MKTG1501: Marketing Plan Analysis for Over-the-Top Creative

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of a marketing plan for Over-the-Top Creative, a fashion and clothing business aiming to enter the Australian market targeting university students in Melbourne and Brisbane. The report begins with an introduction outlining the company's objectives, followed by an internal environment analysis, examining the company's vision, mission, and strengths. It then delves into external environmental factors, including political, economic, social, technological, and environmental influences, using a PESTEL analysis. The report includes a market analysis, identifying opportunities and challenges within the Australian market, particularly in Toowong and surrounding areas. A SWOT analysis is presented to evaluate the company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The report explores the target market and demographic segmentation, followed by an examination of marketing mix strategies. Finally, the report concludes with recommendations for Over-the-Top Creative's expansion and market positioning. The report highlights the importance of understanding cultural differences, brand awareness campaigns, and leveraging digital and social media platforms to drive sales and achieve market success.

Marketing Plan Analysis 1
MARKETING PLAN ANALYSIS
Student’s Name
Course
Professor’s Name
University
City (State)
Date

Marketing Plan Analysis 2
Contents
1.0 Introduction.................................................................................................................................3
2.0 Internal Envirroment analysis.....................................................................................................4
3.0 External Environmental Factors that Inpact Market Positioning ..............................................5
3.1 Political Factorss..................................................................................................................5
3.2 Economic factors.................................................................................................................6
3.3 Social Factors.......................................................................................................................6
3.4 Technological Factors……………………………………………………7
3.5 Environmental factors………………………………………………………….7
4.0 Market Analysis..........................................................................................................................7
5.0 SWOT Analysis...................................................................................................................8
6.0 Target market and Demographic Segmentation..................................................................9
7.0 Marketing Mix Strategies..................................................................................................10
8.0 Conclusions...............................................................................................................................12
References:........................................................................................................................................13

Marketing Plan Analysis
1.0 Introduction
With the current economic demands, businesses have to market their products actively by
drawing a solid marketing plan that will enable them to compete effectively with the firms in
the same industry. The issues in business and product marketing have in the current business
world drawn a lot of attention, and therefore, they have become the focus on business studies.
The clothes and fashion industry has developed and come up with attractive ideas and
concepts of the cutting edge designs offered at affordable prices. It has made the fashion and
clothing industry to achieve great success for the last two decades. Over-the-Top business, as
one of the fashion and clothing business, intends to enter the fashion industry by marketing
its products in different cities in Australia (Hartsfield, Johansen & Knight 2017). The target
cities include Melbourne and Brisbane and explicitly targeting university students. The
company plans to be one of the biggest manufacturer and distributor of fashionable clothes so
that it can gain the reputation of its vertically integrated supply chains and stylish designs.
Over-the-Top designs have already commenced an aggressive campaign based referral
strategy where the customers are expected to refer to their friends and family members about
the high-quality quality products offered by the company.
Since Over-the-Top is a startup business, it will first give much of its attention to the local
market in Australia. However, the industry will enjoy global and international sales since the
company plans to set its production line near the University of Queensland. International
students can visit the stalls and buy the products which will give international business
recognition. Over-the-Top business plans to expand rapidly within the country, and therefore,
this report will provide a detailed and particular focus on Over-the-Top expansion throughout
the Australian market. We are going to look at the application of the digital media and social
media together with the mass media platforms such as the radio and the TV advertisement to
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drive up the sales of the business (Hollender, Zapkau & Schwens 2017). The full report
primarily comprises of five parts. The first part is the introduction, which gives a quick
summary of the project background, the project objectives follow, which provides the
expectation of the outcomes of the consulting project. Afterward, the critical findings of
Over-the-Top business expansion to Australia and its challenges in the marketing strategy
will be discussed. Based on these challenges, recommendations will be put forward, and
finally, the report will end with a conclusion.
2.0 Internal Analysis
The over-the-top business aims to be a strong influence in the fashion industry which will
influence the clothing and fashion items buying patterns among the university students and
the local people within the country especially in cities like Toowong, Taringa, St Lucia, and
Indooroopilly. Over-the-Top business is driven by a powerful and robust vision of
sustainability. This vision will be achieved through the utilization of locally available raw
materials which will be in line with environmental conservation and sustainability. The
business also aims to promote local talents through co-creating value for the local designer,
producers, customers, and the local community.
