TASK 1

a. As the Marketing Manager of Coca-Cola in the UK, compare the various alternative definitions of marketing and indentify the main characteristics of marketing oriented organization. As per the Manager of marketing in the organization of Coca-Cola in UK, Marketing academics and practitioners have spent a great deal of time on defining the discipline of marketing and measuring its performance.1 Obviously, the job of marketing is not well understood by managers from any discipline, including marketing. If it is ever to rise to the level of discipline, like finance or engineering, its practitioners must establish a clear, precise, and measurable definition that expresses its financial accountability. This paper suggests such a model in hopes of taking even a small step toward the day when Marketing is broadly respected as an important and valuable professional discpline. 2 Marketing is the process of creating the hedonic value that, in conjunction with products and services, is a component of the organization's value exchange. Marketing is to establish, develop and commercialise long-term customer relationships, so that the objectives of the parties involved are met. This is done by a mutual exchange and keeping of promises. Marketing is a mediated activity occurring within the economic sphere that employs strategies intentionally rendered and goal-oriented towards the exchange of goods and services. Marketing is the process of planning and executing the conception, pricing, promotion, and distribution of ideas, goods, and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational goals.3

http://www.articlesbase.com/marketing-articles/the-need-for-an-adequate-definition-of-marketing3619781.html#ixzz1AzuEIY00
2

Article: The Need for an Adequate Definition of Marketing, (adapted from a paper originally published in March, 2001)
3

American Marketing Association

Marketing consists of all activities designed to generate and facilitate any exchange intended to satisfy human needs or wants.4
When people hear sales and market they equate it to sales and marketingand the unfortunate contention that often seems to exist between the two. Before we go down the path of sales versus marketing, lets take a look at the characteristics of each type of orientation.5

Market-Oriented Characteristics:

Consumers/Customers less willing to be persuaded; Consumers/customers are knowledgeable about the market and the products/services available;

Companies identify what customers want and tailor all business towards those wants/needs (in an efficient manner);

Marketing vs. just selling (i.e. management of the 4 Ps, not just promotions); Offers mass customization; Product input before selling (Alpha testing, beta testing, trials, etc); and Long-term vs. short-term planning.

Sommers, Montrose, James Barnes, William Stanton, and Charles Futrell, (1989) Fundamentals of Marketing. 5th Canadian Ed., McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 4. 5 http://www.theharteofmarketing.com/2010/02/integrated-marketing-sales-and-market-oriented.html

b. Would you say the sponsorship of the event is a market oriented organization or not? Adduce reasons for your answer. Event, or community, sponsorship allows organizations to reach their target market with less clutter than other communications methods, exposes the product/service directly to the market, and provides an excellent mechanism for the organization to give back to the community by which it is supported. Event sponsorship, or sponsorship marketing, refers to supporting various types of event ranging from local Little League teams, educational partnerships, and health fairs, to college basketball teams, around-the-world sail boat races, professional auto racing, and even to the Olympic Games. Sponsorship varies widely in a number of aspects including event type, dollar expenditure, extent of professional planning and objectives, number and type of participants, media exposure, and geographic context. Whether the type of sponsorship is financial, media, or in-kind support (Cicora 1991), the list of company benefits derived from it can range from publicity, to product sales, image enhancement, or even improved employee morale (Decker 1991). Many organizations are now investing in sponsorships of the arts and education to enhance their corporate image. Sporting events, however, continue to be the biggest draw. 6 Although a great deal of the literature regarding sponsorship focuses on large corporations and international events, potential benefits for small businesses sponsoring small local and regional events are also impressive. Many small events are less likely to receive corporate funding and are more dependent upon local and regional organizations for support. Similarly, small businesses often cannot afford to sponsor large events. The community identity available from partnerships between local events and local and regional small businesses can offer small businesses major opportunities in terms of community relations, marketing objectives, and employee relations (employees are often involved in these events as community members). While large international corporations may need the media reach of an international event to achieve their objectives, the

