Report on Marketing Plan for Microwave Oven.

1. Executive Summery
Micron is entering the growing market of microwave ovens. All though in US, the sales of “microwaves“
have been declining as nine out of every four households now have an oven‘: it is still a growing market
in many international markets as it is a tried and true technology and is greatly becoming one of the
standard kitchen appliances. Micron is targeting this kitchen appliance market in South-East Asia. and
also restaurants where microwaves have become a de- facto standard for heating foods- All though the
market leader Samsung has an edge, we believe we can compete because the unique features of our
product offering a more-for-less pricing.
Microwave Oven. as a consumer product. does not have much exposure in the Bangladeshi market. In
this country, most consumers tend to heat their food using gas stoves. Our objective is to make
consumers shift from stoves to microwave ovens as a primary way to heat tools. We hope while fulfilling
this objective. we will reach a 5% market share in the while achieving break-even by the year end.
The following marketing plan includes strategy based on 4P‘s of marketing- product, pricing. promotion,
and positioning. Focus has also been enforced upon advertisements and budgeting, since all companies
do worry about financial limitations even if the companies ar firmly established.
Microwave Oven. being a consumer product. is still in the growth stage in terms of usage and sales
although the market is already flooded with Chinese products. Every brand, even the cheapest ones,
knows what a customer desires and invests heavily on R&D to provide them with those necessities.
Therefore it’s rather difficult to select an area to focus. for gaining competitive advantage- Some top
brands, such as Samsung. Sanyo. etc, have already captured majority of the market and the rest are
occupied by the cheap Chinese brands.
In this situation. the new entrant possesses it’s own strengths in order to penetrate the market
successfully: ‘financial strength’ to spend heavily on research and R&D to find the proper loopholes and
‘creativity’ to communicate the product designed for the customer through extensive promotion in
order to capture the potential market and try to convince customers to shift to our product.
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2. Table of Contents
Table of Contents........................................................................................................................................2
1.2 SWOT Analysis.......................................................................................................................................3
1.3 Competitive Review...............................................................................................................................3
2.3.2 The Cost of Running the Advertisements on Different Media............................................................7
2.3.3 Message............................................................................................................................................10
2.3.5 Sales Promotion................................................................................................................................11
3.0 Measurement and Control..................................................................................................................12
4.0 Budgeting.............................................................................................................................................12
5.0 Conclusion...........................................................................................................................................13
1.0 Current Market Situation
Microwave Ovens, first introduced in the commercial market inl952 and gaining popularity since the mid
198os. have been growing to become a standard kitchen appliance in most households across the world.
However. the potential of growth still exists in the vastly untapped market of South-East Asia. Even in
the world market there are huge potential to export microwaves as the kitchen appliance market is
substantial. New households are formed everyday and each needs their own microwave. The entire
culture of TV dinner has been centered around these microwave ovens.
Micron, though a new company. is a well-funded startup with a unique selling proposition. We plan to
release a wave ofmicrowaves to penetrate all the major segments with several different features that will
vary with the price.
1.1 Market Description
Professional chefs have often complained that microwaves are not ideal for cooking as they are of limited
usefulness because browning. caramelization. and other flavour-enhancing reactions cannot occur due to
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3. the small temperature range. Specific segments targeted by Micron are consumers in the kitchen
appliance market as well as restaurants in need of quick reheating of foods.
Microwave Ovens come in various standard sizes. Micron plans to market their product in the three major
sizes. Furthennore. as technology cost decreases we can now add several value added features without
increasing the price. We believe that this will give us a competitive edge. We are also the first company
to use spare parts exclusively made in Bangladesh using the cheap labour it offers. The labours. however.
are highly supervised to ensure as higher quality then the Chinese counterparts. Attention has been paid
so our product requires little to no repairs. especially during the warrantee period of 3 years.
1.2 SWOT Analysis
1.3 Competitive Review
As noted before. Microwave Ovens have been around since 196os and have gained popularity to now
become a default kitchen appliance. Many well-reputed business have already an established market in
the microwave industry. Yet, it cannot be forgotten that this is still a growing market and as such,
penetration to this market is possible. Competition from such well established firms is a major factor to
consider.
A December I999 Consumer Reports study on microwave ovens supplies data about percent of "repairs
and serious problems" for microwave oven brands. This data was compared to the implicit price values
estimated in the final hedonic regression model for microwave ovens to see if consumer valuation of
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Strength Weakness
• Convection Heating methods which
combine traditional oven heating with
microwave. Completely new in
Bangladesh
• Value Pricing
• Lacking Brand Awareness and Image
Opportunities Threat
• Low cost even through more value added
add ons
• Increasing demand in the kitchen
appliance market as microwaves become a
necessary accessory.