The mission of Over-the-Top business is to offer an affordable alternative to the people
market fashion clothes by working with young designers and expert tailors in the field. The
strength of the company will be attained through a mass effect of customers that will act as
our brand ambassadors. The business aims at producing high-end handcrafted garments,
which will be different from what the mass production firms in the industry provide. There,
the customer will have a feeling of attachment with the Over-the-Top business, which will
enable the business to establish customer loyalty.
The primary purpose of the business is to promote the habit of buying local products and
buying them sustainably. The over-the-top company hopes to raise awareness to the
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consumers about the damaging effect of globalization and empower individuals to realize that
their purchasing habits have an overall and crucial cumulative effect. This marketing plan
will help Over-the-Top Creative designs to engage with customers so that the business can
produce what the customer demands (Heinecke 2011). The close engagement with customers
will help the company to achieve what the other companies in the same industry have not
achieved. Over-the-Top designs also intend to offer the value for money to the customers so
that they can feel that their needs matter to the business. Apart from the value co-creation
between the producer and the customers, the business also aims to create wealth and
maximize profits for its investors and the shareholders.
3.0 External Environment Factors That Could Impact Market Positioning of Over-The-
Top Business
The key finding from the research shows that several factors could affect the Over-the-Top
brand value, brand positioning, and brand communication in Australia. These external factors
are analyzed below using the PESTEL external environment analytical tool.
3.1 Political Factors
Some of the significant political factors that face the Over-the-Top business is the nearing
national elections in the country. The elections periods usually disrupts the business activities
as most of the people fear that the change in government may change the government policies
that regulate the businesses. Another critical factor that could affect the business is the
political turmoil’s that would be associated with the elections. These turmoils could alter
Over-the-Top designs business negatively as some of the institutions like the University of
the Queensland would be closed until the political pressures settle to normality (Alon, Jaffe,
Prange & Vianelli 2016). Besides, the taxes are an essential element of a business, and the
new government would determine the level of levies that should be levied on the local and
global businesses. An increase in the taxes would mean that Over-the-Top business would
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achieve a lower profit margin while a reduction in the sales will be good for the business as
more revenue will be obtained.
3.2 Economic Factors
The economic factors of Over-the-Top creative designs are attached to the financial
performance of the Australian economy. The economic growth Over-the-Top business is
estimated to grow by 8%-10% because of the increased government expenditure. The
citizen's disposable income grows significantly due to the increase of the Australian
government expenditure (Baines, Fill & Page 2013). Australia has efficient and effective
financial markets that would enable Over-the-Top creative designs to have access to
affordable and available financing if it needs to expand to other parts of the country. Besides,
Australia has excellent infrastructure that is vital for the development of business. Increased
economic liberalization in Australia will also help the company to expand to the other
markets in the country while improving its profitability.
3.3 Social Factors
The society targeted by Over-the-Top is likely to be slightly different from the actual society
in the Australian market. Most of the people in Australia view the imported products as more
superior than the locally produced products. This societal attitude can affect the business
performance of the fashion business. That means that the company has to work extra harder
to ensure that its garments and fashion designated clothing are a priority to the people in the
country. Also, Over-the-Top business should try to connect and communicate with the
customers so that it can understand the social beliefs of the society in a better way (Barnes
2013). Understanding of the social norms will enable the business to produce the products
that fit them, and therefore, it will get more sales. Also, there is a wide gap in fashion attitude
between the young and the older people in Australia. The older people are not highly
influenced by fashion clothing while younger people are always inclined towards fashion
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goods. Therefore, Over-the-Top Company will have most of its sales, targeting young people
between the ages of 18 and 30 years.
3.4 Technological Factors
The 4G and 5G internet speeds have presented many opportunities for businesses that intend
to scale up their sales. The emergence of these technologies has enhanced the mobile internet
user experience, which is vital in taking e-commerce a notch higher. Over-the-Top can
benefit from these improved mobile internet speed by tapping and leveraging its capability
(Barnes 2013). Australia has embraced technological advancements, especially in the
production and manufacturing industries. The technology can help Over-the-Top company to
lower its production costs and enjoy a high degree of profitability. Research and development
activities highly embraced in Australia. The research will enable the company to innovate and
create new designs and improve its production processes, which will help it to gain a
competitive advantage.
