Integrated Marketing Communication for Prada - Essay Example

?Integrated Marketing Communication Plan for Prada College: Company Overview Prada started in 1913 when the founder Mario Prada began designing handbags, trunks, shoes and suitcases for sale. At the start, Prada had only two boutiques. However, the quality of Prada suitcases attracted customers from different parts of the United States and Europe. Prada could only transport the suitcases through air travel and when that proved cumbersome, Prada shifted focused on leather accessories and handbags. Prada’s daughter took over the leadership of the company in 1978 and with the help of Patrizio Bertelli, they transformed the image of Prada. Prada began to design classic handbags and by the 1980’s, the Prada’s designed outstanding fabrics that revolutionised the runway. This enhanced the company’s image in the market and in the 1990s, Prada became a force in the fashion industry (Prada Group, 2012). Prada invested in innovations for her designs throughout the 1990s and experimented with different fabrics to reach more customers. Prada has been expanding the range of products and expanding to different countries across world. Prada runs many boutiques across the globe and has expanded its products to include perfumes and the LG Prada mobile phone. Prada’s shoes and handbags have gained much popularity across the globe. Prada holds regular runway shows as well. One of Prada’s expansion strategies has been taking over other companies such as Helmut Lang, Fendi, Church Shoes and Jil Sander (Prada Group, 2012). Target market An organisation’s target market determines the most appropriates medium of communicating its marketing messages. Segmenting this target market enables an organisation to identify the most profitable category of potential and existing consumers (Smith & Taylor, 2004, p. 37). Each segment of the target market has its own unique consumption patterns and needs. An effective marketing plan integrates these needs and consumptions. Segmenting the target market helps an organisation to allocate its resources efficiently and derive maximum benefits from each segment (Smith & Zook, 2011, p. 229). Prada designs high fashion clothes, handbags and accessories. The company’s designs are displayed in major fashion shows and runways across the globe. Thus, the target market for Prada’s designs includes professionals, business men and women, and celebrities. This target market can afford to buy Prada’s products. Demographic segmentation Demographic segmentation involves categorising the target market based on the demographic characteristics of consumers such as their social status, age, family size, occupation, level of income, education, nationality, religion and gender among others (Botha, Strydom, & Brink, 2005, p.66). Prada can segment its target market on gender and develop different marketing messages for men and women. Most of its designs are for women and thus, most of Prada’s marketing resources should be geared towards women. Prada’s customers can also be categorised based on their social status. Marketing messages should target individuals with high social status because they can afford Prada’s fashion designs. The company’s marketing communication plan targets customers from all nationalities. This is because the company has stores in different cities and countries and part of the communication will be online. Prada will target individuals between 20-50 years. Psychographic segmentation Psychographic segmentation involves dividing customers based on the lifestyles habits, interests, activities, opinions towards an organisation and its products and daily activities among others (Lamb, Hair, McDaniel, 2008, p. 242). Prada will focus its marketing messages to impulse buyers, celebrities, and successful individuals. These categories of consumers are likely to purchase Prada’s designs for their elegance and social status associated with the designs. Behavioural Segmentation Behavioural segmentation involves dividing the target market based on the consumption behaviour of consumers and their attitude towards a product (Ferrell & Hartline, 2010, p. 177). Prada’s marketing communication plan will target impulse buyers and the consumer that frequent Prada’s boutiques and runway shows. The communication plan will also target the consumers that frequent Prada’s online stores Benefit Segmentation Benefit segmentation involves identifying the target audience for a marketing plan based on the kind of benefits that different categories of consumers look for in a product (Lamb, Hair, McDaniel, 2008, p. 242). Most of Prada’s potential and existing customers look for the celebrity status and high social status associated with its designs. These customers form the target audience for this marketing communication plan. Target Market Description Statement Prada’s designs a wide range of high fashion clothes, shoes, handbags, accessories and perfumes for both men and women. Prada’s target market is described as: Individuals aged 20-50 with high social status look for designs that fit their class. Celebrities and successful professionals search for designs that match their status and lifestyle. These customers have different cultural backgrounds but will easily buy products that enhance their social status and give them the high fashion look that their admirers expect. Message Review Current message strategy The current message strategy followed by Prada is one in which Prada products are brought out to reflect elegance, chic, class, social status, prestige and first rate craftsmanship. The key emphasis to Prada’s message is that its products are expertly handcrafted in Italy as opposed to mass productions in low cost countries and therefore Prada emphasises what makes its product different and why it is worth the extra cost. Prada’s promotional materials are often targeted at specific high end moneyed clientele who are likely to purchase Prada’s products, using