MARKETING RESEARCH

The principal activity of General Mills is to produce and market packaged consumer food products. The products include cereals, desserts, flour and baking mixes, dinner and side dish products, organic products, snacks, beverages and yogurt products. The products are sold under the brand names namely: Cheerios, Wheaties, Lucky Charms, Total, Chex, Pillsbury, Haagen-Dazs, Betty Crocker and Bugles. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. is one of the major customers of the Group. As of 2005, the company operated in the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe and Asia/Pacific.

In order to determine the impact of an important strategic move, such as lowering prices or introducing new products, General Mills uses marketing research. General Mills ran into problems when a pesticide panic hurt sales and private label makers started to cut into their market share. Store brands have become increasingly popular with consumers. Store owners took advantage of cereal prices of up to $5 per box, resulting in increased market share for the store brands. At least one cereal maker, Quaker Oats, started making a house brand version of its cereal. Quaker’s lower priced-bagged-copies of leading brands have grown rapidly and advanced Quaker’s market share to over 10%. Ralcorp Holdings Inc., the leading maker of private label cereals, expects the trend of house or private brands gaining increased market share to continue, since only about half of the leading cereals have private label competition. Ralcorp expects to gain a larger portion of the market as it continues to introduce more imitations. Some industry experts believe that unless the big brand name cereal prices are cut, or the promotions increased, this trend will continue.

In order to address this problem, General Mills conducted problem solving research to determine what, if any changes they should make to their price and promotions strategy. In order to determine the effects of changes, consumer surveys were undertaken followed by test marketing. The results of General Mills test markets suggested several pricing and promotional changes that would help increase their success. General Mills cut prices on several of its cereal lines. Along with this price reduction, General Mills cut its coupon and promotion budget in an effort to halt spiraling costs and to reduce the price gap between General Mills’ products and the competition, which had been as high as 25% in the past.   

In addition to lowering prices, General Mills launched sweetened cereals to capture the aging baby boomer market. In January 2005, the company introduced Fiber One Honey Clusters, which has slightly sweetened flakes instead of the original Fiber One’s fiber twigs. This introduction was based on the belief that if a product does not taste good, it does not matter what the nutritional benefits are. It is not going to be a success. The sweetened cereals have also helped to insulate General Mills from price competition. Private labels are less likely to knock off the sweetened brands, either because they are too narrowly targeted at market niches or because store labels cannot compete with the hefty marketing budget of General Mills. These moves have increased General Mills’ sales and profits. The strategy of consistently low prices and introducing niche products, supported by marketing research, is paying high dividends for General Mills.

Questions

2.              If General Mills decides to conduct causal research to determine the effects of the "Fiber One Honey Clusters' flavor" on demand for cereals by baby boomers, what type of true experiments would you advise them to design? why and how? . (20 points -200 words approx.)

ASAP PLEASE!!!!

MARKETING RESEARCH

The principal activity of General Mills is to produce and market packaged consumer food products. The products include cereals, desserts, flour and baking mixes, dinner and side dish products, organic products, snacks, beverages and yogurt products. The products are sold under the brand names namely: Cheerios, Wheaties, Lucky Charms, Total, Chex, Pillsbury, Haagen-Dazs, Betty Crocker and Bugles. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. is one of the major customers of the Group. As of 2005, the company operated in the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe and Asia/Pacific.

In order to determine the impact of an important strategic move, such as lowering prices or introducing new products, General Mills uses marketing research. General Mills ran into problems when a pesticide panic hurt sales and private label makers started to cut into their market share. Store brands have become increasingly popular with consumers. Store owners took advantage of cereal prices of up to $5 per box, resulting in increased market share for the store brands. At least one cereal maker, Quaker Oats, started making a house brand version of its cereal. Quaker’s lower priced-bagged-copies of leading brands have grown rapidly and advanced Quaker’s market share to over 10%. Ralcorp Holdings Inc., the leading maker of private label cereals, expects the trend of house or private brands gaining increased market share to continue, since only about half of the leading cereals have private label competition. Ralcorp expects to gain a larger portion of the market as it continues to introduce more imitations. Some industry experts believe that unless the big brand name cereal prices are cut, or the promotions increased, this trend will continue.