Event Sponsorship: An Exploratory Study of Small Business Objectives, Practices, and Perceptions Journal article

by Rhonda Walker Mack; Journal of Small Business Management, Vol. 37, 1999

proper partnering of smaller businesses and events may achieve those same objectives on a smaller scale within the resources of both organizations involved. Regardless of the type or level of sponsorship, more companies have begun to take their sponsorship decisions seriously.7

http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=46CA9C27B8572092C339BCF36487867E.inst2_1b?docId=5 001285464

c. Explain the various elements of the marketing concept with reference to the Olympic marketing activates. Marketing environment for enterprise survival and development plays an extremely important impact. Modern marketing that the key to business success is whether companies can adapt to the changing marketing environment. 8 Changes in the value of marketing concept For Chinese enterprises, through the melamine crisis of confidence and the impact of the global financial crisis, the enterprise value orientation of marketing two major changes have taken place. One is the marketing concept into customer and market oriented. In the financial crisis, enterprises are facing the most intense competition ever, growing trade protectionism, competition for customers between the seller and the market share battle intensified, attention, to meet customer needs as the market value of new business orientation. We see a lot of business is to seize this, making exports rose contrarian. In the domestic market, domestic demand and to seize opportunities, medium and small cities and rural markets for home appliances, IT, mobile marketing campaigns have achieved impressive results. The second is the concept of social marketing is taking shape. Business philosophy through the production concept, product concepts, marketing concepts, marketing ideas and social marketing concept. China put forward the scientific development concept to guide the production, in the context of building a harmonious society, social marketing concept in 2009, a major step forward.

Rapid changes in marketing channels

http://www.seekglasses.com/news_2009-10-31/33223.html

Pressure caused by the shrinking market channel revolution, channels formed by the pyramidlike structure to the flat trend in the direction of change is more obvious changes in the industry are also more extensive. Marketing to strategic marketing Anxiously waiting for the market recovers, the company did not stop marketing strategy. Many companies even use this opportunity to step up strategic layout. Pressure and hope coexist, domestic demand and external demand in 2009 with the move, more and more companies recognize that enterprises should be able to maintain a sustainable competitive advantage, access to marketing competitiveness to be dependent on the conduct of strategic marketing. The future, based on resources and competition-oriented, highly integration of strategic marketing is bound to marketing to a new era.

d. Identify and critically assess the benefits and costs of marketing approach for being official sponsor of London 2012.

The concept of sports sponsorship still holds good in establishing effective and efficient advertising strategy in todays marketplace. In other words, sports sponsorship is one of the best ways to build a communication path toward consumers9. Unfortunately, not every company sponsoring World Cup and PGA enjoys significantly positive cumulative abnormal returns but the short-term financial performance can be enhanced by brand value. Product fit was identified as a potential driver that enhances short-term financial performance. The event characteristics such as event period, sports type and popularity may moderate in transferring sponsorship into increased financial outcome but result shows there is no impact of those factors. Critical elements in the success of event marketing can be defined based on this empirical result. It is essential for companies to assess their brand value and sponsorship fit in selecting most appropriate sports event. This might be because choosing the right event paves way to better access to targeted audience10. Marketers should make every effort to establish a relationship with the sports event affiliated with the firms sponsored sport11. Compared to big sports event, niche sport event organizers should also note that sponsorship at their respective events may possibly be devalued12.

Buchan, Nick (2006), Sports Sponsorship Still Giving Enough bang for the Buck? B&T Weekly, 56 (2567), 5. Shani, David and Dennis Sandler (1996), Climbing the Sport Event Pyramid, Sports Marketing, 30 (18), 6. Sherry, J. Greg (1998), The Key to Maximizing Your Sports Sponsorship, Public Relations Quarterly, 43 (1),

10

11

24-26.
12

Miloch, Kimberly S. and Keith W. Lambert (2006), Consumer Awareness of Sponsorship at Grassroots Sport

Events, Sport Marketing Quarterly, 15 (3), 147-154.

Increasingly, however, sponsorships are being used strategically inside companies to motivate employee or facilitate a major structural change, such as a merger.13 Future research should identify the relationship between sports sponsorship and employee, for example, employees personal identity, morale, job satisfaction. Sports sponsorship effectiveness is still measured largely in terms of fans TV consumption14. New media such as internet broadcasting and other traditional platforms, such as press and radio, play an important role for sports followers15.

13

http://www.aabri.com/manuscripts/09382.pdf Farrelly Francis J. and Stephen A. Greyser (2007), Sport Sponsorship to Rally the Home Team, Harvard

14

Business Review, 85 (9), 22-24.

15

Smythe, James (2007), Lagging behind the Media, Marketing Week, June 9, 26-27.

