BUSN319 Week 8 Course Project Latest 2020 December

BUSN319 MARKETING

Week 8 Course Project

Objectives

The Course Project gives students the opportunity to synthesize all of the concepts in the BUSN319 Marketing course in a comprehensive marketing plan for a new product (a good or service). This approach enables students to combine functional expertise based on their own work experience and field of study.

Please note:  The course project is not related to CAPSIM.  They are different assignments.  CAPSIM is an individual assignment.  The course project is a team project.

Introduction

Product innovation and marketing are the only enduring competitive advantages that companies can use to survive and thrive in the marketplace. A marketing plan is a guide for those product innovations and marketing activities for a specified period of time, typically about 5 years. Marketing plans are used internally to guide marketing activities, or they can be used to communicate with external audiences to raise capital.

There are important things to consider as the plan is created.

Is the marketing idea valid and able to last for years in the future? For example, do not base your marketing plan on a fad or crisis situation such as a global pandemic because the plan is not going to last or be valid once the fad or crisis has ended.

What is unique or distinctive about the product that separates it from competitors?

Does a viable market of interested customers exist for the product?

Is the target market large enough, accessible, and capable of purchasing your product? Remember, no marketer in the world ever has everyone as a target market or the marketer would quickly go out of business.  Marketers develop pricing, promotions, products and retail distribution plans for a target audience.  The word target means a bulls-eye focus on the central main customer group instead of on everyone or on the wide range of possible customers. The plan will include a bullet-pointed target audience description specifying the demographic characteristics of the primary purchase decision maker and buyer for the household (usually mom). Target audiences are constrained by one gender, a narrowly defined age range tied to a life cycle stage, a socio-cultural reference group earning within one income and economic level.

Are the financial projections sound? They should include a list of assumptions.

Is the management team competent?

How will investors get a return on their investments?

In order to help you answer these and similar questions, create your marketing plan utilizing the following course resources.

Building an Effective Marketing Plan located in Appendix A of your textbook

Financial Aspects of Marketing located in Appendix B of your textbook

View the marketing plan outline (Links to an external site.)

Guidelines

Paper

Length: Your final written marketing plan must be double-spaced and include  12 to 15 pages of content excluding the cover page, references and your appendix containing all of your tables and charts.

Coverage: The plan will cover all sections of the marketing plan outline.

APA and Sources: The plan will use at least three but ideally about ten research sources in addition to your textbook and follow all APA guidelines.

Deliverables:

Week 2, you will submit a two-page topic proposal for instructor approval.

Week 4, you will submit a substantial draft of your marketing plan for instructor feedback.

Week 7-8: Your final marketing plan is due at the end of Week 7 or 8 at the latest.

Milestones

Week 2: Topic Proposal (20 points)

During Weeks 1 and 2, you will select a topic for the marketing plan, and thereafter, all related assignments (the draft in Week 4 and the final marketing plan in Week 7 or 8) must be on that same topic. You may not change your marketing plan topic without approval from your instructor.

COVID 19 Advisory Note: We are experiencing a unique challenge in the world due to COVID 19. It is tempting to develop a reactionary crisis plan to launch a product or service related to COVID 19 but I request that COVID 19 be excluded from all product or service ideas. Please do not mention it in any of your plans or proposals. Ideas for or related to COVID 19 will not be approved because they would only last as long as the pandemic and not survive after it ends. So, this requests that you please develop plans as if there was no pandemic..

Your topic must be for a new product (a good or service). Because this is an applied, creative project and not a research paper, please be creative and do not select a new product for a large brand, such as Starbucks. If you are interested in coffee, for example, consider your own bistro as your topic and then use information from companies like Starbucks or Seattle's Best Coffee for ideas and competitive research as you work on your project.

For Week 2, write a two-page description of your product, using/including the following outline as subheadings.

Information about ownership and company structure (partnership, sole proprietorship or corporation and which type)

A description of the service or product

A mission statement (What is unique about your product or service versus the competitors in your industry (name the industry) describe how and why the business and/or its product or service will be valuable to your  a)customers, b)employees and c)shareholders)

Marketing goals (These should be measurable so you can track achievement of them. Your marketing goals can describe a total revenue, expenses and profitability goal as well as a market share goal and then explain how these goals will be achieved by stating at least one measurable goal for each of the four Ps and the timing when each will be achieved)

Who a typical customer might be (include the gender, age range, income level, reference group, ethnic background and other socio-cultural characteristics (i.e. Caucasian women ages 30 to 40 who are mothers of young children ages 3 to 10, residing in the suburbs, married, home owners with household income of $100,000 to $150,000 per year and they do not work outside of the home)

Submit a copy of the Topic Proposal to the Week 2: Course Project Topic Proposal Upload module in Canvas for grading by your instructor.

Week 4: Draft Marketing Plan (100 points)

At the end of Week 4, you will submit a substantial draft to your instructor for grading and feedback. Be sure to read Appendix A in the text and use the marketing plan outline  (Links to an external site.) from the Files folder in Canvas. It is recommended that you start working on your draft in Week 2 after your instructor has approved your topic. Complete as much as you are able in order to get an initial draft (approximately 75% of the final paper). Remember, the more you complete on this initial draft, the greater the input that the professor can provide and the less work you will need to do for the final draft.

Submit a copy of the marketing plan draft to the Week 4: Course Project Draft Upload module in Canvas for grading by your instructor.

Week 7 or 8: Final Marketing Written Plan (220 points)

Submit a copy of the final plans to the Week 8: Course Project Upload module in Canvas for grading by your instructor.