Implementation - Evaluation - Control

Lemuria will be marketed mainly online with visual ads and motion graphics which appeal to users interactive experience. Here are 2 examples:

Image:

Video:

Marketing our product online will be extremely useful when it comes to implementation, evaluation, and control. “Data mining is used to find hidden patterns and relationships in the customer data stored in the data warehouse. It is a data analysis approach that identifies patterns of characteristics that relate to particular customers or customer groups. MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg. 299)
Because of Internet data mining, we will be able to use customer data collected from online sales to further improve and expand according to customer relationships. "Web-based interactions are an increasingly popular touch point for customers to communicate with companies on their own terms. Web users can evaluate and purchase products, make reservations input preferential data, and provide customer feedback on services and products,. Data from these Web-based interactions are then captured, compiled, and used to segment customers, refine marketing efforts, develop new products, and deliver and degree of individual customization to improve customer relationships. (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg.297) The end result, and business mission statement hopefully will be realized after all the efforts put forth in production, marketing, and sales:

“To create and sell a unique and exotic essential body oil and fragrance, with a passionate commitment to using pure, natural ingredients and packaging while promoting a conscious awareness and respect for the universe, our planet earth, and all living beings.“

Pricing

Lemuria Essential Oil Pendant (with 1oz vile):  $19.95 
Lemuria Essential Oil 1 oz vile: 9.95   
Lemuria Body Oil 4oz bottle: 12.95

The pricing strategy used will be cost plus mark-up. This is the opposite of competitive pricing. Instead of looking at the market, we will look at our own cost structure. Decide the profit we want to make and add it to our costs to determine selling price. Using this method will assure a certain per-unit margin, and it may also result in prices that are out-of-line with customer expectations, with similar products, however, we will be marketing this as a specialty item, and do not want our product to be considered a bargain item. Price will reflect the quality. “Customer value is not simply a matter of high quality. A high-quality product that is available only at a high price will not be perceived as a good value, nor will bare-bones service or low-quality goods selling for a low price. Instead, customers value goods and services that are of the quality they expect and that are sold at prices they are willing to pay.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg.7)
Lemuria Body Oil and Lemuria Essential Oil can be sold separately, however, we will be marketing the two products together as a special package, known as ‘bundling’. The price together will represent more value than buying each item individually. “Price bundling is marketing two or more products in a single package for a special price. Price bundling can stimulate demand for the bundled items if the target market perceives the price as a good value.”(Lamb Hair. Pg.287) Bundling can also stimulate demand during a recession, if features are added to a bundle, consumers may perceive the offering aw having greater value. (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg. 290)

Promotion

“Promotion strategy in the introductory stage focuses on developing product awareness and informing consumers about the product category’s potential benefits. At this stage, the communication challenge is to stimulate primary demand for the product in general rather that for a specific brand. Intensive selling is often required to gain acceptance for the product among wholesalers and retailers. Specialty product demand educational advertising and personal selling to the final consumer.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg. 155) Product awareness is a main objective that will be attained through intense online viral marketing; We will market Lemuria online with a website featuring a shopping cart where buyers can easily make a purchase and check out. We will list your product online in auctions, like eBay and put a link to our website so wholesale buyers can contact us. Video advertisements, websites, blogging, site linking, and social networking will be the avenues used to develop a marketing plan to suit our financial resources. Establishing a niche in the perfume market takes consistent effort over a period of time, and our first concern would be making the most of our limited marketing dollars. Through the Internet, we will utilize various avenues for direct-response marketing, which may start out small, and then expand our base as the product sells. "The Internet has become a solid advertising medium. Online advertising continues to grow at double-digit rates- well ahead of other advertising media. Researchers predict that by 2012, online ad spending will hit $61.3 billion and account for 18% of all marketing expenditures. Internet advertising provides an interactive, versatile platform that offers rich data on consumer usage, enabling advertisers to improve their ad target ability and achieve measurable results. MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg.235)

Place

“Opening an e-commerce site on the Internet immediately puts a company in the international marketplace. Sophisticated language translation software can make any site accessible to people around the world. Global shippers, such as UPS, FedEx, and DHL help solve international e-commerce distribution complexities. Currency conversion software allows companies to post prices in U.S. dollars, then ask their customers what currency they wish to owe for payment.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg. 60.) Lemuria’s main distribution method will be through the Internet, however, we will use selective distribution through carefully chosen retail outlets. This selective distribution will help eliminate inventory issues, as the bulk of our orders will be placed online. “Selective distribution is achieved by screening dealers and retailers to eliminate all but a few in any single area. Because only a few are chosen, the consumer must seek out the product.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg. 181)

