper that includes:

• Completed Promotion Matrix
• Explain the rating system your team used to evaluate different Promotion methods
• Provide an explanation for the top 3 promotion methods where significant resources will be used to support the marketing strategy
• Provide an explanation of how each of the top 3 promotion strategies will deliver measurable results that align with the goals (established in Week 5) of this marketing strategy
• Describe how the promotion strategy will create value for the customer, the company, and, if relevant, value for society.

You may include tables or reference materials that support your analysis and decisions made for making the Price Strategy decisions.

Step 4 – Compile and Submit

Compile information from Step 2 and Step 3 in a professional, business document that includes:

• Price strategy summary
• Matrices, tables, or reference materials that support your Price strategy decisions
• Promotion Decision Matrix
• Promotion strategy summary
• Matrices, tables, or reference materials that support your Promotion strategy decisions

Your final paper should be less than 7 pages in length, excluding matrices and references.

Submit to the relevant assignment folder as directed by Sunday. The same grade will be provided to all team members.

ASSESSMENT

Alright guys, we’re taking the part of the CMO, who says “resources and promotion efforts should be extended to brands or branding if the marketing strategy is focused on problem solving for customers. The CMO says that brand promotion is not needed to create sustained value.” Some things to note:

• Gotta have required reading sources and other sources to back up our statements
• Each post cannot be more than 300 words
• Opening Statement posts are due by NOON (MST) Thursday, December 3
• Rebuttal Argument posts are due by NOON, Friday December 4
• Closing Argument posts are due by NOON, Saturday December 5

Sources:

1. Source on the expense of brand marketing

Opening Statement

Someone gives you a free koozie with a company logo on it. Maybe you hold onto the koozie, maybe you lose it, or maybe you throw it away. Regardless of what happens with the koozie, very rarely does it ever lead someone to research the company. The marketing resources put towards mere promotional stunts for general brand recognition serve no point to marketing programs. Brand recognition should be created through the advertising of actual services and products. Instead of allocating funds for promotional stunts that serve the sole purpose of brand recognition, those funds should be used for advertisements and promotions that emphasize the product or services sold. Consumers then know what a company can provide as opposed to just what their logo might look like. When looking at a company’s marketing budget, funds must be assigned to promotions with substance that relay to consumers what a company offers to the consumer. Any other type of promotion that does not supply substance and is created with the sole intention of brand recognition is simply a waste of company resources as well as societal resources. These promotional gimmicks just create waste, whether that’s physical waste like koozies and bags, or a waste of advertising space, including people’s time. And with consumers becoming more sustainably conscious, the idea of creating waste simply for the sake of brand recognition can backfire and create negative perception towards the company (Ottman, 2011). Promotional stunts for the sake of brand recognition need to be eliminated as they are simply a waste of both a company’s resources as well as a waste of society’s resources.

References

Ottman, J. A. (2011). The new rules of green marketing : strategies, tools, and inspiration for sustainable branding (p. Chapter 3). Greenleaf ; San Francisco, Calif.

Rebuttal Argument

Consider what influences a consumer’s purchase decision when they walk into a retail store to buy an electronic. The selection process begins with identifying the brands available and determing their suitability to perform a specified function. Therefore, consumers evaluation of brand is based on it’s ability to solve a certain problem, which goes beyond brand recognition. While a company might have a strong brand and communicates professionally with its customers on all media platforms available, it marketing efforts should focus on its products or services to match consumer needs. Therefore, brand recognition should be created by marketing products or service offered to consumers.

Promoting a brand will only create value if it focuses on how a product or service gratify consumer needs. Although branding sets a business apart from its competitors, it is not enough to convince consumers to purchase a product. Brand recognition does not always translate to the sell of a product, if a consumer does not explicitly understand its benefits to them (Huang & Sarigöllü, 2014). Therefore, a brand can only create value if its products or services are viewed as beneficial to the customer.

The mainstream media still retains the widest audience reach in the world. Brands that place their advertisement on television, radio or newspapers tend to reach more people than those on other media platforms. While digital platforms such as social networking sites, websites, and blogs have created an online space for brands to puch their products, it is only limited to regions that have access to the internet and digital tools. It is important to note that increased brand awareness and recognition does not always translate to brand value.

References

Huang, R., & Sarigöllü, E. (2014). How brand awareness relates to market outcome, brand equity, and the marketing mix. In Fashion Branding and Consumer Behaviors (pp. 113-132). Springer, New York, NY.