RC Cola Marketing Plan

RC dumbbell grocery storeing PlanThe harvest-festival for the finical naming is RC humble- shovel in which habituated to be a crossway of Royal jacket dumbbell Inc gutter 2001. In 2001 familiarity sold Royal green goddess International to Cott International, now solely the brands atomic identification numeral 18 under the acquisition of Cott International. For the adjudicate of this denomination we allow be feelinging at the trade innovation for the come output that is draughted routineicularly for the coun examine from which I belong Pakistan.A primer coat for choosing this crossing is to a greater extent a personal dry land. RC green goddess was superstar of the best-loved discombobulates when i was a school boy and in late nineties RC Cola started to lose its ordinaryity and starts to fade a counsel. subsequently few sentence it was break through classed by Pepsi and coke. I put up tried to drive turn up a merchandise injecting object for RC Cola beca apply i know that there argon so m each hoi polloi in Pakistan who used to fancy RC Cola in their childhood and want it to deem a comeback.For the purpose of making a trade plan for the chosen product, we lead do the internet site abbreviation of the squashy Drink Industry in Pakistan. The foodstuffing Strategies that understructure be suck uped by the club to gain competitive edge and the grocery store Mix for the product.The later social occasion of the assignment computes at the Actions that should be taken in score to implement the plan and either control mea incontestables that should be taken to make head port the plan successful. In the end we give draw out a bud retrieveing plan that should be allocated for the advertizement campaign of the product. trade ObjectiveThe objective of draught out the merchandising plan for RC Cola is to win the food foodstuff sh ar in Pakistan and beat Pepsi and coke which atomic number 18 the dick ens big competitors in that region. This objective is commit because in bygone RC Cola has been the securities application leader for more than 20 years in Pakistan and there was no competition. This object tycoon be difficult to execute save is non impossible as RC cola has a real strong brand mark which is a strong edge.Only social occasion needed is to formulate a right scheme and to make enrollment to the product according to the strategy.Industrys Situation AnalysisBefore drafting out a market plan for the chosen product it is important to dis homotle the exertion situation. It includes the epitome of strengths and the weaknesses along with the opportunities and the threat that mass affect the weft of the marketing strategy that we lead hold. At the moment the squishy subscribes industry of Pakistan is dominated by the products of Pepsi (market leader) and coke.StrengthsDue to the hot weather conditions the Pakistan spongelike drink market has enjoyed a broad growth in the marchess of volume.Soft drinks industry comprises of carbonated drinks, juices and milk shakes etc. Among all of these carbonated drinks defend the highest market share. This is because the change in the lifestyles of the people, as it is perceived that drinking a soft drink makes the person look cool.The sales summary of the soft drinks industry in Pakistan shows that the sales get down down grown in some(prenominal) ways firstly people vitiateing sales directly from the refrigerant drink shop and secondly people going to hotels and having drinks with their food. This clearly shows that the soft drinks take in hold out a part of the culture and acquit out classed the homemake drinks i.e. Lassi (drink made by adding milk, yogurt) etc.WeaknessesThe sale of soft drinks is normally seasonal it achieves its peak in the summer and then starts to fall down as the summer progresses to meet winter.The soft drinks like Lemon and orangeness squash are non st rong enough in spirit to beat the traditional drinks which are made by adding two spoons into water, for the some part known as Sandalwood the best one in Pakistan are Roh Afza and block e Shiri.OpportunitiesGovernment of Pakistan has reduced taxes such as VAT and inscribe in order to attract more foreign investments.The labour is rattling cheap in Pakistan along with the running tolls of a factory. This makes it easier to frame and run the factory.ThreatsIncrease in the sureness of heath link issues, people have started to turn towards fresh juices.Education fork overrs and media have raised health related issues caused by the unconstipated use of carbonated soft drinks more often than non people in Pakistan are now becoming self witting virtually their diet and have preferred non to use iciness drinks as it contains ingredients that increase obesity.Marketing StrategiesMarketing strategies that association can adopt for a condition product areCost Leadership sc hemeMass MarketingCost Leadership StrategyCost lead strategy is a strategy which involves beau monde trying to win the market share by targeting the cost sensitive customers. club should consider this strategy for several reasons. Which are listed below.The total income per person in Pakistan is very(prenominal) low and the soft drink companies like Pepsi and coke have increased their prices in recent other(prenominal). Looking at it as an opportunity Cott international can keep their prices low as it use to have in past and try to capture the market share.There are about an average of four kids per couple in a sphere like Pakistan, most of the kids are school going and they need pocket money but due to low average income kids dont get enough pocket money. If conjunction keeps the cost of RC Cola low than that school going kids impart be potential customers.There is a tradition in Pakistan that people are invited on marriage ceremonies where food and drinks are served. By k eeping the cost low go away encourage those people to buy RC Cola as they will want to save money on something.Mass MarketingMass marketing is a strategy in which smart set ignores the market segment and go into target everyone, everywhere with one offer. Mass marketing is suitable as rise up in case of Cott International for the quest reasons.It is companys objective to gain as much market share as they could to become a market leader. For this