Product

“One of the most important packaging issues today is compatibility with the environment. Some firms use their packaging to target environmentally concerned market segments. Products are packaged in ‘eco-friendly’ packages that do not rely on ozone-destroying aerosol propellants.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg.141) Lemuria will be packaged with a well-developed, exotic theme that is compelling to the personality profile of the targeted market segment. All material used in packaging will be organic, recyclable, and environmentally safe. The uniqueness of the pouch, made of all-natural fibers, and the refillable crystal pendant containing Lemuria’s Essential Oil, will attract a first-time buyer, because of its aesthetic beauty. Both these packaging elements serve the dual purpose of container and fashion accessory.The type of plastic used for the bottle containing Lemuria’s Body Oil will not deplete the earth’s natural resources. “Many companies are replacing some of their plastic packaging with PLA products. PLA, or polydactyl acid, is a resin made from corn. This “corn plastic” can be formed into containers and packaging. PLA uses 65% less energy than conventional plastics, and generates 68% fewer greenhouse gases, and contains no toxins.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg. 141) And, equally as important regarding our product, the quality of Lemuria’s fragrance itself will bring buyers back to purchase more. The mystique, elegance, earthiness, electricity, and originality will speak volumes for and about each woman who purchases Lemuria.

Marketing Strategy

“The first and foremost task in developing a retail strategy is to define the target market. This process begins with market segmentation. Successful retailing has always been based on knowing the customer.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg.202) The target market for Lemuria is the baby boomer woman, who is extremely aware of society’s environmental and health issues. Her lifestyle includes alternative healing methods, metaphysics, meditation, and yoga. She has evolved from the hippie, love of child of the 60’s, and the wild child of the ‘70’s, into the successful, creative, intuitive, and centered woman of the New Millennium. She has weathered life’s ups and downs, and feels she is entitled to indulge her interests with passion and wisdom. Whether single, married, or divorced, she possesses self-confidence and inner strength. She gravitates toward clothing, accessories, and beauty products that reflect her body, mind, and spirit connectedness. “Personality and self-concept are reflected in lifestyle. Lifestyle characteristics are useful in segmenting and targeting consumers. Lifestyle and psychographic analysis explicitly addresses the way consumers outwardly express their inner selves in their social and cultural environment. Many companies now use psychographics to better understand their market segments.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg. 76) During its introductory phase, Lemuria will be marketed as a specialty product, available only on the internet and selective retail outlets. Market specialization strategy will be implemented, targeting the particular market segment of the baby boomer woman, and offering that segment the introductory Lemuria fragrance products, followed by added products targeted toward the same market segment. “With a concentrated targeting strategy, a firm selects a market niche (one segment of a market) for targeting its marketing efforts. Because the firm is appealing to a single segment, it can concentrate on understanding the needs, motives, and satisfactions of that segment’s members, and on developing and maintaining a highly specialized marketing mix. Some firms find that concentrating resources and meeting the needs of a narrowly defined market segment is more profitable than spreading resources over several different segments.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg. 107)

Threats

Competitors with large operating capital may imitate the packaging and concept, and saturate the market more quickly than we are able to. This is a woman’s fragrance, however it will be marketed to as a specialty product to a niche market and will not have the mass appeal as high end fragrances found in department stores. Lemuria will start as a cottage industry and will have to maintain a marketing calendar in order to create sustainability or risk losing interest and missed opportunities. We might encounter liability for skin problems resulting from product. If an ingredient contained in the product becomes unavailable, the replaced ingredient may not have the same impact.

Opportunities

Because of the uniqueness of the product ingredients and packaging, Lemuria will stand out among other products which are similar. There is only 1 major international competitor offering a similar product, from which Lemuria’s basic concept was derived, and improved upon. “A sustainable competitive advantage is a function of the speed with which competitors can imitate a leading company’s strategy and plans.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg.22) We expect consistent growth of online sales because of the explosive growth of the use of computers and online retailing. “Online retailing, or e-tailing, is a type of shopping available to consumers with personal computers and access to the Internet. Over 70% of Americans have Internet access either at home or at work.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg.201) Expansion of product line can include various jewelry diffusers, calendars, books, and clothing which reflect the eclectic Lemuria mystique. A portion of projected sales will go to benefit environmental causes, such as deforestation. Also, a portion of projected sales will go to benefit international disaster relief.

