4. Objectives 14
- Desired Sales Volume 14
- The market research 14
- Target buyers 15
- Market positioning 15
- The product 16
- Pricing strategy 17
- Annual Cash Flow 17
- The integrated marketing communications for ‘Regenerate’
for men face wash 18
- The evaluation of the campaign 18
5. Action Programmes 23
6. Projected profit and loss statement 24
7. Controls 26
2. Current Marketing Situation:
The potential sales
The potential sales that Umbrella Corporation is targeting for the first year of selling
Lm 96, 000 worth of face washes.
The unit cost
Each bottle of ‘Regenerate’ will cost Lm 2.
The potential profits
The potential profits that Umbrella Corporation is aiming to do during the first year of sales Lm 5,300 of profits.
The market
The Product
To solve the problem of many men between the age of 15 to 35, Umbrella Corporation is introducing ‘Regenerate’ For Men, a practical face wash. The ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash is medicated and tested by experts of facial health. To ensure men that are facing acne problems have an effective way to overcome this problem.
‘Regenerate’ For Men is made up of a perfect blend of vitamins A, C, D and E, with natural extracts of:
-
Jojoba Oil: that helps the face to stay smooth;
-
Glycolic Oil: that helps the face to exfoliates and breaks down skin cells and allow cells to rise to the top; and
-
Cucumber Extracts: to have a high boost of moisture.
The ingredients that are added to this product to eliminate the acne problem are:
- Glycolic extract of lemon 2%
- Glycolic sphytoextract of solanceae 1%
- Glycolic extract of dardana 2%
- Algal sulphide fluid extract 8%
- Water solphide from the Termal di Repole
The ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash is very easy and particular to use. It is to be used twice a day for four weeks to have a quick and good result.
- Soak your face with water;
- Shake well the Basics For Men face wash bottle before use;
- Apply face wash mousse, and
- Rinse well with water.
When using the ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash one will not only get rid of his acne but also have a healthy face that will look and feel smooth, soft, and ultra fresh for hours.
The ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash cost only Lm 4.00, the bottle of the ‘Regenerate’ For Men consists of 150 ml.
The Target Audience
The ‘Regenerate’ For Men target audience are; the individuals and households, further detail is given below.
Individuals
Family Life Cycle: Young and Single
Age: 15 – 25 years old
Gender Male
Income: Lm 480 +
Occupation: Students
Education: Secondary students
Post secondary students
University students and
First jobbers
Social Class: Working class +
Life style: Actualisers
Achievers
Strivers
Personality: Gregarious
Compulsive
Ambitious
Benefits: Seeking a quality product
User Status: First-time user
Usage rate: Heavy user
Readiness Stage: Ready to buy
Interested
Loyalty status: Strong
Attitude toward product: Enthusiastic
Motive: To have a fresh and young look and to get rid of any unwanted acne.
Households – Young Married Couples
Family Size Cycle: Young, Married with children
Young, Married without children
Age: 26 – 35
Income: LM 3,000 +
Occupation: Professional & technical
Managers
Officials
Proprietors
Clerical
Sales
Foremen
Operatives
Homemakers and
Unemployed
Education: Grade school +
Social Class: Working Class +
Life Style: Strivers
Achievers
Personality: Gregarious
Benefits: Seeking a quality product
User Status: Regular user
Readiness Stage: Informed,
Interested
Attitude towards product: Enthusiastic
Positive
Motive: To have a fresh look and keep up to date with today’s society
The Distribution of the ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash
Umbrella Corporation is the exclusive importer of ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash. ‘Regenerate’ face wash is an Italian product. ‘Regenerate’ will be sold from our gazeboes at Bay Street, St Julian’s and at the Embassy Shopping Complex Valletta.
The Competitors of ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash
The main competitors of ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash are the facial products that could be found in both supermarkets and pharmacies such as, Nivea, Topexan, Simple, Clearsil and other similar products. From such products the only product that is our direct competitor is the Nivea For Men, since it has a specialised range of products for men while all the other products are unisex.
