Marketing Plan Analysis and Strategy for British Airways

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the marketing plan for British Airways (BA). It begins with an introduction to BA and its challenges, followed by an examination of changing perspectives in marketing planning using relevant theories. The report evaluates BA's ability to plan future marketing activities, explores techniques for organizational auditing and external factor analysis, and conducts a SWOT analysis. It then assesses barriers to marketing planning and strategies to overcome them. Furthermore, the report outlines a marketing plan for a new service launch, discusses the importance of marketing planning in strategic planning, and examines techniques for new product development, including recommendations for pricing, distribution, and communication. Finally, the report addresses ethical issues in marketing planning and provides examples of BA's responses to these issues and consumer ethics. The report concludes with a summary of findings and recommendations for BA's marketing strategies.

Marketing Planning
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Marketing Planning
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Marketing Planning
Contents
Introduction:................................................................................................................................................3
Task 1..........................................................................................................................................................4
1.1 Using relevant theories, review changing perspective in marketing planning....................................4
1.2 Evaluate BA’s ability for planning its future marketing activity........................................................4
1.3 Examine techniques for organizational auditing and for analyzing external factors that affect
marketing planning..................................................................................................................................5
1.4 Carry out organizational auditing and analysis of external factors that affect marketing planning in
BA...........................................................................................................................................................6
Task 2..........................................................................................................................................................7
2.1. Assess the main barriers to marketing planning................................................................................7
2.2. Examine how organizations may overcome the obstacles to marketing planning.............................9
Task 3........................................................................................................................................................10
3.1 Marketing plan for the launch of a new services for BA..................................................................10
3.2 Marketing planning is essential in the strategic planning process for BA........................................11
3.3 Examine techniques for new product development..........................................................................12
3.4 Recommendations for pricing policy, distribution and communication mix for the new product....12
3.5 Explain how factors affecting effective implementation of the marketing plan have been taken into
account..................................................................................................................................................13
Task 4........................................................................................................................................................14
4.1 Explain how ethical issues influence marketing planning................................................................14
4.2 Examples of how BA responds to ethical issues..............................................................................15
4.3 Examples of consumer ethics and their effect on marketing planning in BA...................................16
Conclusion.................................................................................................................................................17
References............................................................................................................................................18
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Marketing Planning
Introduction:
British Airways is a significant International Airlines, and it provides their flights to 590
destinations and in 135 territories. The organization is mainly operated from Gatwick and
Heathrow. The company has faced many difficulties like 535 million pounds revenue loss for the
reason of employee relationship and strike problem of the employees, lack of International
marketplace analysis and the other things. So, the only scope to win over these difficulties is to
apply and maintain an effective marketing strategy for successfully carry on the company. The
British Airways includes some techniques such as security and safety of the stakeholders,
customer relationship, improvement in technological instruments, employee relationship and
much more. The British Airways is a global airline of full service, and it offers low fare rate all
the year round with the comprehensive global route map flying from and to the centrally situated
airports.
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Task 1
1.1 Using relevant theories, review changing perspective in marketing planning.
A marketing plan is a multiple tool that helps the management to recognize everything about the
company. This indication shows the management the flaws of their plan and how to achieve their
aims and redefines the way in a new product or new marketplace against the opponents. A good
market plan must comprise with the deliberation of new perspectives. The BA has noticed that
their service is only affordable for the noble people, then they have taken the decision that their
service must be provided to a large number of individuals rather than upper class. They have
changed their notion in marketing planning by applying new strategy, and this becomes helpful
for the company(Aaker, 2013). They have reduced boarding rate as many people can afford the
BA flight quickly and this process grabs the attention of the commoners and then the company
makes more profitable business than other competitors.
1.2 Evaluate BA’s ability for planning its future marketing activity.
Organizational capability can be defined by the company’s core competence, strengths,
weaknesses, synergetic effects, resources, and behavior. It shows the capacity of the organization
by which they can use their strength against the weaknesses and make new opportunities to face
the external environment. The organizational ability of BA for planning future activities are- core
competence, brand effect, a uniqueness of the company, synergistic effects, global network,
resources and behavior of the company, high prices, weaknesses, availability of the flight when
at a particular time, good quality service of the company, etc.
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1.3 Examine techniques for organizational auditing and for analyzing external factors that affect
marketing planning.
