Marketing Communication Strategies of Millennium Passion Limited - Case Study Example

Marketing Communication Part B by Student’s name Code+ course name Professor’s name City, State Date Executive Summary Major findings from Part A The most developing sector in Australia today is the horticultural sector. The sector produces various products such as fruits and assorted types of fruits. Millennium passion Limited is an Australian based company that has for long dominated the passion fruit’s business in Australia. The company is located in the Kingston area of Melbourne. From the first report, Millennium Passion Limited is committed to quality, reliability as well as cost-effectiveness. However, the company faces stiff competition from other companies that specialize in assorted types of fruits within and outside the Austrian business. Increase in imports from countries such as South America and Thailand is shrinking the business for Millennium Passion Limited. These challenges will be addressed through quality control and management as well as competitive prices. The company will also strive to increase productivity to satisfy the ever growing Australian passion fruit business. In addition, the company will use the numerous options of ICT in order to spur growth. The available internet advertising materials include ownership of the company’s that is branded with dark-rich colors such as the dazzling brilliance of gold. The previous report found that the company’s website was not appealing and attractive. As such, the company aims at enhancing the websites in order to improve visibility by potential clients. The company will also utilize Email newsletters and has adequate plans of utilizing the social media as a strategic media-advertising tool. Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Table of Contents 3 1.0 Introduction 4 1.1 Background 5 1.2 Purpose 5 1.3 Format 5 2.0 Marketing Responses 6 2.1 Goals and objectives 7 3.0 Designing a Marketing Communication Strategy 8 3.1 The Objective of the communication 9 3.2 The target audience 9 3.3 The information 10 3.4 The Media 10 3.5 The Feedback 11 4.0 Marketing communication strategies of Millennium Passion Limited 11 4.1 Advertising 12 4.2 Sales promotion 13 4.3 Public relations 15 4.4 Personal Selling 16 4. 5 Direct Selling 16 4.6 Advertisement by use social Media 17 4. 7 Online Advertising 18 5.0 Ways of Improving Marketing Communication 19 6.0 Conclusion 20 References 20 1.0 Introduction This part B sought to analyze marketing communication strategy for Millennium Passion Limited in the Australian business. Part A of this assessment examined the website elements of Millennium passion Limited. The main objective of Millennium passion Limited is to be the business leader in passion fruits industry across Australia and beyond. This Part B focuses on Millennium passion Limited elements of the communication mix. 1.1 Background The previous report found out that Millennium Passion Limited had build stronger collaboration and communication across the supply chain. In addition, the company used promotion and campaigns across the business, rebranding and other strategies to ensure that the product remains at the top in the business. However, it was found out that when placed in comparison with other Passion fruits’ companies in the Kingston area, Millennium website does not reach as many people as intended. Thus, this report aims at making recommendations on how Millennium Passion Limited can enhance its website visibility. 1.2 Purpose In the race for marketers to cut a niche in the business, marketing communications have taken the lead in promoting products. Marketers prefer advertising their products through internet media because it captures the attention of guests as compared with other options as print and electronic media. In Australia, internet media has been revolutionized. This report evaluates the marketing communications that the Millennium Passion Limited in Australia can use in order to capture the hearts of its clients. 1.3 Format Basing on integrated marketing communication in business, this report starts by defining Millennium Passion Limited objectives. Further, it will make recommendations on the available marketing information that the Millennium Passion Limited can utilize in order to achieve a competitive edge in the passion fruit industry. 2.0 Marketing Responses The website of the Millennium passion Limited compiled in Part 1 was analyzed using specific criteria. This was made in comparison with three competitor websites. The assessment was made in consideration of the best practices for the online presence. Each category was rated in terms of percentages where an average score was later calculated. The higher the percentage, the better a specific feature on the website has been addressed. A lower percentage indicates a poor rating. Millennium passion Limited Company’s website is well designed but needs further enhancements. The fonts are tiny, and therefore, any visitor with eyesight challenges may strain a lot to read the text. The color would also need some balancing to avoid too much yellow color on the home page. Since the company colors are mainly two, it is recommendable to balance the colors. 