world renowned fashion shows in Milan, New York and Paris, and through advertisements in high end glossy magazines. In the adverts, Prada’s distinctive logo is often given prominence with the tagline being the word ‘Prada’ in the advertisements. In fact the tagline ‘Prada’ often has more prominence overshadowing the products being advertised or displayed (Marketline, 2012). With Fratelli designated as the official dresser of the royal household in the 1930s, the Prada logo infused within it both the knotted rope insignia for the House of Savoy and the Coat of arms within its logo, which essentially recognises the royalty, high class, elegance and prestige associated with ‘Prada’. For the nylon handbags introduced in the 1990s, a key tagline that has been associated with the miu miu brand is ‘less is more’. This is reflective of the less expensive miu miu brand from the mainline brand targeted at younger fashionable female customers (Moore & Doyle, 2010, p. 921). The organisation’ s one way push communication approach is the use of its tagline ‘Prada’ which is an already established and respectable powerhouse brand to draw attention and awareness to its new products. An example is the new Prada LG phone. With the incorporation of the brand name into this phone, the company draw attention to this phone as one of a kind unique and a piece of art product. In the company’s pull communication approaches, the company focuses on emphasising products are expertly handcrafted in Italy in a way that makes their products different from others. An example of this is the prominent made in Italy message that accompanies every one of Prada’s products (Marketline, 2012, p. 17). Message Effectiveness Critique In analysing the effectiveness of the message strategy it can be noted that the current approach has had the impact intended for by the organisation. The direction of the marketing messages to a specific target market and the essence of focusing on the uniqueness of hand crafted glamorous Prada products has seen the brand position itself in the market as chic, elegant, and prestigious brand selling unique hand crafted products. This is just what the company had intended under Miuccia Prada and Patrizio Bertelli who from the eighties and nineties sought to develop a distinct luxury brand aimed at the high-end market (Marketline, 2012, p. 18; Moore & Doyle, 2010). In fact the company has grown to be a strong competitor of fashion power houses such as Louis Vuitton, Gucci among others, with Prada being arguably more exclusive that most of the fashion houses (Marketline, 2012, p. 18). Polonsky and Coulter (2009) note Prada’s brand personality in the market to be associated with sophistication. Though Prada had from the very start sought to distinguish itself from the rest of the luxury business through its subtle and discrete branding and marketing tactics, it still has still been associated with mainstream luxury brands, especially through its democratisation of products where the brand is made accessible through provision of more affordable products such as sun glasses, perfumes and accessories. This has been the unintended consequence of the approach it took, where rather than setting itself completely apart from the mainstream luxury industry as a piece of art which it has always aimed; its products have been viewed more as luxury products. Prada’s message approach that is focused on high end client through its focus on hand crafted high quality luxurious products is essentially effective in building an exclusive customer base, though the message can be improved further through experiential marketing where similar to the New York Prada store, more exclusive high end Prada stores and show rooms can be developed and used as a way of passing the message across and enhancing consumer experience of Prada being a piece of art and more than luxurious products. This view is supported by Atwal & Williams (2009, p. 344-345) in their analysis on marketing strategies for luxury brands where they note that experiential marketing is “central to luxury consumption activity” (p. 345). Proposed Message Strategy Adjustments In view of the above critique on effectiveness of the message strategies given by the company, it can be noted that small adjustments can be made to strengthen the message intended to the target audience. The key adjustment that would strengthen the message would be creating a place-experiential strategy where more exclusive high end Prada stores and show rooms can be developed and used as a way of passing the exclusivity message across and enhancing consumer experience of Prada being a piece of art and more than luxurious products (Atwal & Williams, 2009, p. 344-345). In addition, the company uses its brand name as the tagline in most advertisements. It can though develop a tagline that strengthens the view of Prada and one which is consistent through out all products. Channel Review Channel Integration Grid Factors of Integration TV Print Radio Internet Fashion shows Packaging Sales Staff Stores Logo                 The logo is well integrated across all channels except radio where the logo is prevalent and is not clearly seen, and in internet and TV where the logo may miss. Tagline                 The tagline is prominently integrated across all media channels Corporate Colors                 The corporate colours of black and white are consistent across all media channels Message Strategy                 The Message strategy is well coordinated across all channels except the internet where the message is prevalent Multiple Audiences                 Multiple targeted audiences for the products such as male customers and female customers are discussed in various media channels Common Objectives                 Key objectives of the company are coordinated across the media channels effectives except internet Common Image                 Across all media channels a common image is portrayed where a common message