Monitoring Marketing Performance - Coursework Example

Managing the Marketing Process Name: Tutor: Course: Date: Monitoring Marketing Performance Overall measures of brand performance and KPI’s, plus methods and sources of measurement Purina Company makes food for pets especially cats. Brand awareness is critical in marketing of this product. It determines the reputation and the level brand of appreciation in the marketplace. When Purina products experiences increased brand awareness, then it shows that the marketing initiatives launched are successful and results in greater sales and revenue. Owing to the robustness of the brand awareness scope, Purina has approached Multi-tech Consultants to conduct brand research studies for collection and data analysis. In the channel grouping Path, the Purina brand keyword showed 425 times and 389 times for non brand key word. The measures of performance employed are through panels, surveys and focus groups to help in measuring brand perception levels which brings out customer loyalty, sentiment and awareness. This helps to rate Purina products with those in competition. Planning ahead is crucial for successful brand awareness after understanding the initial idea of the company’s position before launching the marketing campaign. The methods to track brand awareness are specifically in-house since they are free and less costly. Online method of monitoring through Google Analytics is the major tool though it is less exhaustive than the full brand study. It shows the numbers of visitors to Purina websites, highly searched keywords and new customers gives the feeling of brand awareness online. It is tracked throughout the campaign duration, thus giving a general overview if the campaign has brought in new visitors. Measures of product performance and KPI’s, plus methods and sources of measurement Measuring the performance of Purina pet food products is best done at the company website. Existing customers can give comments on the performance of the products in the form of compliments or complaints. Each medium is tagged to show the comprehensiveness of the marketing campaign as well as identify the source of visitors. The “UTM tags” are employed within Google Analytics that shows at the end of the URL. Purina product performance as sales KPI ranks and measures the product depending on revenue performance so as to know the products that need reassessment and those that are doing well. Sales metric variations will show top performing products and bottom 10% of sales. This metric is measured over a period of time to eliminate data inconsistencies. The sources of measurement are in revenue performance where the best performing product in terms of revenue is ranked first while the worst revenue performing is ranked last. Measures of pricing performance and KPI’s, plus methods and sources of measurement The pricing performance of Purina products are leveraged on the basis of costs and revenue. The methods used are Cost, Volume and Profit analysis (CVP). These measures the extent at which the prices of the products are performing compared to those in the competition. The financial KPI looks into the usefulness of his metric since it captures the financial ability of the firm. The data is collected through customer interviews and company website feedback. This method is periodical and the data is collected every quarterly. The pricing performance are displayed at the financial managers office to be used by financial officers in determining material, labor, operation and warrantee costs as well as inventory and budget. Pricing affects sales, product profitability, return on assets and gross margins. Measures of place and distribution performance and KPI’s, plus methods and sources of measurement Customer satisfaction is vital in placing and distributing of products. The dominant KPIs in place and distribution of Purina pet food products are shipping, pick-n-pack, storage, put-away and receiving. The methods of collecting information from distribution channels are through survey of warehouse professionals presented in pie charts. It ranks order picking as an expensive operation critical to customer satisfaction. The KPIs in Purina product distribution are based on the listed drivers and activities that micromanages its performance. Measurements can be the cost and volume of receiving line and man hours, utilization percent of equipment and labor, storage cost per item, order pick cycle time per order and the cost of shipping per order. Measures of promotion performance and KPI’s, plus methods and sources of measurement Tracking Purina pet food products is enhanced by using social media metrics. These are important analytic tools that help in social marketing plans and promotional advertising. The determinants are fan growth within selected time range. Others are the number of user interactions and percentage of questions or user posts. The average time length it takes the administrators to responds to customer questions will affect the number of interactions per post or pages. Tracking these KPIs is through posting comments in Twitter profile or Face book which constitutes a link to the product at the online store. Analytics are pulled off the website to establish consumer presence on the website. Daily success rates are compared on social page promotions to those not socially promoted. The KPI can be measured through number and type interactions, shareability and post engagement rate. For instance, 120 of received interactions results in more than 800 social users. Specify an organisational structure and communicate objectives and KPI’s The organizational structure of the food manufacturing company is a functional structure that vests power and hierarchy along functional lines such as marketing, finance, customer service, procurement and supplies and production. The functional obtain directions, coordination and leadership from the top management in most