MAC Cosmetics Direct Marketing Strategy

This assignment analyzes the effectiveness of direct marketing strategies for MAC Cosmetics. It examines various channels like online websites, email campaigns, and others. The analysis suggests improvements to enhance customer response rates and increase average order value through website design, product presentation, and complementary offerings. The document also explores one-step and two-step sales approaches within the context of MAC's brand image.

Running head: MARKETING AND COMMUNICATION
Marketing and communication
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

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MARKETING AND COMMUNICATION
Executive summary
The objective of the paper is to analyze the steps taken by the company to carry out direct
marketing for its newly invented matt lipstick range and its effect on problem solving. MAC
Cosmetics uses various direct marketing channels and is able to learn the feedback of the
customers through it. Moreover, analyzing those feedback it can modify the products it wants
to launch. Through direct marketing the brand is also able to present itself to new target
market and offer various discounts and complementary. This direct marketing is helpful for
the brand in great way.

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................2
Product description.....................................................................................................................2
Supply in Conjunction with the Product....................................................................................2
Ways to consult the team...........................................................................................................3
Procedure to respond for the offer from the Customer..............................................................3
Offers to Potential Customers....................................................................................................4
Offers to the Customers.............................................................................................................4
Two Feedback giving channels for customers...........................................................................5
Two Ways to follow up with the Customers..............................................................................5
Modification to the product........................................................................................................5
Ways to Mitigate the Issues.......................................................................................................6
Type of Sales..............................................................................................................................6
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................7
References..................................................................................................................................8

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MARKETING AND COMMUNICATION
Introduction
Direct marketing is one of the methods of marketing that the company adopts to offer
its products to the customers. It is a promotional method used by an organization to present
its products directly to the consumers instead of hiring an advertising agency to sell its
product. It is also known as a target market strategy a company uses to present important
information about their products that could be of potential interest to the customers (Lund and
Marinova 2014). Some of the direct marketing tools that the company adopts are social
media, text messages, emails, online advertisement display and others (Risseladaet al. 2014).
The report will discuss about the direct selling method used by MAC Cosmetics to market
their lipstick to the potential customers as well the existing customers. Further it will discuss
the efforts taken by the company t connect to the customers directly and improve on their
feedbacks.
Product description
MAC Cosmetic is a well-known brand for cosmetics both for men and women. The
company has used various market reaching strategy to sell its products such as franchisee
partners, online marketing, banner ads and others. However, it was noticed by the company
that the previous marketing strategies did not prove to be that successful for the company.
Thus is because some of the franchisees were not giving proper efforts to increase sale and it
was being difficult for the company to track all its franchisee partners. Thus, the brand
decided to put forward its new matt lipstick to the customers through direct marketing
activity. Lipstick will be in various colors to suit each skin tone.

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Supply in Conjunction with the Product
Direct marketing of the product will also offer various other appealing products with
it. The products will be available in combos or in complementary with the newly invented
lipstick. Some of the conjunction supply the company will offer with the lipstick is a lipstick
remover or a lip liner to the customers. This is done to make the customer feel motivated to
buy the products and will allow the company to be successful in their marketing plan.
However, the conjunctions offered by the company in not the only way it motivates its
customers. It has other plans and strategies too in order to make it direct marketing plan
successful (Belchet al. 2014).
Ways to consult the team
The company needs to present these plans with its team members and consult them
before executing the plan. This helps them to know the quality of their plan and the chances
of success. Moreover, it will also allow the members of the organization to feel involved in
the decision making of the company (Moriartyet al. 2014). There are three ways the company
can consult their team about their offers and plans.
1. The company can hold meeting on the daily basis to share the plan it has thought
about for its new product launch.
2. It can ask its employees involved in marketing team to prepare a presentation
themselves for the launch of the new product to know their ideas as well.
3. Lastly, it can ask the team members to modify the idea that the company has thought
about marketing the new product.

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Procedure to respond for the offer from the Customer
Customers are the main source of the brand to analyze the acceptance of the ideas and
offers put forward by the company in the market for its new lipstick. However, it is necessary
to know the response of the customers (Edelmanet al. 2016). MAC Cosmetic is planning to
market its new lipstick launch through social media and thus can know the response of the
customers in the following way:
1. The company can send a form to the customers through emails and messaging that
will consist of number of questions regarding the offers and the complementary they
are giving with the lipstick.
2. It can also analyze the acceptance of the offer by viewing the number of times
customers are ordering the product from its website.
Offers to Potential Customers
Potential customers are those that the company wants to target in near future for
expanding its existence in the market. Moreover, MAC Cosmetics target medium age rich
customers that can afford the premium pricing strategy used by the company. However,
presently the brands wants to targets the young customers for its new range of lipstick. Thus
the company will allow offers to the product by way of discount of 25 percent to its lipstick
in its first month of launch. It will also offer some free products with the lipstick such as
sample foundation sachets and others. This will motivate the young generation to buy the
products (Vinereanet al.2013).
Offers to the Customers
The brand also has certain plans and offers for the existing customers of the company
for motivate them to have the trust in them. Thus, the brand will also give extra 10 to 20

