Innovative Market Communications - Case Study Example

Name: Instructor: Course: Date: AUDIT REPORT Introduction Mobile phones in the recent past have been seen to play a major role in various aspects. As the level of technological advancement improves day in day out a mobile phone is not only limited to speaking its used for various purposes ranging from video recording and serves as a computer for basic storage of information .In today’s world business is almost next to impossible without the services a mobile phone. Starting from service sector, as well as in various fields such as in medicine and also in money transfer mobile phones have been widely used. Therefore there is increased demand for better phones and Nokia Lumia 920 has come as a solution. Product The product of my choice is Nokia Lumia 920 Smartphone which has distinct features as compared to other smart phones of its caliber. Due to its exemplary performance in terms of power management, display, photography ,a dual core processor and its exclusive availability of Nokia’s flagship Windows8 ( Schneiders).The phone has provided the solution to a variety of customer needs ranging from entertainment, communication (Philippe), internet services (useful for businessmen and women, organizations, students, researchers and various stakeholders who heavily depend on internet services on their day to day operations) and serving customers’ prestige. This kind of a product under study is a specialty product and the reason as to why I’ve chosen it is due to the sophisticated customers’ tastes and preferences and the increasing demand for better phones. Its convenient size, shape and colour are some of its notable attributes. The phone comes in different colors ranging from grey, white, red and yellow that makes it certainly attractive and refreshing. Its thickness is10.7mm and weighs 185g making it the thinnest and the lightest Smartphone that that ever existed on the market. As mobile telephony sky rockets rapidly each new devices on smart phones are frequently launched where each smart phone is equipped with distinct features ranging from the operating system, camera or screen resolution and each brand varies from the other. Lumia 920 follows a similar design compared to previous Lumia 900 and Lumia 800.The phone is made of recyclable materials and its size is small hence a very simplistic package made of cardboard and its brings about differentiation ( Pride; Ferrell,) due magnificent pictures on the cardboard depicting distinct features from any other smart phone. Nokia Lumia 920 is in its growth life cycle as it gets its roots in Australian market (Trehan & Ranju). Despite its distinct features the products is yet to reach maturity this is mostly due to its price in the market which is higher as compared to the price of other ordinary phones in the market and which are of low quality as compared to Lumia 920. Regardless of its relatively high price the promotion and distribution strategies seems to move in line with the product life cycle (Kim). Promotion The firm deploys various promotion methods such as a advertisement (Masterman) through; magazines like the New Idea magazine and TV Week magazine, Newspapers like Sydney Morning Herald-Business & World News and The Business Review Weekly ,the radios such as the Capital Radio Network and Radio Austral, Television programs such as Inside Business-ABC ,organizing seminars ,workshops and public speeches by the firm personnel. The Nokia lumia 920 firm also uses employs online methods of promotion through its website, directed linkage for example with the goggle such that anyone seeking information on this kind of phone can access it with ease which may range from its specifications and also its manuals. The firm provides new product information to aspiring customers who may be written or oral. Written information may be contained in phone’s manuals while oral may be through the firm’s marketing personnel. The sale and sponsorship information may mainly target potential customers which may be conveyed through organized seminars and workshops. This information is useful in creating awareness of the new brand of the phone in the market to the customers. Place The distribution strategy is based on various types of customers the firm serves ranging from Commercial Customers -these are the customers who purchase the product in large quantities from the firm and usually the firm provides free and safe transportation to their premises upon request. Commercial customers are the largest categories of customers the firm targets since they buy for resale. Ultimate customers buy for retail or for their personal uses. While on the other hand institutional customers may buy for use in specified institutions which may be interested in using Nokia’s Lumia 920 services. This distribution strategy helps in strengthening the clientele base and enable the firm to have many customers seeking to purchase their product get a taste of their unique services. This strategy helps in serving the customers’ needs right since it cuts on transportation costs and the risks involved such as theft on goods in transit (Beri). Due to increasing demand on the use of Nokia lumia 920 because of its salient features that clearly distinguishes it from other smart phones such as iPhone 5 which uses iOS 6 software, distinct from Lumia920 ability to support windows8 software, the strategy is appropriate and it matches perfectly with the product life cycle as the product faces less competition from the market raising its demand. Price The charges prices depending on the type of customers it serves for instance for those buying in large quantities the firm do offer quantity discounts to encourage the customers to come for more and build stronger bonds between itself and its customers. The firm charges relatively lower prices as compared to its numerous competitors who manufacture other types of smart phones .This strategy attracts more customers hence the firm benefits from the huge sales margin. The demand for Nokia Lumia 920 emanates from the demand for other smart phones in the market like Samsung Galaxy S 3 and HTC One X which are equally competitive, the individual customer, tastes and preferences and the price their competitors charges for their related products which is a vital element for the firm in designing its pricing strategies. Offering cash, quantity and trade discounts to its customers is also one of the survival strategies the firm uses. Regular customers enjoy credit facilities by the firm permitting them to