Royal Mint London 2012 Olympic Souvenir Coins - Case Study Example

Table of contents Executive summary 3 1. Introduction 3 2. Royal Mint London 2012 Olympic souvenir coins 4 2.1 Process for responding to the demand for 2012 Olympic commemorative coins 4 2.2 Different types of packs that should be made available 7 3. Conclusion - Recommendations 9 References 10 Appendix 11 Executive summary The goals of organizations in industries worldwide are depended on different criteria. Usually, the needs of the relevant industry and the local market trends are taken into consideration when setting these goals; other factors, such as the quality and the volume of resources available and the practices of rivals can also affect the goals of organizations in markets internationally. Royal Mint (UK) has a key challenge to face: the organization needs to cover the needs of the 2012 Olympic games in regard to commemorative coins; the identification of appropriate marketing strategies, to respond to the needs of the particular event, is one of the organization’s priorities. The processes employed by the organization to respond to the particular challenge are presented and explained in this paper using appropriate literature and empirical evidence, as available. 1. Introduction The identification of marketing strategies that are most appropriate for the promotion of products or services in a particular market can be a difficult task. Marketing research (see Figure 1 Appendix) can help to locate marketing strategies that promote effectively a particular product or service either locally or globally. According to Kotler ‘marketing research is the systematic design, collection, analysis and reporting of data and findings relevant to a specific situation facing the company’ (Kotler, 1983, quoted by Breneman et al. 1998, p.7). Therefore, marketing research can help suppliers ‘to understand the needs of their customers’ (Chisnall 1992, quoted by Proctor 2005, p.3). In this paper the practical implications of marketing research are presented. Reference is made to the needs of the UK market in terms of 2012 Olympic commemorative coins. The potentials of Royal Mint, ‘the world's leading export mint’ (Royal Mint, About the Royal Mint 2012), to respond to the relevant needs of UK market are explored using appropriate literature. It is proved that Royal Mint is appropriately prepared for facing the challenges of such task; however, it would be necessary for measures to be taken so that unexpected market trends or turbulences are handled effectively. 2. Royal Mint London 2012 Olympic souvenir coins One of the key issues that the Royal Mint has to face in regard to the 2012 Olympic Games is the identification of the marketing strategies that could help the organization to respond to the needs of the Games in terms of commemorative coins. The various phases of the marketing process involved in this project are presented below. Reference is also made to the different types of packs, meaning the commemorative coins, which should be made available in the 2012 Olympic games. 2.1 Process for responding to the demand for 2012 Olympic commemorative coins As analyzed earlier, the marketing research process helps organizations to identify the market trends and the needs of their customers, so that they introduce strategies that most help the organizations to face the above challenges. Most commonly, the first step of the marketing research process is ‘the identification of the marketing problem’ (McDaniel and Gates 1998, p.25, Figure 1, Appendix). Indeed, under the influence of the continuous market changes, the marketing strategies of organizations need to be periodically reviewed and evaluated as of their appropriateness (McDaniel and Gates 1998, p.25). In this context, when having to respond to specific market needs, organizations need to check whether their existing marketing strategies are suitable or whether new marketing strategies should be introduced for facing the specific challenge more effectively (McDaniel and Gates 1998, p.25). After defining the marketing problem, the rest phases of the marketing research process can be developed rapidly (McDaniel and Gates 1998). It should be noted that the identification of the correct marketing problem is critical for the success of the marketing research process, since the entire process is based on the particular problem (McDaniel and Gates 1998). Mistakes in identifying the appropriate marketing problem can lead to the failure of the marketing research process. According to Egan (2007) the success of the research marketing process is highly based on the identification of the appropriate research objectives; these objectives should be incorporated in the research problem (Egan 2007, p.128), a term used often instead of the term marketing problem. Boone and Kurtz (2011) note that an accurate research problem allows marketing researchers ‘to focus on appropriate information’ (Boone and Kurtz 2011, p.244); in this way, ‘the accuracy and the speed of the research process’ (Boone and Kurtz 2011, p.244) are increased. The other phases of the marketing research process are the following ones:’ a) creation of the research design, b) choice of research method, c) choice of the sampling procedure, d) choice of data collection method, e) choice of data analysis methods, f) writing and presentation of the marketing report, g) follow up’ (McDaniel and Gates 1998, p.25). The phases of the marketing research process, as presented above, are indicative, meaning that the structure and the content of the process can be differentiated across organizations, depending on the internal and external organizational conditions, the marketing problem and the resources available (Cant et al. 2009). At the same time, Prakashan (2007) explains that the time spent on each one of the phases of the marketing research process can be differentiated according to the complexity of the marketing problem and the market conditions. Moreover, the methods chosen in regard each phase of the marketing research process are not standardized; each organization is free to employ methods that support its marketing strategy more effectively. For example, Gillette, ‘a global leader in male toiletries products’ (Churchill and Iacobucci 2009, p.30) has incorporate in its marketing research process the following methods: ‘a) Annual National Consumer Studies and b) Consumer Use Tests’ (Churchill and Iacobucci 2009, p.30). The first of the above processes is used for gathering demographic data as related to the use of products of the particular type; the second of the above processes is used for helping the firm to identify the responses of customers specifically in regard to the firm’s products (Churchill and Iacobucci 2009, p.30). Many firms, ‘such as Best Buy and Reebok’ (Pride and Ferrell 2011, p.136), prefer marketing research schemes that are based on Internet; reference is made specifically to online research communities, like ‘Communispace and Passenger’ (Pride and Ferrell 2011, p.136). The above issue is highlighted also in the study of Zikmund and Babin (2006); these researchers note that each organization seeks for marketing strategies that are most appropriate for supporting the achievement of organizational goals. Referring to the case of the University of Phoenix Zikmund and Babin (2006) explain that the particular organization has focused on the identification of strategies that can help the firm to face market competition. The organization’s existing marketing strategies should be reviewed and alternated, being aligned with the similar strategies of rivals that focus on innovation (Zikmund and Babin 2006). Malhotra (2011) notes that the marketing research process, as described above, can be used both locally, i.e. in the local market, and internationally. In the last case, it is necessary for this process to be appropriate customized so that it can help the organization to face the challenges of the global market (Malhotra 2011). According to the issues discussed above, the Royal Mint would use the marketing research process for understanding the needs of the 2012 Olympic games in terms of commemorative coins. Indeed, through appropriate marketing research process, the organization could retrieve information regarding the volume and the type of commemorative coins that should be available during the 2012 Olympic games. A critical issue that should be addressed through the above marketing research process would be the following one: what types of packs should be made available during the Games. This issue should be addressed using information gathered through a marketing research process the structure of which should be similar to that suggested by McDaniel and Gates 1998, above. In any case, advanced research methods could be part of the particular research process; for example, online research communities would be employed in the relevant marketing research methods, a marketing tool used by Reebok (Pride and Ferrell 2011). 2.2 Different types of packs that should be made available Royal Mint is a ‘government owned company’ (Royal Mint, About the Royal Mint 2012). The organization has a long experience in ‘making coins and medals’ (Royal Mint, About the Royal Mint 2012); actually the organization produces coins and metals approximately ‘for 60 countries worldwide’ (Royal Mint, About the Royal Mint 2012). The above facts are mentioned in order to show the increased potentials of the organization in promoting its products, as implied through its quite long presence in the particular industry; as noted in the organization’s website, the company operates in this industry for about 1000 years (Royal Mint, About the Royal Mint 2012). According to the organization’s website, a range of commemorative coins are available to the public in the context of the 2012 Olympic games; in fact, commemorative coins are offered to the public either as sole items or as parts of a collection. Three different types of metal have been used in these coins: gold, silver and base metal (Royal Mint, About the Royal Mint 2012). Examples of the collections of commemorative coins available by the Royal Mint for the 2012 Olympic games are the following: ‘the London 2012 Gold series, the London 2012 Silver 50p Sports Collection and so on’ (Royal Mint, About