*** YOU MUST USE THE ATTACHED MARKETING PLAN TO COMPLETE THE ASSIGNMENT (SEE MARKETING PLAN ATTACHED!!!!)*** READ / REFER TO THE ATTACHED MARKETING PLAN TO ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS IN THIS ASSIGNMENT*** D

Describe or list the feedback you received on Part A of your marketing plan Explain how you will use the feedback to improve your plan.

The feedback received on Part A of the marketing plan was relatively positive. However, the mission statement that was provided did not consider all the items required of a mission statement such as markets, customers, products and services, profitability, beliefs, technology and others. For the goals, the ones which were indicated for the short and long term were specific and realistic; the ways measured were identified adequately. The environmental analysis that was provided was also thorough and well received. Overall, the marketing plan was clearly written, well-organized, and it was easy to follow the analysis that was provided. All feedback received will be implemented into the marketing plan in order to make it clearer and more concise in order to attract and keep more customers for this proposed business.

Develop a branding strategy for your product / service that covers the brand name,  logo, slogan, and at least one brand extension.

Branding Strategy

Elegant Events Company’s branding strategy will focus on the emotions of the customers. It will not only focus on services provided but also the needs of the people who use them. The branding strategy of the company will be all about aspirations, innovations, dreams, hopes, imagination, and the lifestyle of the people who hire Elegant Events to make their events memorable ones. The company’s brand personality will be about simplicity and eliminating complications from every individual’s life (Masterman & Wood, 2016).

Brand Name

The company’s brand name is Elegant Events Company. The name indicates the level of services provided when planning events and it indicates that all products and services provided can be rated with five stars. It indicates that all events planned are elegant and everlasting and as powerful as the stars in the sky. The target market consists of people and companies who need assistance in putting together receptions and/or functions and do not want anything that is less than perfect and I believe five stars is perfect enough.

Brand Logo

. The five stars to the left of this sentence are the company’s logo. The logo was chosen with the idea that this company produces events that are rated with no less than five stars. The moments that are created at these events will be as everlasting and as powerful as the stars in the sky (Wood, 2012). The target market consists of people that hold events for their special ones and therefore do not want anything that is less than perfect and I believe five stars is perfect enough.

Slogan

The company’s slogan is “Your Success Our Pride”. This slogan was selected because it is a pretty drawing message for this company that is making and offering everything needed to pull off a successful event. Elegant Events provides everything from tents to chairs, to food to services such as event planning. The slogan indicates that the company has its customers’ best interests at heart. Also, the company wants them to be successful and that their success should be contributed by the company’s products and services. The slogan represents the quality of products provided as well as services that are offered which always contribute to success in any activity. This slogan aligns with the target market, which ranges from individuals to companies that use the products and services offered by an event planer (Wood, 2012).

Brand Extension

The company’s latest brand extension is interior design. It is somewhat related to events planning since it involves the decoration of houses and the arrangement of furniture. This is an extension that will borrow ideas from the main business of the company which hass everything to do with events. This particular brand extension was chosen with the intent of increasing the company’s market base to household shoppers. In this case, the target market / demographic will be women age 24-38. The extension aligns with the products and services already provided and falls in line with the target market which is mainly made of women of age 24 and above who are generally thought to be the primary individuals who seek out events planners.

Overall Strategy

Elegant Events Company’s overall strategy is to produce products and services that are cheaper, better and faster. Its’ strategy is to be supportive of its brand position. It thinks of brand strategy in three perspectives: brand name, slogan, brand logo, and brand extension. All these are developed in such a way that that they are used to compete across the competitive market. The branding strategy’s core competence is to deliver exceptional and unique customer experience through excellent user interfaces.

Thoroughly analyze the primary and secondary markets that you want to target.  Thoroughly include the demographic profile (e.g., age, gender, ethnicity, etc.), psychographic profile, professional profile, geographic profile, and any other segmentation variable you deem necessary.

Relatively speaking, the product and services provided will not be aligned with all consumers. For this reason, market segmentation is needed to group the customers into small groups with common needs and characteristics. This will allow the product and services to be tailored so as to meet the needs of each specific group effectively. The consumers who use Elegant Events will be divided using behavioral, psychographic, geographic and demographic characteristics. In this step, it is about deciding the segment that is most attractive to our business. Several factors should be considered in this step. First is looking at the profitability of every segment, the customer segment that will contribute the most to the bottom line of the business. The potential growth and size of the business is also another factor to consider. This involves determining if it the company is large enough to keep up with the demand of our target market.

