Current Marketing Mix of Taylor Swift Perfume - Essay Example

Taylor Swift Perfume 0 Situation Analysis/Current Marketing Mix For a business to achieve a sustainable advantage in the market, it is imperative that managements of firms should pursue the use of marketing mix elements in their business. Study has shown that marketing mix has a direct relationship with the performance of business1. The effective use and combination of the four P’s of marketing which are product, pricing, place and promotion has been proven to enable the business to perform more effectively in the market2. 1.1 Current Product Stephenson defined product as “everything the purchaser gets in exchange for his money3”. A product is any object which has a distinctive tangible existence. When applied in marketing however, the meaning of product takes in varied form. The product “may be a good, service or just an idea”4. Products have three distinct concepts which are; a) The tangible product – which is the physical quality of the product b) The generic product – which is/are the essential or basic benefit a buyer or a consumer expect to derive from the product. c) The extended product – is the physical quality of the product accompanied by the services that it could render to the users. . For this paper, the product which is the subject for discussion is Taylor Swift perfume Wonderstruck. It is manufactured by Elizabeth Arden and is personally endorsed by the famous folk singer Taylor Swift who also bears her name as the namesake of the perfume. The perfume is created by Swift herself with perfumer Olivier Gillotin of Givaudan and is inspired by Swift’s favorite memories and scents, and it features notes of freesia, apple blossom, raspberry, vanilla, honeysuckle, white hibiscus, amber, sandalwood and peach. The packaging includes an antiqued gold Moravian star, a dove and bird cage charms5. The perfume is designed for consumer use and is branded after the singer to encourage easy patronage from the singer’s fans. Given that the product is a personal choice and personally made by Taylor Swift herself (with perfumer Olivier Gillotin of Givaudan), consumers will not accept any other brand because the identification of the perfume to the singer cannot be assigned to another brand. 1.2 Current Pricing There are several ways where a company determines the price its products. One of the most common pricing methods is the internal accounting based pricing where profit is added as a mark-up in addition to its manufacturing cost6. Projected profit may be added as a ratio to cost or target profit is determined beforehand before determining pricing. Pricing is critical because under a perfect competitive market, price can determine demand; a higher price can discourage demand while a lower price can stimulate demand making a business enterprise more competitive in the market7. In the Taylor Swift Wonderstruck Perfume for Women, the pricing method employed is the value based pricing. “Value based pricing is tied to the customer’s perception of what the product is worth to them8”. This pricing method is more appropriate to Taylor Swift Wonderstruck Perfume because the value of the perfume is primarily based on the fan’s attachment to the singer where the actual scent plays only a secondary role in the buying decision of its potential customer. It can even be said that the demand is inelastic9 because demand is not determined primarily by price nor is affected by it but is dependent on the perceived glamour of the perfume that is identified with Taylor Swift. Thus, the competitiveness of the product is not based on the price but is more dependent on the star and celebrity status of its endorser, Taylor Swift who also bears the brand. 1.3 Current Distribution Location and convenience have emerged as major factors in consumer decisions for products and services10 and as such, distribution channel is very critical in the success or failure of certain in the market. “The distribution process, interposed within goods flow, has in view the means and operations that assure goods and services to intermediaries or final consumers, leaving them a numerous range of options of time, place, size, choice, price, etc., according to the needs they manifest on the market11. It goes without saying that the manner of making the product available to its potential consumer is as important as the product itself. With regard to Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume, it optimized the availability of the product to its target market by utilizing both the brick and mortar store and internet for optimum reach. Such, the perfume is available at boutiques and department stores as well as online store such as Macys. 