This report requires students to analyze the impact of consumer behavior on the marketing strategy of an actual product that has entered the market in the last three years. Students must select a product and its main competitor to examine. The report involves discussing the product's market, competitors, target segments, and how external and internal influences impact segments. It also requires comparing the marketing approaches between the products and evaluating which is more effective. The report should conclude with recommendations to improve the chosen product's positioning, marketing mix, and customer acquisition and satisfaction.

1. Our Brand / product: Strongbow / Gold Apple
Direct and indirect: the brand must exist in Singapore and be an
apple cider brand. The direct competitor must be serving the
same target market roughly. Whole report will need to be in
Singapore market context
referencing format is APA format
ASSESSMENT DETAILS
Word Limit:
4000
words with 10% extra (max). You need to include the word
count on the title page.
This assignment is designed to encourage students to explore
the impact of buyer behaviour on marketing strategy through the
examination of an actual product category. Working in groups,
you are required to demonstrate the application of buyer
behaviour concepts at various stages of an organisation’s
marketing planning process. The discussion of concepts will
help you to achieve a deeper level of learning. The application
of the concepts will prepare you for discussion and use of these
concepts in other marketing subjects and in the world of work.
The final report is due in Week 12.
What do we need to do?
·
Select a
specific product
(good or service) that has been introduced to the market in the
last
three

2. years; is of interest to the group and the group considers
successful. It is recommended you
choose a specific product
within a product category, i.e. imported beers – e.g. Heineken
or Boutique beers – e.g. Mountain Goat beer. Ensure there is
availability of secondary information before you start. You are
not to access primary data.
– based on Singapore market
·
Select
another brand (close competitor)
which is competing with your brand which could serve as a
substitute in the same market.
You can choose any brand as the main competitor. The rule of
three years does not apply to the main competitor.
Suggested Format
Acquire following background information in terms of-
Start with Table of Contents; do not need to include an
executive summary and an introduction
1.
Market
– Section 1 200 words
- 200 words in a table format
- start with a short paragraph to introduce the brand; followed
by a table; for the main brand; do not need to cover any
information about the competitors
1.1. Size of market, market share, market position, depth and
breadth of product range, company’s principal product (or

3. products) in terms of features and benefits, positioning of the
product, product life cycle stage.
- You do not need to cover all these points above; only some
relevant points
2. Competitors
– Section 2 200 words
2.1
Number of direct
= main competitor that you will compare with the main brand in
the following part of the report
/ indirect
(another competitor; can be any brand that consumers might
consider buying)
competitors, size of competitors, positioning as low cost, niche
players
Start with a small paragraph to introduce these two competitors;
followed by a table (point form) (to compare the 4Ps (a brief
description only)
Product
e.g. brand image, product attributes in general
e.g. brand image, product attributes in general
Price
e.g. pricing strategy
e.g. pricing strategy
Promotion
e.g. advertising, sales promotion and online marketing etc.
e.g. advertising, sales promotion and online marketing etc.
Place
e.g. online and store retailing
e.g. online and store retailing

4. 3. Identification of Target Market(s):
Section 3 200 Words
For each of the two products (chosen
e.g. Toshiba
and competitor
LG)
identify-
3.1
Will be written for the chosen brand –
Who is (are) the
primary (i.e. current)
target market(s) for this product? Describe these segments in
terms of:
-d
emographics
: e.g.,
subculture, social class, family life cycle stage
,
age, gender, occupation, education etc.
-psychographic
:
personality
,
AIOs, (activities, interest, opinions – Ch. 12) = lifestyle
and/or
lifestyle
such as VALS2 or geodemographics, etc,
-behavioural
: benefits sought,
deal proneness, heavy usage,
etc.

5. Start with a small paragraph; followed by a table (point form);
you need to identify TWO current target segments that the
chosen brand and the main competitor is targeting
Our brand (strongbow)
Main competitor (Somersby)
Current segment 1
Current segment 2
Current segment 1
Current segment 2
Demographics
Age; gender; income
E.g. women, housewives, 25 – 40 years, middle class
E.g. women, working, 25 – 40 years, middle class
Could be very similar to strongbow
Psychographics
How they live – lifestyle (AIO)
= e.g. convenient lifestyle
Behavioural
Benefits they are looking for - e.g. Latest technology, energy
saving
e.g. favourable attitude toward Korean brand, cheaper
(Benefits)
3.2 Are there any
potential

6. market segments you would recommend for this product?
Describe these segments as above.
This section may be depicted in a table
You need to identify
ONE
potential market segment for e.g. chosen brand Toshiba and
main competitor LG; follow the same format used in 3.1
Strongbow
Main competitor (Somersby)
Potential segment
Potential segment
Potential
Single household
Single household
Demographics
Age; gender; income
Could be very similar to main brand
Psychographics
How they live – lifestyle
Behavioural
Benefits they are looking for
Select
one
target segment
profiled in question 3
Section 3.1
from your chosen product that is considered a
primary segment
.

