Overview
QUALITY OF WORK:
YOU MUST MAKE A SERIOUS EFFORT AND EXPLAIN IN DETAIL YOUR THOUGHT
PROCESS AND REASONING, BACKED UP BY SEARCH RESULTS AND FACTS. DO NOT
TURN IN A PAPER THAT ONLY DISCUSSES EACH TOPIC WITH A SINGLE SENTENCE
OR TWO. THIS IS A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY TO POSITIVELY AFFECT YOUR GRADE.
PROJECT SPECIFICS:
- Choose a product, service, or business in the industry of your choice. Make sure that there
are at least one other similar (but with different target audiences) product, service, or business
in the same industry, so that you can compare the two. Examples: Theme Parks featuring
Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm, and Six Flags Magic Mountain, or magazines like Cat Fancy,
Fortune, and Seventeen, or car models like a Tercel, a Ford F-150, and a Maserati, or food places
like a Soup Kitchen, Denny’s and Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse. Make up your own two.
- Keep it under 15 pages. There are 7 questions on the topics you have chosen
- Double spaced
- No citation page required but if you refer to a webpage, reference it in the footnote
- No table of contents (just answer all questions in the order asked ).
Answer to questions # 1, # 2, # 3, and # 4, should be about two to three pages each. The other 3
questions should equal the other half of the paper.
- Discuss, in as much detail as necessary, the following topics:
1. Describe all of the segmentation variables that your two choices used to target their customers.
How are they different from each other ? (Geographic, Demographic, Psychographic, and
Benefits Sought). A chart that supplements your discussion is necessary. This will be a long
answer.
2. Discuss the Marketing Mix for all two products. (Four P’s) . Compare the two in
detail …Make a chart of the four P’s. I expect this section to be quite extensive (Long
discussion and chart ).
3. Visit the web sites for all two competitors. Give a synopsis of your findings and thoughts. Are
they user-friendly sites? Do they provide needed information? Are they interactive? Do they
offer coupons, locations, or directions, if applicable? Tell me as though I am blind. This should
be pretty detailed.
4. How have each of the two competitors positioned themselves in the market- place? In your
opinion, have they done a good job? If not, why not? Do you feel that the target consumers see
the company properly (as the company expects)? Run small qualitative studies such as
quick interviews from people around you to find out and analyze the results. For example,
do all two competitors occupy the same place in the consumers mind or are they somehow
differentiated from each other? Is one the “quality leader” while the others are vying to be the
“price” leader, etc.?
5. What issues do these competitors have to deal with? Think in terms of INTERNAL and
EXTERNAL factors. Do a SWOT analysis for your primary choice.
6. What can you find out about your two choices and how they are addressing the “societal
marketing concept”? Do they pollute? Do they recycle? Do they use toxic chemicals? (hint: look
at their web sites or in-house literature ). Do they support charitable causes?
7. Provide a descriptive analysis of your impressions of each of the two competitive advertising
efforts. Include
Add some color charts where you see fit and “pretty it up” a little. I will take into
consideration any “extra effort” you put forth that was not specifically asked for….and give
you some extra points to offset any lack of content that I see. It is up to you.
Caution: Do not approach this project as if you are a student. You must think like a
“marketing manager” in order to answer these questions. Think through it carefully.