Question

Complete the following information about the organization and products and/or services you will focus on as you develop a complete marketing plan throughout the course. You may need to do research to get answers to the questions below. Be sure the organization and offer you select will 1) remain interesting to you for the duration of the course, and 2) have sufficient information available for you to conduct research and make informed recommendations in your marketing plan.

Company Profile

• Company Name: Disney
• Industry:
• Major products and/or services (names, types):
• Products and/or services your marketing plan will focus on:
• Target customers:

• Distribution channel(s):
• Headquarters (city, state, country):
• Year founded:
• Number of employees:
• Annual revenue (estimated)
• Key competitors:
• Link to Web site:
• Link to Yahoo! Finance information page (for public companies):

Market Segmentation and Targeting

• What problem does your product or service solve?
• Describe the total market for your solution: Who are potential customers?
• What are the key segments within this market?
• Identify and briefly describe 1–3 segments that this company serves.
• Which segment does this marketing plan focus on, and why? Why do you believe this segment will offer growth and profit opportunities?

Situation and Company Analysis

Economic Environment

Discuss factors that affect your consumers’ purchasing power and spending patterns. What is the economic environment that you are operating in? Is it growth, recovery or recession? Will it be easy to find staff? What is the current interest rate i.e. is it increasing or decreasing? What is consumer confidence like?

Technical Environment

The technological environment changes rapidly. You need to make sure that you are aware of trends in your industry and other industries could affect your business. New technologies create new markets and can influence you, consumers and competitors. Industry environment What are the trends in your industry? Are there new entrants in the market? Has a substitute product been introduced? Are there changes in industry practices or new benchmarks to use?

Competitive Environment

How many competitors do you have? Who are the key competitors? What are the key selling points or competitive advantages of each one? What is your advantage over competitors? Is the market large enough to support you and competitors?

Political Environment

Consider the political environment for the areas that your business will trade and operate in. Is there a stable political system? Are there any licenses and regulations that you should be aware of? Do you need to win support to be able to operate?

SWOT Analysis

Instruction: Complete the table below with descriptive responses and explanation as you answer the questions below.

Strengths	Weaknesses
Does the organization have a strong brand presence? What resources are available for marketing activities? Does the company have unique products or services that satisfy the needs of its target market? What makes the company’s products or services unique? What value is brought to customers?	Does the organization have a weak brand presence? Are resources insufficient for marketing activities? Does the company lack distinctive products or services? Do current products or services fail to satisfy the needs of customers? Do current products or services fail to bring value to customers?

Opportunities

Threats

What is the unique opportunity that the company is trying to take advantage of? Does the target market have any unfulfilled needs that the company can satisfy? Are there emerging target markets with needs that the company can satisfy? Are there ways the company and its competitors can benefit from working together? Are there opportunities for collaborating with customers to build a brand presence? Describe and analyze if market demand is increasing? Are there changes in the government regulations that will affect the company? Describe any emerging global issues that will affect the company?

What are the tactics that competitors use to pursue customers? What are the strengths of the company’s biggest and or emerging competitors? In what ways are the competitors’ products or services superior to the company’s offerings? How are competitors likely to respond to any changes in the way the company markets? Is the company behind in adopting new technologies for marketing? Describe any ways in which international competitors are taking away market share? What do customers dislike about the company? Describe and analyze if market demand is decreasing?

Mission, Objectives, and Goals

State the mission or business purpose: what the organization wants to achieve, in market-oriented terms. (Example: Disney’s mission could be, “We create happiness by providing the finest in entertainment for people of all ages.)

List 1–3 objectives that move the organization a step closer to achieving the mission. (Example: A Disney objective could be, “To be the most popular theme park for international visitors.”)

Convert objectives into specific marketing goals that are easy to measure and evaluate. (Example: Our goal is to increase the market share of international theme park visitors by 10% in the next two years.”)