TASK 2
a. Identify and explain macro and micro environmental factors which influence marketing decisions of the company to sponsor London 2012. Micro environmental factors are, 1.The company 2.Suppliers 3.Marketing intermediaries 4.Competitors 5.Public 6.Customers.

The term micro-environment denotes those elements over which the marketing firm has control or which it can use in order to gain information that will better help it in its marketing operations. In other words, these are elements that can be manipulated, or used to glean information, in order to provide fuller satisfaction to the companys customers. The objective of marketing philosophy is to make profits through satisfying customers. This is accomplished through the manipulation of the variables over which a company has control in such a way as to optimise this objective. The variables are what Neil Borden has termed the marketing mix which is a combination of all the ingredients in a recipe that is designed to prove most attractive to customers. In this case the ingredients are individual elements that marketing can manipulate into the most appropriate mix. E Jerome McCarthy further dubbed the variables that the company can control in order to reach its target market the four Ps. Each of these is discussed in detail in later chapters, but a brief discussion now follows upon each of these elements of the marketing mix together with an explanation of how they fit into the overall notion of marketing.

Macro environmental Factors are, 1.Demographic

2.Economic 3.Natural 4.Technological 5.Political 6.Cultural The term macro-environment denotes all forces and agencies external to the marketing firm itself. Some of these forces and agencies will be closer to the operation of the firm than others, e.g. a firms suppliers, agents, distributors and other distributive intermediaries and competing firms. These closer external constituents are often collectively referred to as the firms proximate macro-environment to distinguish them from the wider external forces found, for example, in the legal, cultural, economic and technological sub-environments. This consists of people, organizations and forces within the firms immediate external environment. Of particular importance to marketing firms are the sub-environments of suppliers, competitors and distributors (intermediaries). These sub-environments can each have a significant effect upon the marketing firm.16

16

http://www.da-group.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=31%3Amicro-and-macroenvironments&catid=2%3Amarketing-lectures&Itemid=3

b. With your understanding of the topic on segmentation, propose segmentation criteria that the organization can use for its two different products in different markets. About forty years ago, segmentation was viewed as an imperfection in market structure rather than as a more precise adjustment to consumer or user requirements. From this time, the benefits of adapting marketing resources to the heterogeneous needs and wants of customers is recognized. Nowadays, in the context of globalization, the focus has shifted towards looking for similarities and the search for global segments. As a result of these changes, Hassan and Katsanis defined (global) market segmentation as follows:

Global market segmentation is the process of identifying specific segments, whether they be country groups or individual customer groups, of potential customers with homogeneous attributes who are likely to exhibit similar behaviour17.

This trend of globalizing economies raised a new question: how should a company segment a global/international market? Segmentation of a international market implied the addition of another, country specific, dimension.

In domestic markets customer characteristics such as age, sex, social class, etc. and attitudes toward a certain product or brand are often used as bases for segmentation. In international markets an extra dimension has to be considered, i.e. country characteristics. For instance, every country has its own specific social, cultural, economic, technological, political, legal and environmental characteristics affecting marketing strategies and customer/market responses.

The different perceptions and approaches of multinational companies determined their segmentation approach. Besides the shift from looking for differences towards the focus on

17

Hassan, S.S. and Katsanis, L.P. (1991), Identification of global consumer segments: a behavioural framework, Journal of International Consumer Marketing, Vol.3 No.2. pp. 11-29

similarities mentioned above, one can observe the influence of the internationalizing environment and the evolvement of global strategies.18

Marketing Segmentation criteria for 2 products bottled water and breakfast cereal. Marketers segment markets because it helps them to match their products better to their customers, as every customer is different (age, sex, etc.) and has differing needs and wants dividing the market into segments helps the marketer focus on these subgroups leading to a target market . This target market can then be selected and a marketing mix can be made especially for them. This can save a business time and money as it can be planned well as it is aimed straight at potential customers. Also a greater understanding of who these customers are and what their needs are can enable the business to gather information about the requirements.19

18

http://www.best-information.eu/international-marketing-strategies/C2-international-market-segmentation.html http://www.writework.com/essay/segmentation-criteria-2-products-bottled-water-and-breakfast

