Marketing Essentials: Unilever's Marketing Mix and Marketing Plan

This report provides an overview of marketing essentials with a focus on Unilever, a British-Dutch multinational company. It begins by explaining the role of marketing and then compares different approaches to the marketing mix, particularly the 7Ps, used by Unilever and Procter & Gamble (P&G). The comparison highlights similarities and differences in product strategies, pricing, place/distribution, promotion, packaging, people, processes, and physical evidence. The report then delves into the development of a marketing plan for Unilever, outlining the company's vision, mission, marketing goals, SWOT analysis, and STP (Segmentation, Targeting, Positioning) framework. It also details strategies for increasing market share, expanding the customer base, improving market awareness, and fostering innovation, concluding with a proposed budget and monitoring and control techniques using KPIs and benchmarking.

Marketing Essentials

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................1
P3: Comparison of ways in which marketing mix can be applied by the organization...............1
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................4
P4: Marketing plan.......................................................................................................................4
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Marketing refers to the different types of activities which are performed by the
organizations so that they are able to make sure that they are able to achieve goals and objectives
(Blythe and Martin, 2019). It is an important function in the organizations and they are required
to ensure that they carry it out by making strategies which can be applied in the practical
scenario. If it is used appropriately by the firms then they can make sure that higher-level of
efficiency and effectiveness can be attained without problems and issues. In this project, focus
will be made on Unilever. It is a British-Dutch company which provides various types of goods
to the customers. In this assignment, detailed focus will be made on explaining the role of
marketing, comparison of ways in which organizations make use of marketing mix. Additionally,
analysis on development of a marketing plan will be discussed as a part of this project.
TASK 1
Covered in PPT.
TASK 2
P3: Comparison of ways in which marketing mix can be applied by the organization
History and Importance of 7P's of Marketing-
The 7P's of Marketing is a very old model of analysing the marketing strategies which is
adopted by the organizations. By making its use the organizations ensure that they are able to
find out the ways through which they can attain their marketing goals and objectives. The
importance of 7P's of marketing is as follows-
 Important in the achievement of marketing goals and objectives- This model is very
helpful for the companies because it helps in the attainment of the marketing goals and
objectives. Thus in the context of Unilever its use is crucial so that the marketing goals
and objectives are assessed effectively and efficiently.
 Useful for the comparison- This model is very useful for the organizations because by
using it they can compare and find out the conclusions and recommendations for
improvement. For Unilever its use is quite important so that a good comparison can be
done.
Overview of P&G- P&G is an American multinational company which has its
headquarters in Cincinnati, United States. Therefore this company provides different types of
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consumer goods to the consumers and is one of the top companies dealing in this segment. It has
a substantial customers base. It also has a strong goodwill in the market.
Marketing mix means the various strategies which can be adopted by the company in
specific areas so that the goals and objectives can be achieved (Bünte, 2018). There are different
types of ways in which it is adopted in the organizations. It has been explained as follows-
Comparison of organizations-
Basis Unilever P&G
Product Unilever provides different
types of products to its
customers such as daily-use
products and other goods
which they use in their day-to-
day life. The company plans to
bring innovation in its
products whenever it identifies
the new needs and
requirements of the customers
so that it is able to make sure
that it can fulfil them
effectively.
P&G also offers goods in
different categories to the
customers in the market. The
firm aims to ensure that it can
apply changes in products
according to the changing
dynamics in the market so as
to sustain effectively and
ensure the achievement of
strategic edge.
Price Unilever makes the use of
Penetration strategy so that it
is able to effectively penetrate
the market and the various
segments under it so that the
consumers can be targeted
effectively and efficiently.
This ensures that the various
customers are able to trust the
products and services of the
P&G uses value-based strategy
for its products as it identifies
the ways through which the
desired value can be provided
to the customers in the market.
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company (Perreault, 2018).
Place Unilever operates in different
countries of the world where it
has set up its stores and thus in
this way ensures that it is able
to target a substantial number
of customers in the market.