Answer 1

Political Factors Affecting Disney’s Industry Environment

Policies and governmental actions are evaluated in this component of the PESTEL/PESTLE analysis framework. In this business analysis of The Walt Disney Company, such remote or macro-environmental factors pertain to the political climate affecting merchandise trade and entertainment access. For example, intellectual property policies impact the global business. In the entertainment, mass media, and amusement park industry environment, the following political external factors influence Disney’s strategic management:

1. Stronger intellectual property protection (opportunity)
2. Shifting free trade policies (threat and opportunity)
3. Stable political conditions in major markets (opportunity)

Political support for stronger intellectual property (IP) protection is an external factor that creates growth opportunities. In this PESTEL/PESTLE analysis of The Walt Disney Company, such protection creates a more favorable industry environment that minimizes IP violations against the global business. For example, the company can expect improving IP protection for its Marvel movies and related products in many markets. On the other hand, shifting free trade policies are an external factor that threatens to create instability in Disney’s business environment. However, this external analysis also views such shifts as an opportunity to grow the company by aligning strategies to current growth opportunities created through new free trade policies in the remote or macro-environment. Such management considerations influence the implementation of Disney’s generic strategy for competitive advantage and intensive strategies for growth. This PESTEL/PESTLE analysis also considers the stable political conditions of major markets as an opportunity for growth. For instance, Disney can keep growing in its current markets in the United States, Canada, and Europe with minimal political disruption. Therefore, political external factors create opportunities to improve the conglomerate’s business performance in the global market.

Economic Factors in The Walt Disney Company’s Business

This component of the PESTEL/PESTLE framework assesses the economic trends that shape the remote or macro-environment. Disney’s case involves diverse economic conditions, considering the multinational reach of the business. Many of the relevant economic external factors reflect the American industry environment, which is the company’s main source of revenues. For example, the U.S. market provides the bulk of the company’s amusement parks and resorts revenues. The Walt Disney Company’s strategic management success depends on the economic conditions linked to the following external factors:

1. Rapid economic development of developing markets (opportunity)
2. Increasing levels of disposable incomes (opportunity)
3. Slowing growth of the Chinese economy (threat)

In the PESTEL/PESTLE analysis framework, rapid economic development is an opportunity for business growth. In the case of Disney, this external factor is especially pronounced in developing markets. For example, the company can expect rapid revenue growth for entertainment and mass media products in developing Asian countries. The SWOT analysis of The Walt Disney Company also views this external factor as an opportunity in the global industry environment. In relation, increasing levels of disposable incomes enable more customers to pay for the company’s products. Despite these opportunities, the trend of the Chinese economy’s slowing growth is a threat in the context of this external analysis of Disney. Nonetheless, China remains a major growth contributor in the corporation’s remote or macro-environment. Thus, in this component of the PESTEL/PESTLE analysis of Disney, the economic external factors present challenges in managing business growth based on the strategic significance of developing markets.

Social/Sociocultural Factors that Affect Disney

The focus of this component of the PESTEL/PESTLE analysis framework is on social trends, which affect Disney’s remote or macro-environment through customers’ and workers’ behaviors. In this company analysis case, consumers’ behaviors toward products like movies, television programs, video games, and amusement parks are considered. For example, strategies must manage customers’ behaviors and expectations regarding the global business. Considering the situation of its multiple industry environments, The Walt Disney Company experiences the effects of the following sociocultural external factors:

1. Favorable attitudes toward leisure (opportunity)
2. Increasing online activity (opportunity)
3. Increasing cultural diversity (threat and opportunity)

Disney strategically grows its international business by exploiting favorable attitudes toward leisure. This sociocultural external factor increases customers’ likelihood of paying for the company’s leisure and recreation products. Also, this PESTEL/PESTLE analysis views increasing online activity as an opportunity to grow The Walt Disney Company. For example, higher online product accessibility can grow the corporation’s revenues from online transactions. On the other hand, increasing cultural diversity threatens the attractiveness of Disney’s products, such as movies and television programs. However, this external analysis considers the same social external factor as an opportunity to improve the company’s products to reflect the cultural diversity of target markets. Addressing the social external factors in this PESTEL/PESTLE analysis can increase competitiveness in the industry environment, despite the tough competition determined in the Porter’s Five Forces analysis of The Walt Disney Company. Overall, these social remote or macro-environmental factors can help the company grow through appropriate strategic management that improves the business to satisfy changes in consumer behavior.