• Entrance to a well established market will
result intense competition
• The well established brands may use
their market share as an advantage if
they decide to advertise

4. brand was consistent across studies. Of the eight brands included in the final hedonic model and the I2
brands included in the Consumer Report: study, six brands were common to both studies.
The following is an ordinal ranking of brand value for both studies results:
Consumer Reports Percent
of Repairs Brands
Hedonic brand
Variable
Ranking Ranking
1 Samsung Amana A
2 Sanyo General Electric B
3 Emerson Whirlpool C
4 General Electric Samsung D
5 Whirlpool Emerson E
6 Amana Sanyo F
Such reviews. unfortunately, is out-of-date. Bangladesh also does not have or provide secondary data to
the public or even carry out such reviews. As such. primary research was taken to analyze the countries
market. The biggest competitors are, in order:
1. Phillips - 34%
2. Sharp - 25%
3. Samsung - 14%
4. Moulinax - 12%
5. Sanyo - 7%
6. Others - 8%
1.4 Product Review
Our first product line of microwaves will come in three sizes. Compact, Medium capacity and large
capacity.
• Compact: A compact microwave. also called small, portable. or countertop, is the smallest type
of typically available consumer microwave. Compacts are the most popular size of microwave
oven. dominating the market. Ours will be 50 cm (18 inches) wide. 35 cm (14 inches) or deep and
30 cm (12 inches) or tall. These ovens will be rated as 700 watts of power and measure less than
28 litres (1 cubic foot) in capacity. These ovens are primarily used for reheating food and making
microwave meals and popcorn. These ovens are not made to cook large amounts of food.
Micron 1000 Compact is the cheapest product of the line targeting small fast food shops and
people in need of quick reheating, such as single youngs. (Market Segmentation described later)
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5. • Medium-capacity: These microwaves are larger than compact microwaves. Their heights and
depths are only marginally larger than compacts. but they will be 50 cm (20 inches) wide or
more. Their interiors will be 45 litres ( 1.0 and 1.5 cubic feet) and power runs at Io00 watts.
These are the standard "family" sized microwave. They will have a few more "auto-cook"
features. and incorporate grills. Micron I 100 Medium is targeted towards those who want to do
some cooking at home. typically a growing family.
• Large-capacity: These are big microwaves designed for cooking large meals. Large- capacity
ovens can handle 25x35 cm (9>< 13 inch) casserole dishes, and cook tall items like roasts or
turkey breast. with a large number of "auto-cook" and precise temperature control measures.
Large capacity ovens will use 2000 watts and have over 60 litres (2 cubic feet) of capacity. These
ovens will be 50 cm (20 inches) wide, 50 cm (20 inches) deep, and 30 cm ( 12 inches) high. This
size will come with additional features including combining them with convection cooking and
"top browning" elements that will brown
food (similar to the broiling function on an oven). This product offers the best value for
money.
Micron 1200 Large is targeted towards aspiring cooks, as well as fast-food and traditional food
shops.
Furthermore. add-ons for all the oven, such as grills and rotisseries will be available for sales
separately.
1.5 Distribution Review
Micron brand of microwaves will be distributed through a network of retailers in the electronic markets
around Bangladesh. specifically Dhaka and Chittagong. Our partners will incorporate some major
electronic specialty store from the shopping malls to "Stadium“.
Although distribution will be limited primarily only in Bangladesh. we plan to expand to India in beyond
from the third quarter of the year. We also plan to experiment sales using e- commerce. which has yet to
gain traction in the sub-continent.
Trade promotion will be provided for the first year to all our retailers in the first year. We are hopeful that
this will allow them to stock more of our goods.
2.0 Marketing Strategy
Microns primary marketing strategy will be to through extensive promotion to create demand for a yet
properly untapped market. Our consumer targets have been discussed above in Market Segmentation. The
primary consumers are households. but we are also targeting fast- food shops with our more expensive
Micron 1200 model.
2.1 Market segmentation
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6. Market segmentation is necessary. which is dividing a market into distinct groups of buyers with different
needs. or behavior who might require separate products or marketing mixes. Of the four levels of micro
marketing (segment. niche. local and individual). we shall use ‘segment marketing’. In today‘s world. it
has become necessary to divide the market using several such segmentation techniques. And we will use
four.
• Geographical Segmentation: Urban and suburban regions ol‘Bangladesh. Notably. But not
limited to Dhaka and Chittagong.
• Demographic Segmentation: We are targeting people with a stable income of over 20.000 taka.
• Life-stage Segmentation: Our Micron 1000 model is targeted to single young people and newly
married young couples. Micron I 100 is targeted towards Full Nest 1 (youngest child under 6) and
2 (youngest child six or over), while Micron 1200 is for Full Nest 3 (older married couple with
dependent children) and Empty Nest (older married couple with no children living at home).