P&G also has its stores across
the world in various nations. It
constantly looks forwards to
different opportunities which it
can use so that it is able to
expand its operations in an
effective manner to earn more
profits.
Promotion Unilever makes use of
promotional strategies through
Social Media, Mail Order
Marketing and Customer
Incentive Referral Program.
P&G uses Branded
Promotional Gifts, Causes and
Charity, After-Sale Customer
Survey and Customer's
Appreciation Events as its
promotional strategies to be
able to succeed in the market.
Packaging In Unilever packaging of
goods is done in such a
manner so that it not only
attracts the customers but is
also environment-friendly.
In P&G the packaging of
products depends upon their
type and the way the
customers make their use in an
effective manner.
People Unilever's staff is quite
efficient and effective in
ensuring that the different
types of requirements related
to the customers are met.
P&G has those workers which
specialize in ensuring that they
are able to provide a good
experience to the customers.
Processes In Unilever, there are effective
processes in terms of an
interactive website, lower
delivery time and appropriate
In P&G the processes are quite
effective in ensuring lower in-
store wait time, good customer
support and aftercare through
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delivery methods and service. good after-sales service.
Physical evidence In Unilever, appropriate
methods are used for
displaying a good physical
evidence for the products
which thus helps the company
a lot to ensure that it is able to
create a good impression on
the minds of the customers.
P&G ensures that it also
provides a right physical
evidence for its goods which
will help the firm to be able to
present its products in the right
manner in front of the
customers. This also helps in
creating a good brand value for
it in the market if the company
is able to satisfy the customers
effectively and efficiently.
Similarities between both of the companies-
 Both these companies offer a wide range of products to their customers and thus make
sure that they are able to target a range of customers easily.
 Both of these companies are located in different parts of the world. They have their
presence in different countries.
Differences between both of the companies-
 While Unilever makes the use of Penetration strategy P&G makes the use of Value-based
pricing strategy which makes the approach of both of these companies very different.
 While Unilever puts its focus on making the use of traditional promotional methods and
techniques, P&G uses modern promotional methods and techniques so that the targeting
of the customers can be done on a wide basis.
TASK 3
P4: Marketing plan
It is a plan in which there is a detailed outline of the activities which will be adopted by
the organization in order to be able to achieve the marketing goals and objectives effectively
(Cooper, 2016). It can be also used by Unilever to be able to apply the appropriate marketing
strategies and tactics so that profits can be maximized. The marketing plan of Unilever is as
follows-
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Marketing plan of Unilever
Basis Details
Vision Unilever's vision is to provide sustainable
products to the customers which can help a lot
in adding the required value in their everyday
life.
Mission The mission of Unilever is to provide those
goods and services to the customers which are
very much useful in adding value for them in
their everyday life.
Marketing goals  To increase the market share of
different products and services in
various categories in the market.
 To expand the customer base in the
market.
 To improve the awareness for existing
goods and services in the market.
 To innovate in goods and services using
appropriate ways which will help a lot
in achieving the desired goals and
objectives.
SWOT analysis Strengths-
 Unilever offers a diverse range of
products and services to its customers
and thus it is able to fulfil their needs
and requirements effectively.
 The company invests a lot on R&D
which enables it to identify the
opportunities through which it can
invest in developing new products and
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services for the people.
Weaknesses-
 In Unilever, the marketing strategies
are not changed quickly according to
the changing dynamics which leads to
creation of different issues as it can lose
its strategic edge.
 There are plenty of substitute products
which can be purchased by the
customers in the market in the place of
goods provided by Unilever.
Opportunities-
 There have been different changes in
the choices of the customers. This
offers Unilever an opportunity to be
able to tap into them and innovate
effectively in the processes.
 Nowadays the customers are
environment-conscious. Thus this
offers a good opportunity which can be
used effectively by the management of
Unilever by providing them with those
products which can meet their needs
and requirements.