The customers or the passengers of BA are the keystones of the marketing technique that
connected with auditing and investigating the organizational and external factors like a market
environment of BA. These factors are accumulated first, then explained correctly. The regulatory
factors are:
Company objectives and mission: the main aim of BA should meet the target customer and target
market for carrying on their business efficiently. They should fix their target, and then they
should follow the path to the way of achievement. BA, the largest airways in the UK, is situated
in London, provides their flights to 400 cities regularly. They should intend to create repeat
passengers for business or travel passengers(Bogomolova, 2011).
Company resources: management construction, information technology, and finance are
including in this. That also states the relationship between capital funders, partner, and stuff.
Existing customers: passengers’ satisfaction, expectations, dissatisfaction, relationships are
included in this.
Marketing environment can be identified by the PEST and SWOT analysis. PEST analysis helps
to impact on company's activities, and the SWOT analysis helps for the assessment of future
situation and culture of the BA. The management should understand the requirements, behavior,
and motivations of the prospective customers.
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1.4 Carry out organizational auditing and analysis of external factors that affect marketing
planning in BA
For carrying out corporate auditing and analyzing the external factors that affect the marketing
technique of BA is needed the SWOT analysis. The SWOT symbolizes strength, weaknesses,
opportunities and threats. The chief aim of the management is to take advantages of
opportunities and strengths of the market and meanwhile to reduce the defects and remove the
threats. The forces of the British Airways are-
Market share: the British Airways possess more than 50% exchange business in the UK, and that
is the most significant strength to compete with the other airlines all over the globe.
Skilled and expert employee: the BA possesses maximum able and competent employees that
help for the development of the company.
Quality procedures and processes: the British Airways provides the high-quality process and
procedures when the passengers avail their flight. Before boarding on, they also get the better
facility than the others(Cadle et al., 2014).
Business location is strength of the BA, as the airport is situated in the heart of the UK. Other
strengths are new and innovative service provision, maintaining brand loyalty, etc.
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The weaknesses are- they have suffered heavy losses due to lack of International market and the
authority sometimes fail to break down the internal issues and cannot make long lasting
solutions. They also have opportunities for technological innovation, resistance potentiality of
the staffs and management both and the partnership going with the other big airlines, etc. they
also have threats like ever changing, and dynamic marketing atmosphere, loss of vital workers
due to business strikes, weather, natural calamity and Icelandic ash are also the crucial threats for
their business.
Task 2
2.1. Assess the main barriers to marketing planning.
A great marketing planning and strategy are required significantly, and the planning and strategy
are the most critical components for any company. However, there are some barriers of
marketing preparation for sometimes. There are different examples such as:
Failure of cooperation in the management: if there are some problems between the managers and
authority in the organization like British Airways, then the marketing planning and strategy may
face some barriers or difficulties to sustain their business quickly. When the financial department
and the human resource management department are not interested in sharing their goals and
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resources, the whole business may face some diminishing situation. The non-cooperation
between the administration in the organization can create a worse situation as the marketing
struggle will be lost by the non-cooperating system in the management and staffs(Donoghue,
2013).
Lack of inspiration of change: if the marketing manager cannot motivate their employees and
other staffs correctly, and if those persons don’t feel the requirement to overcome or face the
threats and difficulties, then the overall business may be affected by this barrier. Another
problem is when the employees cannot be interested in grabbing the opportunities that have
emerged in the company by taking a real marketing planning; it can create a main barrier to a
good marketing strategy.
Lack of knowledge and skills: All the employees of the British Airways should be skilled and
knowledgeable for utilizing the advance technological equipment. The marketing manager
should also have the skills and knowledge to develop a successful business strategy. Without
proper efficiency and wisdom, the marketing manager may lead the company to some silly ideas
and plans.
Overconfident with difficulties solution: if the manager shows some overconfidence to solve
some problems within the marketing management of the company, then it can create some
inappropriate or flawed solutions of the complications. This is one of the main barriers to the
marketing planning of the organization.
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2.2. Examine how organizations may overcome the obstacles to marketing planning.
Various procedures help the company to overcome the barriers to the marketing planning. The
different techniques are-
Strategy before tactics: the marketing manager should make some tactics before implementing
strategies for carrying on the business of British Airways. The manager creates some tactics by
surveying on the marketplace, and he should identify the potential harm or benefit that the
company may face afterward. After completing his survey on the position and situation of the
market, then the manager should confirm the policy as a strategy for their business.
Informed values of marketing: as a marketing manager, he should take the responsibility to
inform about the facilities of the British Airways to the consumers as the customers make their
attention to the privileges on their flight journey to the various destinations as they wish. This
technique makes the company policy impressive as the passengers will be well aware before
their boarding(Expanding opportunities for women entrepreneurs, 2008).
