Report: Marketing Strategies and Plan for British Airways

This report examines the marketing function of British Airways (BA), an international airline. It begins by outlining the roles and responsibilities of the marketing department, including technological advancements, brand image creation, after-sale services, market research, service management, pricing, and customer analysis. The report then delves into how marketing supports wider organizational objectives, such as enhancing profitability and maintaining a positive brand image. It explores the marketing mix elements of British Airways, comparing them with competitors. Finally, the report culminates in the preparation of a comprehensive marketing plan for BA, incorporating promotional activities, distribution channels, and financial considerations to ensure a competitive advantage. The report highlights the importance of research, customer focus, and technological integration within BA's marketing strategies.

THE MARKETING FUNCTION
WITHIN BRITISH AIRWAYS

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1 Role and responsibilities of marketing function in organization......................................1
P2 Role of marketing related to wider organizational objectives...........................................6
M1.........................................................................................................................................10
M2.........................................................................................................................................10
D1.........................................................................................................................................10
TASK 2..........................................................................................................................................10
P3 Marketing mix of British Airways..................................................................................10
M3.........................................................................................................................................16
D2.........................................................................................................................................16
TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................17
P4 and M4 Preparation of marketing plan............................................................................17
D3.........................................................................................................................................20
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................20
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................22

INTRODUCTION
Marketing is the process that creates value for company and develops relationship with
consumers. It is considered as management process that assist business unit in identifying needs
of consumers and providing them satisfactory goods and services. Marketing is the most
effective method that aids the firm in communicating the message with the mass audience and
making them aware with the product and services of business unit (Arnett and Wittmann, 2014).
Present study is based on British Airways (BA), it is the international airline firm. This is popular
for its premium services. Currently company is operating its more than 75 countries across the
world. Present study will discuss role and responsibilities of marketing function in organization.
It will explain marketing mix elements of British Airways and will compare it with the
competitor brand. Furthermore, report will prepare marketing plan for BA.
TASK 1
P1 Role and responsibilities of marketing function in organization
Marketing department plays a
significant role in maintaining
all the marketing functions
such as building up the image
of the company, it's brand
value, helps in reaching out to
the prospected consumers,
investors, maintaining healthy
public relationship,etc. The
marketing manager control and
coordinate with other
departments for smoother and
faster function of the
organisation (Gummesson,
2015).
The British Airways,UK is a
leading international airline
Technologically Updated: The
marketing head its working in
technologically upgraded
environment its important for
him to be known to all
commonly used technology of
its field. The company was the
first to introduce online
boarding passes t its customer
so its important for the
company to have trained staff
who are well aware of recent
technologies (Jindal and et.al,
2018). More over Marketing
head of company must familiar
to online portals and social
media he should be able to
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company engaged in dealing
with the international flights,
mail, transporting cargoes and
other auxiliary services. The
British Airline is one of the
first airlines to be environment
friendly by reducing its
greenhouse emission and being
technologically advance by
providing there customers
online boarding pass. These
are some marketing strategies
that provided a competitive
advantage to the company. But
to make company sustain in
long run its important to
effectively fulfil its marketing
role (Hanssens and et.al,
2014).
represent the company on
these platforms should be able
to handle it properly.
Creating Brand
Image: The company should
create the loyal and positive
image on its customers. The
customers should maintain its
faith for longer time, this can
be possible only by
maintaining and developing
your companies image. The
good image of company will
always bring a better goodwill
to the company which key
aspects in any industry. The
British Airways must work to
improve its brand image
(Gummesson, 2015).
After sale services: Its
important to have a proper and
sound customer feedback
policy, customer care,
customer support are few ways
to get customer feedback about
company services. The
customer service policy of The
British Airways is well
planned and executed it has
provided wide ranges of
services to its customers
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ranging from onboard
guidance to baggage handling
to bookings, cancellation and
re-bookings on demand of its
customers (Hanssens and et.al,
2014).