19

c. Sketch out those factors that influence the choice of targeting strategy by the organization with reference to its sponsorship of the event. Targeting strategy decisions are influenced by these factors:

market maturity diversity of buyers' needs and preferences strength of the competition the volume of sales required for profitability 20

A strategy is a carefully considered plan devised to help a company meet its objectives. A strategy can relate to the company's brand, its marketing or how it meets customers' needs. Global Blue Chip companies like Ford have carefully planned brand strategies. Sponsorship is an effective way of meeting Ford's brand objectives. It permits a company to enhance the value of its brand through a positive association with an event or tournament. Ford has two objectives in its sponsorship strategy. One is to reinforce and further build the Ford brand. The other is to achieve a good connection between Ford and its potential customers. Through its association with such a premium sporting event such as the UEFA Champions League, Ford is able to directly reach its target customer for nine months every year. Research has clearly shown that this sponsorship creates a positive view of Ford particularly amongst football fans who watch football on TV regularly.

20

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Outline_factors_that_influence_the_choice_of_targeting_startegies#ixzz1B6P30liK

The UEFA Champions League is the premium European club football competition. It was officially inaugurated in 1992. The UEFA Champions League features the top 32 European club teams with matches taking place on Tuesdays and Wednesdays across Europe. The current format came into play for the 2002-03 season. This involves a qualifying competition, one group stage involving 32 clubs and a final knockout stage involving 16 clubs down to two and a final, which is staged at a major European venue at the end. Ford is one of six sponsors of the UEFA Champions League. Only official sponsors, i.e. those companies who purchase sponsorship rights from the Rights holder, such as UEFA, are able to associate with the competition. By purchasing these rights for the UEFA Champions League, Ford and other sponsors have the unique and exclusive opportunity to associate themselves with this event. This helps Ford drive a competitive advantage in its particular market.21

21

http://www.thetimes100.co.uk/downloads/ford/ford_11_2.pdf

d. How does buyers behavior affects marketing activities in two different buying situations putting into consideration Olympic branding of products by official sponsors? While the effectiveness of sport sponsorship has been suggested to some degree by literature based upon diverse notions and theories of consumer psychology, there has been a dearth of micro-level investigation that would provide more direct evidence supporting the commercial value of sponsorship. In order to examine the commercial merits of sponsorship, it is essential to conduct a micro-level investigation that would directly measure the impact of sponsorship upon consumers actual brand choice behavior in response to a particular sponsorship program, after controlling for other marketing variables such as traditional media advertisement. 22 Given the paucity of the empirical studies that directly address the problems in sponsorship research, this study seeks to add to the research on two questions: (1) whether consumers actually purchase more of a brand that sponsors a major sporting event; and (2) if so, whether the impact of sponsorship upon consumers brand choice is significant even after the model controls for other marketing effects, such as traditional media advertisement. This study examines the impact of a major Olympic Games sponsorship relationship on consumers actual brand choice behavior, by using a panel data set that spans two Games periods The name-brand cola market is dominated by only two companies, Coke and Pepsi. Assuming that consumer utility derived from product characteristics is identical regardless which brand is consumed, makes it reasonable to assume that the determinants of a consumers choice of brand arises from other factors, not from the product per se. 23 Various promotional strategies, such as coupons, shopper cards, and buy-one-get-one-free programs, definitely influence consumer brand choice. By considering the prices that consumers actually pay after incorporating such promotional strategies, these effects can be controlled. Coca-Cola, but not Pepsi, is one of the official sponsors of the Olympic Games, and the data
22 23

Harvey, B. 2001. Measuring the Effects of Sponsorships. Journal of Advertising Research, 59-65. Papadimitriou, D., and A. Apostolopoulou. 2009. Olympic Sponsorship Activation and the Creation of

Competitive Advantage. Journal of Promotion Management, 15(1&2): 90-117.

period contains two Olympics: Torino and Beijing. Sponsorship effects can be revealed by tracking the change in consumer brand choice before and after the Olympics. 24

24

http://www.sportmarketingassociation.com/2010conference/2010conferencepresentations/P-17.pdf