2.1 Goals and objectives The table below summarizes the Millennium Passion Limited goals and objectives. Objectives Strategy Measure 2014 2015 2016 Increase the product awareness through various marketing communication mix Advertising, sales promotion, The number of customers that choose the products of Millennium Passion Limited 6000 6900 7800 To be the best distributor of Passion fruits in Australia Direct selling, Personal selling by use of selling Agents The number of products sold (tones) 2.2 2.4 2.8 To meet customers’ needs through quality products Sales promotion, direct selling The increase in percentage of selling in Australia 15% 20% 25% To maximize sales and profitability through attracting a large number of customers Public relation, sales promotion Total sales in Dollars 500,000 580,000 700,000 To increase customer loyalty Sales promotion Increase in percentage of customers for products 10% 15% 13% 3.0 Designing a Marketing Communication Strategy The main objective behind marketing information is to enlighten the targeted consumer about the product, create a good image of the product and persuade the consumer to purchase the product. The strategy should be formulated in a unique way in order to promote the product and make it more appealing to the targeted customers (Sahney 2006). Designing of the marketing communication strategy should be able to meet the following aspects: a) objectives of the communication b) target audience c) information d) media e) feedback 3.1 The Objective of the communication The decision to choose a suitable marketing communication strategy should be based on the objectives of the marketing information and results speculated. The purpose of the marketer may be to create awareness of the product, to create goodwill image towards the product, or to create a goodwill and positive social image (Sahney 2006). The design of marketing communication strategies based on the purpose of the communication should be highly considered by Millennium Passion Limited in order to ensure that the strategies will be effective. 3.2 The target audience When making marketing communication strategy, it is crucial for the marketer to know who the audience or targeted customers are. This is of high significance to the marketer because in formulation of the marketing communication strategy, the strategy should be designed according to the target business. The target Business for Millennium Passion Limited is wide and covers an extensive geographical area, cutting across all genders and classes of people. Therefore, the marketing department of Millennium Passion Limited should make information that fit to different marketing communication strategies to be implemented. The information to be advertised in the Television should be the same in the Radio station. However, the information should be more different in the social media like Facebook. 3.3 The information The message is the information that the marketer tries to convey to the intended customer. When choosing a marketing communication strategy, it is important to choose the right information for the right audience. The marketer should know what to say on the information. The component of the information should be based on the purpose of the communication. The purpose of the marketer may be to create awareness of the product or to stimulate interest of the product. The marketer should decide on what to say or how deliver the information. The marketer may use symbols, drawings, attractive words which should ultimately inspire the customer to take an action of purchasing the product. 3.4 The Media The media is crucial in designing marketing communication strategy. When choosing a marketing communication strategy, the media is determined by the information to be passed on, the timing and the location of the customer in order for the strategy to be effective (Ejombonteh 2012). The marketer should use the media based on the target segment, the channel of communication, and the communication objective. Millennium Passion Limited will gain maximum benefit by the choice of media that ensure that consumers get the right information at the intended time. This will lead to sales maximization because of consumer awareness. 3.5 The Feedback Feedback is the customer’s response to a marketer’s information about the product. This is one way of proving if the communication was effectively received or not. It is also helps the marketer to know if the information was correctly understood by the consumer so that he may add or modify the information in order to be understood. Feedback will help Millennium Passion Limited to get suggestions and recommendations on how they can improve the product to meet customer’s needs. 4.0 Marketing communication strategies of Millennium Passion Limited Marketing communication helps businesses to develop and prosper; it creates relationships, and strengthens the efficiency of businesses (Floor & Raaij 2011). The following marketing communication strategies should be implemented by Millennium Passion Limited in order to increase customer awareness of their products: Strategy Goals Implementation strategy 1 Advertising To create awareness of the product to the entire Australian passion fruit business Use of television, magazines, newspapers, the Internet, direct mail, and radio 2 sales promotions To encourage customers to make large purchases and regular purchases Use of coupons, contests, games, rebates, mail-in offers, price packs, patronage rewards 3 Public Relations The aim is to develop a positive attitude of the products by Passion Millennium Limited Use of press releases, publicity, product placement, and sponsorships 4 Personal selling To create one on one interaction with the customers Interacting with the customer by face to face, via telephone, or email 5 Direct marketing To channel promotional materials directly to the targeted customer Reaching customers via mail, catalogs, Internet, e-mail, telephone, or direct-response advertising 6 Social Media Advertising To reach the youth and intellectual consumers Use of Social Media such as blogs, Twitter or Facebook 7. Online advertising To reach the customers via the internet Use of eBay, websites and blogs 4.1 Advertising This is the use of media to create awareness of a product to a wide range of consumers. This is a form marketing communication where information is spread among many potential buyers through media in order to maximize sales (Kotler 2004). This method of marketing communication will be of benefit to the company because it provides awareness to the largest and most geographically dispersed consumers at the lowest fee per head. Millennium Passion Limited should implement advertising as a means of marketing communication to the entire population of Australia using minimal resources and within a very short time. The major challenge is the large number of television stations and radio stations in Australia. Therefore, , Millennium Passion Limited will be forced to invest in more television stations and radio stations in order to reach a large group as possible(Swanson 1990). Due to technological advancements, there is a necessity to invest in online advertising since most people in Australia have access to the internet. Millennium Passion Limited should ensure that they advertise in as many websites as possible (Kokemuller 2007). The company should also venture in other types of advertising, that is, the use of newspapers and magazines, billboards, yellow pages, billboards, signs, posters and also advertising in buses, benches, gas pumps and even public restrooms. Though these forms of advertising are vogue today, they are still relevant to many Australian citizens. This offers the advantage of targeting the eyes of consumers while they are busy in their works. 