Weaknesses

Lemuria is a new product being introduced to a market that may have brand loyalty to similar products being marketed as essential oils and aromatherapy oils. “Baby boomers are likely to be vigorous consumers in the future, and even though historically, consumers lock in brand preferences by age 40, today’s over-50 crowd is just as likely - and in some cases more likely - as younger generations to try different brands within a product category.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg.36) During the introductory phase we will have a strategic partnership with an outside company that provides the essential oil ingredients, until we have the capacity to produce them in-house. “A strategic partnership, is a cooperative agreement between business firms. Strategic alliances can take the form of licensing or distribution agreements, joint ventures, research and development consortia and partnerships.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg.86) In the event of an unexpected order of large quantity, there would be an added cost for labor and production, and because of unique packaging material, we may have to price somewhat higher than similar products.

Strengths

By launching our product online, we will not incur a huge output of capital, and we can use the Internet for leverage in marketing, advertising, networking, analytics, and ultimately, sales.“Online retailing has exploded in the last several years as consumers have found this type of shopping convenient and, in many instances, less costly. Consumers can shop without leaving their home, choose froom a wide selection of merchanst, use shoping comparison services to search the Web for best price, and then have the items delivered to their doorsteps." (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg. 201) The marketing team has an extensive combined background in design, marketing, advertising, and sales, and with technology know-how, we are capable of creating effective digital media presentations, websites, and video advertisements as necessary. Research indicates that the target market and society in general is receptive to environmentally conscious products; the 'going green’ concept. Product implementation will require minimal start up investment because viral marketing costs are substantially less expensive than traditional marketing avenues. "Often nontraditional channel arrangements help differentiate a firm’s product from the competition. Nontraditional channels include the Internet.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg.178) Pre-payment for all internet orders will enable us to cover the cost of all orders regardless of quantity. Initial orders in small quantities can be produced in-house without paid labor. By providing inventory only on a pre-paid basis, from actual paid online sales, there will be no inventory expense or loss if sales are slow in the introductory phase.

Objectives

Through online research and marketing, we expect to increase product awareness among the target audience by 30 percent in one year. We will also inform target audience about features and benefits of our product and its competitive advantage, resulting in a 10 percent increase in sales in one year. “Companies increasingly are using the Internet in their public relations strategies. Company web sites are used to introduce new products, promote existing products, obtain consumer feedback, post news releases, communicate legislative and regulatory information, showcase upcoming events, provide links to related sites, release financial information, and perform many more marketing activities. (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg. 242)

The company intends to donate a portion of profits to benefit areas and peoples victimized by natural disasters, and specific 'green' causes, such as the deforestation of Earth's natural rainforests. “The newest theory in social responsibility is called ‘sustainability’. This refers to the idea that socially responsible companies will out perform their peers by focusing on the world’s social problems, viewing them as opportunities to build profits and help the world at the same time. It is also the notion that companies cannot thrive for long in a world where billions of people are suffering and are desperately poor. Thus, it is in business’s best interest to find ways to attack society’s ills.” (MKTG, Lamb Hair McDaniel. Pg.29)

Business Mission Statement

To create and sell a unique and exotic essential body oil and fragrance, with a passionate commitment to using pure, natural ingredients and packaging while promoting a conscious awareness and respect for the universe, our planet earth, and all living beings.

The fragrance of Lemuria, and all subsequent products in the Lemuria line will capture the mystique of the legend of Lemuria, which is as follows: Lemuria was an ancient civilization which existed prior to and during the time of Atlantis. Physically, it is believed that Lemuria existed largely in the South Pacific, between North America and Asia/Australia. At its peak of civilization, the Lemurian people were both highly evolved and very spiritual. While concrete physical evidence of this ancient continent may be difficult to find, many people "know" that they have a strong connection to Lemuria. The basic beliefs of Lemuria were the belief in a higher power, love and respect for each other and love and respect for the Earth. That was the spirituality of the ancients and that is the spirituality that is awakening within you. There was a knowing within every Lemurian that all life was harmonious and worked with heart rather than the separated mind/head space. The important concepts were unity, community, awareness, centeredness, absolute love, respect, love of others and unconditional love.

Week 9 EOC - McDonald's $10 Burger?

“McDonald's, which has experienced excellent sales during the recession, is going head-to-head with Hardee's and Carl's Jr. restaurants, both of which now offer mammoth Angus burgers priced at around $4. The latter two, which are owned by the same company, even say they'll refund a customer's money if he or she prefers McD's Angus burger to theirs. Burger King, Denny's, Jack in the Box, and Wendy's are all either in the fray, with premium burgers of their own—sirloin burgers, steakhouse burgers, and so on - or they will be soon, per USA Today."
(http://money.blogs.time.com/2009/09/18/fast-food-burgers-go-big-13-pounders-900-calories-4-and-up/)

It’s just a matter of time before McDonald’s will come up with a burger to top all others. They could charge $4, which is the status quo pricing on specialty burgers at the fast food joints. “Although status quo pricing has the advantage of simplicity, its disadvantage is that the strategy may ignore demand or cost or both. If the firm is comparatively small, however, meeting the competition may be the safest route to long-term survival.” (Lamb Hair McDaniel, pg. 280.)