TASKS 3
a. Describe how products could developed at a global sporting event such as Olympic to sustain competitive advantage for registered official sponsor such as Coca Cola against Companies unofficially associating themselves with the games. Coca-Cola, the longest backer of the Olympics having first sponsored them at the 1928 Games in Amsterdam, have paid more than $150 million (100 million) for the exclusive rights to be the official provider of non-alcoholic drinks at the Games but claimed that they do not object to the plans by London 2012 to let spectators bring in the drinks of other manufacturers. A Coca-Cola spokesman told insidethegames: "The responsibility for deciding what can and cannot be brought inside Olympic venues is a matter for LOCOG and we will support their decisions. "As the Games are almost three years away, we are still talking to LOCOG about their plans but we are committed to providing our wide range of drinks, including sparkling, still, functional drinks, waters and juices, during Games time." Coca-Cola are keen to avoid the negative publicity that Pepsi have been involved in after they have had organisers at events they are sponsoring prevent spectators from bringing in drinks not made by them. At the Cricket World Cup in South Africa in 2003, for example, stewards searched fans' coolboxes for its rival's fizzy drinks and a Johannesburg businessman was evicted from one game for drinking a can of Coca-Cola. At the 2004 Champions Trophy cricket tournament trophy, where matches were played throughout England, cricket fans were issued with a list of drinks and snacks they could take into grounds. Pepsi and its family of drinks, such as Tango, 7 Up and Abbey Well mineral water, were acceptable, but no other brands were permitted.

London 2012 will also provide free drinking water during the Olympics and Paralympics, an initiative also backed by Coca-Cola. The spokesman said: "We believe consumers should have a choice of drinks - and that includes competitors and spectators at London 2012 - so support LOCOG's decision to provide free drinking water." Coca-Cola's involvement Olympics in London has been the subject of controversy since the capital was awarded the event in 2005 with public health experts in Britain claiming that it is difficult to reconcile their sponsorship of the Games with encouraging physical activity and fitness among the young. But Coke, whose products are sold in more than 200 countries and who in 2005 extended their relationship with the International Olympic Committee until 2020, claim that without the backing of them and other sponsors up to 85 per cent of National Olympic Committees would be unable to compete in the Games.25

25

http://www.insidethegames.biz/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7621:exclusive-coca-colaback-london-2012-plan-to-let-fans-bring-in-own-drinks&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=1

b. With reference to question a, how can distributions network of the companies be organized to provide customer convenience for the event. Coca Cola uses the following distribution channels: 1. Retail Stores including Convenient stores (Super markets etc) 2.Vending machine/Self Service Slot machines (school and other miscellaneous business) 4. Ho-Re-Ca (means Hotels, Restaurants, Cafes including Fast food outlets, cuisine Restaurants etc.) 5. Mobile Carts (mechanized and non- mechanized) 6. Entertainment Zones (theme park, Disneyworld and so on)26

Central point in territory for warehousing of product, with manageable coverage area and defined customer base (typically 150 outlets) Distribution of product is mostly manual to keep costs at a minimum Outlets served typically low volume outlets with high service frequency requirements and limited cash flow requiring fast turnaround of stock

The initiative presents two key opportunities: 1. To better show the wide ranging impact of the System (the multiplier effect) already in place through the MDC system 2. To specifically focus on maximizing the socio-economic or development benefits of the MDC concept through a focused research project, pilot and the creation of a best practice model for replication27
26

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_distribution_channel_does_coca_cola_use#ixzz1BNE2NmeL

27

http://api.ning.com/files/mmVoOEYKk95aDcnvUmnHqyHbPZsEdqalb1DeTSK22ThTY8q3QdIFViIVZCDZ68Ne2ZJw4OiaNQLx9Lw4jadhrNioF47 4NV-/MDCPres21April09.pdf ---- Micro-distribution models in Africa, Coca-Colas Manual Distribution System

c. How are prices set to reflect an organizations objective and marketing conditions? Pricing is an important strategic issue because it is related to product positioning. Furthermore, pricing affects other marketing mix elements such as product features, channel decisions, and promotion. Because there is a relationship between price and quantity demanded, it is important to understand the impact of pricing on sales by estimating the demand curve for the product. Setting the price too high may attract a large number of competitors who want to share in the profits. Pricing it too low may be considered predatory pricing or "dumping" in the case of international trade. In addition to setting the price level, managers have the opportunity to design innovative pricing models that better meet the needs of both the firm and its customers. The normally quoted price to end users is known as the list price. This price usually is discounted for distribution channel members and some end users.28 Trade Promotion Coca cola company gives incentives to middle men or retailers in way a that they offer them free samples and free empty bottles, by this these retailers and middle man push their product in the market. And thats why coca cola seen more in the market. And they have a good sale in the market because according to the expert which product seen more in the market that sells more. Seen as sold They do agreements with a shop keepers and stores to exclusive sale in that stores. These stores are called as KEY accounts in their local language. And coke also invest heavy budget on these stores and offers them free samples and free bottles and some time cash incentives.

