Marketing assignment - analysis of lastminute.com

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INTRODUCTION

Lastminute.com is one of Europe's leading online retailers of leisure and travel products and services. Founded in 1998 by Brent Hoberman and Martha Lane Fox.

Appendix

The Lastminute.com was founded in London by Martha Lane Fox and Brent Hoberman in 1998 to offer late holiday deals online. The founders were colleagues at media strategy consultants Spectrum. Lastminute.com is the UK’s leading online travel & leisure retailer. Lastminute.com offers its customers the opportunity to book flights, tickets, hotels and more through a one stop shop. From adventuring in the mountains to relaxing beach breaks, spa stays, theatre trips and dining, there really is something for everyone. At lastminute.com it’s an extended family of brands that offer everyone the widest choice of products possible. From holidays to hotels, car hire to business travel, providing all the travel options everyone ever need.

The company has 480 employees around the globe. Ahead of its flotation in the share market the company has raised a further  $31m from seven new investor such as BAA, Hotel Resorts, Sony music entertainment, Mitsubishi corporation finance, Vivendi’s viventures, Starwood hotels and Priceline.com. The company profit margin was 62,000 GBP at end of October 2012.

The Lastminute.com has biggest market competitors upon arrival of Expedia, ebooker and TUI travels.

Lastminute.com offer customer great online discount and deals, occasionally the company offer online competition for customers.

Task 1a (I) DISCUSS CORE MARKETING CONCEPTS

Definition and Explain

There are many important aspects of marketing. Marketing can be defined as the process of creating, pricing, distributing and promoting goods, services or ideas to facilitate satisfying exchange relationships with customers. Basically, it involves creating the right product, at the right price, putting it in the right place with the right promotion in order to make your customers, or target market, happy.

The sale of a product, service or idea can be thought of as an exchange. When buying a product a customer is exchanging their money and time in order to receive the benefits of your product which could include comfort, status, and look. For a satisfying exchange to occur each party to the exchange need to have confidence in the something of value held by the other party and when the exchange is complete, be happy with what they have received. When marketing something should be trying to creating, and then maintain, satisfying exchange relationships. Not only should you be trying to attract new customers, you should also try and increase the profitability of current relationships with customers and increase their duration.

To be an effective marketer you need to plan, organise, implement and control all aspects of the marketing process. You need to assess possible opportunities and resources and determine your marketing objectives. You need to organise everything so you are ready to implement your plan. Successful implementation of your plan requires you to coordinate all marketing processes and finally, you need to establish your performance standards and compare your actual performance with your expected performance.

Marketing is to understand the needs of the customer and to create those needs and help them to identify and fulfil their needs whereas branding is to help the customer for identifying the products. It gives the value, reliability, trust and assurance. Brands are the assets of marketing because it is very helpful when a marketer is marketing his product in terms of needs, wants, demands, value, uses, and exchange and transaction. Marketing for the purpose of selling is based upon 7 P’s which are follows:

1. Product

2. Price

3. Place

4. Promotion

5. People

6. Process

7. Physical

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Task 1a (II) EXPLAIN 3 DIFFERENT ASPECT OF DEFINITION: IDENTIFYING, ANTICIPATING AND SATISFY CUSTOMER NEEDS

IDENTIFYING:

Marketing is about making sure that a business is providing the goods and services that customers want. It involves identifying what consumers want today and will want in the future. The marketing department then plays an important role in taking these goods and services to market so that consumer’s can judge on each products.

ANTICIPATING

Anticipating a customer's needs is an important part of most retail and wholesale businesses, especially in a more challenging retail environment so they choose to come back. Anticipating needs also provides opportunities for personal and professional growth. A business that takes the extra step of anticipating and providing for an obvious corollary need can generate loyal, repeat customers; and even a humble clerk who is alert to the needs of the customer standing in front of them is sure to advance.

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SATISFY CUSTOMER NEEDS

It means if a customer for example wants something done or has a complaint, you try to fix it. Also maybe money can satisfy the consumers because they can buy what they want and their needs. Customer’s always need quick and efficiency service in order to make them happy, so that they can come back next time.

(Lecturer information)

Task 1b (I) DEFINITION OF CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOUR

Consumer buyer behaviour refers to the multi-step decision-making process people engage in and the actions they take to satisfy ...

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