1. Rodney Lawrence
Chapter 16: Marketing Strategy involves a self-analysis and a
reflection of the strengths and weaknesses of the company as
established by the dashboard indicators. This involves reflecting
on possible changes to target segments, price, place, and
promotion, with the ultimate goal of increasing profitability
in the company (Iacobucci, 2018). One of those most important
and relevant sections of this chapter was the methods of
growing sales volume and increasing sales. During this
pandemic many companies have taken substantial losses due to
companies shutting down, and not being able to keep up with th
supply and demand of various products. Supply chains have also
been affected with many products taking longer to meet their
distributors. Meat for instance, has seen a significant increase
in price due to the demand and shortage. Other possible foods
such as pork, chicken, and fish, have seen some prices lowered
to attract new buyers and have effected consumer choices and
strategies of marketing tactics. Limitations in marketing
channels have made pricing products vital in cutting profit
losses and increasing product sales.
Chapter 17: Marketing Plans recapped the 5Cs, STP, and 4
Ps. This ultimately leads to the goal of a marketing plan to
achieve company goals. Marketing plans are continuously
changing due to various factors, such as the economy, and is
made from numerous details and decisions (Iacobucci, 2018).
The most important section of this chapter was the managerial
checklist and how all of this combined helps to create the
overall marketing plan. Using the 5Cs, STP, and 4Ps to
coordinate a tactical approach in writing and producing the
overall marketing plan (Iacobucci, 2018). After researching and
writing on my group project I could see all of this classes
information becoming more practical and realizing how
everything combines to create a marketing plan for a company

2. or product. Once everything is ultimately combined and
presented the marketing plan shows its importance in helping
companies promote and sell their product while hopefully
creating an increase in popularity and overall profit margins for
the long term, which can be altered and fitted to react to
changes or misses involved in the distribution and sales of the
product and company.
1) Amazon
Cost leadership-Amazon produces more purchasing options, and
the cost and delivery options of the company are unparalleled.
While most companies have taken extreme losses during this
pandemic, Amazon actually increased profits exceeding 3
billion dollars.
Differentiation-Amazon uses bundles, excellence in pricing,
speed of delivery, and easy accessibility to set themselves apart
from all forms of distribution methods.
Focused-Amazon also separates because they have branched
into multiple streams of revenue and industries. Besides the
service industry specifically, they have branched into musical
and television markets that connect to the basis of product sales
and promotions.
2) Under Armor
Company-the company has a strong brand recognition and is
promoted by numerous celebrities and athletes.
Customer-consumers are usually into fitness, and professional
athletes and teams.
Context-due to the pandemic the fitness and sports industries
have created a massive loss in exposure as well as usage.
Collaborators-merchandising deals with various sports teams, as
well as sporting goods stores helps in the promotion of the
brand.
Competitors-there are multiple competitors in the sportswear
industry with the mos prominent and powerful being the Nike
brand.
I can not fault the direction that Under Armor has
continuously moved towards over the years. They have

3. broken into the show industry, toiletries, and recently produced
a female line of products to go along with their expansive
workout gear and seasonal options that already set them apart
from other companies in the sports apparel industry. Sales are
increasing yearly and the return of sports will only help to
market and push their products accordingly.
Nikitha Ashok
Marketing Strategy
A marketing strategy technique refers to a business' general
approach for arriving at prospective shoppers and transforming
them into clients of the items or services the business gives. A
marketing strategy contains the organization's offer, key brand
informing, information on track client demographics and other
elevated level components.
Marketing Strategy is the segment of our business plan that
outlines our general course of action for discovering customers
and clients for our business. At times, marketing strategy is
mistaken for marketing plan. However, they both are unique.
I believe Marketing Strategy centers around what you need to
accomplish for our business and promoting endeavors. Whereas,
marketing details on how we can accomplish those objectives. A
good marketing strategy incorporates what you know about how
our business fits into the market and the five P’s of marketing
to develop the tactics and actions that will achieve your
marketing objectives.
How to create a good Marketing Strategy?
I believe, before drafting a marketing strategy we need to know
about the service benefits of our product and how unique is it in
the market. We need to ensure our marketing strategy
incorporates the five P’s. The five P’s include Product, Price,
Place, Promotion and People.
1. Product – What are we selling in the market? Our product
uniqueness from our competitors? In addition, the benefits