the Royal Mint 2012); about 80 coins collections have been developed by the Royal Mint for the 2012 Olympic Games (Royal Mint, The Official Olympic and Paralympic Coins London 2012). These coins vary not only as of their material, but also of their price: collections of low price, such as £2.99, and collection of high price, such as £2880, are available (Royal Mint, The Official Olympic and Paralympic Coins London 2012). The collections of coins that the Royal Mint have prepared for the 2012 Olympic Games also vary in terms of their themes (Royal Mint, The Official Olympic and Paralympic Coins London 2012). Under these terms, no suggestion would be made for increase of the volume or of the range (in terms of material or of price) of the collections of Royal Mint, as prepared for the 2012 Olympic games. However, the following problem seems to exist in regard to these collections: many of these collections are not, currently, available to the public; according to the organization’s website these collections are still in production (Royal Mint, The Official Olympic and Paralympic Coins London 2012). It is implied that mistakes have been made in regard to the cost of the production of these coins, as compared to the profits gathered through the selling of the collections that are ready. A marketing research should be developed by the Royal Mint for checking the potential response of consumers in UK, as also of visitors, both to the existing collections and to the collections that are in production. 3. Conclusion - Recommendations The efforts of Royal Mint for developing commemorative coins for the 2012 Olympic games can be characterized as significant, taking into consideration the range of these collections, as analyzed above. The use of an appropriately customized marketing research process would help the organization to verify the needs of the market in terms of these collections, so that the production of the collections which are still in production process to be arranged accordingly. The production of these collections that would have little chances to be welcomed by the public would be cancelled. When managing a marketing research process it is quite important to identify the needs of the process in terms of communication. Communication methods that have been used effectively in the past may be inappropriate for covering the needs of future marketing research processes (Davis 2012). Managers in Royal Mint would possibly have to alternate or improve the communication schemes that they use for communicating with their customers. In this way, they could check whether the collections coins that are in production process would be welcomed by consumers or not, a fact that would be critical for deciding the continuation of the relevant project, i.e. of producing these collections and make them available to the public. Another issue that would be important for the success of the organization’s marketing research process in regard to its commemorative coins collections would be the sponsorship (Davis 2012). Indeed, the organization’s managers should check in advance, i.e. before starting the relevant marketing process, the willingness of their sponsors to support the particular initiative (Davis 2012). The above issue is also highlighted in the study of Rosner and Shropshire (2011) where emphasis is given on ‘the importance of sponsorship for protecting the Olympic image’ (Rosner and Shropshire 2011, p.473). It is implied that when funds available through sponsorship are of a high level, it is easier for the organizations involving in the Olympic games to keep their products and services at high levels in terms of quality (Rosner and Shropshire 2011). References Boone, L., and Kurtz, D. (2011) Contemporary Marketing. Belmont: Cengage Learning. Breneman, A., Breen, G., and Dutka, A. (1998) State of The Art Marketing Research. Illinois: NTC Business Books. Cant, M., Strydom, J., and Jooste, C. (2009) Marketing Management. Cape Town: Juta and Company Ltd. Churchill, G., and Iacobucci, D. (2009) Marketing Research: Methodological Foundations. Belmont: Cengage Learning. Davis, J. (2012) The Olympic Games Effect: How Sports Marketing Builds Strong Brands. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. Egan, J. (2007) Marketing Communications. Belmont: Cengage Learning EMEA. Malhotra, N. (2011) Review of Marketing Research: Special Issue - Marketing Legends. Bingley: Emerald Group Publishing. McDaniel, C., and Gates, R. (1998) Marketing Research Essentials. Oxon: Taylor & Francis. Prakashan, N. (2007) Marketing Research. Pune: Pragati Books Pvt Pride, W., and Ferrell, O. (2011) Marketing. Belmont: Cengage Learning. Proctor, T. (2005) Essentials of Marketing Research. Essex: Pearson Education. Rosner, S., and Shropshire, K. (2011) The Business of Sports. Sudbury: Jones & Bartlett Publishers. Royal Mint (2012) Organization’s website. Available at http://www.royalmint.com/ Zikmund, W., and Babin, B. (2006) Exploring Marketing Research. Belmont: Cengage Learning. Appendix Figure 1 – Marketing Research Process (Source: http://www.mbaknol.com/marketing-management/marketing-research-and-its-process/) Read More