Comprehensive Marketing Report: OPAIC, Environment, and Buyer Behavior

This report provides a comprehensive marketing analysis of OPAIC, a higher education institution. It begins with an examination of the micro and macro environmental factors influencing OPAIC, including customers, employees, organizational structure, resources, political, economic, social, and t...Read More

Running head: MARKETING 1
Introduction to Marketing
Student Name
Institution Affiliation

MARKETING 2
Part One: MARKETING ENVIRONMENT
Micro-environmental factors
Customers
The target customers of OPAIC greatly have a microeconomic impact to the company’s success
in the market. The key customers of OPAIC are students who seek for diploma, bachelors, and
postgraduate degree programs (Bennett et al., 2011). The management of OPAIC must
understand that success cannot be reaped without the attraction of bright students.
Employees
Employees are the most crucial assets of a company, and in this case are lectures, finance, IT,
and other staff of OPAIC. The senate of OPAIC needs to establish the right human resources
policies when it comes to the hiring and retention of workers (Yuksel, 2012). Skilled lecturers
offer top quality education to students, hence boosting OPAIC’s reputation.
Internal Environmental Factors
Organizational structure
The structure of a firm comprises of professional managers, the board of leadership, and other
independent directors. The senate of OPAIC needs to understand that the nature of organizational
structure greatly influences the process of decision making (Ball, 2012). Thus, the leadership of
OPAIC must create a conducive/excellent organizational structure to aid faster decision making
that benefit students.
Resources
To OPAIC; capital, physical, technical, and human resources are major internal environmental
factors that depict its success. Financial stability helps in funding all physical resources such as
library equipment and also in funding new technologies such as digital/e-learning programs
(Sharma & Salvato, 2011).
2. Macro-environmental factors

MARKETING 3
Political factors
Changes in government policies may put the funding of public colleges and higher institutions of
learning at risk e.g, may reduce funds allocated to OPAIC. On the other hand, changes on the
qualifications required for one to become a tutor have been implemented by the government. As
a result, OPAIC has a better chance to improve academic competitiveness.
Economic factors
Economic downturns negatively affect investment to OPAIC hence derailing its sustainable
initiatives (Stanaland, Lwin, & Murphy, 2011). However, availability of funding boosts
economic level to OPAIC. Also, central government funding plans affects college financial
establishment, eg OPAIC. Also, the ability of parents to raise school fees is affected by economic
depressions.
Social factors
Trends and pressures in the society where OPAIC is located provide the college with sustainable
development responsibilities since education is valued there (Yuksel, 2012). Increased in
population and campaign on the importance of education in the society increases customers base
for the colleges e.g. OPAIC.
Technological factors
Technology impacts highly on education systems. Educational standards have changed and been
influenced by growth in technology ((Yuksel, 2012). Most institutions of higher learning such as
University of Cambridge, Harvard, and others have embraced e-learning and distance learning.
Therefore, OPAIC should offer e-learning/digital programs and distance learning to its students.
3. SWOT Analysis
Strengths
i. There is a conducive learning environment in OPAIC: Qualified and motivated staff, high
quality and collaboration among senate, student body, faculty and other staff.

MARKETING 4
ii. High quality student services and academic programs: OPAIC has an excellent
administrative support that cut across student services and academic services that draw
each stakeholder attention.
Weaknesses
i. Inadequate financial resources: Due to state funding reduction, OPAIC is unable to
update its student services and programs to the minimum and required standards.
ii. Aging facilities: There is a substantial number of older lecture halls and other buildings at
OPAIC that hide the real picture of the college. Older structures need maintenance and
restoration.
Opportunities
i. Expansion of enrollment management: The senate has the opportunity to expand its board
on enrollment management and refocus on recruitment and retention.
ii. Heritage and location: The strategic location of OPAIC offers it with a multi-state access
to a large number of new students.
Threats
Reductions in state funding: There is a persistent reduction of federal support to colleges
especially in funding; this is a threat to OPAIC.
Economic uncertainties: Most families find it challenging to pay college fees for their students,
and this limits the student numbers at OPAIC.
4. Importance of Ethics and Social Responsibility
Ethics and social responsibility play significant roles in organizations in relation to their
marketing operations. The goal of OPAIC is increasing student numbers and becoming a
competitive college in the industry. To achieve this goal, ethics and social responsibility are
vital. Ethics are the moral principles that govern the operations of an organization. Social
responsibility comprises the corporate projects undertaken by an organization to benefit the
larger society (Groves & LaRocca, 2011). In this regard, the following are the importance of
ethics and social responsibility by OPAIC:

MARKETING 5
Ethics builds the foundation of an organization
The foundation of OPAIC is based on its ethical principles. Respect and value of all stakeholders
of the college helps establish a positive reputation for the institution in the public hence
attracting more students. For example, moral and ethical principles bide all staff, students,
government, the senate, and other interested parties of OPAIC together. Thus, during marketing
campaigns; OPAIC must use respectful language in order to attract more students.
Corporate responsibility establishes a positive image to an organization
Participation in CSR projects such as sponsoring the needy children, organization for
government funding and support in form of bursaries and education loans, and environmental
conservation plays a major role in building strong reputation of OPAIC to the society (Griseri &
Seppala, 2010).
5. Recommendations to Management
Enrollment expansion
The management of OPAIC needs to expand its enrollment initiatives by establishing new
techniques of increasing enrollment numbers. For example, adopt online or social media
marketing of the courses offered by the college to the target market. Also, there is need to partner
with secondary schools in order to establish a reference program from the school heads to their
students about OPAIC. By this doing, the number of students will increase substantially.
Structures and facilities renovation
From the SWOT analysis, it is clear that some buildings at OPAIC are aged and thus do not give
the true value of the institution to the interested students. Therefore, the management should
restructure and renovate these aged buildings, or even replace them with new and modern
structures in order to attract more students.
Partnering with international donors
There have been reduction of state funding to colleges and this is a major concern to OPAIC. To
counter this problem, the management of OPAIC should partner of source for new donors who

MARKETING 6
can fund their academic projects. By doing this, the weakness of inadequate finances will get
resolved.
Part Two: BUYER BEHAVIOR
1. Influence of reference groups
A reference group refers to a group of people whom a buyer associates with (Hayakawa &
Venieris, 2016). E.g. work colleagues or classmates.
For example, the demand of Samsung Galaxy in the market is greatly influenced by reference
groups. Workmates and classmates have always influenced how their friends perceive this brand
of Samsung.
Reference groups change our attitude, belief, and principles on what we buy. For example,
society beliefs on a clothing brand such as Hugo Boss are changed by our interactions, and this
influences interest to the fashion.
2. Family Life Cycle (FLC) Marketing
Family life cycle marketing explains the type of family in which the target market consumer is
present. SINKS refer to “single income no kids” and DINKS are “double income no kids”.
FLC offers company marketers with a reliable hint about the purchasing patterns of the target
families in relation to their stages of development.
A good example of a company that uses FLC marketing is Qatar Airways. Essentially, the target
families of Qatar Airways have different attributes. Through this method, the company is among
the world’s leading Airways.
3. Influence of Social Class
Our buying habits and power are influenced by the social class that we associate with (Bojanic,
2011). For example, high social class people associate themselves with expensive Smartphones
such as IPhone. Research shows that most rich people use IPhone and have pride using the
mobile brand since it is associated with the rich people given its huge cost of purchase.

MARKETING 7
4. Jett’s Gym, Strategies
The success of national membership drive for Jett’s Gym depends on the marketing strategies
adopted or to be used by the marketing team. Marketing and product promotion influences the
rate at which members will register, subscribe, and renew their membership. A good marketing
strategy to use is the use of social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
where most members can be found (Foxall, 2014). In these Ads, Jett’s Gym needs to offer
discount fee for members who will register and renew in a stipulated period of time.
5. Influences of Self-Concept
Self-concept explains an individual’s state of mind, strength, believes, and weaknesses. Self-
concept greatly influences consumer choices of fashionwear. Every person is his/herself model
when it comes to fashionwear. While fashionwear is influenced by social factors in the
environment, most people are influenced by their inner and self-concept (Juster, 2015). For
example, decision to wear shorts by a guy while the society perceives it as a taboo. Another
example is women wearing short clothes and trousers while the society views it as a taboo too.
6. Buyer decision making process
Need recognition
After completion of secondary education, a student sees the importance of joining a tertiary
institution. A good example is OPAIC.
Information search
After recognizing the need to advance education, students start searching for information on the
right courses to take and at which institutions.
Evaluation of alternatives
A student gets at least three courses to take for example, mechanical engineering, nursing, and
accountancy (Pruitt & Adlin, 2010). Also, the student has various institutions to choose from e.g.
OPAIC, Cambridge, and Harvard. Here, an evaluation of the cost and quality of course per each
institution is evaluated.

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Purchase decision
After evaluation of the courses, the student makes a choice on the institution to join. For example
in this case, the student joined OPAIC to study accountancy given its affordability and strategic
location.
Post- purchase behavior
After the decision to join OPAIC to take accountancy, the student joins the college and starts his
higher education learning there.
7. Characteristics affecting consumer behavior
Cost
The decision to choose NZ was contributed by cost analysis. NZ was cheaper and affordable as
compared to other research firms.
Psychological
Psychological attributes refer to the need for the research as recognized by the management.
Based on this, NZ was chosen given its ability to satisfy the kinds of wants the college required.
Perception
The college management perceives NZ to be the best and leading provider of top quality research
in the education industry.
Societal characteristics
The entire institutional fraternity at OPAIC beliefs that NZ is the best and most reliable research
institute in the country, and thus the best to contract.

MARKETING 9
References
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