4. provided to our customers.
2. Price – What is the profit margin by selling at that price?
How does the price vary to our competitors? The total cost
associated to the product.
1. Place – Where will be the product be available for purchase?
What marketing promotions are initiated?
2. Promotions – How do we plan to inform our market know
about the product that we are launching? How are we planning
to promote the features and benefits associated with the
product?
3. People – Who are our target audience and who are the people
that will help us in creating or delivering our product and
services.
We can increase our customers and sales in the market through
the six marketing strategies.
1. Provide free workshops and classes on the product.
2. Collaborate with local business networks.
3. Get Charitable.
4. Create our own blogs.
5. Join social media for promotion.
6. Request for referrals.
Marketing Plan
A marketing plan is a report that outlines our marketing strategy
for the coming year, quarter or month. An effective marketing
plan helps a company understand the market that it targets and
the competition in the market, understand the impact and the
results of marketing decisions and provides direction for future
initiatives. Although marketing plans can vary depending on the
industry, type of products or services, and the goals we want to
achieve.
Ideally, a marketing plan includes the following elements.
1. An overview of our business marketing and advertising goals
2. A description of our business current marketing position
3. A timeline of when tasks within our strategy will be

5. completed
4. Tracking Key performance indicators (KPIs)
5. A description of our business’s target market and customer
needs.
I believe a good marketing plan should incorporate the
following.
1. Executive summary
2. Business description
3. Situation Analysis
4. Business Objectives
5. Distribution and Delivery plan
6. Marketing Goals
7. Target Market.
My graduate level response to the given questions is as follows.
Question-1
Porter's Five Forces is a simple but powerful tool for
understanding the competitiveness of your business
environment, and for identifying your strategy's potential
profitability.
Now, let us analyze Porters Analysis of the brand Nike.
Bargaining power of suppliers: low
Items made universally and hence multiple small providers pose
low competition from providers.
Bargaining power of buyers: low to moderate
The exchanging cost of clients is low as there are numerous
brands available like Adidas, Puma etc.
Threat of substitutes: low to moderate
As there are many competing brands making coordinating or
comparative products.
Threat of new entrants: Low
Despite the fact that speculation required is low yet getting
different things in process is expensive undertaking and
difficult like showcasing, dispersion and gracefully chain the
board
Level of competitive rivalry: High
A saturated market with many players like Adidas, Under

6. Armor, Puma etc. who pose strong competition.
Question-2
My favorite brand is Chick- Fil-A. The 5 C’s of Chick-Fil-A are
Company, Collaborators, Customers, Competitors and Climate.
Company - Chick-fil-A is one of the largest American fast food
restaurant chains and the largest whose specialty is chicken
sandwiches. Its headquarters is in College Park, Georgia.
Collaborates – Chick- fil- A collaborated with many other
suppliers who can produce meat, milk that is used extensively in
their product to reduce the costs and ensure the product
delivered to clients are of high quality.
Customers – Chick-Fil-A targeted all ages of customers from
seniors, adults, teenagers including children.
Competitors – Chick-Fil-A has many competitors in the current
market such as Mc Donald, Burger King, Taco bell, subway and
many more. However, their fine quality distinguish them from
other leading companies.
Climate – Chick-Fil-A has limitations due to political, economic
and technological trends.
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16.
1
16

7. Marketing Strategy
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16. 2
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16.
2
Marketing Framework
3
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or in part.
16.
Discussion Question #1
How can companies become more profitable?
4
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or in part.
16.
Marketing Goals
Profit = Sales Revenue – Costs

8. Costs = Variable Costs + Fixed Costs
– [Variable Costs (Unit
Growing profit is the ultimate marketing goal
5
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16.
Increasing Profitability
To increase profitability, companies can
Increase sales volume
Change prices
Decrease costs
6
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or in part.
16.
Profitability: Growing Sales
(slide 1 of 2)
To grow sales volume, companies can
Grow the overall market or grow the company’s market share
Up-sell current customers to more expensive offerings
Get customers to buy more frequently
Steal customers from competitors
Pursue another segment

9. 7
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or in part.
16.
Profitability: Growing Sales
(slide 2 of 2)
To grow sales volume, companies can, (continued)
Create new products
Reduce brand switching by enhancing brand
Raise customer satisfaction
Add value through a loyalty program
Raise switching costs so leaving brand is unattractive
8
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or in part.
16.
Profitability: Changing Prices
To change prices, companies can
Cut prices
May bring volume in short term, but may damage brand
image/equity
May create price wars
Lower price necessitates higher volume
Raise prices
Yields greater margins
Cues high quality
May need to shift to a more upscale target

10. 9
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or in part.
16.
Profitability: Decreasing Variable Costs
To decrease variable costs, companies can
Find less expensive suppliers
Outsource parts of the business to partners who are more
efficient
Become a niche provider to keep units down and price higher
for special customers
10
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or in part.
16.
Profitability: Decrease Fixed Costs
To decrease fixed costs, companies can
Spend less on R&D
Spend less on advertising
Be more creative and efficient with spending
Milk the brand
Don’t spend on continued development or maintenance
11
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or in part.
16.