• Behavioral Segmentation: Micron 1200 will be most useful for heavy users whereas the Micron
1000 for light users. The 1200 model will also be advertised heavily during Eid and other special
occasions where convection heating (a feature often found in traditional ovens) will be most
desired.
Such segments obviously overlap, but that is not undesirable at all. In fact, that will target our prospective
customers with even more precision.
For example, a new couple with over 20,000 taka monthly income around Eid will be more prospective
then without any one of the criteria.
Of course we are targeting more then just consumers. We also found that more and more fast food shops
are popping up all over the country and they are need of quick reheating of the foods. Micron 1200 has
been built just for such a kind of heavy usage.
2.2 Research and surveys
A primary data research was executed in order to denote current customer preferences in order to design a
complete product for them. It has been found that as a new participator in the market competition, we
should provide a complete package to the customer. Talking in management language. all the features to
focus on, mentioned above, has become hygiene factors for the customers, they have knowledge about
oven and have already chosen their loyalty; therefore the product designed should provide differentiated
needs of the customers by providing a complete package. People today are more concerned about
artificial chemical usage; green revolution is showing its colours.
2.3 Promotion Strategy
To accomplish a task. it is important to decide the objective first. Likewise. the objective of this mix was
decided in the very beginning. Objective is defined as a specific communication task and achievement
level to be accomplished with a specific audience with a specific period of time. Objective could be of
four types. It could be informative. persuasive. reminding. Or reinforcing. In this stage it has to be
decided that what type of objective to follow.
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7. For this oven brand. informative objective has to be followed. Since the brand is new in the market. so
this approach will be appropriate for the introductory stage. The aim of such (informative) advertising is
to create awareness and knowledge among the customers so that the new brand can occupy a space in the
market. as well as in consumers‘ mind where lots of other oven brands have already taken place. So it is
the marketer’s first approach to make consumers aware about this brand and inspire them to go for it.
We intend to try an experimental approach for this particular product. because the customers are erudite
about typical oven, thus. we shall place our advertisement in such a way. that it appears that it had existed
in the market forever. This might assist in gaining loyalty faster.
We have also hired a creative agency well known to produce creative advertising in Bangladesh, such as
ads of GrameenPhone. We are confident that they will provide us with eye- catching advertisement that
will help us enter the market (as of now. no microwave oven retailers advertise their product in
Bangladesh).
As said earlier, we will be focusing on an intense advertisement campaign. As such, more details are as
follows.
2.3.1 Advertisement Costs
Television Commercial
An estimated cost for making it:
• Dhoni chitro' (a well established studio) charges Tk 875 per hour
• Amitabh Reza (a famous ad maker) charges 7-8 lac, including editing and shooting. etc.
Print Advertisement
An estimated cost for making it:
Since the company personnel will be doing it so we are assuming that the cost involved in making a print
advertisement will be minimal
2.3.2 The Cost of Running the Advertisements on Different
Media
Channel Time Advertising cost ( for 1Week) Cost 1st
Month
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8. Channel I Weekdays (on Saturday between For news.
256500
10-30 to ll-00 news. Monday 0 Weekdays (22,50ox3)
between 10-30 to 11-00 and + (24.00ox3)
Wednesday betweenlo-30 to I I 139.500
news) Weekends (22,50ox2)
Weekends (on Friday. and + (24.00ox2) = 93,000
Saturday from 7-30 to 8-00 news)
Mid breaks in 9 o clock For a TV program.
programs on weekends (on 12000 X 2 = 24000
Friday. and Saturday)
Bangla Vision Weekdayg (on Sunday b¢[w¢¢n For news.
198000
10-30 to ll-00 news. Tuesday Weekdays
between 10-30 to 11-00 and (l3500X3)+(22500X
Thursday between 10-3010 ll 3) = 108000
IICWS) Weekends
Weekends (on Friday. and (l3500X2)+(22500X
Saturday from 7-30 to 8-00 news) 2) = 72000
Mid breaks in 9 o clock
programs on weekends (on For a TV program,
Friday, and Saturday) 9000 = 18000
Table I: Electronic Media (First Month Ads-miumem Budget)
Total advertising budget for 151 month in television = Tk. 454.500
Channel Time Advertising cost ( for 1Week) Cost 2nd
Month
Channel i Weekends (on Friday. and For news. 1 17,000
Saturday from 7-30 to 8-00
news) Weekends (22500X2)
(24000X2) = 93000
Mid breaks in 9 o’ clock
programs onweekends (on For program.
Friday and Saturday) 12000 X 2= 24000
Bangla Vision Weekends [on Friday. and For news. 90.000
Saturday from 7-30 to 8-00
news)
Weekends
13500X2)+(22500X20=
Mid breaks in 9 o clock 72000
programs onweekends
(on Friday. and Saturday) For program.