The major direct competitors of our products are medicated products that could only be found in pharmacies and beauty centres. One of the major competitors that ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash have is Effeclare. Effeclare is a unisex medicated face product that concerns a lot acne.
The History of these products
These products are very frequently used by teenagers and therefore have a high income. Man find it more easier to use face wash rather than a set of products to get rid of their acne. Therefore that is why Effeclare has made a good impact between individual having acne. Basics For Men is targeting the same segment of Effeclare with a difference Basics For Men is just for men not unisex.
Macro environment trends
Macro environment means distant from the company. The company cannot affect its macro environmental factors. The forces that affect the macro environment are political/legal, economic, socio -cultural and technological
Political/legal
The Political and Legal factors affect the benefits of the employees / entrepreneurs, wage levels and stability. Government agencies and laws are the main factors that manipulate our society, but marketing decisions are affected by the developments in the political environment.
- Increasing tax on certain products – thus customers would not buy ‘Regenerate’ due to the product being more expensive unless they get used to it or specifically need it.
- Increasing standard of living
- Changes in prices – this can change the demand on the product as customers may refer to a less quality product.
- Lack of imported products – since ‘Regenerate’ is an imported product, this may cost more due to high overseas taxation rates.
Economical
The economic environment affects the market buying power (goods purchased by the customers). Countries having subsistence economy – (consume their agricultural/industrial productivity) have few market opportunities while the industrial economies have much more opportunities as they have a higher range of goods. Marketers need to pay attention for the customers spending patterns because:
- If the product price decreases, there will be a demand from the customers in buying ‘Regenerate’.
- If the product increases in price, we will have fewer customers buying our product and thus they shall choose another product, which might be of less quality, at a cheaper price
- It is important to have a high competition through advertising, in order to compete with different markets.
- Male models will be used in our advertising campaign.
- A good advertising campaign is necessary to compete with similar products.
Socio-cultural
In our society people mature, and they form up their values and believes. This environment is made up of institutions that influence the societies behaviours, preferences and perceptions.
- In the beginning we shall be using samples to attract men to try our acne free medicated product.
- Billboards and media shall be used in order to publicise our product
- If our customers belief in our product then will shall have a high demand for our product.
Technological
This factor creates new and modern technology especially in the computer world and in the chemical world. Technological environment has also been used for revulsion reasons such as nuclear missiles. Even though technological environment changes as time goes by it creates new products and produces market opportunities.
- The use of the bar code readers will help as a time saver and accurate calculations (since generally shops buy in bulk) from the stock and thus we do not need to calculate stock manually. It is more precise and accurate thanks to modern technology.
- Keeping records of our esteem clientele who use our product so that we shall be able to inform them about any updates or current special offers.
3. Opportunity and issue analysis
Strengths:
- ‘Look Good enterprises’ will be the first and sole agent of ‘Free Spirit for Men’ products. In the States and some parts of Europe this new face wash caused a sensation. People are willing to get rid of their acne problems. Moreover the prices are very affordable compared to its impeccable quality.
- We are able to give good customer care and give suggestions of what clients should choose. We can also devote time to each customer.
-
Our business isn’t affected with the rapid technological changes. Only computers and some equipment need to be upgraded from time to time.
- On Average, our country has always had good records in economic growth. This would give us courage and less thought of the possibility to failure. Moreover the standards of living are continuously improving and the lifestyle of people is improving at the same time.
- Prices will be issued both in Maltese Lira and in Euros, in order to prevent future threats.
- Continuous Research and Development efforts will take place, in order to ensure high standards
- The product is: a reasonable price
Has a good value for money
It is produced from natural ingredients
It is easy to use
It is a high quality product
It softens and smoothens eh skin
It has a fast effect of removal of acne after use
It is an attractive product and
It’s most importantly a medicated product
Weaknesses:
- Our company isn’t yet established and has no market presence or reputation.