Technological Factors in Disney’s Remote Environment

Available technologies are among the remote or macro-environmental factors that define business capabilities and limitations. This component of the PESTEL/PESTLE analysis of Disney accounts for technologies used in entertainment and mass media production, as well as those used to develop Disneyland theme parks and resorts. For example, digital technologies’ effects on film production are among the factors that enable the company in the international industry environment. The following technological external factors determine many of the strategies and management efforts at The Walt Disney Company:

1. High R&D rate in the industry (threat and opportunity)
2. Increasing mobile device use (opportunity)
3. Increasing popularity of augmented reality (opportunity)

The technological external factor of high research and development (R&D) rate represents rapid technological advancement in the mass media and entertainment industries. For example, companies like Disney are increasingly enhancing their use of advanced computer generated imaging to provide better and competitive products. In this PESTEL/PESTLE analysis context, this technological trend is a threat that makes competition tougher. Still, the same remote or macro-environmental factor is an opportunity to grow The Walt Disney Company by strategically increasing its R&D rate to match or exceed competitors. Increasing mobile device use is also an opportunity in this external analysis. The opportunity is based on mobile devices as a rapidly growing revenue channel for Disney’s multinational business. Also, the increasing popularity of augmented reality is an opportunity to improve the corporation’s performance. Disney’s strategic management can address this external factor by integrating the technology into products, such as video games. Thus, the technological external factors in this component of the PESTEL/PESTLE analysis of The Walt Disney Company present growth opportunities in the industry environment.

Ecological/Environmental Factors

The natural environment imposes limits, threats, and opportunities in the remote or macro-environment, highlighting business dependence on ecological external factors. For example, in this PESTEL/PESTLE analysis of The Walt Disney Company, the relevant global industry environment concerns resource availability, and climatic and weather conditions that affect amusement parks and resorts, film production, and merchandise production. Disney’s management faces strategic challenges related to the following ecological external factors:

1. Changing and worsening cyclical weather (threat)
2. Increasing availability of renewable energy (opportunity)
3. Increasing industry support for sustainability (opportunity)

Changing and worsening cyclical weather is a macro-environmental factor that threatens Disney’s theme parks and resorts operations. In contrast, the increasing renewable energy availability is an opportunity for improving the global business. For example, Disney can improve its brand image by increasing its renewable energy utilization. In the remote environment, this ecological external factor is dependent on available technologies for generating and storing energy. In relation, this PESTEL/PESTLE analysis presents the increasing industry support for sustainability as an opportunity. Disney has the opportunity to further improve its corporate image and operational efficiencies through sustainability measures. Also, communicating such measures to the target market can help manage customers’ expectations. This external factor influences The Walt Disney Company’s corporate social responsibility strategy, which considers the ecological issues shown in this external analysis. Overall, the industry environment has opportunities for corporate enhancement by addressing the external factors in this component of the PESTEL/PESTLE analysis of Disney.

Legal Factors in Disney’s Macro-Environment

The legal factors evaluated in this component of the PESTEL/PESTLE analysis pertain to the rules and regulations that apply to the business and its industry environment. In this case of The Walt Disney Company, such external factors are based on the legal systems that define the leisure and recreation remote environment. The company’s managers must address regulations based on different countries and regions involved in the macro-environment. For example, American regulations and European regulations in the mass media and entertainment industries are among the strategic influences considered in this external analysis. Thus, this component of the PESTEL/PESTLE analysis points to the following legal external factors that impose limits and requirements on Disney’s global business:

1. Environmental protection law (opportunity)
2. Improving legal protection for consumer rights in developing markets (opportunity)
3. Broadening intellectual property protections (opportunity)

Relevant to this PESTEL/PESTLE analysis is the increasing implementation of restrictive environmental protection regulations. The main effect of this external factor on Disney is in amusement parks, theme parks and resorts operations, which have significant environmental impact. For example, new park or resort construction leads to changes in the ecology of the site. Regulatory restrictions minimize the negative consequences of such changes, but also impose a restrictive industry environment for The Walt Disney Company. Also, this external analysis considers better legal protection for consumer rights. This protection provides the strategic opportunity to enhance customer satisfaction, which is a success metric in managing the global business. Furthermore, broadening protections for intellectual property rights is a legal external factor that makes Disney’s industry environment more favorable to businesses that capitalize on intellectual properties, such as the company’s patents and copyrights for its trademarks, movies and movie characters, and merchandise. The remote or macro-environment illustrated in this component of the PESTEL/PESTLE analysis strengthens the need for strategies to improve business sustainability, customer experience, and intellectual property utilization.