Key Duties and
Responsibilities of Marketing
Function Of British Airways
are:
Conducting Research :
One of the basic but yet major
function of marketing is to
conduct research regarding the
trends, competitors strategies,
demographic location, etc. the
British Airways conduct
surveys and research work in
relation to its customer choices
and feedback regarding
services. Which gives it's a
competitive advantage (Huang
and Sarigöllü, 2014).
Service Management :
To be on the top company
must provide the best yet the
cost effective services. The
British Airways,UK is engaged
in many auxiliary services if
any department of company
fails to provide the justifiable
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service it will be harmful for
the image of the organisation
as whole so its important for a
company to maintain the same
standard service in all areas.
The flights being the most
prominent sector company
should try and improve the
service of this area (Jindal and
et.al, 2018).
Pricing Function : The value
to be paid for the product and
services being offered to the
customers. The major aspect to
be looked upon while pricing
any product is the overall
production cost incurred. The
company should carefully set
price for its service it should
be within the budget of both
the customers and the
company (Gummesson, 2015).
Analyses the targeted
customers: To make your
product have mass reach its
important to carefully target
your customer, once done
create and maintain the
product according to it's need
and taste. The British Airways
must carefully see to what kind
Hence, The British Airways
has to developed a strong and
sound Marketing strategies to
withstand the competition in
airline industry, strong
communication networks
including well trained staff,
upgraded technologies, strong
feedback mechanism. This will
bring an advantage to the
company. It should focus to
meet the needs of all class.
Bring up new ideas and plans
so as to get more profits
explore in new areas and field
of not only the technology but
also targeted market. As the
organisation believes that there
are people who are willing to
pay more for better services,
so the services in this areas
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of service should be given to
each class of customers.
should improved (Huang and
Sarigöllü, 2014).
Further, it should see that it
maintains good public relation
by fulfilling its social
responsibilities towards the
environment by introducing
the best technologies regarding
fuel and energy consumption,
should invest to buy eco-
friendly planes to reduce its
carbon footprints. The
company has enough resource
which can be fully exploited,
it's a need to use them
efficiently and effectively
(Jindal and et.al, 2018).
Make available source of
Finance: The chap financing
sources must be made
available to the company.
Being it a aviation company
the need of finance is regular
and more quantity. The
marketing head should make
available the finance as when
required but he should also
maintain the cost of finance.
Promotional Activities: To
attract and lure more number
of customer proper
promotional strategies must be
driven. Channels of promotion
must be strong and cost
effective. The company must
promote its brand through
newspaper t.v. commercials
and online portals like social
media platform example;
Facebook Twitter and
YouTube (Hanssens and et.al,
Research for marketing
initiatives: To adopt and
implement new techniques or
methods. The British Airways
must work towards its
marketing initiative, introduce
new initiative in it's
advertisement, and interacting
platform
Distribution channels:
To make your products \
services easily reachable from
its production area to your
targeted market, within a
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2014). specific time (Huang and
Sarigöllü, 2014). The company
should look onto its
demographic location and
should take a competitive
advantage of it. It should
provide easy accessible service
to its present and potential
customers.
P2 Role of marketing related to wider organizational objectives
Marketing department plays significant role in
the success of business unit. It continuously
works for enhancing profitability of the
organization so that entity can sustain in the
market for longer duration (Kozlenkova and
et.al, 2015). British airways is the leading
brand that perform well in the airline industry.
Entity aims to enhance its profitability and
provide amazing services to its consumers so
that its clients feel satisfied and retain in the
workplace for longer duration. In order to
accomplish its objectives BA conducts market
research. This research helps the organization
in identifying needs of consumers and
providing them goods and services as per their
requirements. By this way satisfaction level of
consumers get increased by great extent
(Kotler, 2015).
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Marketing plays role of communicator.
It circulates message of the company to the
mass audience so that mass people can get to
know about the firm and buy its services.
British Airways is performing well in the
market but there are many other airline firms
those which are creating competition in the
market. Some times consumers move towards
these entities. In such condition marketing
makes the people aware with the benefit of
entity so that they take more interest in the firm
and take enjoy its products and services (Fraj,
Matute and Melero, 2015). Marketing function
of business unit assists in promoting the brand
across the world. Marketing functions are
interrelated with the organizational objective.