Cott International has to start a massive marketing campaign starting from the south of Pakistan and going up to the northerly areas of Pakistan.Cott International should use print media and television advertisements as these two are the mostly used modes of media in Pakistan.Marketing Mix StrategiesMarketing decisions cannot be made without looking for at the factors such as result expensePlace promotional material mickleProcessPhysical stateProductProduct is a term which refers to the tangible (physical process) and services. Before starting the marketing campaign Cott International should think of about the presentation of RC Cola.Decline of RC Cola shows that there was something wrong in the product or there was something more rise up in the products provided by Pepsi and Coke.Rebranding of the product is not an option in case of RC Cola as it is an internationally recognised brand and has a history of more than 100 years. It is consumed by children and adults all over the world. Rebranding in case of RC Cola means that the name of Royal Crown will be replaced by a invigorated brand, which will not be an effective move. participation should try to improve the quality of the product, for example they should try not to use Caffeine in the drinks as they used to have. As mentioned above people in Pakistan have become more aware(predicate) about the health and hygiene issues and they know that Caffeine is not grave for the health in long term.RC Cola should try to improve the attempt of their drink, this is because it insights a bit bitter as compared to Pepsi and Coke.Currently the there is no variety in the taste and they are only offering RC Cola and RC Cola Diet. Company should look to launch RC Cola with variety of tastes as other companies have done. Option of developing wise products such as RC Cola Cherry and RC Cola Strawberry is a good option.It should be made available in different sizes ranging from 250 ml to 2.5 Litre. Option of having spendable nursing bottles should be considered.PriceAs the product has been in decline and out of market for a while so the best option is to adopt marketing penetration strategy and keeping the prices low. This is because our objective is to gain the market share which cannot be achieved if the prices are high.The price should not be as well as low otherwise it will be perceived as a low quality drink by people.As government has levied the taxes for this particular industry which has resulted in reduced cost to the company, even if com pany set low prices it will not incur any loss.PlaceThis is related to how the product is made available to the customers. It is all about distribution of the product in market.Traditionally in Pakistan the soft drinks manufacturers have think with distributions and wholesalers. So keeping in discernment how it piddles in particular country it is advisable that company should develop relationship with wholesaler and distribution holders, where they could place their product and the product is made available to the consumers.In this case company should go for the strategy of intensive distribution that images that product is placed at as many outlets as possible by the company. Because they aim to cover version the large number of customers, so it should be made sure that RC Cola is available in each corner of the Pakistan.Using distributions will withal save the cast that would have been incurred if company has to store the product in their warehouse. Distributions somehow pro vide storage facility as well.PromotionThis part marketing admixture is of high importance to Cott International as they have to do massive promotion in order to win the market share from the current market leader. Elements of promotional mix on which company should focal charge more are as follows.AdvertisementSales PromotionSponsorshipsPublic RelationsAdvertisementCompany should advertise on favourite television channels such as Geo, Ary Digital, Aag. TV commercials should be original and attractive as it will have impact on the persuasion of the people. Currently Pepsi and Coke are very good in tv advertisements so i order to get to that level company should make a separate advertisement department. In Pakistan there are so many cultural and religious events for example Basant (spring festival), Ramdan and Eid.So company should prove to make adverts according to the festivals.Print media such as news text file and magazines are another very strong media type in Pakistan. P eople love to read newspapers early morning, company should advertise in common newspapers such as Jang and The Nation.Company should use big advertisement boards in main parts of large cities of Pakistan.Using banners to advertise will be another good option.Sales PromotionIt a short term incentive aimed at generating sales or encouraging consumer trial of the companys products.Company can distribute warrant samples of the RC Cola to the costumers so that they are made aware about the product with new packaging and taste.Company should try out to introduce new offers such as Buy a 2L big size bottle and get 250ml for free. People in Pakistan love to get things for free so this will cultivate.Company can introduce a lucky draw in which winner will get a car and runners up gets small prizes. Customers have to scratch the specific part of bottle in order to get the code then they have to sms that code with their details and they will be include in the draw. This will encourage pe ople to buy because every time they will buy, they get a code which increases their winning chances.Company can give free refrigerators with the company logo and name on it to the retailers and can ask them to use it only for RC Cola products.Company may put vending machines with their logo in schools, colleges and universities. This will remind the people about the existence of product.SponsorshipThis is when an fundamental law undertakes to stock the cost of hosting an event in return for advertising plaza.Company can sponsor Pakistan Cricket Team, by sponsoring them company will provide them cricket kits, bats and pads. On the kit of cricket team they can put their logo and excessively company will get space to advertise their boards on the boundaries or even on the wickets if match he taking place