3.5 Environmental Factors
In the current global trends, ecological conservation and sustainability have become a
significant issue that impacts the profitability and sustainability of a business. The Australian
government is not left behind in pursuing environmental sustainability to the companies
operating in the country (Alon, Jaffe, Prange & Vianelli 2016). There are policies which have
been instituted to ensure that the businesses operate in a way that they don’t pollute the
environment through the emission of poisonous fumes or dumping of wastes into the rivers
and other water bodies. The over-the-top business enjoys an advantage here because most of
their fashion products and handcrafted and the processes are environmentally friendly.
4.0 Market Analysis
The examination and analysis of the macro-environment of Over-the-Top creative designs are
found to be profitable and attractive. However, Over-the-Top creative business lacks business
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recognition and expansion in the country. Also, the cultural differences in the Australian
market require the business to apply marketing techniques so that it can win the customers.
There are many opportunities for the business in Toowong and the areas surrounding the
University of the Queensland which mainly lies in the customer’s buying power and
preference for fashion products (Yip, Biscarri & Monti 2000). Another opportunity in the
Australian market is that the country has experienced steady growth over the past decade,
which has empowered the customers to have more disposable income to buy luxury and
fashion goods.
The university students in the University of Queensland are always willing to spend more of
their finances on fashion clothing and the young people between the ages of 18 and 30 years
gain recognition and status by consumption of fashion items. However, despite an increase in
the preference for the fast fashion clothing among the young people in the country, there are
just a few local fashion brands in Australia (Yip, Biscarri & Monti 2000). Furthermore,
Young Australian customers seem to have a taste and preference for imported foreign brands
such as Gucci, H&M, and Zara. All the discussed factors make Australia be a preferable
target for various global fast fashion brands.
Despite having such great opportunities in the Australian and especially the Toowong market,
the expansion is challenging due to low brand awareness and cultural difference. Over-the-
Top business needs to understand these cultural differences and produce products which align
to the different customers’ needs to realize a significant market share. Also, the business
needs to stage campaigns of the brand awareness in their target market, especially in the
University of Queensland so that is can enjoy more sales.
5.0 SWOT Analysis
Strengths
 Knowledge of the industry by the
Weaknesses
 Possible disconnect with university
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founding CEO.
 Team of young innovative designers.
 Strong business background.
 Location: Good foot traffic as it is
close to Toowong village.
 Unique products that are not available
elsewhere.
students because of the location in
Toowong.
 New store and lack of brand
awareness.
 Lack of an established brand.
 Potential customers may not venture
outside Toowong village.
 Lack of customer profile knowledge.
Opportunities
 Increased awareness of environmental
and sustainable consumption issues.
 Growth in sustainable cloth producers
in China means Over-the-Top can get
cheaper stock.
 Under catered market for ethically
based and sustainable clothing.
Threats
 High rents in Toowong area.
 Economic uncertainty with upcoming
elections.
 The global economy is vulnerable to
change.
 Growth of electric vehicles means
that long distances are not considered
as environmentally unsustainable.
6.0 Target Market Selection and Demographic Segmentation
Demographic segmentation describes market segmentation based on gender, age, race,
family, religion, and education. This kind of segmentation can be conducted to find different
niches for Over-the-Top brand in Toowong village as well as the University of Queensland.
The most vital demographic segmentation is the one based on age. The over-the-top business
should aim at targeting the young population aged between 18 and 30 years (Camilleri 2018).
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The rationale behind this targeting is because young people are always inclined to fast
fashion products. Furthermore, young people gain status by purchasing fashion clothes. For
the Over-the-Top creative designs to gain a competitive advantage in the fashion industry, it
has to consider making the fashion clothing and products which target the young generation.
Most of the young people whose age ranges between 18 and 30 years are students, and they
do not enjoy steady and high incomes. Therefore, the business should consider lowering the
prices of fast fashion products so that they can be affordable to young people (Camilleri
2018). Another area that the company should consider is the manufacturing of high-quality
garments so that it can enjoy customer loyalty and a more significant market share.