11. Marketing Strategies
Ansoff’s product-market growth matrix
BCG matrix
General Electric model
Porter strategies
Treacy and Wiersema strategies
12
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duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole
or in part.
16.
Ansoff’s Growth Matrix
(slide 1 of 3)
13
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duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole
or in part.
16.
Ansoff’s Growth Matrix
(slide 2 of 3)
Market penetration: current products, current markets
e.g., Convincing our current users to drink Pepsi for breakfast
Market development: current products, new markets
e.g., Selling chalk not only to schools, but also to kids
14
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duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole
or in part.
16.

12. Ansoff’s Growth Matrix
(slide 3 of 3)
Product development: new products, current markets
e.g., Selling dry-erase boards to customers to whom you are
currently selling dry-erase markers
Diversification: New products, new markets
e.g., A bookstore selling music
15
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duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole
or in part.
16.
Ansoff’s Growth Matrix Questions
Describe how Apple could implement a
Market penetration strategy
Product development strategy
Market development strategy
Diversification strategy
Which strategy do you think Apple primarily uses?
16
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duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole
or in part.
16.
BCG Matrix
Brands or products are classified according to whether each has
a strong or weak market share and slow or growing market
Star: high share, high growth
Cash cow: high share, low growth
Question mark: low share, high growth

13. Dog: low share, low growth
17
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16.
17
BCG Matrix Questions
Give examples of
A star
A cash cow
A question mark
A dog
18
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or in part.
16.
BCG Matrix Strategies
Stars: Optimize or hold
Cash cows: Milk
Question marks: Invest or divest
Dogs: Minimize or divest
If stars and cash cows are sufficiently profitable, companies can
carry question marks and dogs
19

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16.
General Electric Model
(slide 1 of 3)
Measures market attractiveness and business strength
Weights: How important dimension is
Constrain to 1.0
Rating: How the company is doing
1 = awful and 5 = outstanding
20
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or in part.
16.
General Electric Model
(slide 2 of 3)
21
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16.
General Electric Model
(slide 3 of 3)
22
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15. duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole
or in part.
16.
Porter’s Strategies
Porter’s strategies
Companies can dominate in 1 of 3 ways
Cost leadership
Produce more efficiently than competition
Differentiation
Distinguish one’s products as unique
Focused
Do one thing very well
23
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or in part.
16.
Treacy and Wiersema’s Strategies
Operational excellence: Deliver products smoothly, reliably
e.g., IKEA, TurboTax
Product leadership: Excellent quality; innovation
e.g., Apple, BMW
Customer intimacy: Knowledge of customer needs
e.g., Amazon, Home Depot
24
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or in part.
16.
Doing Strategy

16. Company must know its 5 Cs and understand its identity
Reasons to revisit strategic planning
To revisit assumptions
To launch new initiatives
When contextual issues change
When financial performance changes
25
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or in part.
16.
SWOT
SWOT: Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats
26
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duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole
or in part.
16.
SWOT: Strengths and Weaknesses
Understand identity in marketplace
Is the company
Innovative or conservative?
Offensive or defensive?
Leaders, followers, quick followers, also-rans, or barely-
in-the-games?
Companies may behave differently in different industries
Company approach may vary with product lifecycle, 5 Cs, etc.
27

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16.
SWOT: Opportunities and Threats
Consider opportunities and threats in marketplace
e.g., New competitors, economy decline, changes in regulations
Strategies
Do nothing
Do nothing differently
Do something different
28
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or in part.
16.
Do Something Differently
(slide 1 of 2)
Let’s make more money
State sales objectives in terms of currency, market share, units,
change from last year or quarter, region, growth, ROI, ROE,
ROM, etc.
Let’s delight our customers
Enhance customer satisfaction, create loyalty program, reward
customers, offer personalization, etc.
29
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or in part.