in Pakistan. People in Pakistan are traditionalist fans of cricket so there is good chance of this option to work.Company shall sponsor musical concerts of singers like Atif Aslam Ali Zafar. Because thousands of people attend those concerts, this is the good way of making sure that people remain aware about heraldic bearing of product.Cott International should try to sign some cricket adjoiners like Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Akhtar to work in the companys advertisement. When people will look at their stars drinking this drink they will definitely try it.PeoplePeople are included in the production and delivery of goods. People make a potbelly of difference to the company. They should have proper uniforms.Company should have rigorous recruitment system through which they employee well educated and disciplined staff. There should be proper training in place for the employees to carry out their duties in a perfect manner.Sometimes employees have to interact with public during some advertisement campaign, so company should make sure that there employees are friendly.ProcessesCompany should have clear procedures and policies. Everybody should be aware of their duties and responsibility.Company should ensure that all the processes are efficient and the output is error free.Physical EvidencePhysical evidence related to those aspects of the service that customer can chance on and feel so as to form an impression of the services or its provider.Logo Company should have a unique sign that should make it look different from other companies. It should be distinctive in way that it reminds the customer about the quality of the product that has been provided by the company.Colour In past RC Cola has used blue and red colour, which does not look different as the market leader Pepsi uses blue colour this might result in the misunderstanding by the customer.Vehicles Company vehicles such as lorries and truck should be painted and must have companys logo and name on it.Budget AllocationImplementation of a plan require finances, if there is no finance allocated to the plan than plan will of all time remain as a piece of paper left deep down the draw er of office table.After looking at the pakistans current market rates for the advertisement, computeed expense has been drafted which is as follows_________ __Mode of Media used budgeted expense video recording Adverts 2,000,000Newspapers 100,000Light Boards 500,000Magazines 100,000Total Cost 2,700,000Once budget is allocated to the project than company should move on to start allocating the responsibilities and tasks. The marketing plan will be of no use if capable people of staff are not assigned duties and inclined the deadline for fulfilling their tasks. Specify the date on which product will be launched into the market.Time to take ActionDate of launching of product is set as 12th December.2010, advertising manager of the company is given 1 hebdomad time to put all the bits and pieces in order and prepare for the advertisement campaign of the product. From next Sunday every week an advertisement will be published in the most popular newspapers.Television Adverts will be adve rtised between 700 pm to 900 pm on tv channels like Geo and Ary.Advertisements will be placed in magazines.Marketing manager has already specified the major areas where the big light boards will be instal direct on which advertisement will be displayed.Lorries with a big model of the RC Cola 250ml bottle at their starts to take round of the city for whole day. People will keep this distinctive way of advertisement and will remain aware about the product.Continuous monitoring of all the activities should be carried out in parallel till the launch of product this is done to ensure that any inefficiency or weakness could be overcome by the management well before hand.Critical reflection on learning outcomesRC Cola inc was organize a century ago, when it arrived Pakistani at that time there no other cola and there were no advance mode of marketing which can be found now in Pakistan. People very not aware of these foreign drinks and were fond of traditional drinks, despite of all these factors that prevailed at that time RC Cola gained market share and soon became the market leader. Acquiring market share when there was no vast reporting of media in Pakistan makes me think that there was something in the product that prompted people to buy it again after they use it for the first time. Value is in the mind of the customer, probably there were not enough carbonated drinks in the market so the arrival of RC Cola with a sweet crispy taste should be a possible source of value to the customer.After the initial launch of RC Cola in Pakistan in 1970s-1980s the product growth was very rapid and it became market leader as mentioned already. According to my abstract of the product, the reason for its decline in first place that company did not incurred any cost on research and depth psychology of the development of any new product and tried to survive on the product which they had. With the passage of time the tastes of the consumer might have changed and at the kindred time new competitors entered the market and got hold of the situation. What do you expect from a company which do not incur any cost on research and development and when new competitors enters the market with an aggressive marketing strategy at that time company do not have enough finances to launch a marketing campaign in reaction. The result of all these is definitely a failure and failure always lead to the decline. Moreover the analysis of company shows that there were some law suits against them in 1990s which lead to compensation payments and cash being dried up. In my point of view these were the problems that led to the decline of product and company itself as well.After the first shine at the assignment i thought as if this requires only drafting a marketing plan for a product that has decline and approximately out of the market. But when i start to gather my thoughts on how should i start? What should i consider? I soon realise that it is not only the product which we h ave to look at but also the external and internal elements that will have an effect on the product directly. Than it was obvious that an analysis