British Airways always prefer to create
positive brand image in the mind of
consumers, for that it makes them aware with
the benefit of business unit. Additional offers
that provide by entity to its end users. This
gains attention of people and they buy its
services. That helps the organization in
increasing its sales volume and enhancing
profitability of enterprise (Gummesson, 2015).
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Market segmentation is another role of
marketing function in the workplace.
Marketing helps the organization in finding the
target consumers those who are can give profit
to business unit. Buying and selling is another
function of marketing. This function has
interrelationship with the objective of business
unit. British Airways always aims to retain its
consumers in workplace for longer duration
(Di Benedetto and Lindgreen, 2018). Through
advertisement and promotional strategies entity
become able to motivate people to buy its
products and services. Marketing spends much
time for identifying needs of buyers. It makes
the firm aware with the market situation an
economic condition of the nation. That helps
the firm in making changes in its existing
strategies so that it can survive in the market
for longer duration and can accomplish its
objective (Kasemsap, 2015).
Marketing allows firm to gather
marketing information. It is considered as most
important marketing function. By this way
organisation becomes able to analysing market
condition and taking actions accordingly.
Marketers of British Airways always try to
analysis wants to consumers, what quality they
prefer and what amount they are ready to pay
against the airline services. These details are
helpful for the cited firm in understanding
consumer behaviour and factors that motivate
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them. By this way enterprise makes sound
decision and provides satisfactory products to
the end users (Laukkanen and et.al, 2016).
Marketing function plays the role of planner. It
always works in a manner so that entity can
plan for the expansion ad can meet with its
objectives. It helps in analysing issues in
production and strategies implement by
competitors. That helps the entity in making
changes in the planning so that British Airways
can enhance production capability.
Standardization and grading is another function
of marketing. By conducting market research
organization gets to know about standards that
are applicable to the airline industry. By this
way BA compares its services and improve its
services so that it can meet with these
standards (Agarwal and Malloy, 2015).
Furthermore, it enhances brad name of the
business and creates positive image of the firm
in the mind of users By this way people
become loyal towards the brand and buy its
services and products frequently.
British Airways offers low cost travel services
to the travellers. It has realised the choice of
people and their preference (Sugiyarti, 2015).
People like to buy high quality services at
affordable rates. This supports entity in making
sound decision related to pricing. It sets correct
sales price of its airlines so that large number
Marketing function of the British airways helps
in offering sufficient quality products to the
travellers that can meet with their needs. This
is considered as exchange function of business
unit. Entity takes support of advertisement,
personal selling and sales promotions etc.
many activities that assist in making consumers
aware with the quality of airline products of the
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of people can take advantage of its services. entity and ensuring that it meets with the needs
of target audience (Giannakis and Harker,
2014). This helps in achieving its objective of
increasing revenues and satisfying consumers.
That is the main reason that consumers of the
company are highly satisfied with the airline
services and packages of the business unit.
M1
Marketing plays significant role in the marketing environment. It plays the role of
communicator. It helps in communicating message of business unit to the consumers so that
more people can get to know about products and services of the company and take interest in
buying its services. Furthermore, marketing plays the role of researcher. It helps in gathering in-
depth information about market, needs of consumers so that entity can offer them same service
and can make them satisfied.
M2
There is strong relationship between marketing and other functional units of the business.
Marketing function of BA helps in identifying information about needs of clients and this details
are shared with production and designing team. By this way these functional units design
products for the consumers accordingly.
D1
Marketing functions elements are interrelated with other functional units. Marketing team
gives detail to the sales team regarding how to deal with consumers. By this way sales persons
provide satisfactory products to the travellers so that they feel happy. But there is no relationship
between production and customer services. Both they have to work in their own direction.
TASK 2
P3 Marketing mix of British Airways
Marketing mix plays significant role in
improving performance of business unit. There
Recently BA has launched new service of
Apple watch screen. In this application
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