18. 16.
Do Something Differently
(slide 2 of 2)
Let’s reposition our brand
Must integrate all 4Ps
Change product, place, price, and/or promotion
Goals beyond marketing
Charitable or community contributions
Boosting stability of local employment
Demonstrating leadership in environmentally friendly business
practices, etc.
30
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duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole
or in part.
16.
Marketing Metrics
(slide 1 of 3)
Measure what matters
e.g., Profitability, sales, share, average prices, levels of
awareness, customer satisfaction, employee satisfaction
31
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16.
Marketing Metrics
(slide 2 of 3)

19. Dashboard
32
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16.
Marketing Metrics
(slide 3 of 3)
33
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or in part.
16.
Managerial Recap
Before making strategy changes, conduct a self-assessment
Consider what to change: target segments, product, price, place,
or promotion
There are many ways to increase profitability, and some may fit
corporate culture and strengths; there are goals beyond
profitability
34
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or in part.
16.

20. © 2018 Cengage Learning®. May not be scanned, copied or
duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole
or in part.
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17.
1
17
Marketing Plans
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or in part.
17. 2
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17.
2
Marketing Framework
3
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or in part.
17.

21. Discussion Question #1
What do you think goes into a marketing plan?
4
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or in part.
17.
Marketing Plan Overview #1
The sections of a marketing plan follow the marketing
framework
5
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or in part.
17.
Situational Analysis
Situation analysis: 5Cs
6
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17.
5Cs: Company Example
7

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17.
5Cs: Customer Example
Begin with secondary research, then primary research
8
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17.
5Cs: Context Example
9
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17.
5Cs: Collaborators Example
10
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or in part.
17.
5Cs: Competitors Example

23. 11
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17.
Marketing Plan Overview #2
Market analysis and strategies (STP)
12
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17.
Segmentation Example
Identify segmentation variables that are relevant to the product
13
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or in part.
17.
Targeting Example
Find targets that
Fit well with company
Are profitable

24. Are actionable
14
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17.
Positioning Example
Positioning is executed via the 4Ps
Write a positioning statement
15
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or in part.
17.
Discussion Questions #2
Assume you are marketing a new designer clothing line
List appropriate segmentation variables.
Choose one target market.
Write a positioning statement.
16
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or in part.
17.
Marketing Plan Overview #3
Tactical plans: 4Ps

25. 17
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17.
Product Example
18
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17.
Pricing Example
19
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17.
Promotion Example
20
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17.
Place Example

26. 21
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17.
4P Considerations
Make sure that your 4Ps are consistent with one another
e.g., Exclusive distribution with heavy promotion is
inconsistent
Make sure that your 4Ps are what your target desires
22
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duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole
or in part.
17.
Discussion Questions #3
For a new designer clothing line, what would be your
Product mix decisions?
Price decisions?
Promotion decisions?
Distribution decisions?
What factors would you utilize to justify your decisions above?
23
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or in part.
17.
Spending Time and Money

27. Establish a time line for actions
Establish cost estimates
24
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or in part.
17.
Appendices
25
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17.
Better Marketing Plans
Better marketing plans
Have more refined detail
Have precise estimates
Shed light on weaknesses of the plan
26
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or in part.
17.
Managerial Recap
(slide 1 of 2)
When completing a marketing plan, remember the 5Cs, STP,
and the 4Ps

28. The marketing plan reminds the company of its goals and serves
as a guide to achieve those goals
Marketing strategy/planning is iterative
27
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17.
Managerial Recap
(slide 2 of 2)
Marketing plans are works in progress
As situations change, plans change
More detailed plans are better
Massage the plan to be readable
28
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17.
Reflect on the assigned readings for the week. Identify what you
thought was the most important concept(s), method(s), term(s),
and/or any other thing that you felt was worthy of your
understanding.
Also, provide a graduate-level response to each of the following
questions:
i. Think of a company you’d like to interview with, and list 1-2
specific factors for each of porter’s five forces.
ii. Pick your favorite brand and look at the 5Cs for that

29. company. What is the brand’s “situation analysis”? Based on
that assessment and what you know of the brand, what
recommendations would you make to the company regarding
that brand or its business?
[Your initial post should be based upon the assigned reading for
the week, so the textbook should be a source listed in your
reference section and cited within the body of the text. Other
sources are not required but feel free to use them if they aid in
your discussion].
[Your initial post should be at least 450+ words and in APA
format (including Times New Roman with font size 12 and
double spaced). Post the actual body of your paper in the
discussion thread then attach a Word version of the paper for
APA review]
[Your post must be substantive and demonstrate insight gained
from the course material. A peer response such as “I agree with
her,” or “I liked what he said about that” is not considered
substantive and will not be counted for course credit. A blank
post just to review other submissions will not be tolerated]