Marketing Plan of Meg Youth Sports Academy - Coursework Example

MARKETING PLAN – MEG YOUTH SPORTS ACADEMY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Meg Youth Sports Academy (MYSA) provides community based sporting activities for young people aged between 5 – 18 years old. Majority of these individuals are within their school-going age hence; the aspect of learning has been included within the program. MYSA has been a market leader in the provision of community based sports programmes within the area it is located. The academy seeks to improve this position by making the programmes affordable and readily available to many people within the community. The academy possesses a good share of the market approximated at about 40%. This figure remains based on the estimated number of school going youngsters participating in similar programmes within the area. The number of participants within the teenage has been dropping because of increased competition from other organisations and in-school programmes, available within many high schools. The marketing plan aims to achieve the following goals: Identify facilities which could be added to the programme to enhance participant experience Expand the regional coverage through providing transport of accommodation facilities Leverage on increased interest in sports like soccer, which has become increasingly popular Table of Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 Table of Contents 2 INTRODUCTION 3 VALUE PROPOSITION 4 SITUATION ANALYSIS 4 Competitor analysis 5 SWOT analysis 6 Strengths 6 Weaknesses 7 Opportunities 7 Threats 8 ANALYSIS OF TARGET MARKETS 8 MARKETING OBJETCIVES 9 MARKETING STRATEGIES 9 CONCLUSION 11 REFERENCES 12 INTRODUCTION The academy was started in 1996 and provides various sports programmes to the youth residing within the neighbouring areas. The mission of MYSA remains providing young persons with proper educational and learning background through sports participation, and enhancing teamwork, sportsmanship, competition spirit, fair play and association with others. The goal of the academy lies in creating an environment fostering self-esteem and confidence through participation in sporting activities. VALUE PROPOSITION The “MYSA experience” provides participants with the following Health and fitness Improved athleticism Learning fair play and teamwork Experience in sports variety Fun and enjoyment SITUATION ANALYSIS The number of school-sponsored sports programmes has significantly reduced within the recent years, consequently reducing the desire by young individuals to participate in sports activities. The school programmes have failed in meeting the requirements of many individuals desiring to participate in sporting activities. Community-based programmes have gained significant popularity because of this reduction in school-sponsored programmes(Strong et al., 2005). The participation level, however, have remained relatively low. Economic hardships have seen the failure of many school-sponsored programmes following the withdrawal of funding or limited funding for such programmes The need for youth sports becomes magnified and immensely validated by the organisation present within a programme. Many studies have documented the significance of active participation in sports activities by the young individuals. Many of these studies have directly linked participation in sports with reduced involvement in drugs, gang activities among other vices affecting the youth within many communities. Participation in sports activities by the young people presents a significant value into the lives of participants. In seeking to meet these requirements, MYSA experience provides unique sports programmes meant to meet the requirements of the participants, consequently validating the MYSA concept. The table below shows a market analysis indicating the potential customers for the past years and the growth experienced during those years. Potential customers 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Growth Public schools 1851 1962 2080 2205 2337 6.00% Private school 294 323 354 389 427 9.75% Others 115 135 158 186 218 17.33% Total 2260 0 2592 2779 2981 11.02% Table 1market analysis Competitor analysis There are other similar programmes offering sports programmes, like the one offered at MYSA, however, this academy provides extensive experience and infrastructure, compared to the competitor programmes. Programmes which provide a stiff competition to MYSA have been those offering specific sports. These have been increasingly attractive to participants who want to venture in a specific sport activity. Parents perceive these programmes as providing better training for their children. MYSA has managed to maintain competitiveness through the pricing of the programmes included at the academy. These competitors include the following: City Youth Basketball Centre Lau’s Soccer Academy AFCO Gymnastics Centre MISC Athletics Training Centre The table below shows the price comparison between the competitors in terms of USD Competitor Average price MYSA $87 City Youth Basketball Centre $110 Lau’s Soccer Academy $90 AFCO Gymnastics Centre $100 MISC Athletics Training Centre $95 Table 2 price comparison among competitors SWOT analysis Strengths Reputation – since inception, the academy has established itself