Different Price In Different Seasons

28

http://www.netmba.com/marketing/pricing/

Some times Coca Cola Company change their product prices according to the season. Summer is supposed to be a good season for beverage industry in Pakistan. So in winter they reduce their prices to maintain their sales and profit. But normally they reduce the prices of their pet bottles or 1 litter glass bottle.

d. Explain how the organization (Coca Cola) can integrates its promotional activities to achieve its marketing objectives during the global sporting event.

Coca-Cola Cricket Cricket the most sought after; watched & played game in india .the game of cricket has been owned by various brands in the industry for the promotion of their products over a period of time. It has ranged from tobacco to lubricants to communication companies to banks to airlines & lately to the beverage industry. The competition has become tougher & tougher as the time has progressed.

Coca-Cola signed a sponsorship agreement with IPL team of kings 11 Punjab .

Coca-Cola

realizing the fact that cricket is a very strong element by which it can reach it consumers & masses invested in the opportunity and launched a massive campaign on mass media showing all these cricket stars endorsing & complimenting Coca-Cola brand. The Coca-Cola Company developed three TV commercials & four testimonial ads with the player & ran them on the national net work during various cricket matches. . Coca-Cola Food Mela With a splash of food, fun & prizes to be won, the Coca-Cola food mela treated the people of delhi, to a festive food festival comprising of 50 restaurants, spread out all over the bustling citys map. The promotion saw the avid families & friends enjoying the delicacies at the restaurants; all resiliently upholding the Coca-Cola identity.

Coca-Cola GO-RED

Quenching the thirst of motorist, pedestrians & passerbys during Delhi hottest summer season, Coca-Colas GO-RED teams went out into the cities main quadrants to serve & refresh on the spot with ice-cold Coca-Colas at discounted prices backed by a heavy FM announcement campaign the GO-RED stall, served well to promote the Coca-Cola industry.

Coca-Cola Pet Promotion In 2008, Coca-Cola launched 1.5 liter Pet contour bottle Targeting house wives & family home, Coca-Colas 1.5 liter Pet bottle, took the limelight & gained momentum with a campaign promoting the unique packaging and its numerous consumer benefits .A treat for the family, Coca-Colas PET was offered through a price-off promotion

Coca-Cola & Mc Donalds Coca-Cola & key account of MC Donalds launched the we go together joint promotion to reinstate amongst consumers a real sense of the affinity that, both shares globally. The promotion kicked off with pos material (Danglers, Bunting etc) displayed at all MC Donalds restaurants along with a special offer for coke & fries.

Getting shelves They gets or purchase shelves in big departmental stores and display their products in that shelves in that style which show their product more clear and more attractive for the consumers.

Eye Catching Position Salesman of the coca cola company positions their freezers and their products in eye-catching positions. Normally they keep their freezers near the entrance of the stores.

Sale Promotion

Company also do sponsorships with different college and schools cafes and sponsors their sports events and other extra curriculum activities for getting market share. Scheme

Coke comes out with the schemes on their different products many times in a year. Most of these schemes are made to benefit the retailers. Some of the schemes are as follows: 1 bottle of 2lt. free with one 2lt bottle pack. 1 bottle of 1lt. free with one 1lt bottle pack. 2 bottles of 500ml free with one 500ml bottle pack. 6 bottles of Kinley free with one pack of Kinley.

These schemes keep on changing depending upon the stock.

Promotion through restaurants and cinema hall holdings. Coca-cola is tying up with different chains of restaurants and fast food centers to promote the Coca-cola and its other brands like Limca, Sprite, Maaza etc. these restaurants are authorized to keep and use the merchandising assets of Pepsi. Usually these kinds of restaurants and fast food chains are in contract with the Pepsi Co., so that they cannot promote any other brand.