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percent off to the customers who have been their continuous customers. For the purpose the
brand will register the customers before the launch of the lipstick to keep a track of their loyal
customers. Together with this it will also offer free lipstick usage demo to the customers in it
company owned store.
Two Feedback giving channels for customers
The online website of MAC Cosmetics through which it sells iys products and offers
will also be used by the company to get feedback of the customers about the new lipstick and
the quality. The online website has a comment option where the customers can comment
about the product and their expectations from the product. Other way is the grading systems
that the brand follows in which the customers can rate the product from 1 to five. These two
feedback giving system will be available for the customers to help them make further
modifications (Van Noortet al.2015).
Two Ways to follow up with the Customers
It is also important for the brand to follow up the opinion of the customers themselves
by organizing events and other options. The two ways in which MAC Cosmetics can follow
up the opinions of its user and know the acceptance rate of the product in the market are:
1. The brand can use direct emailing system in which it can ask few questions to the
customers about the usage of the product and the price it is charging for the lipstick.
2. It can also organize few exhibition in various places such as shopping malls, where
the customers can easily offer some feedback.

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Modification to the product
After getting the feedback form the customers the company needs to modify the
products according the needs of the customers. For example the feedback that MAC received
for the lipstick was a mixed opinion given by customers. Thus the brand can make following
modification to the products such as:
1. It can adjust the price of the lipstick as MAC offers its products at premium prices.
2. As the lipstick is matt consumers might have problem with the excess moisture
content in it if possible. Thus the company can recheck the content fo the lipstick and
make it as per the need of the customers.
Ways to Mitigate the Issues
In case there is high response rate and still the profitability is low then the brand
should check the cost of manufacturing the lipstick. Secondly cost of direct marketing should
also be looked to increase the profitability. For low response rate and high cost the brand
should check the comments and feedback of the customers and act accordingly. Lastly, for
increasing the average order value the company should present all the complementary
products and offers it is offering to the customers in its official website along with some
usage demo (Verhoefet al. 2015).
Type of Sales
The brand can ensure one step sale in its official website where the customer can
order. It can frame the page of the order stating the steps to be followed while ordering in the
how to order option. Next is just after the order is place a pop-up should come stating the
confirmation of the order with the tracking ID number. Lastly, the product and services
should be presented in a colorful as well as jazzy manner as the brand is promoting lipstick

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and its richness. One step sale is supported by its online official website (Booneand
Kurtz2013).
Two step sale can be done by emailing the catalogues and a demo for the usage of the
lipstick to the potential customers. Through this emailing system the brand can attract traffic
to their online website.
Conclusion
From the above analysis it can be deduced that MAC Cosmetics can sue direct
marketing channels through online website, emailing and others. It needs to present itself at
its best to attract customers through direct marketing. Moreover, direct marketing is very
helpful for the company to analyze the need and demands of the customers.

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References
Belch, G.E., Belch, M.A., Kerr, G.F. and Powell, I., 2014. Advertising: An integrated
marketing communication perspective. McGraw-Hill Education.
Boone, L.E. and Kurtz, D.L., 2013. Contemporary marketing. Cengage learning.
Edelman, B., Jaffe, S. and Kominers, S.D., 2016. To groupon or not to groupon: The
profitability of deep discounts. Marketing Letters, 27(1), pp.39-53.
Lund, D.J. and Marinova, D., 2014, August. Managing revenue across retail channels: The
interplay of service performance and direct marketing. American Marketing Association.
Moriarty, S., Mitchell, N.D., Wells, W.D., Crawford, R., Brennan, L. and Spence-Stone, R.,
2014. Advertising: Principles and practice. Pearson Australia.
Risselada, H., Verhoef, P.C. and Bijmolt, T.H., 2014, March. Dynamic effects of social
influence and direct marketing on the adoption of high-technology products. American
Marketing Association.
Van Noort, G., Willemsen, L.M., Kerkhof, P. and Verhoeven, J.W., 2015. Webcare as an
integrative tool for customer care, reputation management, and online marketing: a literature
review. In Integrated communications in the postmodern era (pp. 77-99). Palgrave
Macmillan UK.
Verhoef, P.C., Kannan, P.K. and Inman, J.J., 2015. From multi-channel retailing to omni-
channel retailing: introduction to the special issue on multi-channel retailing. Journal of
retailing, 91(2), pp.174-181.

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Vinerean, S., Cetina, I., Dumitrescu, L. and Tichindelean, M., 2013. The effects of social
media marketing on online consumer behavior. International Journal of Business and
Management, 8(14), p.66.