Threats-
 Due to the economic crisis the market
is witnessing a lot of fluctuations. Thus
for Unilever this creates a threat as it
can lead towards an impact on the
profits.
 The entry of new competitors in the
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market has created an impact on
operations of Unilever. This is due to
the fact they are offering their goods
and services at lower costs.
STP framework It is a framework which allows the
identification of strategies to be adopted to
target the customers (Eng, 2017). In Unilever it
will be applied as follows-
Segmentation- Unilever will segment its
market on a geographical basis. It will identify
different geographical areas in which the
customers can be targeted so that strategies can
be made for providing the products there.
Targeting- In Unilever, there must be an
adoption of a specific approach to target the
customers who have not been covered in the
segmentation part.
Positioning- Here, Unilever will be required to
make sure that the right position is acquired by
its products so that sustainable profits can be
earned by them.
Strategies to be adopted For increasing the market share the company
will ensure that it identifies the segments
where it can target more customers and thus
increase its presence in the market in an
effective manner.
For expanding the customer base the firm will
be required to ensure that it provides products
and services suiting their various needs and
requirements.
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For improving the awareness in the market the
company will ensure that it starts a marketing
campaign in which it can reach the customers
and enhance the sales of its existing products
and services.
For innovation the organization is required to
identify the specific requirements which the
customers in the market may have in the future
and thus in this way it will be able to bring the
required innovation in its products and services
which will help it in boosting the sales
revenues and enhancing the profits.
Budget
Monitoring and Control For monitoring and control the following
techniques will be used by the organization-
KPIs- These are metrics which will be used to
evaluate whether the organization is meeting
its marketing goals and objectives in an
effective manner (Eng, 2017). If there are
deviations and variances then actions can be
taken by the management of Unilever to rectify
them.
Benchmarking- Here the set standards will be
8
Particulars Amount(In Pounds)
Admin Exp. 80000
Promotion Exp. 60000
Advertising Exp. 20000
Other Exp. 40000
Total 200000

used by the management of Unilever against
which comparisons can be made (Nirschl and
Steinberg, 2018). Thus if the managers feel
that the improvements are necessary then they
can b made in an effective manner.
Implementation of the techniques- The
implementation of the different types of
techniques has to be made in Unilever as its
management needs to find out the ways
through which these techniques can be helpful
in controlling and monitoring. Therefore the
management has to make the use of Sales or
Market share analysis for this purpose.
Evaluation- The marketing plan of Unilever is very effective as by making the use of
this plan the company can be able to make sure that its different types of marketing goals and
objectives can be attained by it. Thus this plan requires a proper implementation to be done
which will surely make it successful for the company in the future without problems and issues.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be concluded that marketing is very important to make sure
that the goods and services can reach the customers and the targeted profits can be earned by the
organizations. For the firms it is quite crucial that they are able to apply the various strategies
and tactics which come under it in an appropriate manner. There are various roles and
responsibilities which have to be fulfilled by the marketing function. There is an interrelationship
which is shared by the marketing department with the other departments. Different firms apply
the marketing mix in their own way for the achievement of the goals and objectives. A marketing
plan is quite essential so that strategies can be implemented appropriately for achieving goals and
objectives.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals:
Blythe, J. and Martin, J., 2019. Essentials of marketing. Pearson UK.
Bünte, C., 2018. Künstliche Intelligenz–die Zukunft des Marketing. Wiesbaden: Springer
Fachmedien Wiesbaden.
Cooper, C., 2016. Essentials of tourism. Pearson.
Eng, P., 2017. Erste Schritte im Online-Marketing. Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden.
Eng, P., 2017. Online-Marketing-Grundlagen. InErste Schritte im Online-Marketing. (pp. 1-2).
Springer Vieweg, Wiesbaden.
Nirschl, M. and Steinberg, L., 2018. Einstieg in das Influencer Marketing. Springer Fachmedien
Wiesbaden.
Perreault, W. D., 2018. Essentials of marketing. New York: Mc Graw Hill.
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