- Our cash flow will be unreliable in the early stages, as a lot of expenditure is required.
- We have no regular clientele as yet so we have to be accurate, if possible, perfect with every client so that we achieve a favorable reputation.
- We have limited finance resources, due to our company being in its initial stage.
- Awareness of the market is still lacking.
Opportunities:
It’s confirmed now, that Malta will be a member of the E.U on the 1st of May 2004, below are the opportunities that our business will gain once we are part of the team:
- We won’t be paying any tariffs or taxation when importing products from the UK or any other European country we might deal with in the future.
- Becoming members would lead to the opportunity of having freedom of movement. We would have to target not only local customers but also foreign, that would lead to increase our sales. On the 1st of May ‘04, the E.U population increases to 500 million people.
- Exporting our products would be easier if we decide to enlarge the business in the future and when we create a stable corporate image.
- The standards of living will improve even more so (compared to other countries that went through such an improvement). Every business will benefit from such a thing.
- Our business sector is expanding, as people are becoming more cautions of their Image, this envisions many future opportunities for success e.g. a wider range of products and opening new outlets (in Valletta)
- Our continuous advertising on magazines and billboards will not make it easy for people to forget about our company and in the long run create presence in the fashion industry, aiming to be leaders in the local market.
Threats:
- Being part of the E.U will result in various negative causes including:
- The country will probably be experiencing a recession period once we become members and it will take time in order to settle economically.
- As time passes by, Malta’s population is becoming even more aging. As we are targeting the younger generation (15 – 45), in the future the rate of people with that age will decrease radically. Moreover the birth rate is very low.
After doing this a business will be able to focus on its strengths, minimize its weaknesses, take the greatest possible advantage of opportunities available and if possible avoid future threats.
4. Objectives:
Desired Sales Volume
We are targeting that Umbrella Company Limited will sell 24, 000 face washes within a year.
Market Share
We are aiming to have a market share of 6%.
The market research
The Primary Research
A questionnaire was used to identify how many men in Malta suffer from acne. This questionnaire was distributed to:
- Secondary school students;
- Post secondary school students;
- University students; and
- Various working sectors.
From this questionnaire we were able to identify:
- approximately how big is our market segment;
- what they prefer to use for their daily facial care;
- how are they ready to spend for a facial product; and
- which products that are mostly used by men for their daily facial care.
Refer appendix 1 for sample questionnaire and refer to appendix 2 for the report on the questionnaire.
Secondary Research
We made use of statistical data that was gathered from NSO regarding the Maltese population by gender and single years of age. Refer to appendix 3.
Target buyers
Individuals
The individuals selected are between the ages of 19 to 25, they are either first jobbers or are studying at university.
Such individuals are potential buyers of our product; this is because they do not need to think twice when buying a product due to them not having any family expenses or major expenses.
They are easily convinced, as they like to experiment and feel better in their peer group. It will also contribute towards their status.
Looking and feeling good with no acne insight is a very important factor within this age gap, in spite of socialising and interacting with society. Thus our product will definitely look very attractive.
Households
The targeted individuals within the households heading are the young and married men who have and don’t have children.
These targeted individuals would buy our product to be able to reduce their acne problem, either to remain young and good looking or because their current job obliges them to do so.
A certain number of young married men still like to keep themselves up-to-date with their looks but are more aware about the ingredients it contains.
Market positioning
We are currently launching the product for Umbrella Ltd, ‘Regenerate’. We believe that ‘Regenerate’ has substation issues which creates a competitive advantage over our already well established competitors.
The competitive advantages that ‘Regenerate’ withholds over its competitors are:
- ‘Regenerate’ has a fast effective formula after continuous use for 5 days; one may notice a difference in the way his skin appears.
- ‘Regenerate’ is a product exclusively imported from Italy- where Italians give a high importance in the way they look, especially men.