4.2 Sales promotion According to Kotler (2004), sales promotion as a form of marketing communication which refers to activities that harmonize, organize and make the efforts of personal selling and advertising more successful and effective. The main objective of sales promotion is to stimulate customer demand and improve the marketing performance of sellers (Kotler 2004). The main objective of sales promotion is to introduce new products in the business. Millennium Passion Limited should employ the use of sales promotion as a marketing communication to the target customers. In doing so, the company will ensure that new products are quickly adopted in the market. The company can achieve this by giving free samples to consumers and providing discounts to new products. Sales promotion will help the business in attracting new customers. Sales promotion will also enable the company to maximize sales (Ottesen 2001). Millennium Passion Limited should implement sales promotion in three levels. The first level is the dealer’s level. In this case, dealers refer to wholesalers, retailers and middlemen. The company will use the posters, banners, boards to display products at the wholesalers or retailers premises. This will maximize product knowledge to consumers because the wholesalers and retailers have close contact with the customers (Varey, 2002). The business should place gifts to those dealers who regularly put a large order with company. The second level of sales promotion should be at consumer’s level. The company should offer free samples to the consumers. When consumers like the product, they will be prompted to buy more of the product. By using this kind of sales promotion, Millennium Passion Limited should reach customers by reducing the maximum retail price. Since there are many festivals in Australia, the company should utilize them as an opportunity to reach customers and maximize sales. These festivals include Christmas, New Year, Easter holidays and many others. The company should offer discounts during this festive seasons in order to maximize sales. The third level of sales promotion should be sales promotion at sales man level. This is the most effective form of sales promotion when making personal selling. The company should organize meetings with the salesmen regularly. These meetings are of high importance to the company because it will appraise the salesmen performance in selling the products and reward them. 4.3 Public relations Public relation is another form of marketing communication which refers to how a company handles the relationships and the flow of information with the public. The public in this case refers to consumers, shareholders, employees, partners, competitors, the government and the general public. Public promotion will be of great value to Millennium Passion Limited because it builds goodwill towards the company and products so that customers will think more favorably of the company, and in turn, make purchases. The company should invest in press releases and consumer publications which should be centered to important events, celebrities’ endorsement, advertorials, promotional collateral, financial reports, facility tours, sponsorships, interviews and other methods which can promote a positive image to the public (Swanson 1990). In order to foster socially conscious business practices, Millennium Passion Limited should ensure they give back to the society. This is will encourage positive image of the company and its products. 4.4 Personal Selling This is the process of helping or encouraging targeted customers to purchase a product or a service. Millennium Passion Limited should use this type of marketing communication in order to persuade the customers to purchase the fruits products. The company should use salespeople to develop products for resale to whole sellers and retailers. Retail sellers’, on the other hand, increase the value of fruit products to consumers in retail businesses. The most rewarding aspect in the marketing process is to build customer relationship, and therefore, build product and customer loyalty (Percy, 2008). The company will benefit from knowing the needs of the customer, and therefore, creating the best solutions for the customer. The business will be able to know the taste and preference of most customers and the reason they buy their product, thus investing in them in order to maximize sales. Personal selling will also enable the business to meeting the customer’s needs satisfactorily, and therefore, creating a good attitude and product loyalty (Floor & Raaij, 2011). Personal selling will also be of great importance to the company in obtaining efficient feedback regarding their products. 4. 5 Direct Selling This is the channeling of promotional materials directly to the targeted customers. This is a form of marketing communication that the seller uses to sell products directly to the customer without using sales agents. The seller reaches the customer directly through emails, catalogs, internet, telephone, direct-response advertising. Millennium Passion Limited should use this type of marketing communication because it will enable the business to get immediate feedback of the product (Lancaster 1988). 