Business Plan, Which Is Bringing Body Implants To the Mass Market - Essay Example

Marketing Introduction Biohacking is a well known method of employing biology in the process of hacking. It includes a number of movements and practices that starts with the Grinders. The Grinders are engaged in installing DIY body enhancements after designing a successful plan. It is also known as magnetic implants to the DIY biologists, who carry out gene sequencing at home. Biohacking has emerged as a successful business for the development of non-institutional technology and science. Tattoo studios forms a part of biohacking business. With the advent of biohacker movement, the grinders have found simple ways for reimaging the development in human beings. The first case was that of a tiny magnet that was inserted in fingertips by making a small opening. As the trend for biohacker business popped up, many activities were encouraged as a part of biohacking business like the operation of DIY kitchen, usage of knife or razor blade, rubbing ice cubes for numbing the surface of the skin and rubbing alcohol. Over the years magnets are also offered by a number of body modification artists which formed a type of body piercing. It has been noticed that there are thousands of individuals worldwide who have undergone body implantation. A member of Grindhouse, Olive Webb, has implanted magnet in the earlier days of the invention. She was able to lift a paper clip by simply touching it by her finger. The magnet made her feel the electromagnetic fields which seemed to be her sixth sense. She could not explain the particular feeling of possessing a microwave in her body. It cannot be understood until it is felt. Inspired by the biohacking business that are taking place worldwide, the entrepreneurial friend had an intention of getting associated with chain of tattoo studio. He has planned for carrying out a long term business as he have studied the market thoroughly which identified that the particular business is at a boom. It also fetches a good amount of money. Thus he has planned for targeting female customers of 30-40 years of age who will be interested to implant tattoo. He will be getting a good customer base as the current fad favours the art of tattoo and every female has the desire to have tattoo at any part of their body. Piercing and tattoo has been famous within the female group of customers as they love to make their look more attractive by undertaking various makeovers. However, the decision or the plan that is taken by him can be evaluated by examining the marketing environment, market segments and pricing of the services (Dibb, 1998). Marketing environment The marketing environment can be defined as the forces and the factors that influence the ability of a firm for building and maintaining a successful relationship with their customers. It can be classified into micro environment and macro environment (Baines, Fill and Page, 2011). The decision of the friend can be evaluated by examining the micro and macro environment of tattoo studios. It can be evaluated whether he has taken a right decision in the current situation or have failed to take an appropriate decision of getting engaged to the tattoo studios. Macro environment PESTLE Analysis Political: Every business has to face the challenge of political pressure. Thus if the studios are not affected by the political pressure then the friend will have be earning a good amount of money. Economical: Body art are done by wealthy people who are very much conscious about their looks and presence. Thus the tattoo studios will be facing huge profit if it is opened in a country where the mass thinks of enjoying a luxurious life. Thus the friend will be earning profit if and only if the mass accepts the service at a cheap price. Social: The factors basically examine social environment of market and measures the factors like demographics, cultural trends and population analytics. The tattoo studios will be successful in their business if they are opening in such a society where there is culture of making body art. Here the women are the targeted customers (Macinnis and Folkes, 2009). Technological: Technological inventions also affect the operation of body art business. The competitors using advanced technology, which will be providing with less pain than the usual during the tattoo session, will attract more customers. So as to stay updated with the technological changes, the tattoo studios have to modify and even change the instruments. Legal: The tattoo studios have to face certain legal obstacles that are levied by the government. In the countries where the biohacking laws are very stringent it will affect the business as well the plan of the friend to associate him with those studios. Environmental: There is no influence of this factor on the body art business. Thus it will not possess any challenge on the operation of the tattoo studios. Porter’s Five Forces Threat of New entrants: The profitable markets provide with higher returns which attracts new companies to set up their business in that market. The biohacking business has faced huge growth at every parts of the world. It has become the fashion statement for the men and women in the cities and towns. Thus the market for body art has opened new path for companies to set up their business. Thus the tattoo studios will be facing higher level of competition from their rivals who are penetrating the markets with their services. Bargaining power of customers: The bargaining power of the customer depends on the type of products and services that are sold. In the tattoo studios the customers face with fixed price services. The entrepreneurial friend has decided to give the services to the customers at a lower price and hence the customers will get no scope to bargain. Bargaining power of suppliers: The suppliers possess the bargaining power in this market. The body art business requires specialised resources whose costs are high and has limited availability. Thus the suppliers get the power to bargain with the price in which they sell their resources to the tattoo studios. Thus the tattoo studios often face the tantrums of the suppliers. Threat of substitute products or services: The tattoo business face threat from the small tattoo shops, which imitate their designs and open their own business by providing cheap and non- standardised products. Thus, the friend’s business will face the problem of these new entrants in the markets. Intensity of competitive rivalry: The tattoo studios face great rivalry from the competitors who implements new competitive strategies in order to stay ahead in the market. Micro environment The microenvironment consists of the company itself, their suppliers, customers, marketing