- ‘Regenerate’ is made especially for men, with an easy formula- upon how to apply. The importance of time was also taken into consideration due to nowadays life is such a rush. By using ‘Regenerate’, one just places the right dosage massages into the face and washes it back off immediately.
- Compared to other face wash- ‘Regenerate’ is only aiming at the male segment and has a clearer view upon who to aim for- unlike other face wash that are unisex.
- ‘Regenerate’ is made specifically from natural product and does not contain traces of alcohol- thus it may be used also after undergoing any operations.
- Include in the packaging a ‘usage questionnaire’ will be given – in order to inform the customer upon the frequency and for how long is to use this face wash according to his skin type and acne.
The Product
The core product
‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash is mainly created to get rid off acne and give the face a healthy and fresh look.
The actual product
‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash is made up of a perfect blend of vitamins A, C, D and E with natural extracts of:
-
Jojoba Oil: that helps the face to stay smooth;
-
Glycolic Oil: that helps the face to exfoliates and breaks down skin cells and allow cells to rise to the top; and
-
Cucumber Extracts: to have a high boost of moisture.
The ingredients that are added to this product to eliminate the acne problem are:
- Glycolic extract of lemon 2%
- Glycolic sphytoextract of solanceae 1%
- Glycolic extract of dardana 2%
- Algal sulphide fluid extract 8%
- Water sulphide from the Termal di Repole
The augmented product
The augmented product of ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash is the usage questionnaire, provided together with the product. The usage questionnaire is complied in order to know for how long and how frequently one is to use the ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash to get rid off acne and remain with a clear and fresh look. Refer to Appendix 4
Packaging
The packaging of ‘Regenerate’ is very attractive and practical to use.
The primary container: The packaging is a plastic bottle of 150ml, which has a nozzle through which the mousse could come out. That is why ‘Regenerate’ is a very practical product. The nozzle is covered with a transparent plastic cap.
The secondary container: The secondary container is a cardboard box that consists of the name of the product and the ingredients, and the details of the manufacturing company.
The shipping container: ‘Regenerate’ face wash for men is imported in a cardboard box that consists of 20 bottles. On the outside of the box printed, one will find the name of the product, the details of the product and details of the importing company.
Pricing Strategy
The price of ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash is value-based and market-penetration strategy. The price is not low and it is very reasonable. These two pricing strategies where used in order to increase the market share and attract a large number of customers.
“Regenerate” – for men face wash compared with the competitors’ price, is being sold at a good value for money. The price being charged is Lm4.00, which is a very good price for the high quality.
Annual Cash Flow
The integrated marketing communications for ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash
The following section indicates the promotional communication mix that (our company) is to use:
- Advertising;
- Direct Marketing;
- Sales Promotion;
- Personal Selling; and
- Public Relations.
We will be advertising on television, radio, press and posters.
We will be sending 6,000 brochures to both individuals and households. Also 100 brochures will be distributed during the products launch that will be held on the 8th April, 2004. Refer to Appendix 5.
Sales promotion will only be used for the period of the promotional campaign. The customers who will have the brochure of Regenerate are entitled for a free bottle of Regenerate when buying two bottles of Regenerate.
The personal selling will not be used to sell the ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash.
It is a very important factor in an organisation. Thus Umbrella Company Limited will give a high performance to public relations throughout the forthcoming years of the Umbrella Company Limited.
The evaluation of the campaign
Television:
We shall be advertising on PBS during Xarabank that is aired live every Friday evening at 20.30 hours for three months. A 10 second advert will be shown.
We shall have intensive advertising during the first two months and decrease the advertising within the last month.
During the first two months = 4 weeks = 8 slots x Lm 30 = Lm 240
In the last month = 1 week = 1 slot x Lm 30 = Lm 30
Total costs for television = Lm 270
Press:
Newspapers and magazines tend to hold on to their readers and be still purchased by some people everyday. Adverts on such media is even more effective as the viewer has time to read it, analyse it and think about the advert portrayed. The designing and wording is firmly important at this stage. Such factors can boost or degrade a product.