Disney’s Strengths – Internal Factor

1. Reliability – Disney has strong ties with its suppliers who provide high-quality raw materials for the company’s production line.
2. Large Cash Flow – Disney has a very strong cash flow system that allows the company to make additional investments in other regions of the company. As of end of 2018, they had a total operating cash flow of 14.3 billion.
3. Strong Negotiation Skills – The Company has established strong networks and negotiated deals to set up distributors and dealers throughout the United States.
4. Proficient Team – Disney has some of the most creative teams that consist of artists, story scriptwriters, and graphic designers. The qualified teams are a mix of experienced professionals with extensive years of experience in the mass media industry.
5. High Brand Value – Disney’s brand name and their logo are easily recognizable. All movies and products that are introduced to the public, usually have the “D” symbol somewhere to show that it’s from Walt Disney Studios, Production, or Company. According to Forbes world’s most valuable brands list, Disney is ranked at number 8 position and its brand value is estimated to be $52.2 Billion.

Disney’s Weaknesses

1. Sky-High Attrition Rate – Walt Disney Company has spent enormous amounts on training and grooming their employees. It has still not improved its high attrition rate.
2. Poor Financial Planning – According to company’s 2018 annual report, Walt Disney has reported a loss of over $ 1 billion. Loss of $580 million due to investment in Hulu and loss of $469 million due to its investment in BAMtech streaming technology.
3. Vulnerable To Competitors – The lack of marketing and promotion could leave Disney vulnerable to competitors. The only time they use ads is when they are introducing another movie or toy. Apart from that, most marketing is done visually, through cross promotion.
4. Insufficient Product Demand Scaling – Disney product designers have poor judgment for the “next-big-idea,” which leads Disney to lose many opportunities compared to its competitors. Whenever there is a serious demand, companies take advantage by coiling up a campaign in relevance. However, Walt Disney fails to take advantage of such opportunities.

Disney’s Opportunities – External Factors

1. Gear Up for Marketing – If Disney decides to make a change in investing in marketing, it could change the many opportunities that they have missed, and possibly stir up new prospects.
2. Core Competencies – With Disney’s expertise in the mass media industry, their set of skills can help innovate technologies and other relative aspects.
3. Big Names Are Worth It – Disney is the number one company for a lot of children and adults who grew up during the Walt Disney era. Disney alone is a perfect branding source that can be used as an alternative to promote further and market a business. Partnering up with Walt Disney Company is a beneficial move that any company can make.
4. Disney’s online streaming service: (Disney+) – Disney is developing a new Direct-to-consumer (DTC) service “Disney+” that will feature all Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar movies. Disney+ is expected to launch in the US market in late 2019. The service could potentially give a tough fight to Netflix with its massive collection of movies and shows. Additionally, Disney+’s basic subscription plan starts at $6.99 per month compared to $8.99 for Netflix. Overall, it is good for consumers because we will have more options and competition may bring the prices down.

Disney’s Potential & Ongoing Threats

1. High Expense Toll – Disney has always spent large amounts on their workforce, employee development, and training. Currently, the average salary offered for a beginner at Disney is $15 an hour. Salary wages around the globe are continuously increasing. With salary wages rising by the country’s law, Disney could end up with lower profits when it comes to paying off their external workforce in foreign countries.
2. Isolation in America – Due to the many ongoing issues with other countries, most of the administration is trying to pull out of international contracts. It includes many manufacturers. A portion of Disney’s manufacturers are in foreign countries, if the isolation phase continues, Disney could be under pressure to gain sufficient profits.
3. Better Products & Technology – Since they are kings in mass media production, the technology could be beneficial for them. Disney isn’t a technology or a software house and therefore cannot make technology to work specifically for them.