showcasing Prada as elegant, being portrayed. Grid Key High Integration   Mid Integration   Low integration   Channel effectiveness The channel grid above has outlined key strengths and weaknesses of the communication approach the company uses. As can be seen, the integration of corporate colours, tagline, common image and multiple audiences is strong across all media. Strong media channels included print, fashion shows, stores, sales staff and packaging which were consistent in all elements of integration. Notable weakness with low integration included the logo, with the message strategy and common strategy not effectively carried out in the internet. Weaknesses in media mainly exist in radio and internet strategies. Proposed channel strategy In view of the above elements noted, it would be recommendable for various improvements to be done in the media channel strategy used by the company. First an foremost, the internet medium is a critical channel that the company needs to fully exploit and improve it is proposed that the internet take both a supporting role in passing the company message across a wider audience who may not be reading the high end magazines or go fashion shows which the company mainly relies on as a way of displaying their products. Online media can also be strengthened to improve online purchases of the products directly from the company’s online portal. In addition, the Prada logo infused within it both the knotted rope insignia for the House of Savoy and the Coat of arms within its logo, which essentially recognises the royalty, high class, elegance and prestige associated with ‘Prada’, is important in passing across the company message. Therefore, it is imperative that a strong incorporation of the logo across various media channels be strongly integrated. Competitor Profile Competitive Framework Prada’s main competitors include Dolce and Gabbana, Gucci, Christian Dior, Versace, Hermes, Burberry, Hugo Boss, and Louis Vuitton. Prada has maintained a leading position in the market over the years. However, the financial crisis that hit the company had an effect on its reputation and image in the market. Consequently, the company has been losing grounds to its major competitors such as Gucci, Hermes and Vuitton in some international markets (CPP, 2010). Competitor Analysis- Offerings and Communication The L2 Think Tank’s Digital IQ Fashion Index ranked Burberry as the top designer 2011. Other designers that took top positions include Gucci, Hugo Boss, Vuittion, Michael Korrs and Tory Burch among others. Prada, Hermes and Channel fell from their previous top ranks. This ranking was based on the use of designer brands on the internet, social media, mobile platforms and ecommerce. The top designer Burberry was ranked as the best in this research because of its extensive use of digital technology and social media in its marketing strategies. These strategies have attracted many customers to its brands across the globe. Other top designers have also used social media such as Facebook, twitter and You Tube platforms to market their products. Hugo Boss has made efforts to use mobile platforms to market its products and such efforts contributed to its high rank (Hutzler, 2011). Prada dropped its digital IQ in 2011 because the company is yet to create an official Facebook page. Hermes on the other hand lost its competitive ground in digital IQ because its website lack continuous and timely updates. Prada can reverse its declining popularity by increasing its use of digital technology and social media platform to market its products (Hutzler, 2011). Competitive Advantage Prada offers high quality products to its customers. The company has a wide range of products that are available in its stores across the globe. Prada has investing in innovations over the years and this has enabled the company to produce top designs that have received international recognition (Prada Group, 2012). The key competitive advantage of Prada is that its products are expertly handcrafted in Italy as opposed to mass productions in low cost countries and therefore Prada emphasises what makes its product different and why it is worth the extra cost. Campaign Development Competitive Consumer benefit statement The competitive consumer benefit statement focuses on a buyer’s incentive to buy products, and how best Prada products would benefit the customers in a way that other competitive products won’t. In essence Prada’s competitive consumer benefit statement would be ‘Prada gives you elegance, style, class and high quality minimalist fashion that is specially and uniquely crafted to meet your fashion needs unlike any other’. Message Strategy Statement The message strategy statement need not only to communicate the positioning statement which focuses the benefits offered by the brand, but also needs to support the positioning statement with claims that reinforce the uniqueness and believability of the positioning statement (Prada Group, 2009). In essence the message statement for Prada would be: ‘Prada gives you elegance, style, class and high quality minimalist fashion that is specially and uniquely crafted to meet your fashion needs unlike any other. The products are uniquely crafted in with the best experts in the industry with careful attention given to details, style, class and glamour, in a unique fashionless raw style fashion that defies common views on fashion’. Message Strategy Approach Based on the message strategy that focuses on highlighting the strengths of Prada and which focuses on the core benefits that provides to target customers, an adjustment to the message strategy would have to be adopted in order to take these into account. First and foremost, while the current message focus on minimialist first rate crafting of elegant and stylish products, the second message introduces a sense uniqueness that even defies fashion within the industry. This is just what Prada seeks to achieve in its mission statement