Marketing Audit

Based on the past several weeks of monitoring a Fortune 500 company, you will now audit the company in terms of how they are serving their target market in their current climate and if that is aligned with their value proposition and brand promise.

You will need 4 unique marketing samples that are not social media.  You can use emails, sales flyers, commercials, print ads, app promotions, etc…

You are to complete a paper and a brief presentation for class. The guidelines are below:

PAPER:

This should be default margins, Times New Roman 12 point font. Headings should correspond to the items below. You  may use screen shots, photos and tables to illustrate your data. You will not be graded on writing style (provided it’s clear enough to follow your paper) but you will be graded on the quality and concise nature of your work.

Company and Industry Analysis:

1. Introduction
   1. Company Name/Background/Ownership
   2. Corporate philosophy and mission statement (annual report or website)
   3. Positioning overview

What is the company’s market position? Give proof

• High/low pricing
• product positioning
• differentiation
• innovation
• growth
• alliance

2. Industry/Market environment/trends/analysis
   1. Competition – Top 3 (from Marketline)
   2. Industry information (from Marketline for industry)
   3. SWOT/PEST (from Marketline)
   4. What trends face the business? (expand on industry analysis and personalize it)

These are situations which can affect your market and marketing.

• Seasonal / Fashion
• Increase/decrease in demand
• Change in attitudes
• Environmental concerns
• Legislation
• Outsourcing / Globalisation
• Competitors / new entrants / technology

3. Customer Overview
   1. Target Market Identification – use actual sources for this! Elaborate and have substantial information and sources here.

Branding

1. How would you define the company’s brand in your own words?
2. How does the company define their brand? (sourced)
3. What does the brand mean in the eyes of your customers?
4. Identify all brand elements (logos, symbols, characters, packaging, slogans, trademarks)
5. What is the estimated brand equity? (sourced)
6. Is this brand a stand alone business or owned by a bigger company?
7. Would customers miss it if it did not exist?
8. Has the company extended the brand or product line? Give an example. If not, could they do it?
9. Does the brand/product promotions reinforce the core values that the company stands for?

Price

1. What is the overall pricing philosophy of the organization? (using terms from your text)
2. Give at least 2 examples to support your claim from the marketing collateral you collected over the semester
3. Is this pricing model in line with their branding/positioning/SWOT/industry/corporate mission? Give examples of how you see this congruence.

Place/Distribution

Is your business utilizing one or more of the following:

1. Retail • selling to final consumer buyers
2. Wholesale • an intermediary distribution channel
3. Sales force • employees who sell on your behalf
4. Brokers/agents/associates • who sell for a commission
5. Internet • Online channels

Promotion

Discuss, with examples, the use, patterns and frequency of your company’s activity in the following promotions (if you’ve seen no evidence, state that):

1. Advertising
   1. Take a look at your competitor’s’ ads, does your brand’s ads look like all the rest – or do they stand out a little?
   2. Integration with online, social media, in-store/physical touchpoints?
   3. Sales Promotions or informative for the most part?
   4. Call-to-Action – consistency, are they pushing online sales/store traffic/app, etc…
   5. Public Relations/Philanthropy/Sponsorship

Audit 4 Unique (Non-Social Media) Marketing Mix Samples:

You will choose one of these and present it to the class. You only need to show your sample and then you can explain your analysis in approximately 3-4 minutes.