7. Investigate and discuss
how the following influences impact upon this identified
segment and product/brand.
YOU NEED TO CHOOSE ONLY ONE PRIMARY TARGET
SEGMENT (e.g. Toshiba – you have chosen Current Primary
Segment 1 - housewives)
AND STATE CLEARWLY AT THE END OF SECTION 3 THE
CHOICE OF TARGET SEGMENT FOR SECTION 4 TO 8.
THEN YOU MUST WRITE THE FOLLOWING PARTS
BASED ON “Current Primary Segment 1 - housewives”
PRIMARY SEGMENT THAT YOU HAVE CHOSEN
SIMILARLY, YOU WILL ALSO CHOOSE “Current Primary
Segment 1 - housewives” FOR LG as the competitor brand
4. External Influences
Section 4 - you will write this part for the chosen brand (e.g.
Toshiba) - 600 words +/-
4.1 Culture and Subculture: Are the values upheld in the society
consistent with the consumption of the product? Does the
product appeal to a specific adopter category?
- Culture and Subculture: It must write this part based on
specific types of values – choose at least one of the following:
self-oriented; environment-oriented; other-oriented
- you need not cover all the components within the chosen
orientation, you may choose one or two components only.
- Product appeal to a specific adopter category: Choose one of
the following categories:
innovators, early adopters, early majority
4.2 Demographics: Is there an influence of age, gender,
socioeconomic influences upon consumption?
- Refer to Section 3.1; do not repeat info you have already
covered in 3.1 in this part but answer the question directly.
4.3 Group influence: Is there a reference group influence

8. element on this product category?
- Choose one of the following types:
informational; normative; identification influence
;
5. Internal Influences
Section 5 – 11; 800 words+/-
5.1 Needs and Motives: How readily is the product positioned to
satisfy different needs or motives? What needs are being met?
(E.g. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs)
; Choose at least
ONE type of needs from Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
; explain what it is and apply
5.2 Perception: What are the strategic implications of the
process of perception for marketers?
You need to cover these three stages –
exposure, attention, interpretation
; use an advertisement from online/ traditional source – e.g. can
be TV; YouTube or newspaper; must be shown in Singapore
before; analyse the ad
5.3 Learning: Given the profile of each segment, which
application of learning theories would be most relevant to use in
promotion? E.g.; reasoning versus operant conditioning?
Choose
one
of the following theories –
classical conditioning; operant conditioning; modelling;
reasoning
; explain the theory and apply to the case (how do consumers
learn about e.g. Toshiba)
5.4 Lifestyle- Does the product appeal to a particular lifestyle?

9. Is the product appropriate for one or more lifestyles?
Explain
AIO – activities, interest, opinions
(choose a few relevant points from AIO table)
- Refer to Section 3.1 – do not need to repeat the info here
; explain how lifestyle affects decision making
6. Consumer decision making processes:
Section 6
- 7; 600 words +/-
6.1 What
type and amount of information
about this product do its consumers use? How
involved
are they
(
low or high involvemen
)
? Which
level of decision making
are they in
(
habitual; limited; extended
decision – choose one)
? Would the brand be considered to be part of this segment’s
evoked set
?
(Use a flow chart to indicate how customers choose a brand;
Strongbow is the chosen brand in the
evoked set
; start with a chart and then follow by explanation)
6.2
How do consumers
evaluate

10. different brands in this product category? Which
evaluative criteria
are possibly used in making a purchase decision?
Identify a few criteria (e.g. price; country of origin) and explain
how consumers go through the choice.
6.3
How do consumers go about
shopping
for this product?
Identify how people make a purchase choice – choose one “
brand first; outlet second”; “outlet first; brand second”; or both
6.4
How likely is
post purchase
behaviour likely to occur? If so, how can it be
reduced? You need to start with the explanation of satisfaction
vs. dissatisfaction; you must explain what you can do to reduce
dissonance when customers are dissatisfied
6.5 How do consumers
dispose
of this product after its usage?
Suggest how customers can dispose the product (e.g. recycling)
6.6 Loyalty- Do
potential segments differ in their loyalty
to the existing product? Are brand-loyal purchases encouraged?
How?
REFER TO 3.2: you need to explain how likely this potential
segment (e.g. elderly) would use the product and become a loyal
customer