In order to address this problem, General Mills conducted problem solving research to determine what, if any changes they should make to their price and promotions strategy. In order to determine the effects of changes, consumer surveys were undertaken followed by test marketing. The results of General Mills test markets suggested several pricing and promotional changes that would help increase their success. General Mills cut prices on several of its cereal lines. Along with this price reduction, General Mills cut its coupon and promotion budget in an effort to halt spiraling costs and to reduce the price gap between General Mills’ products and the competition, which had been as high as 25% in the past.   

In addition to lowering prices, General Mills launched sweetened cereals to capture the aging baby boomer market. In January 2005, the company introduced Fiber One Honey Clusters, which has slightly sweetened flakes instead of the original Fiber One’s fiber twigs. This introduction was based on the belief that if a product does not taste good, it does not matter what the nutritional benefits are. It is not going to be a success. The sweetened cereals have also helped to insulate General Mills from price competition. Private labels are less likely to knock off the sweetened brands, either because they are too narrowly targeted at market niches or because store labels cannot compete with the hefty marketing budget of General Mills. These moves have increased General Mills’ sales and profits. The strategy of consistently low prices and introducing niche products, supported by marketing research, is paying high dividends for General Mills.

Questions

1. In its attempt to perform descriptive research design, what type(s) of survey and observation methods do you recommend to be used by General Mills in order to determine their pricing and promotional strategies needed to face private labels. ( 20 points - 250 words approx.)

ASAP PLEASE!!

In this chapter, we have noted how businesses are dynamic and constantly looking to exploit new opportunities that involve changing the way they operate production. What might not have been a success for some firms does not mean to say that there are no other firms that will be able to benefit. This article shows how problems faced by one firm in making sufficient profits are not necessarily shared by other firms as the use of factor inputs is changed.    

Best Buy Fails to Break UK Market.

US electrical retailer, Best Buy, made an attempt to enter the UK electrical retail market in 2010. The retailer is known across the united states for its high-quality sales staff and discount prices and attempted to bring its business model to the crowded UK market which features the likes of Currys, Argos, Dixons, and Comet.

The plans to enter the UK market arose when Best Buy Inc. brought half of the Carphone Warehouse's retail interests. Plans were made to open up to 200 so-called 'Big-Box' stores throughout the UK within the first one opening in Thurrock, Essex in April 2010. However, facing strong competition a lack of brand recognition by UK consumers, and the rapid growth of online retailing from firms like Amazon, Best Buy found things difficult and by January 2012 a decision was made to close down its 11bricks and mortar retail operations following losses of around 62 million pounds.

The decision to close down was made after consideration was given to commit more capital to its operations in an attempt to secure the advantages of large-scale production - economies of scale. In the end, the cost of such an investment in relation to the expected benefits in a market which was challenging (given the economic situation in the UK, the income elasticity of demand for electrical goods in general, and the increasing use of online as the medium of choice for shoppers), meant that option was discounted.

The decision to close down operations will have been takin in the light of the expected costs of trying to maintain its presence on the high street and the future of the industry as a whole. it would not have been taken lightly as reports suggested closing down would cost Best Buy and Carphone Warehouse around 100 million pounds.

One option being considered was selling its stores to the UK's fourth-largest supermarket group by share, Morrisons. Morrisons was reported to have expressed interest in acquiring the stores, mostly in large out-of-town retail sites, for its Kiddicare brand of baby, infant, and small children's products such as toys, pushchairs, costs, and so on.

The reports caused interest in the markets and some surprise given the challenges that exist in that market for some of the reasons that Best Buy found life difficult. An increasing trend to purchase goods online and the economic climate had already seen retailers like Mothercare and its Early Learning Centre stores facing declining sales and profits. Kiddicare had been an almost exclusively online operation and so the decision by Morrisons to move into the bricks and mortar sector was seen as a high-risk move.

Questions:

1. For Morrisons, what is the difference between the short run and the long run in this case?

2. Explain some of the reasons why Best Buy made such losses in the UK given its global size.

3. How might Carphone Warehouse and Best Buy have gained economies of scale if they had 'committed new capital'?

4. Why might Carphone Warehouse and Best Buy 'incur a cost of as much as 100 million pounds' in closing down the stores?

5. If Mothercare is 'troubled' why might Morrisons believe it can succeed with Kiddicare?

Disruptive technologies offer a new way of doing things that initially does not meet the needs of existing customers. Disruptive technologies redefine the competitive playing fields of their respective markets, open new markets and destroy old ones. this week is to talk about a disruptive technology that offered a new way of doing something and the market that it destroyed.