Merchandising assets. Coca-Cola also try to promote their brands by providing their retailers and dealers some display items. Some of such items are as follows: 1. Fridges 2. Coca-Cola/Mazza stands 3. Display bottles 4. Posters Coca-Cola provide the above things to the retailers to use them in promoting companies brands and products, and provide refrigerators to the retailers in the hope that these retailers only use

these assets in promoting the Coca-Colas products and they will chill the Coca-Colas products so that its products will always be available to the end consumers. But it is not true in most of the cases. Retailers usually use the merchandising asset of one company in such a way that it benefits another company. Sometime they do it unknowingly, sometimes they do it knowingly and sometimes because of the deficiencies of the company

e. Do an in depth analysis of the extended marketing mix with reference to questions A to D above.
The sport industry is experiencing good growth and sports marketing emerging a new concept in the emerging industry. Sports marketing are the specific application of marketing principles and processes to sport products & services and marketing of non-sports products via association with sports. Nowadays sports organizations define their businesses as entertainment providers. In addition to this, sports organizations must practice a marketing orientation in order to be successful in the competitive environment of sports. An organization with a marketing orientation focuses on understanding the customers and providing sports products that satisfy consumer's needs. The consumer of sports is the category of the people who observe the sports events as a spectator, participate in the sports activities and even the sponsors who exchange money or product for the right to be associated with a sporting event. All these are classified as consumers i.e. the participants, spectators and sponsors use sports products.

The important tool of the trade of sport marketing is a sports marketing mix which can be defined as the coordinated set of elements that sports organization use to meet their marketing mix objectives and satisfy consumers needs. Elements of sport marketing mix:

Sport product Distribution or place Pricing Promotion

Another central element of marketing is the exchange process in addition to the marketing mix which may be defined as a marketing transaction in which the buyer gives something of value to the seller in return for goods and services.
The planning process may be defined as understanding of consumers needs, selecting a group of consumers with similar needs and positioning the sports product within the group of consumers. The last step of the planning phase is to develop a marketing mix that will appeal to the targeted group of consumers and carry out the desired positioning.29
For sportsmarketing, this opensupanewperspectivewhichvalues people (both customers and employees) as a sporting organisations most important asset and addresses the need to create viable strategies formeeting customer needs profitably. The possible application of relationship marketing to the different elements of 30 the extendedmarketing mix for sports.

29 30

http://www.firstclass-writeups.org/tutorial/files/633411459843056.php

http://www.downloadit.org/free_files/Pages%20from%20CHAPTER%207%20The%20Extended%20Marketing%20Mix%20of%20Relati onship%20Marketing%20in%20Sports-43eff0082bb430223c204b2e8c67136d.pdf

Make the public aware of the existence of the firm and maintain the good name and image of Coca-Cola by issuing press releases, organizing news conferences and informing the public about the firms activities. Maintain goodwill amongst the public for the company. Goodwill is the likelihood that the old customer will return and can be equated with brand loyalty. Brand loyalty occurs when customers repeat-purchase a particular branded product on a regular basis. Coca- Cola has a high level of brand loyalty. When you want a drink do you automatically pick up a bottle of Coca-Cola?31

31

THE coca-cola brand & sponsorship The Irish Times, Business 2000, Fifth Edition

TASK 4
a. Attempt a suggestion of marketing mixes for two different segments in consumer markets. A convenient concept for explaining an organizations marketing activities and the decisions made by marketing executives is the marketing mix. Just as a master chef prepares a mix of ingredients for a favorite recipe, a marketing manager combines the marketing activities to form a satisfactory marketing mix. Each company must develop a marketing mix that is most appropriate for its products and target customers. To do this, marketing managers need information that is provided by marketing information systems, marketing research, and sales forecasting. The major components of a companys marketing mix are product, distribution, price, and promotion. These four elements are blended together to create a total package that will best satisfy the markets needs. The marketing mixes of two watch manufacturers illustrate how vastly different approaches can succeed. Timex sells a relatively inexpensive watch that appeals to the mass market. Timex promotes the durability of its economical watches, has a broad line of low- to medium-priced watches, and distributes through many retail outlets, including variety, drug, and discount stores. On the other hand, Rolex has formulated a marketing mix that appeals to a specific market. Rolex focuses its promotion efforts on developing a quality image. Rolex watches are extremely expensive, and retail distribution is restricted to a small number of exclusive jewelry and specialty stores. The successful marketing of Dell computers provides a second example. Apple, IBM, and other PC marketers relied on a traditional marketing mix strategy to sell the home PC market. This mix involved mass media advertising, in-store promotions, and distribution through specialty computer retailers. Sensing an opportunity, Dell Computer Corp. tried a different marketing mix strategy. Michael Dell, the firms founder, sensed that many customers wanted a quality PC at a low price. He assembled the machines using inexpensive component parts, distributed these personal

computers through a low-cost mail-order system, and passed the lower costs to consumers through reduced prices.32