Magazines: The magazines that have a high circulation tend to be supplements in newspapers. We shall be advertising on Tune In Magazine and First Sunday, a life style magazine released monthly with the Sunday Times and The Malta Independent (36,000 circulation). A half page advert shall be made, in colour. Most households and younger generations read this magazine. On the other hand, in order to target individuals between the age of 15 – 25, we suggest advertising on Insite and MCAST Link.
Insite: We shall be advertising 2 months alternate with MCAST.
Half Horizontal – 6 issues = Lm30
2 issues x Lm 30 = Lm 60
MCAST Link: We shall be advertising 1 months alternate with Insite.
Half horizontal – 6 issues = Lm 60
1 issues x Lm 60 = Lm 60
Total Costs for on campus Magazines: Lm 120
First Sunday: We shall advertise monthly
First 3 months –
Half page colour = Lm 160
3 issues x Lm 160 = Lm 480
Tune In: we shall advertise for the first 3 months
Half Page colour = Lm 160
3 issues x Lm 160 = Lm 480
Discount of 8% on 6 issues
Lm 960 x 8% = Lm 76.80
Lm 960 – Lm 76.80 = Lm 441.6
Total Costs for Sunday magazines: Lm 921.60
Newspapers: Adverts on the Sunday Times and Independent on Sunday shall be made. A half page advert in black and white shall be published for the first 3 months, every week.
First 3 month (every week)
10 issues x half page mono = Lm 170
Total = Lm 1, 700
Total costs for Sunday newspapers = Lm 1, 700
Radio: We shall be advertising on Campus FM and XFM. We are refusing to advertise on political radio stations even though they tend to be the most effective on the island, for the reason that it creates a political image to the company, which tends to leave a negative impact.
Campus FM: We are to advertise for two months from Monday to Friday.
3 slots per day of 10 seconds = Lm 3.00 per day
80 days x Lm 3 = Lm 240
XFM: We shall be advertising during Carlo Borg Bonaci breakfast show between 7.00 to 9.00, for two months from Monday to Friday. There will be 2 spots per day, 1 spot every hour.
2 slots per day of 10 seconds = Lm 3.50 per day
40 days x Lm 3.50 = Lm 140
Total Costs for radio = Lm 380
Posters:
Bus Stop posters: 1 region
14 posters for 10 days
Lm 532.96 including design and printing
Bus: inside posters
1 poster = Lm 4 per month
10 posters = Lm 40 per month 2 busses
Total cost for posters: Lm 572.96
Grand Total for advertising: Lm 6, 616.16
Direct marketing:
Printing Brochures: Lm 500
Mailing Brochures: Lm 420
Grand total for direct marketing: Lm 920
Other expenses:
Design of brochure: Lm 250
Design of press advert: Lm 200
Grand total for other expenses: Lm 450
Grand Total: Lm 5, 867.52 (excluding VAT)
Lm 6, 923.67 (Including VAT)
For an evaluation of the campaign of a year refer to appendix 6 and appendix 7 for all the advertising rates used.
Adverts:
TV Advert:
The TV advert will consists of the following wording and structure:
Imagine a world were you could reverse the affects of acne, stress and sun. From the leading name in facial care for men comes Regenerate. Another breakthrough from Umbrella Company Ltd. Regenerate has an effective formula that brings dead cells back to life. Regenerate assures a healthy and smooth face.
Regenerate is a registered trade mark of Umbrella Company Limited.
Our Business is life itself.
Throughout this slot, relaxation music will be played and a woman will read the above quote. In the background of this slot a male model will be using the product.
Radio advert:
The radio advert will be the same as the television advert, the only difference will be that the male model using Regenerate could not be seen by the audience.
Press advert:
The press advert is a mid way between persuasive and informative. The press advert will be back and white for newspapers and in colour for magazines.