pay in a specified period of time. Those buying in bulk will be given quantity discount to encourage them come again and buy more of the product (Charles; Joseph; McDaniel). Those buying for resale are given trade discounts so that they can get some profit out of the sale and encourage them to come for more. However prices may vary across various brands of the same products due to distinguished features like high pixel rating, high screen resolution or their operating system.For instance Nokia Lumia 920 rates highly in terms of quality as compared to Lumia 800 or 900.The objectives of these variations is to segment different markets for the different brand of the same product (Jakki;Sengupta; Stanley). The pricing strategy is in line with the product life cycle stage as the firm prepares to counter competition from other firms dealing with smart phones so as to take a reasonable portion of the market as it nears maturity stage in Australian market (Russell). Competitive advantage Better quality products, exemplary promotion procedure, excellent pricing strategies coupled with proper distribution strategies (MacBride) has given the firm competitive advantage over its rival firms. In any business environment, competition is inevitable and the firm therefore identifies its competitor’s strength and weakness, analyze and compare them, after which the firm adopts new strategies or uses the existing ones to survive competition (Vallabhaneni). For Lumia 920 its distinguished features such as thickness of 10.7mm and a weight of 185g makes it the thinnest and the lightest Smartphone that ever existed on the market giving it a competitive advantage over the other smart phones in the market. On the other hand if you compare Lumia 920 in terms of size and weight coupled with its screen size it looks more attractive and appealing than iPhone 5. It is 0.5 longer and possesses a pixel density of 332ppi, which is slightly higher as compared to iPhone 5's 326ppi making it more preferable as compared to iPhone5. Surprisingly the Lumia 920 possesses one of the highest pixel density ratings outsmarting the current flagship Smartphone on the market one of its salient features that increases its demand in the market (McDonald; Warren). Prior to phone’s features other marketing mix strategies comes into play such as well-designed advertisement procedures which targets specific groups of people, free delivery services to customers buying the product in large quantity, a couple of discounts ranging from quantity, cash and trade discounts. Providing after sales services such as repairs and giving warranties to their customers which is distinct from its competitors giving them a competitive advantage. Better customer care services which helps to attract more customers hence increasing their customer base as well as their sales margin. All these marketing mix strategies have helped the firm greatly by improving its clientele base and helping it to grow at substantial rates enabling it to cope with over increasing customer needs in Australia and in other countries where the product is demanded. Assessment on the firm’s success The firm deserves a reasonable amount of credit ‘if not a huge credit’ for coming up with such a unique product which has such a high rating across the world. The firm has been in touch with the customer needs, tastes and preferences which metamorphosis from time to time through its detailed survey across every corner of the world (Isobel; Robin). The Nokia Lumia 920 has come up as a solution to increased demand for technological advances taking place in the world. It’s amazing that’s Nokia Lumia 920 touch screen can be fully operated by someone wearing gloves which is one of it unique features which is prestigious to its users serving some of the customers’ needs, tastes and preferences right. Its rating as the pixel density emanates from a resolution comes from a 1280x768 resolution an improvement from 800x480 resolutions. Its performance in terms of power management- one distinct feature not with iPhone 5 Lumia 920 has a built-in charging wireless system. Therefore apart from its normal sales for the product the firm sell a variety of charging accessories boosting its sales for Nokia Lumia 920 which comprises a plate for charging which is wireless, charging speaker with wireless features , a stand for charging and charging pillow, magnificent display, excellent photography ,a processor that’s dual and it’s the only phone that contains Nokia’s flagship Windows8.Therefore according to my views Nokia Lumia 920 phone has come up with a lasting provided the solution to a range of customer needs identified earlier such as entertainment, communication, internet services prestige (Roddy ). Target marketing Nokia Lumia 920 is the leading Smartphone in the market due its distinct features and its ability to support windows 8 operating system. According to recent media reports the phone model has gained popularity in the market and has dominated a market share of 14% a slight lead over Nokia Lumia 800. This model has moved from the fourth rank spot as reported by media last month. Its initial market after its launch was met with several challenges since it was new in the market and there was shortage of stock. Currently the phone has gained momentum in the market and its sales have improved. Recent reports indicate that; soon the Nokia Lumia 920 will be able to dominate the windows based smart phone soon. The firm targets three distinct customers; Commercial customers; these are the customers who buy in large quantities for resale, Industrial customers; these type of customers buy for use in companies and various sectors such as service sector as well as in businesses and ultimate customers who buy for their own use. Work Cited Charles W Lamb; Joseph F Hair; Carl D McDaniel, Essentials of marketing. Mason, Ohio : South-Western Cengage Learning.2012.Print G C Beri, Marketing research. New Delhi : Tata McGraw-Hill, 2008.Print Guy Masterman, Innovative Market Communications. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.2010.Print Isobel Doole; Robin Lowe, International marketing strategy : analysis, development and implementation. London : Cengage Learning, 2008. Print Jakki J Mohr; Sanjit Sengupta; Stanley F Slater, Marketing of high-technology products and innovations. Upper Saddle River, NJ : Prentice Hall, 2010.Print Kim Ittonen, Audit reports and stock markets. 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Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co. 2007. Print Read More