My thought is that, since McDonald’s does not have to worry about being small, they could charge $10 for a super, duper, fantabulous burger that promises to be even better than any of the big burgers coming from the competition. Charge $10 per burger, $20 per burger, whatever amount they wanted to charge. If the price causes no demand, or lack of sales for that one particular item, they still make money off all of the other products. If even only one person buys a $10 burger, McDonald’s will still make a profit. “Price skimming is sometimes called a ‘market plus’ approach to pricing because it denotes a high price relative to the prices of competing products…..companies often use this strategy for new products when the product is perceived by the target market as having unique advantages. Often companies will use skimming and then lower prices over time. This is called ‘sliding down the demand curve’.” (Lamb Hair McDaniel, pg. 278-229.)

Obviously, there are people who see a unique advantage to eating a burger that costs $10. Burgers priced at $10 or more are sold in restaurants. As we know about the fast food society we live in, people don’t want to wait, or be waited on most of the time. They want their food quickly, but why should they have to sacrifice quality, if they are willing to pay the price? For the same price, they can go to McDonalds for an Angus Corned Beef Kosher Burger served on pure grain whole wheat bun, topped with organically grown lettuce, onion, and tomatoes, and be out of there in less than 20 minutes.

Week 8 EOC - My USP Compared to 3 Others

MONOI TIARE TAHITI is a French-Tahitian cosmetic oil consisting of pure coconut oil and the fragrance of tiare, the Tahitian Gardenia. The product is a refinement of an ancient Polynesian beauty secret and has been manufactured commercially since 1942. Centuries ago the people of Polynesia discovered that pure coconut oil is an essential secret for beautiful skin and hair. Coconut oil is a natural replacement for your body's skin and hair oils. The coconut oil used in Monoi Tiare Tahiti is so highly refined that it is quickly absorbed by your skin. The price for a bottle of Monoi Tiare Tahiti is around $10.00

LEMURIA will use pure coconut oil and a selected brand of jasmine essential oil which very closely resembles the exotic fragrance of the Tahitian Tiare flower. In addition to the coconut and jasmine body oil, Lemuria will also provide an essential oil with the 2 fragrances combined. It will be made available in a environmentally safe plastic bottle, or a crystal pendant that can be worn around the neck. The packaging for Lemuria will not be as simplistic as Monoi Tiare Tahiti...it will be more decorative and each packaging item (crystal pendant, pouch, plastic bottle) can be used for a dual purpose. The price for a bottle of Lemuria Body Oil will be $12.99

OIL INFUSED CRYSTAL PENDANTS are sold with a purpose to assist in the healing process of various ailments that the type of crystal or type of essential oil can help with. The pendants are hung on a card that allows it to be displayed on a rack in a retail shop. The price for an Oil Infused Crystal Pendant is around $30.00 and comes with a vile of essential oil for refills.

LEMURIA ESSENTIAL OIL PENDANT will not be sold to address the healing of physical ailments. The crystal pendant used is not made of real crystal, it is made of glass, and is much more streamlined, aesthetic looking, and fashionable. The price for a Lemuria Crystal Pendant is about $20.00 and comes with a vile of Lemuria Essential Oil for refills.

RETURN TO LEMURIA - This spray creates an environment bridging the connection to angels and Spirit. The energy in Lemuria supported this joining of matter and spirit, and it is exciting to facilitate a revival of this awareness for the benefit of all of us in this new millennium. Frankencense and Jasmine essential oils are blended with a hydrosol of Hawaiian sandalwood, the essence of old Hawai`I, and with Hawaiian Holy Water that is energetically activated Kaua'i rain, spring & ocean water. The result is a perfect aromatic moisturizing refresher to the face, skin and air. Gem essences, Celestite, Charoite, Larimar & Ruby, are added to each bottle, as energetic catalysts. Lemurian Mist is unique! This is not sticky essential oil or perfumes in water, but a revolutionary combination of water of sandalwood in a base of powerfully beneficial island waters. The essences added were all chosen for their ability to recreate the energy of Lemuria. Lemurian Mist is available in cobalt blue 1 ounce mist bottles. Price for a 1 oz. bottle is $13.00

LEMURIA ESSENTIAL OIL - Is jasmine essential oil contained in a 1 oz. file. Our marketing strategy will not include any spiritual or healing claims or holy water. It will not have a spray diffuserRecreating the energy of Lemuria will be done in the packaging, design of website, advertising, and marketing materials. The price for a 1 oz. vile of Lemuria Essential Oil will be around $10.00