5. Action Programmes:
When the Product launch will be held.
The product launch will be held on Thursday 8th April 2004 at 9.00p.m. at Carissa Bar Intercontinental St. Georges Bay St. Julians.
A contract has been agreed upon with Mr.Andrew Decesare of Intercontinental Malta that on Thursday 8th April, the Carissa Bar will be closed exclusively for our product launch. It has also been agreed upon that the premises will be given to us free of charge on the conditions that the bar will be open with normal bar prices. For additional information of Carissa Bar refer to Appendix 8.
During the evening, stands will be placed around the bar (weather permitting a few stalls will be placed outside) in order to launch and inform our esteem clientele about “Regenerate” for men face wash.
Samples
The sales staff that will be at the stands throughout the evening will distribute a sample of “Regenerate” face wash to inform the customer in the most effective way possible (sales staff have received specific training regarding the product and the selling of the product).
Who is to be present for the product launch
We shall be distributing hundred (100) invitations to:
- Beauticians
- Doctor’s specializing in skin care
- MCAST Hair and Beauty lecturers
- Journalists
- The important people in the fashion Industry
The invitation is valid for holder and the guest. Invitations are to be distributed by post not later than 1st April 2004.
Refer to Appendix 9 for invitations
How much the product launch will cost
The costs for Umbrella Company Ltd will be:
- Wages (Sales Person)
-
Samples Refer to appendix 10
-
Brochures Refer to appendix 5
- Invitations
-
Business Cards Refer to Appendix 11
How the design of the design of the staff will be
The stalls will be 60cm by 120cm covered with a silk baby blue throw over. On the stall there will be the “Regenerate” for men face wash, the brochure and the samples of the “Regenerate” for men face wash.
Also there will be a stall where interested clients could buy the “Regenerate” for men face wash.
6. Projected profit and loss statement:
Here one could find the Balance Sheet and the profit and loss account of ‘Regenerate’ For Men face wash
7. Controls:
Within an organisation it is important to keep control upon all ( most of) the on going’s in the organisation, so as to take precaution just in case any mishap occurs, or so as to avoid any disaster which may be foreseen.
Apart from the other factors, the most important factors to take most control upon are:
- Debtors accounts,
- Debtors due dates,
- The accounts of our company,
- Selling ratios,
- Stock checks and,
- Delivery times
Debtors Accounts / Debtors due dates are important to keep an eye upon, just incase:
- The debtor is not in good financial terms.
- If the debtor is not in good financial terms then we shall not sell a big bulk on credit.
- The debtor is not paying us on time.
- The debtor has a high pending bill to be paid off.
- We need to chase the debtor if he has a high pending bill and has not given any reasons.
The accounts of our company are also important to keep an eye upon (monthly) this is because:
- It is important to compare the actual to the budgeted accounts
- If the actual has differed form the budgeted it is important to find out the reason – whether it is valid or not.
- Mistakes done on a monthly basis are easier to correct then on a yearly basis.
Selling ratios are important to take into consideration so as to be able to know how much to buy on our next consignment, and if we are not selling our product as expected to, we can research upon what is the reason and how can we escape such an obstacle.
Stock checks and delivery times. By making various stock checks, and checking upon delivery time, keeps the organisation well informed upon:
- How much stock we have in our stores,
- How much stock must be gotten rid of, due to expiry dates, and
- Whether the amount of stock on our databases agrees with the amount of stock in our stores, and
- To check whether our suppliers are distributing the product on time
Bibliography
Books used:
-
Armstrong Gary & Kotler Phillip, 2003, Marketing An Introduction 6th Edition, Prentice Hall, New Jersey
- Cohen Willam A., 1995, The Marketing Plan, John Wiley & Sons, Canada
-
Stokes David, 1997, Marketing 3rd Edition, Continuum, London
- Yeshin Tony, 2001, Integrated Marketing Communications, Butterworth-Henemann, Oxford
Website used:
Word Count: 4, 400 words