of the industry needs to be done. I had number of different models among which i have to use the one that best describes the situation of the industry. For the purpose of doing an industry analysis i chose to use SWOT analysis which looked at positives and the negatives of the industry in which we have to launch our product. I have a professional background of an ACCA and i thought the having studied lineage analysis in past and gone through all the models, it will not be a difficult task to carry out research and analysis. But my cognition was proved wrong when i started looking at the product and in particular the company, i have neer had a chance in past to study any industry so deeply and finding out what are the strengths on al-Qaida of shich you can capitalise and what are the weakness that are inbuilt in the industry. While goin g through industry analysis my mind was view of how the product strengths can be used to overcome the inbuilt weaknesses in industry on other hand i was opinion that how the weaknesses of my product can convert the opportunities that can be availed in that industry into the threats. This thinking process was ongoing throughout the assignment time.After the SWOT analysis of industry and in particular the product, i had gained enough knowledge about how the things were working and evaluating the options on basis of which i could make the product play around in market to gain customer attraction. It was time to draft a proper marketing plan because a wise man have said If you fail to plan than you plan to fail and i really didnt want this product to fail. I realised that marketing plan is not only about Marketing Mix 7 Ps. It starts from the analysis which i have discussed above than it goes on to defining the objectives which the product wants to achieve. Objectives delimit should be smart and feasible once the objectives are clear than 7 Ps could be used to design a marketing mix strategy, it covers every aspect of the marketing strategy from external factors to the internal factors. Marketing mix analyse each factor individually and then links them with the objectives and missions of the company. It helps to formulate what exactly needs to be done. Once your are sure about what should be done than there should be proper budget allocation to the project in order to meet the desired outcomes. close to of the marketing plans fail because there are not enough resources allocated to carry them out in practical. Roles and responsibilities should defined and work should be properly allocated. After all this has been done the marketing plan should be monitored on regular basis so that if there is something which is going wrong than proper actions should be taken in order to sort them out without any delay.This is what my perception about how a marketing plan shou ld be carried out and monitored till the desired objectives are achieved.Now a days the world has become a global village and this has a vast impact on the nature of marketing. There is a big difference between a way how companies market their product now and how it used to be two or troika decades ago. Marketing of a product is not check to any physical barriers now. After the birth of e-marketing the things have changed very positively and business have gone multinationals from nationals. This has reduced the cost to the companies as well and have given a competitive advantage.Few basic market research techniques followed now a days are Surveys, Personal Interviews, Observations and centre groups. With the birth of e-marketing these marketing researches are now more likely to be carried out via internet. To me the outcome of these market researches is not effective at all. This is because it you look at the first technique that is Surveys in which people will be handed over a f orm with a number of questions which they have to answer, which is then handed back to the person carrying out curriculum vitae. If the questionnaire is given in person than there might b a chance that response will be 100% but the reliability of a survey depends on the sample size if the sample size is only thousand out of a population of 1million than the reliability of the survey could be impaired. telephonic surveys could also be carried put but it will cost a bit more and are more effective but moreover again sample size is the key thing.Focus groups. In boil down groups, a moderator uses a scripted series of questions or topics to lead a discussion among a group of people. These sessions take place at objective locations, usually at facilities with videotaping equipment and an observation room with one-way mirrors. A focus group usually lasts one to two hours, and it takes at least three groups to get balanced results. But still the question arises that everyone has its o wn point of view and perception about the questions which are being asked. Few number of people cannot represent the thoughts of a large population.Personal Interviews are same as the focus groups but is more tended towards one on one discussion.Observation is an Individual responses to surveys and focus groups are sometimes at betting odds with peoples actual behaviour. When you observe consumers in action by videotaping them in stores, at work, or at home, you can observe how they buy or use a product. This gives you a more accurate picture of customers usage habits and shop patterns.After learning alot from this assignment i tried to analyse the marketing strategies and the behaviour towards customers that is practiced in my country and i than compared it with what is happening here. My analysis was mostly based on my personal experiences that i had in past. non to my surprised i came up with a very huge difference between two environments. Back home in Pakistan customers are no t treated as they should be, the shop keepers are rude to customers and they are not cared. On the other hand the behaviour of the people towards their costumers is very prissy and polite because they know the value of having these customers as they generate revenues out of them.This assignment has enhanced my analytical skills and i have very positive plans to go back to my country after completing my course and try to work on creating a value for customers and making them feel good.