Hardy Candy Shop Marketing Plan
Executive Summary
The Hardy candy shop is positioned to become the market leader for selling kid’s items to the customers within the targeted market area. Its business products are ideal for small kids aged from four to fourteen years old. Hardy candy will be located in New York and its mission is to provide kid’s items that are affordable at great prices combined with good customer service. Hardy candy intends to exceed the expectations of its customers, attract new ones and maintain the targeted customers.
Situation analysis
Hardy candy is starting its first year of operation and has recognized that the marketing of products is vital to the profitability and success of the company. Hardy proffers an extensive assortment of beverages and candy nutritional products. Its business idea is to use a broad selection of realistically valued products that are of consistent quality.
Marketing summary
Hardy has gathered information concerning the common traits of the target clientele. Therefore this market data will be used by Hardy shop to identify the needs of its customers and determine the most excellent approach of reaching the target segments.
Target market
Hardy candy shop target market will be youth, teenagers, young kids, and social class.
Market Demographics
The profile for the Hardy client can be categorized in various ways such as geographic, demographic, and behavior.
Geographic Factors
The hardy candy does not have an immediate geographic target; its main challenge is mainstream sales, due to the tariffs of exporting and importing which do not make the hardy’s cost-efficient for worldwide orders. Additionally, its total targeted population is 250,000 users.
Demographics Factors
Hardy candy intends to target both males and females who are aged between 4 and 18, with 73% of the target population coming from the subgroup of 5-12 years.
Behavior Factors
All customers are very cognizant of the leisure, and this is an opportunity that hardy candy intends to exploit.
Market needs
Hardy is providing its customers with spacious and unique products; therefore the company aims to fulfill the following advantages which are very important to their quality customers. I) Selection: to meet their clientele demands of broad assortment to meet all their needs in one store. Ii) Quality: There are several brands selling children items, therefore, having constantly high-quality is very important because this will give the company the competitive edge it needs. Iii) Customer Service- regulars want to shop at stores which value customer service.
Market trend
Hardy work plans to work with affair coordinators such as coaches and courtyard to be approved to trade in several venues throughout the year. Also, it needs to issue business cards for future opportunities.
Market Growth
Due to the market price declining because of stiff competition by several companies offering similar products, the market has had stable growth, though sales have dropped in some market. The statistical readings for the year 2012 were estimated to be over 2 million units.
SWOT Analysis
The SWOT analysis entails an assessment of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (Kotler and Keller, 2006)
Strengths
- The low prices and convenience of this candy shop.
- Its competency to offer quality products
- The ability to increase sales
Weaknesses
Lack of brand awareness since it is a start-up Company
Opportunities
- An efficient business model within a growing industry
- Provide differentiation through enhanced convenience and service attributes.
Threats
- Increased government rules and regulations for operating the company
- Stiff competition
Competition
The hardy candy company will differentiate itself from other companies; this will be through offering unique products, and low prices that make its products affordable.
Product Offering
Hardy’s Candy will sell and market its products through the internet and direct sales. Its product range should include; Pop-Tarts, Ice cream bars, Otter Pops, ice cream sandwiches
Keys to Success
The keys to success are, to maintain outstanding customer service, efficient operation, and consistently high-quality products.
Critical Issues
Since Hardy is a start-up company, its objective should include
- To establish itself as a premier company among other companies
- To maintain its market share
- To ensure customer satisfaction
Marketing Strategy
Its marketing strategy aims to focus on making changes, planning sales and improvement of customer service. Hardy can capture about 90% of the refreshing market because it produces products that are geared toward each segment. It will also connect with the target market through the use of outdoor advertising by creating awareness through the use of mass media and its business’s website.
Mission
To provide an event ‘store’ with candy kids that are affordable.
Marketing objectives
- Its main objective is to compete with other traders by providing fashionable candy and drinks at very lower prices.
- To apply a home campaign with the business’s targeted market area through the use of advertisements.
- To make sure all the company’s necessary information is available online.
Financial objectives
- Increase of profit margin by 3% per quarter through the increase of economies of scale.
- Reduction of variable costs by 2% a year.
- Increase in its market share.
Target market
The global trend favors the consumption and recognition of candy products. Its brand is aimed at web retailers who can provide customer service, information, good product, and the intangible, emotional buy by the customer.
Positioning
Hardy Candy will place itself as a one-stop Internet stockist of high-quality, reasonably-priced products (Mplans.com, 2010).
Strategies
The main objective is to position Hardy as the leader in retailing of children centered products that services both domestic and global market. The marketing strategy used will be web-based marketing for the next years to continue creating awareness of the business and its products.
Marketing mix
Hardy candy’s marketing mix consists of the following; pricing, distribution, advertising, promotion, and customer service (Mplans.com, 2010).
- Pricing: Prices will be placed on product as per retailed product
- Distribution: The Hardy’s products will be distributed through the warehouse, accessed using the website, and delivered within the country as well as globally.
- Advertising and Promotion: various methods of advertising will be used.
- Customer Service: Hardy will endeavor to achieve benchmarked customer care.
Marketing research
Hardy candy performed various targeted groups to collect useful market research before undertaking this project (Mplans.com, 2010). A large number of participants comprised the ultimate targeted customers; the information collected from the focus groups was helpful. Therefore, the gathered research had an optimistic, profound outcome on the whole project and deemed that hardy candy will be more successful because of this market research.
Financials
This fragment will show the outline of the related marketing activities in hardy. This includes breakeven, sales forecast, and expense forecast, and show how they interrelate with market strategy.
Break-even analysis
Break-even analysis indicates that 3369 unit or $ 46,168,776 will be required in monthly sales revenue to reach the breakeven point
Breakeven analysis
Sales forecast
Hardy candy believes that it will process 70% of its sales online by use of (SSL) which is a secure socket layer, and all orders should be charged to MasterCard, Visa cards, or even American Express.
Monthly sales forecast
Expenses forecast
The marketing expenditures are planned to ramp up considerably in the 1st quarter as a way of spawning visibility for the new company. Marketing expenditures will ebb in the 2nd quarter and then go up in the 3rd quarter to have a momentous impact.
Marketing forecast
Implementation and control
The purpose of the Hardy candy marketing plan is to serve as a reference for the company. These are the areas to be monitored to measure the performance of the company.
- Revenue; quarterly and annually
- Expense; quarterly and annually
- Customer satisfaction
- Development of new products
Marketing organization
A marketing manager should have the responsibility of advertising and promotion of the company’s product. On the other sales manager should be responsible for sale recital, whereas the marketing director should control all departments.
Contingency planning
Difficulties and risks
Sluggish sales that result in less than desired cash flow, plus unanticipated and extreme costs leading to increased estimated sales. Also, there is a risk for excessively hostile and incapacitating activities by competitors and finally general economic decline.
Worst case risk include
Payment of debt asset to coat marketing fees and liabilities which have been identified through market research since the product could not sustain itself on an ongoing foundation.
References
Kotler, P. & Keller, P. 2006. Marketing Management. New York: Prentice Hall.
Mplans.com. 2010. Marketing Strategy. Web.