cases the Chief Executive Officer. The company has 60 employees who are hired and assigned various duties and responsibilities. The functions are clearly defined and are not conflicting with others responsibilities within the company. The management appreciates the importance of channeling information regarding the performance of the product through function heads. The roles in the company are differentiated through unique and larger scope of activities. The expertise and skill of all employees allow for specialization leading to economies of scale through increased operational scope, efficiency and productivity. The structure has clear communication lines along departments and service lines with clear command chain. Responsibility goes with centralized decision making in departmental and organizational levels. Employees in this company have a sense of belonging by feeling great working for Purina by creating space sufficient for cooperation and coordination. The marketing function within the functional structure has been enhanced by hiring expertise that can perform activities with differentiated set of tasks. Staffing marketing department is based on experience and skills of employees. The major areas are market research, analysis, relationship management, customer service and direct sales. These units are fundamental in creating a function which is competent and holistic. Purina Company has a marketing department responsible for planning and market research. The customer service section looks into client needs while the training department will motivate the marketing staff to improve their sales. The organization has been structured to provide for regional zoning of pet food product. The marketing department is responsible for lead generation, launching, optimizing and measuring demand channels. Tracking of leads in the sales funnel and entire marketing is good for sales opportunities and development of new businesses. Optimizing provides world class blog and content used in buyer research. The marketing leaders in Purina stimulate and create demand. They generate a continuous flow of quality leads to the sales team. The organizational chart will include lead generation and management that include a process of scores, captures and qualifies leads. People are included while generating these leads. With a team of 20 in the sales department, the sales leader has an overall responsibility of developing marketing leads to a point of ready sales. The pressure builds in the moment of justifying the marketing spend and generating results. The marketing department is flexible and streamlined at Purina. The effectiveness and achievement of goals has attained the right set of staff. Consultation and good communication is through a policy of equitable involvement. It requires good organization and systematic arrangement. Senior management of Purina has the responsibility of drawing a policy where employees fully participate in the process. Trade unions are recognized and their agreement is sought before policy introduction. The management is critical in advising the company on brand performance and marketing mix through an effective attitude set in the organization. The objectives of achieving a greater market share and good reputation involves process and setting out consultation and means of communication. The policy drives the purpose of communication and consultation as a two-way process. The policy also outlines methods of communicating objectives and targets, training of managers and marketing employees to better their skills. The senior management has a responsibility of putting the policy into practice, proper maintenance, regular review and follow up of methods and chains of communication. This is done through involvement in staff meetings, consultative committees and address to the workforce. Line managers and supervisors in the company convey information on KPI performance in multiple directions, issuing attractions and appropriate items. Direct communication between employees and senior managers is enhanced by shorter chains of communication. In addition, the personnel function in Purina has a substantial interest in employee information provision. The personnel manager here identifies the needs, monitors arrangements and advises on the communication policy. Feedback, mentoring and coaching of staff Policies and procedures in the company include 15 pre-written procedures and policies, where many accompany records and forms. All procedures and policies are in Microsoft Word files which are easily customized and edited for easier retrieval. The procedures of sales and marketing in the company are based on use of process approach and best practices for greater effectiveness. The policies and procedures on sales and marketing procedures have greatly assisted in achieving improved and desired operation. Customized operations are vital in running of the sales and marketing department. Purina marketing takes a unique approach in sales and marketing management and other business operations. The procedures are categorized into five subgroups as administration, marketing planning, sales, product management, and marketing tactics. Communications are critical to marketing staff in two ways as external communications and internal communications. Both methods are important part of delivering high quality pet food products essential in meeting the commercial/ business needs of Purina Company. Internal communications objectives are vital for the successful functioning of Purina marketing department. Information and communication affects the quality of all staff professional relationships and Purina should ensure that its contractors, staff, and partner companies are properly informed. Purina staff engagement is difficult to measure, but research has demonstrated that engaged workforce respond more productively in depicting excellent retention and recruitment rates than un-engaged staff. Current