7.0 Marketing Mix Strategies
A marketing mix is a tool that Over-the-Top should embrace so that it can get more new
customers for the garments. Promotion is the only marketing tool that takes a considerable
amount of revenues for the business. However, promotion helps the company to create its
brand awareness and attract more customers to buy the products. Over-the-Top should aim at
increasing the marketing budget so that most of its customers. The marketing mix tool is used
as the primary concept in the modern marketing of products. The marketing mix comprises of
price, product, place, people, promotion, physical evidence, and processes. The over-the-top
creative business would provide to its customers a wide variety of fast fashion products. The
over-the-top business achieves a high quality of products by employing a highly skilled and
talented workforce that helps to make handcrafted fashion garments. The place is another
essential element of the marketing mix (Venter, Wright & Dibb 2015). The business should
choose a location which the customers can access the products with convenience. The
Toowong area selected by Over-the-Top company serves as the best location for the business
because it factors in the target customers who are the students from the University of
Queensland. In the Toowong area, the major distribution channels would not be required
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because the university students and the young people from the surrounding region would
walk into the stalls and buy their favorite garments.
Pricing of the garments will play a vital role in terms of driving up sales. The over-the-top
business charges its products higher than other fast fashion businesses. The higher price has
affected the number of sales that the business in making. Therefore, Over-the-Top business
needs to adjust their prices so that the garments can be affordable to more customers than it
is. Another way that the business can enhance sales is by giving discounts to the customers
(Andaleeb 2016). The introduction of the 10% discount for the customers who visit the stall
for the second time has helped to make the business make more sales for already established
customers. However, the new customers are not allowed to buy the garments at a discount
which has affected the number of new customers for the products.
Promotion is the primary marketing can be reached. It can achieve a significant market by
giving a 10% discount for every customer that shops in their stalls for the first time. Internet
advertising is also another important and powerful tool that the business can utilize to get
new customers (Huang & Sarigöllü 2014). Social media platforms such as Facebook and
Instagram should help Over-the-Top business to acquire more customers through proper
advertisements. Also, Over-the-Top should plan to sponsor fashion contests within the
University of Queensland so that more students can be aware of the brand that they offer.
In the marketing mix, people are the backbone of any business. The utilization of the local
talent and promoting of their skills helps the company to scale to greater heights. Over-the-
Top creative employs the talented youth and the expert tailors within the region, which has
enabled the business to produce the best quality and high standard fast fashion garments
(Khan 2014). Proper compensation of this workforce has also helped them to be motivated,
which has enabled them to work tirelessly for the benefit of the business.
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Besides, the business processes are efficient in Over-the-Top business, which has enabled the
business to produce products which satisfy the customers. The workforce is also customer-
oriented, and they work hard to ensure that the customer demands are met (Khan 2014). The
physical evidence of the business is the employees and the actual garments put in display in
Over-the-Top stalls so that the customers can purchase what they can see. The pleasant and
welcoming ambiance of the stalls located in Toowong village will attract the customers
where they are allowed to do window-shopping and buy the displayed garments.
8.0 Conclusion
From the preliminary market plan analysis, is has been found that Over-the-Top creative
business has the potential for growth in the Toowong and the University of Queensland area.
All that the business needs is the application of the right marketing strategies and the
marketing mix so that it can thrive in the fast fashion industry. Besides, the Australian market
of fast fashion garment is promising because there are no strong competitors that would
threaten the Over-the-top company in conquering a significant market share. However, the
business requires a quick marketing strategy which can be achieved through emerging e-
commerce and digital marketing strategies. Some of the recommendations that should help
the company to attain recognition and high profitability are as follows.
• Putting more emphasis on digital marketing platforms such as Facebook and Instagram.
• Generate and develop more understanding of the fast fashion market and come up with an
appropriate brand positioning strategy.
• The over-the-top creative business should allocate more budget for product promotion to
enhance better brand visibility.
• Embrace brand co-creation by posting some of their interactive contents so that they can
build up the right customer and brand relations.
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List of References
Andaleeb, S.S., 2016. Market segmentation, targeting, and positioning. In Strategic marketing
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theory, practice, and cases. Routledge
Baines, P., Fill, C., Page, K. (2013). Essentials of marketing. Oxford University Press: the
United Kingdom.
Barnes, L. (2013). Fashion Marketing. Textile Progress. Vol. 45 (2-3): 182-207.
Camilleri, M.A., 2018. Market segmentation, targeting, and positioning. In Travel Marketing,
tourism economics, and the airline product (pp. 69-83). Springer, Cham.
Huang, R., and Sarigöllü, E., 2014. How brand awareness relates to market outcome, brand
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Yip, G.S., Biscarri, J.G., and Monti. J.A. (2000), “The role of the Internationalisation Process
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