MARK1115 Introduction to Marketing

MARKETING PLAN STRUCTURE: Written Report Format (80 MARKS):

Please follow the below format for your written report. (page lengths are guidelines only. Sections may vary depending on the type of business selected and please use Chicago Manual of Style)

MARKETING PLAN STRUCTURE: Powerpoint Slides Presentation (Total: 50 MARKS – PPT Slides and Performance)

Title: Names, course, college, date, project title

Agenda

Product Information

Current marketing situation

Provide a high level overview of the market, identification and review of at least 2 direct competitors. (1 to 2 slides)

SWOT analysis

Strengths & Weaknesses:  what are the key strengths and weaknesses of your newly formed organization?  Aspects to consider include:  human resources, finance, operations, and marketing. (1 to 2 slides)

Opportunities & Threats:  what are the key trends / issues in the external environment?  Identify and discuss: regulatory, economic, social, technological, demographic and competitive factors.  Identify and assess major threats and opportunities that the product/company may face. (1 to 2 slides)

Objectives  

What are your organization’s specific targets/milestones?  Includes, but not limited to:  launch date, market share, unit sales, projected revenue, projected profit, number of locations and number of employees. (1 slide)

Marketing strategy

Outline your organization’s marketing strategy:

Target Market Strategy – Who is your typical customer?  How many potential customers do you have?  Which ethnic groups and why? What is the estimated dollar value of the market segment? (1 to 2 slides)

Product / Service Strategy – What is your product or service?  What makes your product better or different? (1 to 2 slides).  

Price Strategy – What are your pricing objectives?  What is your unit price?  (1 to 2 slides)

Promotion Strategy – What is your key message to market? What element(s) of the promotional mix are you using? (Advertising, Public Relations, Sales Promotion, Personal Selling, Direct Marketing ) Budget?  Timeline? (1 to 2 slides)

Distribution (Place) Strategy – What is (are) your key channel(s) to market? (1 to 2 slides)

Implementation Plan – What specific actions are required by your team in the next 12 months?  What will be done?  When will it be done?  Who will do it?  (1 slide)

Projections  – Using a simple spreadsheet model, what are your projections for the next 5 years?  Include estimates (and underlying assumptions) for: unit sales, revenues, costs and profit.  (1 to 2 slides)

Controls - How will your organization measure and monitor progress?  (1 slide)

This is a group assignment.  Evidence of plagiarism will result in a mark of zero for this assignment.

Please limit your presentation to approximately 20 PowerPoint slides and no more than 15 minutes.  

Assessment

Term projects will be assessed based on completeness, clarity, originality, and professionalism.  Marks for your Term Project will be allocated as outlined below.

PRESENTATION PPT Slides (50 MARKS)

Key elements are included and addressed in appropriate detail:

• Title
• Agenda
• Current situation
• SWOT
• Strengths and weaknesses analysis
• Threats and opportunities analysis
• Objectives
• Marketing strategy
• Implementation plan
• Projections
• Controls

Presentation Performance (50 MARKS)

Presentation covers key elements in appropriate detail.  Presentation will be assessed on: organization, energy, clarity and overall professionalism.

Marketing Written Report (80 MARKS)

See above for details.

Spelling, grammar, professionalism, research performed, number of works cited (Chicago Style)

Total Presentation and Written Report: 130 MARKS* or 16% of the course grade

Please refer to Marketing Plan Outline in your eText (Chapter 2 and Appendix 2) for reference.

*10 bonus points will be given to groups with diverse members (gender, ethnicity, nationalities, programs, and others). Please note – maximum mark is still 100%.

Gender: 2 points; Nationalities: 2 points; Ethnicities: 2 points; Others.

THE PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS (Part 1)

1. Establish a list of meeting dates, times and locations. Ensure that the times selected are acceptable to ALL team members. Failure to attend group meetings may result in your colleagues reducing your participation mark.
2. A project plan outlining the business chosen, the team ‘manager’, members’ responsibilities, action items and due dates is strongly suggested.
3. The project will be assessed based on the team’s ability to apply and present the concepts you have learned in the course.

Please refer to the appropriate sections of the Marketing Plan Outline in your text (Chapter 2 and Appendix 2) for more details.  Sections may vary depending on product / service selected.

Use the ‘notes’ feature of PowerPoint to provide notes on each slide.  This will provide the instructor with the needed information to accurately grade the assignment.  

Your presentation will involve each team member, and will be no more than 15 minutes in length.  Every member of the group must be present and actively participate in the presentation in order to receive a mark on the term project.  

Attendance is mandatory for all students for each group presentation.  Individual grades may be adjusted at the discretion of the instructor in the event of student absence during presentations.  In general, students will receive 0% for the presentation portion of the term projects if absence during the presentation.

Peer evaluations are due at the beginning of class on the day that your team presents.  Failure to submit the completed peer evaluations, on time, may result in a 10% penalty.  Peer evaluation forms are available on the course site.  Instructor reserves the right to adjust individual grades based on peer evaluations

THE PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS (Part 2)

1. You are in a group of 5 students. 10 bonus points will be given to groups with diverse members (gender, ethnicity, nationalities, age, etc). For example, if you are in a group with all genders, ethnic groups, and various nationalities, then you are very likely will get 10 bonus points. The instructor will determine how many points being awarded to each group. The goal is to allow students the opportunity to experience what the real life work environment is.
2. Then you will need to determine the role each member will play. It is important for the group to openly discuss each member’s strengths and weaknesses.

The key roles are:

Team leader – this member is responsible for ensuring that all the activities are completed on time and to the satisfaction of the team.

Research – all team members will be involved in gathering data.

Analysis – some members of the team will be responsible for analyzing the data and drawing conclusions from the data.

Strategy development – all members must play a role in developing the marketing strategy.

Writing the marketing report – ensure that at least one member of the team has excellent grammatical writing skills

Preparing the marketing presentation- ensure someone with expertise in PowerPoint.

Editing – ensure that at least one team member has the responsibility for proofreading and editing the slides.

3. Establish a list of meeting dates, times and locations. Ensure that the times selected are acceptable to ALL team members. Failure to attend group meetings may result in your colleagues reducing your participation mark.
4. A project plan outlining the business chosen, the team ‘manager’, members’ responsibilities, action items and due dates is strongly suggested.
5. A Group Code of Conduct (see Appendix I) must be submitted by _______,
6. A Group Project Update (see Appendix II) should be completed by _______, 2018.  
7. The project will be assessed based on the team’s ability to apply the concepts you have learned in the course. You will be expected to cover all the steps in Point 8 below.