It is claimed that a new treatment of a very serious disease will substantially reduce the mortality of that disease from its present rate of 25%.We observe an SRS of 100 patients who have submitted to the new treatment and note that only 10 of them die from this disease. Does the new treatment seem to make a significant improvement?

Evaluate the use of VPN and propose an alternate solution for a company to expand their existing VPN network to another country e.g. New Zealand. In proposing an alternate VPN network design, consider the following factors: 150 new users added 5 users in New Zealand 20% growth of users in 4 years for the entire network

You’ve just hired a new sales rep for your Car Dealership, Graham’s AutoMart. Your job is to train the new person on how to sell cars. Describe each of the steps in personal selling process and how these steps would apply to selling cars so that your new employee will understand how to do their job.

Nike

Nike hit the ground running in 1962. Originally known as Blue Ribbon Sports, the company focused on providing high quality running shoes designed for athletes by athletes. Founder Philip Knight believed high-tech shoes could be sourced from overseas at competitive prices. Nike’s commitment to designing innovative footwear for serious athletes, helped it build a cult following among US consumers. Nike believed in a ‘pyramid of influence’ in which the preferences and testimonial of top athletes influenced the product and brand choices of others. From the start its marketing and advertising campaigns featured accomplished athletes: in 1985 basketballer Michael Jordan was signed up, albeit then as a rookie.

In 1988 the ‘Just Do It’ campaign was launched. The campaign subtly challenged a generation of athletic enthusiasts to chase their goals. It was a natural manifestation of Nike’s attitude to self-empowerment through sports.

Nike began expanding overseas. In Europe it found that its US-style ads were seen as too aggressive. To authenticate its brand in Europe it focused on soccer and became active as a sponsor of youth leagues, local clubs and national teams. Further pursuing its strategy of professional endorsements, Nike decided to sponsor the Brazilian soccer team, which turned in to a big break when they won the World Cup in 1994. In 2007, Nike acquired Umbro a British maker of soccer-related footwear, apparel and equipment. This acquisition helped to boost Nike’s presence in soccer.

Continuing overseas expansion, China became a focus during the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Although Adidas was the official sponsor, Nike received special permission from the International Olympic Committee to run Nike ads featuring Olympic athletes during the games and sponsored most of the Chinese teams. Some believed Nike’s marketing strategy during the Olympics was more effective than Adidas’s Olympic sponsorship.

Through the 1990s Nike moved into baseball, football, cycling, volleyball, hiking, soccer and then golf. During this time it developed a repeatable growth strategy[1]. Athletic shoes continued to be the core starting point but Nike then quickly moved into adjacent segments: into apparel and then equipment.

Internally Nike marketers adopted the three-word brand mantra: authentic athletic performance, to guide their marketing efforts. Its entire marketing program must reflect these brand values. Nike has expanded its brand meaning form ‘running shoes’ to ‘athletic shoes’ to ‘athletic shoes and apparel’ to ‘all things associated with athletics including equipment’. However it is always guided by the brand mantra. For example, as Nike rolled out its successful apparel line, the product had to be innovative enough through material, cut and/or design, to truly benefit top athletes.

Expanding into new categories and then new segments required the company to forge new distribution channels and lock in suppliers. Nike has pursued a selective distribution strategy. It pulled its product from the retail chain Sears when they acquired discount chain Kmart, to make sure Kmart did not carry the brand.

Expanding into new product categories meant new endorsements including Tiger Woods for golf. In tennis, John McEnroe was its first brand star in 1986. More recently Nike has aligned with Maria Sharapova, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Some called the 2008 Wimbledon final between Federer and Nadal – both dressed in swooshes from head to toe – a 5-hour commercial valued at $10.6 million.

Nike has an unfortunate history of associating with some athletes who attract adverse publicity. In the 6 months following Tiger Woods highly publicised personal scandal, Nike lost over 100,000 customers[2] and although several sponsors cut ties with Woods, Nike did not. Nike did however terminate is contract with disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong once the doping evidence became ‘seemingly insurmountable’. Oscar Pistorius is the latest example of a Nike endorsement that could turn sour.

Nike has also attracted adverse publicity regarding its offshore facilities; centring on working conditions and low wages, with media accusations of exploitation. Whilst Nike has assumed a policy of reformation for its abuses, the issue became, and continues to be, a recurring public relations nightmare for Nike.

NikeiD (rebranded as Nike by You) is a service provided by Nike allowing customers to customise and design their own Nike merchandise. This was launched in 1999 through the Nike website. Delivery is offered too many countries but not currently to Australia and New Zealand; here on-line local companies may act as local distributors for customised Nike products.