staff survey results at Purina reveal that if performs well in terms of staff engagement owing to an ingrained component of Purina’s teamwork in communications. Excellent internal communication in all levels has supported development, service planning retention and recruitment of staff. This has always lead to a feeling of staff empowerment in staff morale and improving motivation. The communication policy of Purina is essential in 1. Ensuring marketing staff are better informed regarding developments, news, and any changes happening within Purina 2. Ensuring marketing staff have their opportunity to air their opinions, provide suggestions for Purina KPI development and two way communications engagement Acknowledge feedback of staff opinions to the Purina’s senior managers and are Ensuring that marketing staff are better informed of the diversity of opportunities present to them throughout Purina 3. Ensuring marketing staff draws recognition throughout the Purina for increased staff morale, departmental and personal achievements. External communications in Purina have mechanisms with increasing relevance to the need of marketing. The organization is set to diversify and grow its services. They have established positive and new relationships where new audiences have been incorporated in communication channels, while keeping its present stakeholders informed on motivation and developments. In turn, it has supported Purina’s reputation and its services. Purina has ensured that its partners, commissioners, members, the media, marketing staff, public and all external contacts receive reliable and accurate information on the processes that identifies place emerging stakeholders, direct and new appropriate communication streams. Marketing has ensured that Purina’s business development strategy is committed to ongoing expansion. This takes advantage of business opportunities that further diversifies and develops the organization through unfamiliar services in unfamiliar areas. There are direct opportunities for these functional changes to the pet food company, by better negotiation abilities and acquisition of greater market share while seeking to win new business from competitor companies. It is crucial that the Purina’s promotional marketing entails the following components: Existing Marketing services are through supporting services lines that allow retention and scoring of new business in the pet food industry. Purina marketing ensures that the products are popularized and recognised as a leading provider of a diversity of pet food products especially cats. This happens to a range of audiences, comprising new relationships for instance with dog food manufacturers. Business to consumer marketing enables promotion and effective marketing carried out at customized events where local people choose pet food products Purina’s promotional marketing objectives have been created and implemented the Purina brand, ensuring continuity and consistency of all products generated by Purina in ensuring a clear brand identity. Support of Purina’s product lines is in development of marketing plans, with a communication policy of deriving aims and objectives in the business case. The policy is supports the development of a range of promotional tools that build the reputation of Purina at engagement opportunities and important events. It also has to develop an effective directory of products to reinforce key teams within Purina which go for new business opportunities. In Purina, the great idea is for people to make the difference in their personal and organizational scales. This is vested in the strategic statements and mission objectives that have not been identified. The company is waking up to the idea that employees cannot walk alone and that support is required in terms of guidance and nurturing. Since the global markets and the current business world are under immense pressure to deliver, staff training and mentoring have become commonplace. Shareholders are regularly scrutinizing the company profits hence sales are becoming tough to be won. It is hard to gain a competitive edge in an environment of quick coping and desire to produce more and better. Purina has responded to most of these challenges by improving its performance while keeping the delicate healthy work/life balance of its employees. It has found that customer feedback can be enhanced through coaching and mentoring of its employees. Various studies have confirmed that fresh approaches are in place to meet the needs of staff members. Two things meant to stimulate people in the working environment are challenges of new roles and having key individuals providing assistance and support. In Purina, coaching and mentoring is becoming increasingly popular and fast developing. The new focus on people development is catalyzed by several powerful forces such as the trend meant to flatten the hierarchies within the company and in lowering of the management level numbers. The labor market is dynamic since people prefer, recognize and more mobile working for this company. A coaching culture exists in this company since it creates great fun and work rewards. The business conditions, technologies, and markets are fast changing hence Purina need not to send staff off on week-long training but train on continuous basis and ‘on the job’.  On a one-to-one basis, there is need for an individual continuous professional development (CPD) and also a more collaborative approach to working. In Purina coaching and mentoring is the way forward. Though there is a great deal of misperception and misrepresentation regarding mentoring and coaching, it has relevance in redefining over time the socio-economic changes in the business world and especially Australia. Reference list Clancy, K J & Kriegafsd PC 2000, Counter intuitive Marketing. The Free Press.  Fowler M 2003, Cannot Measure Productivity, Martinfowler.com. 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