32

Article: The Concept of Modern Marketing, American Management Association, 2007

b. What are differences in marketing products and services to organizations rather than consumers? There is often a great deal of misunderstanding about marketing. People often consider marketing to be the same as advertising. It's not. Advertising is only one part of marketing. Very simply put, marketing is the wide range of activities involved in making sure that you're continuing to meet the needs of your customers and getting value in return. Market analysis includes finding out what groups of customers (or markets) exist, what their needs are, what groups of customers you prefer to serve (target markets), what products or services you might develop to meet their needs, how the customers prefer to use the products and services, what your competitors are doing, what pricing you should use and how you should distribute products and services to customers. Results of this marketing analysis indicates the position, or market "niche", for the organization to work from -- and to be seen as having. Marketing also includes ongoing promotions, which can include advertising, public relations, sales and customer service. Various methods of market research are used to find out information about markets, target markets and their needs, competitors, market trends, customer satisfaction with products and services, etc.33 There are a variety of reasons for an organization to want to offer payable services. From what we hear from other organizations, there is no doubt that financial restrictionsdoing more with lessare an ever-growing reality for all government or government subsidized organizations. Going from no charge to payable services represents an important shiftin some ways, the customer and customer satisfaction become the ultimate goal behind all decisions and activity. It is important to realize that such a change does not happen overnight or without the support of the whole organization.34

33

http://managementhelp.org/fp_progs/mkt_mod/market.htm

34

Parasuraman, A., Zeithaml, Valarie A., Berry, Leonard L., A conceptual model of service quality and its implications for future research, Marketing Science Institute, Cambridge, MA, August 1984.

c. Critically explain how and why international marketing differs from domestic marketing with reference to sponsoring London 2012. The Beijing Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) launched the marketing plan of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on 1 September, bringing about sponsorship and licensing opportunities for Hong Kong companies (including small- and medium-sized enterprises). Companies in different industry categories can become sponsors to the Beijing Olympics. Companies having their own brands and aiming to build up their corporate image, especially in the mainland market, may consider utilising the sponsorship programme as a marketing platform. Sponsors can use BOCOG and/or Chinese Olympic Committee (COC) marks and designations for the purposes of advertising and marketing promotions. They can also enjoy preferred options to purchase TV advertising space and billboards during the Games. It is expected that sponsors of different levels will make the most of their marketing rights to build up their corporate image. As a result, there will be massive demand for corporate gifts and premium relating to the Olympic Games. Excelling in developing and producing competitively priced quality gift items, Hong Kong manufacturers should be able to benefit from this demand. Hong Kong companies interested in supplying gift and premium items to large Olympic sponsors for use in the mainland may need to consider logistics arrangements because some of these corporations may have an extensive marketing network covering a huge area of the mainland. Furthermore, as suppliers selling directly in the mainland, Hong Kong manufacturers would also be required to be able to issue VAT invoices. For the licensing programme, major licensed product categories include sporting goods, cultural products, leisure goods, arts and crafts, and souvenirs. The programme will adopt a segmented market strategy, ensuring that the licensed products will be available in a broad range of styles and prices to target different consumer groups.

One of the objectives of the Beijing Olympics is to promote the "Made-in-China = High Quality" message. Hong Kong companies, renowned for product design, quality control and intellectual property rights protection, should have an advantage in bidding for licensing rights. Licensees have to pay a minimum guarantee and a royalty advance to BOCOG. For gift items supplied to Olympic sponsors or licensed merchandise, product design must comply with the technical requirements regarding the Olympic symbol, emblem and mascot. However, since the Olympic Games covers a wide range of sports, there is more room for design development. Recruitment of sponsors is expected to begin in the second quarter of 2004. For licensing, the national programme will start in the second half of 2003 and the international programme will commence after the Athens Olympics 2004.35

35

http://info.hktdc.com/econforum/tdc/tdc030903.htm#1