Basketball superstars have continued to feature in Nike’s promotions. In addition it formed a partnership with Foot Locker to create a new chain of stores in the US, House of Hoops by Footlocker, which offers only basketball products by Nike sub-brands such as Converse and Jordan.

Recently, Nike’s lead in the running category has grown to 60% market share, thanks in part to its exclusive partnership with Apple. Nike+ technology includes a sensor that runners put into their running shoes and a receiver, which fits into an iPod, iTouch, or iPhone. Then the athlete goes for a run or hits the gym, the receiver captures his or her mileage, calories burned, and pace, and stores it until the information is downloaded. Nike+ is now considered the world’s largest running club.

In 2008 and 2009, Nike+ hosted the Human Race 10K, the largest and only global virtual race in the world. The event, designed to celebrate running, drew 780,000 participants in 2008 and surpassed that number in 2009. To participate, runners register online, gear up with Nike+ technology, and hit the road on race day, running any 10K route they choose at any time during the day. Once the data is downloaded from the Nike+ receiver, each runner’s official time is posted and can be compared to the times of runners from around the world.

Like many companies, Nike is trying to make its companies and products more eco-friendly. However Nike does not focus on promoting this. As one brand consultant explained: ‘Nike has always been about winning. How is sustainability relevant to its brand?’ Nike executives agree that promoting an eco-friendly message would distract from its high-tech image, so efforts like recycling old shoes into new shoes are kept quiet.

As of 2020 Nike continues to dominate the athletic footwear market with a 50% world market share. Swooshes abound on everything from wristwatches to skateboards to swimming caps. The company’s long term strategy focuses on basketball, running, soccer/football, women’s fitness, men’s training and sports culture. As a result of its successful expansion across geographical markets and product categories, Nike is the top athletic apparel and footwear manufacturer in the world, with annual corporate revenues exceeding $39 billion.

These questions are compulsory and relate to the Nike case (on pages 3 and 4 of exam). Read the case and answer the following questions.

1. Evaluate all aspects of Nike’s marketing strategy. Within your evaluation, explain fully the reasons for success – or failure. Conclude your evaluation with a summary bullet point list of i) strengths, and ii) weaknesses.
2. You are contemplating accepting a consultancy with Nike’s rival Adidas to help them hone their marketing strategy to compete with Nike
3. 1. You have a meeting scheduled with two of Adidas’s senior accountants who are suspicious of the value of marketing. You have been asked to present to them: Your ‘Top 5’ - that is 5 key marketing points that should contribute to marketing success with a brief explanation of each. (5 marks)
4. 2. In light of your evaluation of Nike’s marketing strategy, outline some marketing strategy recommendations, with rationale, that Adidas may consider.

Changes in Education Attainment: USE SOFTWARE - According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the distribution of Highest Education Attainment in U.S. adults aged 25 - 34 in the year 2005 is given in the table below.

Census: Highest Education Attainment - 2005

In a survey of 4000 adults aged 25 - 34 in the year 2013, the counts for these levels of educational attainment are given in the table below.

Survey (n = 4000): Highest Education Attainment - 2013

The Test: Test whether or not the distribution of education attainment has changed from 2005 to 2013. Conduct this test at the 0.05 significance level.

(a) What is the null hypothesis for this test?

H₀: p₁ = p₂ = p₃ = p₄ = p₅ = 1/5

H₀: The distribution in 2013 is different from that in 2005.     

H₀: p₁ = 0.14, p₂ = 0.48, p₃ = 0.08, p₄ = 0.22, and p₅ = 0.08.

H₀: The probabilities are not all equal to 1/5.

(b) The table below is used to calculate the test statistic. Complete the missing cells.
Round your answers to the same number of decimal places as other entries for that column.

(c) What is the value for the degrees of freedom?  

(d) What is the critical value of χ²? Use the answer found in the χ²-table or round to 3 decimal places.
t_α =  

(e) What is the conclusion regarding the null hypothesis?

reject H₀

fail to reject H₀    

(f) Choose the appropriate concluding statement.

We have proven that the distribution of 2013 education attainment levels is the same as the distribution in 2005.

The data suggests that the distribution of 2013 education attainment levels is different from the distribution in 2005.     

There is not enough data to suggest that the distribution of 2013 education attainment levels is different from the distribution in 2005.