Scan the market thoroughly: the marketing manager should scan the environment in where they
have to deal with the customers from a different economic condition. The marketing manager
must notice on the facilities provided by other airlines; then they have to set their budget as they
can grab more passengers along with middle-class people also and this will be helpful for the
company for gaining more profit.
There are other techniques for applying these the marketing manager can overcome the
difficulties quickly, such as: establishing market within the operations, making construction
around marketing and sequence objectives, knowledge and ability, culture and style of the
employees as they can serve the best service to the consumers.
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Task 3
3.1 Marketing plan for the launch of a new services for BA
Marketing plans are very essential documents as far as the market evaluation; goal and marketing
results are concerned. It can be said that the marketing plan has various effects in the field of the
business. There are four steps approach of marketing plan that includes the following,
Setting the Goal: The main goals of British Airways are to provide the best servitude to the
people of Britain. There are many more companies in UK those are trying to grab the market of
UK with their exciting products and servitude. The main aim of BA is to grab the market with
unique products and service that can differ the company from the other companies.
Situational analysis-Marketing audit: In this case there are two conventional ways to analyse
the different environment of the market. PEST and SWOT analysis are the most common and
overall accepted processes. SWOT analysis mainly concentrates on the internal and external
factors of the market whereas PEST analysis only explains the external factors of the market.
Here in this scenario marketing audit helps to clarify the opportunities and threats in the market.
It also allows a stakeholder to make necessary changes to the marketing planning only if needed.
In this case SWOT analysis has been done in order to know the conditions of the internal and
external environment of the business.
Strategy formulation: In this stage the marketing objectives and strategies are mainly
described. Marketing objectives clearly replicates the intension of the company about their
position in the future market. Marketing objectives actually helps a company to concentrate on
its limited resources and to increase sales. It helps the company to survive in this competitive
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market. There are different types of management strategies like, plc matrix, bcg matrix, ansoff
matrix and 4Ps. The marketing strategy of 4Ps or the marketing mix will be selected in this paper
for effective strategy formulation of BA.
Monitoring and Control: In order to recognize the financial status of an organization, the
budget plan and cash flow statements both are reviewed by the management before
implementing any kind of marketing strategy. In the process of marketing planning, the
marketing manager needs to control and monitor different kind of allocated process which will
be executed for future marketing planning. The marketing manager needs to take careful
consideration on different types of marketing process which directly or indirectly influence the
performance of the organization(Gagliardi, Brouwers and Bhattacharyya, 2014).
3.2 Marketing planning is essential in the strategic planning process for BA
In order to execute and properly implement marketing strategies, the marketing plan plays an
essential role in an organization. Different types of marketing process are measured by the
consultation and approval stakeholders of an organization. Apart from that an effective
marketing plan influences the productivity and profit margin of an organization. There are
several types of advantages included in a proper marketing plan which will be discussed below,
 Focussing on the target audience
 Recognizing the actual requirements of the customers
 Estimating the demands of the products
 Recognizing potential customers
 Analysing core competency and competitive advantages(Jenks, 2011).
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In order to conduct a successful marketing plan, an organization needs to focus on above
mentioned factors for critically analysing the potential opportunities and threats. In other words
with the help of strategic marketing process, an organization can recognize current marketing
opportunities which will be beneficial for future perspective.
3.3 Examine techniques for new product development
The new product development includes different types of process before launching in the
competitive market. The management of an organization needs to focus on these aspects related
with new product development process. In addition the new product development process helps
the management of BA to recognize the growth and demand of new products. The process of
new product development involves some critical stages such as, conception of production,
market research process (SWOT analysis), approval of concept, marketing process, final
development of concept and testing of products(Munger, 2013).
3.4 Recommendations for pricing policy, distribution and communication mix for the new
product
In order to satisfy customers, the management of BA needs to provide quality service to their
customers. According to recent report, most of the customers are demanding excellent products
or service in low price. In other words, the customers are basically price sensitive and they want
to spend minimum amount by exchanging and enjoying high quality service. The management of
BA needs to focus on price policy of their services carefully because in the airline industry many
famous and strong competitors already exist. In other sense, the management of BA should apply
low price strategy in order to retain and draw the attention of potential customers towards their
organization. In the airline industry, the air hostess plays essential roles in order to satisfy the
customers through polite behaviour and interactive communication. In other words, the
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