intermediaries, competitors and the mass as a whole. Figure 1: Micro environment (Source: Baines, Fill and Page, 2011) Tattoo Studio The tattoo studio has a particular pattern of operation which is administered by a set of employees and the supervisors. Suppliers The studios have a particular set of suppliers who supplies with the necessary resources that are required by them. The suppliers add a great value to the studios as they forms an essential part of the studios as without their timely delivery the business will cease to operate. Marketing Intermediaries Customers As decided by the entrepreneur friend, the targeted customers are the female section of the society within 30-40 years of age. These customers are fashion conscious and they are very particular regarding their looks. Competitors The competitors of the tattoo studios are the individual shops that start their small business with the aim of targeting customers from all age and income group and provide them with cheap services. Publics The general public are the main customers of the tattoo studios which are to be targeted for further benefit for the studios. Targeting only one section of the society i.e. the women will fetch in limited amount of money (Hutchinson, 2004). The vast sections of the society which are the youngsters are to be targeted by the studios so that they can bring the whole mass under their umbrella. Buyers behaviour The behaviour of the buyers is an important phenomenon to study as it gives a lot of information regarding the buying pattern of the customers. It identifies whether they will come for a repeat purchase or whether they will have post purchase resonance (Brownlie and Saren, 1991). Market Segmentation, targeting and positioning Segmentation is the key success to marketing strategies. The market segments act as a competitive edge for the companies who possess it. The market segments enjoy different benefits that are set by the companies. Thus in these case the friend, who had a plan to get associated with the tattoo studios, divides his customers into segments, targets those customers and finally plans to position their services (Ayres and Nalebuff, 2003). Market segmentation The entrepreneurial friend plans to target the female segment of the society. The females are very much conscious about their appearance in any occasion whether its party or night clubs. They want to get a look which will make them different from others. Thus the entrepreneurs decide to target them so as to draw in profit from the business (Frazier, 1999). Targeting Targeting a specific segment of customer increases the customer base and quality as these customers are targeted with specialised products which are shaped according to their needs. The entrepreneur decides to target the women class of age from 30 -40 years who are wealthy and can afford the cost of tattoo. This particular section is targeted by the entrepreneur because the women of this age have the desire to get tattooed and can spend without any limitation. At this age, presenting themselves in the society becomes the main aims for enhancing their beauty (Alba and Hutchinson, 1987). Positioning The services that are positioned among the female customers are customised according to their needs. The customers are asked their own design which they want to get tattooed in their body parts. The services are given quite carefully so that the customers do not face with ill health and skin problems. The female customers are very particular about their skin and they get annoyed and tensed if skin problem arises due to any reason. Thus the tattoo studios are very cautious about the type of material they use and the needle they use during the tattoo session (Leahey, 2007). Pricing Pricing is an important economic variable which can influence demand of the products and services (Hansen and Solgaard, 2004). The pricing strategy and the pricing tactics depend on the type of products and services that are to be sold. Pricing strategies are to be understood by the strategy makers in order to get a successful response for the products and services. A number of alternatives are put forward which aims at maximizing profits within a specific period of time. In short term, the price competition among the players favours the customers since they get to use the products and services at a much reasonable and lower price. The value pricing targets to combine the price with market mix components after taking into consideration the collective perception of the customers (Hansen and Solgaard, 2004). In this case the entrepreneurial friend decides to give his customers services at cheap and reasonable price so that he can draw enough profit from the business. Conclusion It can be concluded that the business plan of the entrepreneurial friend is overall suited for all markets until it is faced by certain uncertainties like the change in trend, culture and legal obstacles from the government. He targeted only the female section of the society and did not take into account the vast population of youngsters. These can be a big challenge for him to continue his association with the tattoo studios in long term since women have the tendency to change their views after a point of time. They always remain updated with the new trends that are developing in the market as a result they can shift their focus of interest very fast. Reference List Alba, J. and Hutchinson, J., 1987. Dimensions of Consumer Expertise, Journal of Consumer Research, 13, p. 411-454. Ayres, I. and Nalebuff, B., 2003. In Praise of Honest Pricing. Sloan Management Review, pp. 24-28. Baines, P., Fill, C. and Page, K., 2011. Marketing. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Brownlie, D. and Saren, M., 1991. The four P’s of the marketing concept: Perspective polemical, permanent and problematical. European Journal of Marketing, 26(4), p. 0309-0566. Dibb, S., 1998. Market segmentation: strategies for success. Marketing Intelligence and Planning, 16(7), p. 394-406. Frazier, G., 1999. Organizing and managing channels of distribution. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 27(2), p. 226-240. Hansen, T. and Solgaard, H., 2004. Strategic pricing: Fundamental considerations and future perspectives. The Marketing Review, 4, p. 99-111. Hutchinson, J., 2004. Presidential Address: Are We the Good Guys? Advances in Consumer Research, 31, p. 1–5. Leahey, E., 2007. Not by Productivity Alone: How Visibility and Specialization Contribute to Academic Earnings. American Sociological Review, 72, p. 533– 61. Macinnis, D. and Folkes, V., 2009. The disciplinary status of consumer behaviour: A sociology of science perspective on key controversies. Journal of Consumer Research, 36, p. 899-914. Read More