as a premier choice for many children desiring to experience sports in a different way. This has contributed into the development of a high reputation for the academy among parents and children, alike Sponsorship – the academy has maintained constant and stable sponsors who have enabled the facility to price their programmes at a relatively lower price. Partnerships – the academy has maintained close relationships with established sports brands which provide support to the participants. Professional sports clubs have continuously been supplied with talent from MYSA. Many individuals perceive the academy as the best way towards reaching these professional clubs, which do not have youth academies. Websites – through the academy website participants can view upcoming activities, available opportunities among many others. This has demonstrated the capacity for the academy to effectively utilise technology in communication as well as other aspects of operations. Weaknesses Capital requirements – continuous improvements upon the academy facilities depends heavily on the availability of financial resources. Much capital is required annually in maintaining the quality of experience and meeting the growing demand for the programmes Coaches and officials – many of the coaches working within the area remain with the knowledge acquired during their training. The need for enhancing the skills for these individuals provides a significant challenge to the academy. Opportunities Soccer interest – soccer has experienced an increased growth and remains one of the fastest growing sports within the region. The increased interest in soccer provides an opportunity for the academy to focus on the development of soccer training facilities, to increase participants within the sport. Programme expansion – the academy provides training in many sports activities within the area. The expansion of these programmes will provide an opportunity for the academy to increase participation. This expansion would be performed on both the programmes and infrastructure, to meet the growing demand for services. Community education – the academy continues to offer communal services to the immediate community. Provision of these services enhances the community’s understanding of the philosophy and purpose of MYSA. The academy creates good relationship with the community ensuring continued support from the community. Threats Alternative programmes – there has been a growing number of different programmes within the area. The specialised programmes targeting highly skilled individuals commonly attract some participants from the MYSA academy programmes. These organisations have been targeting talented individuals from the academy and have continuously eroded the depth and breadth in MYSA’s participants. Legal issues – the sports activities commonly expose participants to immense risk from injuries. With increased litigation activities, there always remains a potential threat of a participant engaging in legal action from an injury sustained during participation. Philosophy changes – these could affect the willingness of other organisations like public schools to offer their facilities for use by MYSA. The precise ramifications remain unknown, however, potential challenges must be considered when making future plans. ANALYSIS OF TARGET MARKETS Meg Youth Sports Academy provides unique sports experience to children wishing to have enjoyable sporting activity participation. All children ranging between 5 and 18 years are provided with the opportunity to participate in activities which interest them. Participation within these activities remains independent of previous experience, skill or athletic ability. The unrestricted participation remains unmatched by other organisations offering similar services within our market. Based on the demographic analysis of the market and increasing mid-level income earners, containing the costs remains a primary objective for the academy in the future. The academy maintains close relationships with parents and guardians in improvement of the child’s sports experience. The academy commonly targets school-going children, who might have some sport experience from the limited exposure within the school environment. The academy provides these children with opportunities to participate in various team sports throughout the year. While improving athletic skills, the participation also provides recreation, health and fitness to the children(Mullin, Hardy, & Sutton, 2007). The elements of teamwork, sportsmanship cooperation, and fair play all help in increasing the morale and self-confidence of the children. MARKETING OBJETCIVES The objective of the programmes remains providing value experience to the children, for continuous improvement of the individuals. The academy strives to instil constructive and meaningful experience into the participants. This would become essential in assisting the individuals understanding the essential life-skills while empowering the individuals in making right choices. The marketing objectives include the following: Increase the number of participants by 10%, through the current year Accomplish programme goals within the allocated annual budget Increase return on investment by 3.5% Maintain the current competitive advantage and market share MARKETING