4.6 Advertisement by use social Media The growth of social Media like Facebook and Twitter have prompted many organizations to indulge in making tailored information in order to create product awareness. In the strategic marketing and communications three-year plan by UHHCC Marketing Committee, it was disclosed that a teen spend around 6.5 hours per day with media, of which 33% is spent on the internet. They agreed with the fact that social media is now a useful tool for sharing information than emails. They also agreed that Facebook the most effective too among social media tools as far as information sharing is concerned (UHCC Marketing Committee 2012, p.5). Barry & Charleton (2009) reckoned that social media advertising strengths advocacy of the current clients, attracts new clients, enhances brand visibility on the cyber space and also, allow SMEs to respond quickly to clients demands. Millennium Passion Limited should embrace information technology in order to attain a competitive edge. The company should employ the use social media as marketing communication tool and strategy. Painting a powerful image of the fruit products in the social media is an easy task and less expensive compared to the rest of marketing communication strategies. It is not enough that Millennium Passion Ltd has an appealing and attractive website. The significance of having a website and plans of establishing blogs can be boosted by tapping into social media that is, advertising through Facebook and Twitter. Ideally, having the business as a trend in Twitter would enhance the visibility by potential clients. Further, Facebook feedback would enable Millennium Passion Ltd Managers to monitor and evaluate the kind of feedback their existing clients have. With this regards, the social media platform would enable Millennium Passion Ltd to improve on customer satisfaction. 4. 7 Online Advertising This is creating awareness of the product by the use of internet and websites. Online advertising uses the internet to provide marketing information to consumers who are in the various parts of the world. Online advertising allows the marketer to customize the information of the product that can attract the attention of the consumer. Millennium Passion Ltd could also use paid search advertising in an effort to attract customers. Research reveals that SMEs are moving from basic advertising to branded advertising (Dahlén & Smith, 2010). Barry & Charleton (2009) noted that the most recognized search engines for SMEs are Yahoo, Google and MSN. According to Barry & Charleton (2009) the use of search engines reduces the SMEs advertisement budgets. Millennium Passion Limited will benefit much from online advertising. The company will enjoy a low cost of displaying products on the internet and websites as compared to advertisements on Televisions and Radios. The company will able to measure their advertisement effectiveness, as compared to other forms of advertisements. These can be achieved by measuring the size of the potential audience and the consumers’ who have actually responded to the advertisement. This will help the business to improve its campaign over time. 5.0 Ways of Improving Marketing Communication The company should venture in employing effective marketing mix. This will enable the company to attract more customers from wide geographical scope. The company should employ the use social media as marketing communication tool and strategy. To improve marketing communication, the company should ensure they have efficient feedback of the impact of their marketing communications. This feedback will be useful information in product improvement and development. The company should venture in community services to improve their public image. This “giving back to the society” can be done through sponsoring social projects and social events like sports, entertainment, or community events. This will help the company in creating awareness of their products to the public at same time making a good reputation on the face of the public. The company should make use of sales promotion. Sales promotion induces customers for a repetitive purchase more often than they intended to do. This is achieved offering free samples or offers such as "buy one, get one for free." This will help the business to improve its campaign over time. The world has become a Global village and technology is increasing every day, and therefore, Millennium Passion Ltd should venture more on Websites and internet advertising. Through online advertisement, the company is able to display their products in the best possible way. The marketer can choose to use pictures, audio, videos, or links. 6.0 Conclusion This research has shown that SMEs, have taken cognisant of the need to meet the client’s expectations. The global markets coupled with intense competition in the market place have been in the vanguard of driving integrated marketing communications for small to medium enterprises like Millennium Passion Ltd. Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are now coming face to face with the market, realities namely; the acceptance that the client is not a burden to the business. Clients are the reason that the Small to Medium Enterprises exist. Days when SMEs dumped their products in the consumer’s lap waiting for them to appreciatively accept the proffered products are gone. Customers are the one who provides SMEs with resources to keep the in business. On its part, Millennium Passion Ltd must gear all its efforts towards delighting clients. The accepted wisdom amongst many scholars is that Integrated Marketing Communication enables SMEs to gain competitive advantage by enhancing a firm’s transactions and also, increasing the client’s satisfaction. Internet adoption is the only way Millennium Passion Ltd can create new markets as well as develop old ones. SMEs, which expect to sustain their competitive position, must be at the vanguard of the integrated marketing communication wave. References Barry, C & Charleton, D.2009.Business and Telecommunications Communications in Computer and Information Science: In Search of Search Engine Marketing Strategy Amongst SME’s in Ireland.Vol:4. pp 113-124. 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