1.4 Current Promotion. Promotion is the process of marketing communication that involves the provision of information that persuades and influence potential customers. Promotion convinces the buyer and enters into his consumer behavior to influence such purchasing behavior. It is defined as the coordinated self-initiated efforts to establish channels of information and persuasion to facilitate or foster the sale of goods or services, or the acceptance of ideas or point of view”12. Thus, promotion is said to be the driver that can awaken and stimulate demands for a product. Taylor’s Swift Wonderstruck Perfume enjoys a distinct promotional advantage of carrying the name of one of the world’s most famous celebrity and being endorsed by Taylor Swift herself. Taylor Swift’s personal endorsement of the product such as her appearance at the popular talk shows “Ellen DeGeneres” where the product shares the limelight with the celebrity and inseparably identifying the perfume with Taylor Swift herself13. Being such, Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume already have a veritable niche in the perfume market because of the huge fan base of the singer who would be easily if not readily enticed to purchase the product with the endorsement of Taylor Swift. This distinct advantage of Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume can also create demand among those Taylor Swift fans who are not perfume users. 2.0 Brand Positioning Theory 2.1 Define and explain brand positioning ‘Positioning is the act of designing the company’s offering and image to occupy a distinctive place in the mind of the target market. The goal is to locate the brand in the minds of the consumers to maximize the potential benefit to the firm14”. A good brand positioning clarifies the brand’s essence in the crafting of marketing strategy in relation to its objective as a business entity. This will result to a customer-focused value proposition that would enable the market to buy the proposed product. In the case of perfume industry where Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume belongs, “there is no doubt about the power of a celebrity endorsement . . . it raises awareness and broadens the reach [of a certain product]15” and thus helps tremendously in creating a niche for the business and achieving the business’ objective. Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume maker Arden, it positioned the perfume by capitalizing on Swift’s superstar status by “calling upon Swift’s 23 million Facebook friends and millions of Twitter followers16”. Clearly, the positioning of the product is drawing on Taylor Swift’s fan base and translates them to actual purchase of the perfume. 2.2 Draw a perceptual map for the brand your lecturer has assigned to your class 2.3 Explanation of positioning of 5 brands on perceptual map a) Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck The sole perfume brand of Taylor Swift has just been launched just last quarter last year and experts are still on the look-out on the performance of the perfume. Many predict it to be promising that can even beat Justin Bieber’s Someday perfume line. In the chart, Wonderstruck is rated a high five on the superstar status because of Taylor Swift’s current popularity. Superstar status is the prime driver in promoting the product in the market. The translation to perfume sales is pegged to a neutral 3 because it is still very early to tell about the performance of the product although experts believe that it can surpass the performance of Someday17. b) Justin Bieber’s Someday Justin Bibber’s Someday perfume line is rated a high five on the superstar status given the popularity and star status of the singer. The translation to sales is pegged at four because it is considered as one of the top performing celebrity endorsed perfume in the market18. c) Elizabeth Taylor Elizabeth Taylor perfume is pegged at a high five both on the superstar status and translation to sales. Without question and hands down, Elizabeth Taylor is already a legendary star and this equally translates to her perfume which tops the sales in the market. d) Britney Spears Curious Britney Spears’ career may be waning that she is barely seen in the music industry these days but her perfume Curious is still on the market. She is rated one on the superstar status because of her declined singing career and a two on her perfume because it is no longer performing well as it used to be. e) Jennifer Lopez Glo Just like Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez’s singing career is in a hiatus although it is not as down compared to Britney which is why is rated at a neutral three on the superstar status and also a neutral three on the translation to sales because of the modest sales performance of her perfume line19. 3.0 Target Market Identification Market identification enables a company to have a more précised and focused marketing effort as it knows the specific market where its product has the highest probability of being patronized20. In the case of Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume the target market are the fans of Taylor Swift. 