11. 7. Marketing Strategy
Section 7 600 words; you need to compare the chosen brand
(Strongbow) and the main competitor (Somersby)
7.1 Compare the marketing approach of
your chosen and a competitor’s product.
On the basis of your research, explain:
- How the firm’s
(Strongbow)
current marketing strategy can account for the product’s
success, and
- How the marketing mix supports a particular positioning
statement
This can be done in terms of comparing:
Marketing mix approach
Product – What characteristics of the physical product and or
service appeal to how the product is positioned for each
segment? Is the product considered an innovation? What
characteristics could possibly impede rapid diffusion?
Price – Is price considered an important evaluative criterion?
How readily would this segment respond to price reductions? Is
price relevant as an indicator of status?
Promotion –What values are important for each segment that
can be used in a communication strategy? What media is
currently used? How effective do you believe is this strategy?
Place- Do the different segments have differing requirements of
the distribution system? What type of distribution system is
consistent with the lifestyle(s) of each segment?
Start with a table to compare the 4Ps of the two brands (stated
above – answer as many questions as possible); then use the
information from the table to answer the first two questions

12. Strongbow
Somersby
Product
Product – What characteristics of the physical product and or
service appeal to how the product is positioned for each
segment? Is the product considered an innovation? What
characteristics could possibly impede rapid diffusion?
Product – What characteristics of the physical product and or
service appeal to how the product is positioned for each
segment? Is the product considered an innovation? What
characteristics could possibly impede rapid diffusion?
Price
Price – Is price considered an important evaluative criterion?
How readily would this segment respond to price reductions? Is
price relevant as an indicator of status?
Price – Is price considered an important evaluative criterion?
How readily would this segment respond to price reductions? Is
price relevant as an indicator of status?
Promotion
Promotion –What values are important for each segment that
can be used in a communication strategy? What media is
currently used? How effective do you believe is this strategy?
Promotion –What values are important for each segment that
can be used in a communication strategy? What media is
currently used? How effective do you believe is this strategy?
Place
Place- Do the different segments have differing requirements of
the distribution system? What type of distribution system is
consistent with the lifestyle(s) of each segment?
Place- Do the different segments have differing requirements of
the distribution system? What type of distribution system is
consistent with the lifestyle(s) of each segment?

13. Then you may answer / present the two questions
1
st
paragraph: whether the campaign is a success
- How the firm’s
(Strongbow)
current marketing strategy can account for the product’s
success, and
2
nd
paragraph: positioning statement - if the brand does not have a
positioning statement, you need to write one on behalf of them
How the marketing mix supports a particular positioning
statement
8. Evaluation and Recommendations
Section 8 700 words +/-
This section of your report should clearly assess each marketer's
application of knowledge of
consumer behaviour theory and principles
investigated in sections 4-6.
Choose
TWO
advertisements. One for the main brand Strongbow (can be the
same that you use under “perception”) and one for the main
competitor Somersby
Or
Compare
TWO marketing approaches
, but it would be more challenging.
You need to scan the image for submission within the report;
not in the appendices
Choose
TWO theories

14. (e.g. classical conditioning; reference group) and then compare
these two ads to decide
which ONE
is more effective (at the end of the comparison, you may
suggest the competitor’s ad is more effective)
On the basis of this evaluation, explain which of the two
marketing/advertising campaigns- that of your chosen product
and competitor’s product-the group considers is more effective
in contributing to the overall success of the product. Clearly
discuss and justify your reasons.
The evaluation should also include
future recommendations
for the company
- for the chosen brand only (Strongbow); follow strictly the
following headings;
do not change and add new points
product positioning
Marketing mix:
on product (goods and services) enhancements
improved marketing communications
improved purchase experience
identifying potential new customers
enhancing customer satisfaction
9. Conclusion -
100 words
A succinct overview of the report.

15. REFERENCES:
You must have at least TEN journal articles as in-text citation;
if not you might receive a PASS grade only (hint: i.e. start with
JOURNAL OF “XXXX”)
USE APA Referencing
Word count:
Include ALL TABLES within the report; do not format the table
as PDF
Exclude: table of contents; reference lists; headings and
subheadings; in-text citations
Appendices: should have the promotional materials only