The target market of the company involves middle-class individuals, couples, as well as public and private organizations. There are individuals that can afford event planners and do not have enough time to spare and plan for their events. The primary market will include individuals between the age of 25 and the age of 55. People who fall into this group are the employed middle-class families. These individuals are usually too busy but plan events such as weddings, birthday parties, bar mitzvas, etc. These are the people who are likely to want an event planner or someone to supply them with event equipment such as chairs and tents (Wood, 2012). The other individuals that fall in the primary target market are people that are above the age of 56. Many of these people are reaching a turning point in their lives so they look to event planners to help them plan and celebrate events such as their retirement or anniversaries and some are just taking care of their children’s events. Most special occasions such as holiday parties, wedding receptions, and even reunions fall into this category. The other group of people that fall in this category are those individuals under the age of 24 years (Allen, 2010). The company hopes to tap into fresh college graduates who have just begun their careers and do not have families yet. People at this age group will often celebrate their birthday parties as monumental events and therefore this group can be looked at as a target market as well.

The secondary market will involve organizations. This includes both private and public organizations. Private companies will make the biggest portion of this client base; organizations such as political parties, corporations, and businesses are some of the private organizations that fall into this category. These types of organizations hold events on a larger scale and this means the events will generate a relatively large portion of revenue for the company.

Marketing Strategy

The marketing strategy will involve heavy promotions with a combination of pull and push marketing strategies. In the push marketing strategy, I will push the products and services through sales and advertisement strategies. The push strategy will involve the use of major events and celebrity endorsements and social media sites like Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook. In the pull marketing strategy, I will use social media to build and retain a relationship with customers through online presence (Masterman & Wood, 2016). Social media accounts will also be used as platforms for announcements and discussions. This strategy will be applied for a period of one year.

Prepare a positioning statement. Include a perceptual map that shows your company’s position against its competitors. From this map, create a statement that depicts your position.

The company’s positioning statement is; “We believe we are on this earth to produce great products and we are continually focused on innovation”. This is a suitable positioning statement for the company as it emphasizes on simplicity, innovation and great products and services which are the core requirements of any customer’s best product. It suits the target market that is made of quality driven customers who believe in simplicity. It serves to benefit the business since it draws the quality driven customers that are willing to pay the price set for the products.

Perceptual Map

Elegant Events Company is represented by EC in the map. From the perpetual map, it is evident the Elegant Events Company both among the leading product providing company and the broad choice for consumers. It provides products and services that are user-friendly and affordable hence it’s the best choice for many consumers (Blakely, 2018).

From its inception as a very small business company, Elegant Events has developed into one of the regions top companies specializing in event planning, facilitation and many other things to do with events. Today, Elegant Events’ top quality and innovative processes and products are recognized as the gold standard in the region. This demonstrates the growth the company has made and the type of products and services the company specializes in. It also shows that the company produces the best quality and innovative products which is likely to catch customer attention. At Elegant Events, we use a simple business motto: to devote our technology and talent in the creation of superior products and services that contribute to an admirable global society (Allen, 2010). The statement reflects the company’s commitment to inspiring society through the three key competencies: creative solutions, innovative products and services, and new technology. Through these efforts, Elegant Events desires to contribute to our surrounding community at large.

Examine the relevant consumer behavior for your target market. Explain the main reasons why the brand name, logo, slogan, brand extension, as well as the positioning statement are right for the identified target market.

Customers today are constantly on the internet. They use the internet to research companies and services they are looking to employ and they look at reviews on sites like “Yelp” and “Trip Advisor” and “Google” – and when recommending the use of a company or services, they do so by rating them at a particular start level. Star ratings are something the target market is used to. This makes it appropriate to use the brand logo that consists of five stars. Most of the customers are social media users, the reason for the use of a social media target strategy (Blakely, 2018). They also want to be associated with the best brands and therefore our brand name and logo is going to lend itself to that end. Because the brand name indicates that our company is elegant, it gives off the impression that our company is reputable and it is appropriate for such a class of customers (Blakley, 2018). The slogan which has been suggested for the company is appropriate for the target market since the market ranges from individuals to companies and organizations both large and small.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the success of Elegant Events is highly determined by the branding strategy and the marketing strategy. A good branding strategy affects all aspects of a company and is connected directly to the needs and emotions of the consumer and the competitive environment. A brand is more than just the slogan, logo and name. It represents the entire customer base and projects experience with the product, service and the company as a whole. The best marketing strategy is drawn thorough market research and focuses on the market and product mix in order to attain maximum profits and hence sustaining the business.

References

Blakely, K. (2018). Busy brides and the business of family life: The wedding-planning industry and the commodity frontier. Journal of Family Issues, 29(5), 639-662.

Allen, J. (2010). Marketing your event planning business: A creative approach to gaining the competitive Edge. John Wiley & Sons.

Masterman, G., & Wood, E. H. (2016). Innovative marketing communications: Strategies for the events industry. Routledge.

Wood, E. (2012). Marketing information for the events industry. Festival and Events Management, 130.