STRATEGIES MYSA is an organisation which operates with aims of making profits to ensure the continuity of the programmes offered within the academy. The organisation must therefore undertake intensive promotion campaigns to ensure increased participation and returns on investment, form the capital(Homburg, Kuester, & Krohmer, 2012). Strong participation remains essential in ensuring the organisation becomes able to meet the required financial objectives. This kind of participation enables the academy to provide programmes which suffice the requirements of the many participants. The widening of the programmes’ across a broad spectrum ensures that any interested parties can participate within the various programmes. The marketing mix for the academy consists of pricing strategies fostering participation, while enhancing adequate funding for the programmes(Shaw, 2012). This has remained a fundamental source of strength for the organisation; hence continuity for the programme. The academy continuously strives to become the premier provider of children sports experience within the region covered. Promotion campaigns have been undertaken targeting all school-going children from different schools, seeking to ensure their continued participation. Within the organisation, participation remains the major source of income for the academy, which provides essential funding for the various programmes. The developed programmes contained within the academy, simultaneously serve participants from outside the local community in manner aimed at enhancing revenue income, with minimal additional costs. The premier goal of the marketing strategy remains effectively presenting the unique value contained in the programmes(Hooley, Piercy, & Nicoulaud, 2012). The focus of the strategy remains on the benefits of participation, rather than associated costs. This enables the target clients to overlook the associated costs, by focusing on the potential benefits of participation. The marketing strategy seeks to continuously identify market needs, and effectively communicating with clients regarding the development of programmes aimed as satisfying the existing gaps. The current efforts seek to ensure the organisation maintains the quality with the current financial resources. Continuously increasing operating g costs form different aspects, combined with consumer expectations, present a surmountable challenge to this venture(Belch & Belch, 2004). The academy has continuously sought to improve the structure and programmes in meeting the changing consumer expectations. The following marketing strategies will be employed in achieving the marketing objectives stipulated by the organisation Marketing penetration – this will be utilised in seeking to maintain the current market share, under the increasing competition. Market expansion – this will seek to create a new market for the organisation. This will be undertaken through the introduction of an adult programme seeking to capture a new market. New product development – this will be performed through addition of new sports into the programme. Continued attention to emerging sports and trends remain essential in the development of new products. Opportunities for expansion will be identified and the feasible ones adopted by the academy. CONCLUSION Meg Youth Sports Academy is an organisation operating within a local community which enhances proper behaviours in children through participation in sports activities. Though the academy operates for profits, the focus on the potential benefits provided by the programmes overlooks the associated participation costs. The organisation has been a market leader within the market, though stiff competition remains present. Emerging competition has however, necessitated the undertaking of intensive marketing seeking to ensure continued success for the projects(Hooley et al., 2012). The organisation aims at utilising different marketing strategies including market penetration, product development and market expansion in beating the prevailing competition within the market. These strategies are aimed at ensuring continued participation of children within the various programmes, consequently ensuring profitability of the organisation. The organisation desires to remain the market leader within the sector of providing sports experience to children, despite plans to venture into different markets. REFERENCES Belch, G. E., & Belch, M. A. (2004). Advertising and promotion: An integrated marketing communication perspective. New York: McGraw-Hill. Homburg, C., Kuester, ‎Sabine, & Krohmer, ‎Harley. (2012). Marketing Management - A Contemporary Perspective (p. 671). New York: McGraw-Hill Education. Hooley, G., Piercy, N. F., & Nicoulaud, B. (2012). Marketing Strategy & Competitive Positioning (5th ed.). Harlow: Prentice Hall. Mullin, B. J., Hardy, S., & Sutton, W. A. (2007). Sport Marketing (3rd ed.). London: Human Kinetics. Shaw, E. (2012). Marketing strategy: From the origin of the concept to the development of a conceptual framework. Journal of Historical Research in Marketing, 4(1), 30–55. Strong, W. B., Malina, R. M., Blimkie, C. J., Daniels, S. R., Dishman, R. K., Gutin, B., & Hergenroeder, A. C. (2005). Evidence based physical activity for school-age youth. The Journal of pediatrics, 146(6), 732–737.  Read More