Question

Case Study I

The Fortune company deals with oil products which are supplied to public and private cosmetic companies. The CEO Mr. Usama of Fortune consistently used to cut the advertising budgets. To overcome this, his managers, on several occasions had presented Mr. Usama evidence of a solid link among, advertising, preference, market share & profit. Each time this occurred, the CEO would maintain his stand. Lately a manager brought to him a research article on advertising. It showed that the average industrial firm can increase its market share by 30 per cent, when it backs up the sales force with advertising. Mr. Usama, reflected on the range of his products/market situation and said “That’s only true sometimes and leaned back”.

Questions

(1) How does increase in advertising expenditure relate to increase in sales? Give five

reasons with proper justification for each reason. (5 Marks, Minimum 50 words)

  

Submit the assignment by Writing the Answers ONLY in a separate word document by Mentioning the your Name , I,d number , Section and version number.

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(2) a. You are required to identify the problems in the above case and suggest suitable solutions with proper justification. (2 Marks, Minimum 20 words)

b. Do you think that marketing research can change the stand of CEO. Considering the above case mention any three importance of marketing research.

(3 Marks, Minimum 30 words)

Case Study II

Zulkhar, who owns a distribution firm, started his own brand for men’s wear. While his earlier business of the distribution of other renowned brands was doing well, his own brand could not do well and could not find customers in the market. He hires a consultant and gives him a clear description of his business. The case study tries to extract the research process- the consultant would take up.

In the light of above the above brief description, answer the following.

Questions

(3) a. Describe any three important points to be taken into consideration before starting

the research process. (3 marks, Minimum 30 words)

b. Mention two problem which you think the researcher can face in the research process for this case. ( 2 Marks, Minimum 20 words)

(4) Assuming yourself as a consultant and using your marketing knowledge give five suggestions to Zulkhar for his brand so that it can do well in market.

(5 Marks, Minimum 50 words)

Case Study III

You are employed as a manager in a medium size business which is a limited company and has ambitions to expand. The Managing Director (MD) of the organisation is not a marketing professional and does not have a good understanding of the role of marketing in business. He knows from your CV that you have studied marketing principles and practice and he is keen to use your understanding and skills. At a meeting with the MD you are asked to complete the following tasks.

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Task

Your task is to help him understand the role of marketing in business. You need to explain to the MD what marketing is and the role it plays in the achievement of business objectives. You have decided to produce a file which addresses each of the topics listed below. You will present the file at your next meeting with the MD with the answer of the following :

Questions

(5) Describeindetailtheroleofmarketingintheachievementofbusiness

objectives.

(5 Marks, Minimum 50 words) (6) Analyze how the external factors influence marketing process in business.

(5Marks, Minimum 50 words (7) Assess the role of marketing in not for profit organizations.

(5 marks, Minimum 50 words)

Long Essay Type Questions.

(8) L. G. Electronics from South Korea wants to launch its digital CTV as a colour television in Oman market. As a marketing consultant advise the company on segmentation and positioning strategy to be adopted for identifying the right groups of customers in Oman.

(5 Marks, Minimum 50 words)

(9) “A product is the sum total of physical, social (performance like music, dance, etc.) and psychological (medial advice, financial advice etc.) benefits, the products for easy identity, will have a descriptive name.” Explain the five features of the product.

(5Marks, Minimum 50 words)

(10)“Among the various elements of marketing mix, it is the price that accounts for demand and sales revenue and all other elements are cost factors. Therefore price is a unique element in marketing mix.” Elucidate five kinds of pricing in detail. (5 Marks, Minimum 50 words)

Answer 1

(1) Advertising basically is the message about your product/ service that you want to communicate to your potential customers. It focuses on a factual description of what the product/ service is, what the features, benefits of consumption are and so on. Sales should actually be the end result of your advertising program. Your communication should eventually lead to more number of your products/ services sold. Increase in advertising expenditure is expected to lead to increase in sales -

(i) Through advertising, it is possible to reach and talk to the customers directly. You tell them about your offering and present facts. Consumers need this information to make the purchase. If they do not even know the basic facts about the product/service, they are less likely to buy.

(ii) You can reach almost all demographics of people through advertising. While your retail or wholesale stores would only reach a few customers in the vicinity, advertising can help you reach a wide array of potential customers without needing to open endless number of stores.

(iii) Emotional advertising appeals to the senstivity of the people. If you create your communications campaign in a way that reaches the hearts of the consumers, they will become your loyal and lifetime customers.

(iv) It helps in increasing future sales by the power of recall. Once your advertising campaign has made an impression on the minds of the consumer, he will be able to recall that message whenever he makes a purchase. So even if he/she does not buy the product immediately, he will certainly recall and buy in the future.

(v) Advertising can be persuasive in nature as well. It doesn't always have to be informative. You can design campaigns persuading consumers to buy your offerings, thus increasing sales.

(2) (a) The main issue in the case above is whether to increase advertising expenditure. Mr. Usama (CEO) does not believe in the effectiveness of advertising and insists on cutting advertising budgets. But his managers continue to believe that increased advertising spend would lead to more sales. They continue to try to persuade him. They have already shown him articles highlighting the importance of advertising, and tried to talk him into it. Since all of this does not seem to be working, maybe it's time for them to follow experimental approach. Instead of going all out with increasing advertising expenditures, they should instead pick a product, spend a little on advertising that product, and see the effects. If advertising leads to the increase in sales of that particular product, the next step would be to do a cost-benefit analysis for the same. Armed with empirical evidence from their own company and their own product, they will be able to overcome this problem.

(b) Another approach that can change the opinion of the CEO is market research. Real insights into what consumers want and think. Market Research is very important for adverstising -

(i) Market Research identifies what types of advertising campaigns would resonate well with the customers and be the most effective. This makes sure that money is not misspent and maximum benefit is derived from advertising spend.

(ii) Market Research is basically finding things about your potential customers that you don't know. Advertising works better if you know your customer.

(iii) You will be able to know what factors effect purchase behavior - this can lead to product modifications as well if need be.