Market Communication Plan for Kooks

This paper proposes a marketing communication plan for Kooks and two of its most famous products, namely, its Shiraz and Chardonnay wines, respectively. The paper analyses the pricing strategy, explores the nature of the Australian wine market and consumer behaviour and proposes marketing, communication and sales objectives based upon this analysis

Running head: MARKET COMMUNICATION PLAN FOR KOOKS
Market Communication for Kooks
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1MARKET COMMUNICATION PLAN FOR KOOKS
Executive Summary:
This paper proposes a marketing communication plan for Kooks and two of its most famous
products, namely, its Shiraz and Chardonnay wines, respectively. The paper analyses the
pricing strategy, explores the nature of the Australian wine market and consumer behaviour
and proposes marketing, communication and sales objectives based upon this analysis

2MARKET COMMUNICATION PLAN FOR KOOKS
Introduction
This market communication plan seeks the promotion of Kooks’ Shiraz and
Chardonnay wines in the market. Kooks is a Victorian-based wine company that offers a
charity of $1,000 on the basis of the sales of both of these products in order to make the
world a better place. This plan is slated to commence from October, 2019 and it would be in
operation for two years on and from the said date. This plan is applicable for the wine market
of Australia and it is meant to address the need to attract the attention of younger Australian
wine drinkers who may not be aware of the brand or be aware of its mission.
Situation Analysis
Marketing Mix Analysis
The products in question that has to be promoted are Kooks’ Shiraz and Chardonnay
wines. The Shiraz wine was first created in 2012, which was the result of blending premium
grapes that are cultivated in the Barossa Valley and South Australia. This product could
either be enjoyed young or it could be enjoyed about five to seven years later, provided that it
had been matured by proper cellaring during the time period mentioned (Good 2015).
The Chardonnay wine is a blend between the grapes grown in Victoria and in the
Yarra Valley. The optimal conditions for its production is a cool climate, a feat that was
achieved in 2012. This wine could be enjoyed the most after it has been allowed to mature for
four years (Good 2015).
Pricing of wine is a crucial factor in order to ensure that the end consumer is certain to
buy the product. It has to be remembered that being a luxury consumer good, wines are
considered to be a sum of all the parts that are used to make it as well as the sum of intangible
qualities that makes a wine brand unique from the rest of its market competition; therefore, a

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hedonic price regime is at operation here. In the Australian wine market, hedonic pricing
estimates are thought to be independent of the retail prices that are employed; the main
difference in pricing that is witnessed between various brands depends upon the reputation of
the wine producer and the region to which the producer belongs to. Market prices seem to go
down with a proportional increase in the size of the producer in question (Oczkowski 2016).
On the other hand, from the consumer’s point of view, there exists a relationship
between the pricing of the wine and the willingness with which a consumer is prepared to pay
for it. Given that a majority of wine drinkers are non-experts when it comes to winery, it has
been found that a complex relationship exists between wine appreciation, price and the
willingness to pay. It has been found that among non-expert wine drinkers there is no
relationship between intrinsic wine character and enjoyment and price influences both
appreciation of the product and the willingness to purchase it, especially price has a marked
influence on the consumer’s willingness to buy it. Such a dynamic has strategic implications
for competitors in the wine industry (Lewis and Zalan 2014), and this should be kept in mind
while deciding the price at which the products could be sold in the market.
In terms of product marketing and distribution, the Australian wine market happens to
be one of the most competitive wine market in the world. As such, in order to make a
headway in this competition, there is a need to segment the market into relevant sections in
order to formulate relevant and profitable market strategies. Johnson and Bastian (2015) have
devised the Fine Wine Instrument as a measure to understand the consumption behaviour in
the market by creating relevant segments. The existing levels of competition can be overcome
if consumer behaviour is correctly understood and the necessary strategies are devised
accordingly.

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As far as the promotion of the products in question are concerned, it has been minimal
in nature. Even though Kooks has a website of their own and a social media presence on the
Internet, it seems that no active promotions of the products or its charitable mission has led to
consumers not being aware of Kooks’ position in the market.
Internal Factors
The staff member responsible for marketing and promoting the concerned products is
Chris Tucker, who holds the position of Marketing Director (Kooks.com.au, n.d.). The
advantage that small, artisanal enterprises have when it comes to marketing and firm
development rests solely on the basis of passion with which they seek to conduct their
business operations (Watne and Hakala 2013). However, it is very difficult for a small-scale
enterprise undertaking artisanal production to compete in a market which is competitive in
nature, without the aid of any kind of major government assistance and when there is no
dedicated staff to map out a strategic plan of marketing its products (Aruna 2015). Therefore,
the absence of a talented staff dedicated to market the products in question in an effective
manner is a weakness that needs to be thoroughly addressed. This weakness can be addressed
on a temporary basis by assigning an external agency to carry out marketing functions on
behalf of Kooks, by collaborating and consulting with them to make the marketing strategy a
fruitful one.
Seeing that there is the need for an external agencies which would handle Kooks’
marketing functions in lieu of the absence of a dedicated staff oriented towards marketing,
the selection of an external agency to outsource marketing services of Kooks would be highly
optimal for the company. Contrary to popular belief where outsourcing has been blamed for a
host of problems and issues, engaging an external agency to carry out certain functions has
shown to be highly beneficial for small-scale producers as much as it has benefited major
corporations around the globe (Mohinuddin and Su 2013). The selection of this agency would

