Marketing Plan Project: Consumer Product Analysis, MKTG 300

This marketing plan project requires a comprehensive analysis of a chosen consumer product from a well-established organization with direct competitors. The project begins with an executive summary outlining key marketing decisions, target market, positioning, and marketing mix recommendations. It then delves into a SWOT analysis, identifying the five most important factors. The project continues with target market segmentation, developing profiles for three viable segments, and selecting a primary target audience. Marketing objectives are established, followed by a product positioning strategy and the creation of a positioning map. A detailed marketing mix (4Ps) is developed, including product, price, distribution, and communication strategies. An implementation plan covers execution, measurement, tactics, contingency, and research. Financial projections include pro-forma income statements and break-even analysis. The project concludes with an overall recommendation, supported by SWOT analysis and marketing concepts.

Think about some consumer products you are interested in learning more about and analyzing
from a marketing perspective. Choose one of these consumer products, ensuring it is from a
well-established organization that has direct competitors. This many not be an organization for
which you currently work.
Contact your Open Learning Faculty Member by email and briefly explain:
A. The reasons why you would like to use this consumer product and organization
B. The product market on which you want to focus
C. The information sources available on which to base your analysis
Your Open Learning Faculty Member must approve these choices so that multiple learners are
not working on the same consumer product, organization, and product market, and so that she
or he is confident that you will be able to successfully complete the Marketing Plan.
Suggested Time: 15 to 20 hours
Length: 12 to 15 pages (6000 to 7500 words) not including the Appendices
Marketing Plan
Executive Summary
A. Identify the key marketing decision(s) that need to be made or issues(s) that
need to be addressed for the consumer product.
B. Name your target market audience and summarize the rationale for your choice.
C. Summarize your positioning and marketing mix recommendation and your rationale
for each.
D. Sum up your overall recommendation(s) and the expected outcome of
implementing your Marketing Plan.
Part 1: Current Situation (10 marks)
A. SWOT Analysis (5 points)
 Conduct a SWOT Analysis of the consumer product and its organization
considering both the internal and external environments and include a
marketing mix implication for each factor.
 Include the detailed SWOT Analysis as an Appendix to the Marketing
Plan.
B. Five Most Important SWOT Factors (5 points)
 Identify what you believe are the 5 most important factors in the SWOT
Analysis.
 Explain why you think each of these 5 factors is particularly important to
understand from a marketing perspective.

Part 2: Target Market Segmentation (15 marks)
A. Select a segmentation approach and justify why your approach is appropriate,
from a marketing perspective, given your consumer product, organization, and
the marketplace. (5 points)
B. Develop detailed and summary profiles for 3 viable target market segments. Include
a summary of each profile in the body of the Marketing Plan and include the
detailed profiles as an appendix to your Marketing Plan. (5 points)
C. Evaluate and select 1 of the 3 target market segments as your primary target
audience. Explain, from a marketing perspective, why you chose this segment over
the other segments. (5 points)
Part 3: Marketing Objectives (5 marks)
A. Develop 3 marketing objectives to be achieved by your Marketing Plan for your
target audience.
Part 4: Product Positioning (10 marks)
A. Recommend a positioning strategy for your consumer product, the target
audience, and the marketplace. (3 points)
B. Illustrate the intended positioning strategy with a positioning map. (2 points)
C. Explain what allows this consumer product and organization to defend this
positioning strategy and/or what competencies need to be developed, enhanced, or
maintained to support this positioning. (5 points)
Part 5: Marketing Mix (20 marks)
Develop a comprehensive set of marketing mix (4Ps) decisions for this consumer product
providing a rationale for your recommendations based on your analysis of the consumer
product, the target market audience, and the marketplace. Your rationale should include
statements that indicate why you think your approach is appropriate for achieving your
marketing objectives. When developing your marketing mix decisions, discuss the following:
A. Product: Objectives, product concept (core, actual, augmented), product line
strategy, service strategy, brand name and branding strategy, and packaging and
labelling. (5 points)
B. Price: Objectives, price policy and points’ strategy, tactics, and terms and
conditions. (5 points)
C. Distribution: Objectives, channel strategy, channel management strategy, and
CRM. (5 points)
D. Communication: Objectives, positioning, key message, communication mix
strategy, creative strategy, and budget allocation tactics. (5 points)
Part 6: Implementation Plan (10 marks)

Provide recommendations for how your Marketing Plan should be executed. The
recommendations should include a discussion of each of the following items:
A. Implementation schedule (what will be done, by whom, when, with what
resources) (2 points)
B. Measurement and evaluation (how will you determine if your marketing strategy is
working or not) (2 points)
C. Implementation tactics (how will you minimize and/or address weaknesses and
threats identified in your SWOT Analysis) (2 points)
D. Contingency plan (what you will you do if your plan does not perform as expected)
(2 points)
E. Research plan (what information is needed before the marketing strategy and
decisions can be executed) (2 points)
Part 7: Financial Projections and Implications (10
marks)
If you do not have access to the information to do this correctly, then, where necessary, make
assumptions, label them as assumptions, and demonstrate that you know how to do the
financial statement and break-even analysis.
A. Prepare a projected (pro-forma) income statement for at 2 years that indicates
detailed marketing expenses and include it in an appendix at the end of the
Marketing Plan. (5 points)
B. Prepare projected (pro-forma) break-even analysis for at 2 years and include it in
an appendix at the end of the Marketing Plan. (2 points)
C. Discuss the financial implications of the statement and break-even analysis with
respect to your Marketing Plan and include it in the body of the Marketing Plan. (3
points)
Part 8: Overall Recommendation (15 marks)
A. Recommend whether or not your Marketing Plan should be executed and explain
why. (5 points)
B. Support this recommendation through the use of your SWOT Analysis. (5 points)
C. Back up your recommendation through the use of the course marketing concepts,
terms, and information. (5 points)