3.1 Geographic Segmentation The geographic segmentation meant the division of the market into different geographical units such as states, regions, countries, cities or neighborhoods21. In the case Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume, the geographical segment is the Australian market. The promotional advantage of using Taylor Swift’s celebrity status to endorse and push the product into the Australian market is still doable because Taylor Swift is equally popular in Australia and still commands a huge following especially among teenage girls. 3.2 Demographic Segmentation The demographic segmentation in marketing is the division or breaking up of the market into groups on the basis of variables such as age, gender, income, etch22. The target market for Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume has to be patterned according to the same demographics of Taylor Swift’s fans. Their demographics of Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume consist of potential customer age 11 to 25 years old, mainly female. This can also be applied to the Australian market where marketing efforts will be directed to consumer’s age 11 to 25 years old who are females. 3.3 Psychographic Segmentation In psychographic segmentation, buyers are divided into different groups on the basis of lifestyle or personality and values. People within the same demographic group can exhibit very different psychographic profiles23. The psychographic segmentation may not be a big factor in the Australian market because music, which is the element that catapulted the endorser of the perfume (Taylor Swift) is universal and can transcend across lifestyle, personality and values. Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume being associated with Taylor Swift’s music and celebrity status will also adopt the same universality among its customers of the same demographics to the point that will negate the psychographic segmentation of the market. 3.4 Behavioral Segmentation ½. Behavioral segmentation is the division of the market on the basis of their response, knowledge, or attitude toward a product24. In this market segmentation, it is believed that consumer behavioral variables such as loyalty status, user status, usage rate and attitude can be a starting point of determining the market segment. Behavioral segmentation of the market in Australian setting is very applicable to Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume because marketers can already determine the extent of its market penetration and the potential of its sales just by determining the sales of Taylor Swift’s albums and concerts. Album sales and concert attendance can be used as a reference or benchmark of the market’s readiness and acceptance towards Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume. Not all market segmentation variables are useful and it varies according to the eccentricity of the market. For the market segmentation to be useful, it has to be measurable according to size, purchasing power, etch. The segment has to be substantial enough also to become profitable to serve and should be accessible. The segments have to be also easily differentiated so that any actions or marketing formulations that will craft will be possible to attract a specific segment. In the Taylor Swift’s Wonderstruck Perfume, the psychographic segment is not useful to the marketer while the behavioral segmentation of the market is the most useful to the marketer25. References Aremu, Mukaila Ayanda; Bamiduro, Joseph Adefem, “Marketing Mix Practice as a Determinant of Entrepreneurial Business Performance,” International Journal of Business & Management, 7, no. 1 (January 2012):205 Beauty packaging, “Online Exclusive: Fragrance Foundation Balance Sheet-Making the Most of Celebrity. December 2011. http://www.beautypackaging.com/articles/2011/12/online-exclusive-fragrance-foundation-balance-shee [accessed April 03, 2012] Constantinides, E., “The Marketing Mix Revisited: Towards the 21st Century Marketing”, Journal of Marketing Management, 22 no. ¾ (April 2006): 407-438. Corstjens, Marcel; Umbljis, Andris; Wang, Chao; “The Power of Inertia”, Journal of Advertising Research, 51 no. 2 (June 2011): 356-372 Fragrance Focus, Global Cosmetic Industry, 179 no. 10 (November 2011):16-17. Marius, Bălăşescu; “Contribution to the Definition of the Particularities of Consumer Goods Distribution Marketing”, Annals of the University of Oradea, Economic Science Series, 17 No. 4 (2008):738-743 Möller, Kristian; “Marketing Mix Discussion - Is the Mix Misleading Us or are We Misreading the Mix?” Journal of Marketing Management, 22 no. ¾ (April 2006): 439-450 Ruskin-Brown, Ian, Mastering Marketing, (Thorogood Publishing), 168-170 Shang, Jennifer; Pinar, Tuba; Pandu Tadikamalla, Yildirim, Mittal, Vikas; Brown, Lawrence H., “Distribution Network Redesign for Marketing Competitiveness”, Journal of Marketing, 73 No. 2 (March 2009):146 Hundekar,S.G.; Appannaiah,H.R. Reddy, P.N;. Principles of Marketing, Global Media, 2010, 102 International Business Times, Taylor Swift talks Boyfriends and Perfume on ‘Ellen’ , International Business Times, Wed, 19 Oct 2011 Kotler, Philip; Lane, Kevin Keller, Marketing Management 12 edition, Chapter: Crafting the Brand Positioning, (Prentice –Hall 2006):Chapter 10 Read More