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be crucial as it would depend on how reputed it is within the industry and how well could it
help to market the products among the identified, target population.
External Factors
The typical customer for Australian wines are influenced by cognitive, sensorial and
relational experiences when it comes to expressing brand engagement, which in turn
influences their desire to purchase a brand of wine (Altschwager and Bouzdine-Chameeva
2017). Coupling with this domestic phenomena is the wider global phenomena witnessed
among the so-called “millennial” generation pertaining to the purchase and consumption of
sustainable products, including sustainable wine (Pomarici and Vecchio 2014). These
attributes have to be borne in mind while devising effective marketing plans in order to
maximize its rate of success for the products that are to be promoted.
The Australian wine market, as it has been mentioned, is a very competitive entity.
The existence of competitive brands in the market complicates the promotion of the
concerned products but by carefully analysing the past trends of the market and the responses
that these various brands have given can give a glimpse of the manner in which we would be
able to make our marketing strategy an efficient exercise by correctly factoring in the variable
of competitor activity, behaviour and response. Thus in the market plan, special attention has
to be placed upon the observance on other competitive brands in the market.
The socio-cultural milieu of Australia cannot be restricted under a single, monolithic
definition. Rather, Australian culture is a complex and dynamic phenomena that has its own
history and historical development. From the colonial period to the emergence of the
federation and commonwealth, Australian culture has been heavily influenced by liberal
values and a lot of progressive ideas have entered popular discourse in recent decades (Fiske
2016). The politics of the country is stable and the government has no restriction on private

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ownership and it encourages an active, free market that is rife with competition. Currently,
the popular culture of Australia is being shaped by the youth whose affinity for the use of
technology and propensity for readily accepting new developments is making the society an
inclusive one, where activities like social drinking are encouraged rather than frowned upon.
Such a consideration would obviously have a great impact on how the marketing of the
products in question are conducted and how would it be received by consumers.
SWOT Analysis
Strength
 Premium hand-crafted wines created
from the best grapes, and there is a
lot passion involved in their
creation.
 An emphasis on customer
satisfaction and customer service.
 An existence on the Internet space,
allowing for easy access and
communication.
Weakness
 It is a small-scale enterprise, running
on a limited number of staff
 There is an absence of a dedicated
marketing staff.
 There is no attempt at formulating a
comprehensive promotion plan, as a
consequence.
Opportunities
 There is a lucrative consumer base
into whom Kooks could tap into in
order to boost sales.
 It has the ability to outsource its
marketing functions to a firm that
could effectively develop a detailed
Threats
 Fierce competitive market which
poses a challenge to any proposed
marketing stratagems.
 A drastic change in consumer
attitude over a short period of time,

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marketing strategy. even if it is highly unlikely.
Target Marketing
Market Segmentation
Based on the Fine Wine Instrument that had been devised by Johnson and Bastian
(2015), the Australian wine consumer market could be segmented in the following manner, as
showcased in the table below:
1. Wine Enthusiasts Compared with the other two segments, this
section consume more wine, are more
knowledgeable about wine and spent the
most money on the purchase
2. Aspirants This section consumes relatively less wine
that the first segment. Their consumption is
patterned around significant social
occasions, and consequently they consider
drinking wine to be a symbol of luxury.
3. No Frills Compared with the foregoing segments of
the consumer market, this section doesn’t
consider wine as a consumable product and
are content with consuming other kinds of
traditional, hard beverages like spirits and
beer.

8MARKET COMMUNICATION PLAN FOR KOOKS
Target Market
Of the above three segments that have been mentioned in the table, the Wine
Enthusiast segment is the most viable target market as they are most knowledgeable when it
comes to everything pertaining to wine and they spend the most money on it. Factoring in the
nature of consumer behaviour that has been mentioned above, this demographic should be the
target of the marketing strategy.
Target Audience
Among the Wine Enthusiast segment, focus should be made upon the younger section
within this section, especially those who have just attained drinking age and who are within
their early and late twenties.
Positioning Statement
Kooks should continue to position its products as being hand-made, crafted with
passion and love for wine making. The products should be associated with young people who
love good wine and who appreciate the effort that goes into making wine that is of good
quality and which tastes good. It should be marketed as being reasonably priced and being
affordable for those who wish to enjoy the luxuries of wine within the limitations of their
budget.
Objectives
Marketing Objective
The marketing objectives would involve the promotion of the products in such a way
that the sale of the Shiraz and Chardonnay wines by Kooks increases and occupies a greater
share in the market share.

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Communication Objectives
The communication objectives of Kooks should pertain to spreading its message of
contributing a part of the profit it receives as charity, with the goal of making the world a
better place. It also should communicate about its One-4-One programme which involves
sponsoring events with their drinks.
Sales Objectives
The sales objectives should focus upon increasing the sales of Kooks’ Shiraz and
Chardonnay wines by double the amount of its current rate of sales by the first quarter of
2020, and this should be seen as an initial indicator of the marketing plan’s success and the
basis for further development of the marketing strategy that has been devised by the external
agency.

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References
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Bianchi, C., Drennan, J. and Proud, B., 2014. Antecedents of consumer brand loyalty in the
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Fiske, J., Hodge, B. and Turner, G., 2016. Myths of Oz: reading Australian popular culture.
Routledge.
Good, B. (2015). Chardonnay. [online] Kooks. Available at:
http://www.kooks.com.au/wines-blog/chardonnay [Accessed 22 Jul. 2019].
Good, B. (2015). Shiraz. [online] Kooks. Available at: http://www.kooks.com.au/wines-
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Kooks.com.au. (n.d.). [online] Available at: http://www.kooks.com.au/s/Kooks-Event-Wine-
Sponsorship-Package.pdf [Accessed 22 Jul. 2019].

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