where Miuccia Prada and Patrizio Bertelli seek to create a unique ‘natural, almost fashionless fashion’ (Prada Group, 2009, p. 5). In addition, the company can also develop a captivating tagline along the name ‘Prada’ that captures the company’s message across its entire products. Media Strategy development Company contacts In planning marketing communication in the company, key media choices that would be most effective to use would be through print media and fashion shows. This is because the current strong media channels for the company’s products that would effectively reach out to the elite high end clientele targeted by the company such as celebrities and other prominent persons, these two Medias are the most effective, especially in detailing new trends in fashion. The key approach in the company contact communication plan would entail spreading chic glamorous adverts in high-end fashion magazines of the company’s products in a way that appeals to target audience. For instance in advertising a handbag in the magazine, while Prada focuses on the elegance of the person carrying the bag, strong emphasis should be on the bag. For instance, adverts on cloths, sunglasses and bags can be spread in three pages of Vogue magazine, July issue. In fashion show is also among the strengths of Prada in media channels for Prada products. In essence therefore, Prada can schedule to take part in various world renowned upcoming shows for several of its product lines. For instance for the summer collections which would soon be hitting the fashion runways, Prada, should take part in all of the fashion activities, in order to touch base with their target market. Customer Contact In facilitating customer contact for the Prada’s products, it is recommended that Prada improves and strengthens its online presence, especially its social networking presence which as noted above is quite low. The second media to use is Prada stores. These two media choices would facilitate customer relationship building. The stores designed and developed in elegance and chic would provide customers with an experience that defines the products within the store, and customers would want such experiences again and again. In addition, the internet and social networking is critical in building relationships with the core customers of the Prada product. Intrinsic Contact In supporting intrinsic contacts in the company, fashion show and store media will be used. These provide effective means through which various contacts that are inherent in the development of the Prada brand can be effectively reached. Celebrities who adorn the Prada brand for important high fashion and society events would in essence be promoting the brand, thereby strongly supporting it. Such can contacts can effectively be gotten from fashion shows where different stylists and designers have come to check the show, and can also be effectively carried out using the elegant high end Prada stores that exude glamour. Unexpected Contact In the case of unexpected communications that are out of the company’s control can be controlled using print and the TV media. A key example of unexpected contact point could include a distorted message concerning the production facilities or processes of the Prada products. Such distorted messages could potentially harm the brand image of the company, and therefore, in developing a communication plan that could control and handle such as unexpected contacts, a fast TV press release is effective in correcting and keeping in check such issues, while print media follows up and clears the issues in terms of annual reports, or even advertisements. Media and contact strategy evaluation The above media and contact strategies need be evaluated in order to understand whether or not they are having the required effective. In company contacts, evaluation on the company’s strategy to communicate the company’s key message, how effectively this has been so, would be evaluated. In customer contacts, the number of new customers acquired and through what means would provide an important base upon which key media measures can be evaluated and their given effectiveness. These will be compared against the time schedule for activity. References Atwal, G., & Williams, A. (2009). Luxury Brand Marketing – The Experience is Everything! Journal of Brand Management, 16: 338-346. CPP (2010). Prada Losing Grounds to Competitors Vuitton, Hermes and Gucci. Retrieved 12 May 2012 at http://www.cpp-luxury.com/en/prada-losing-grounds-to-competitors-vuitton--hermes-and-gucci_549.html Ferrell, O. C. & Hartline, M. (2010). Marketing Strategy. Connecticut: Cengage Learning. Hutzler, K. (2011). Burberry, Gucci maintain Digital Domination: L2 Think Tank IQ Index. Retrieved 12 May 2012 at http://www.luxurydaily.com/burberry-gucci-dolce-gabbana-top-digital-innovators-of-2011-l2-digital-iq-index/ Lamb, C. W., Hair, J. F. & McDaniel, C. (2008). Marketing. Connecticut: Cengage Learning Botha. Marketline (2012). Prada Case Study: Fro Family-Owned Business to Global luxury goods Powerhouse. Business Source Premier. Retrieved 12 May 2012 at http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=666f70df-a509-49d8-8093-ec7931af37ed%40sessionmgr12&vid=1&hid=9 Moore, C. M. & Doyle, S. A. (2010). The evolution of a luxury brand: the case of Prada. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management, 38, 11/12, pp.915 – 927. Polonsky, M. & Coulter, R. A. (2009). Does the Devil Really Wear Prada? Social Relations Analysis of Brand and Human Personalities. Advances in Consumer Research, 36: 988- 989. North American Conference Proceedings Working papers. Prada Group (2009). Consolidated Financial Statements. Retrieved 12 May 2012 at http://www.pradagroup.com/documents/reports/GruppoPRADA_Bilancio%202009.ing.web.pdf Prada Group (2012). History. Retrieved 12 May 2012 at http://www.pradagroup.com/en/media/press-kit Smith, P. R. & Taylor, J. 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