9000 X 2 = 18000
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9. Table 2: : Electronic Media (Second Month Advertisement Budget)
Total advertising budget for 1st month in television = Tk. 207.000
Newspaper Position Number of times
ad insert
Rate Cost for 1st
Month
The Daily Star 3rd Page, 8 Col 8
Inch 4 color
4 days in a month
on Sundays
Tk. 4000 per inch
per column So
Tk.256000 per 1
day
1,024,000
The Daily Star
weekend
Magzine
Back Cover On Friday 4 days
in a month
30,000 per issue 120,000
The Daily Prothom
Alo
First Page. 8 inch 8
column
On Thursdays 4
days in a month
Tk.6500 per inch
per column So
6500 X 64 = Tk.
416,000 per day
1,664,000
Table 4: Print Media (First Month Advertisement Budget)
Total advertising budget for 1st month in newspaper and magazine = Tk. 2,808,000
Table 4: Print Media (Second Month Advertisement nudgctt
Total advertising budget for 2nd month in newspaper and magazine = Tk. 320,000
Radio Station Timing Number of times
as plays
Rate Total Cost for1st
month
Radio
Today
Between 12 pm to
6 am for 30-50 sec
4 days in a week
(Sun-Tue and
Fri)- it will be
played once per
day
Tk
37000 for the
whole package
Tk
37000
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Newspaper Position Number of times
ad insert
Rate Cost for 1st
Month
The Daily Star
weekend
Magzine
Back Cover On Friday 4 days in
a month
30000 per issue 120000
The Daily Prothom
Alo
Sports page 5
column 5 inch
On Sundays 4 days
in a month
Tk.2000 per inch
per column so
2000 X 25=
Tk. 50000 per day
200000

10. Table 5: Radio Commercial (First month budget)
Here. we have only mentioned the cost ofrunning advertisement for the first and second
month. We didn’t put the cost of third month onwards because we have decided not to allocate a
fixed sum of money for running the ad from then. We would observe the response of consumers
and. based on that, decide the amount of money to be allocated for advertisement purpose.
2.3.3 Message
The message of the advertising has been developed following a creative strategy. The steps of the ad (as
followed in this IMC mix) are as follows:
Message Generation
There are several ways of generating the advertising message, such as emphasizing on a single benefit,
developing a character, or developing a story. For this advertisement. Housewives can be shown
demonstrating how easy the microwave oven is in using and how reliable they are. Along with the
mentioning of low price, the demonstration should be informative since it is a new product and awareness
needs to be created.
Message Evaluation and Selection
• Positioning statement: Key message: Till date we have decided on ‘Micron Microwave Oven,
pours delight upon food’. The creative process shall persist till the morning of presentation in
order to strive for excellence.
• Target audience: Male and female population from urban. and sub-urban middle, class
and above population-
• Benefits to promise: It is an easy-to-use, powerful and reliable oven-
• Media to be used: Broadcast (television, print (newspaper. magazines)
• Message Execution: F or the advertisement of this oven emotional positioning will be
done. It means there won’t be any explicit information in the TV commercial, but in the
radio and print media shall provide the rational information (Convection Heating, Made
with “green" materials, uses low voltage).
Message execution style would be “combination" of different moments of life. shall be
depicted to stir the emotions-
• Order ofpresentation: the most important message (the benefits) is placed in the last part
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11. of the ad.
• Conclusion drawing: For the teaser ad. leave it to the audience. But for the complete
advertisement, conclusion would be drawn. Since audience size is large but the product is
targeted toward the educated (assumed) class, the message shall not be too explicit. The
audience is expected to be self motivated.
• Message sidedness: One sided argument would be placed.
• Message appeal: Emotional appeal is followed here.
2.3.4 Media
A medium is considered as the general category of available delivery system. It includes broadcast media.
print media. and direct mail and so on. For marketing Micron, these three types ofmedia (broadcast. print.
direct mail) are to be used. The manner. how it would be telecasted in different channels and radio station.
published in newspapers and magazine, has been discussed in detail in the budgeting section.
2.3.5 Sales Promotion
To increase our sales and exposure of our product we have decided to carry on certain sales promotion
activities.
• Coupons: Offering coupons to customers which will give them 5% off if they take the coupons to
the stores. The coupons will be attached at the bottom of our print ads and when consumers tear
off the coupons and take them to the stores they can get 5% off on Micron Microwave Oven
• Kiosk Marketing: We also decided to carry on Kiosk Marketing. We will have our sales
personnel in the big super shops like Agora. Nandan. PQS and they will tell customers about our
product and company. Moreover, they will distribute our free samples and coupons to get
attention ofour newly launched product. certain other activities will be conducted through this
marketing like giving solutions to grooming problem of men. health tips etc.
• Push sales': For retailers. we will also have to practice push sales with a high markup pricing in
order to occupy maximum shelf space. It will encourage the retailers to promote our brand
because of their own advantage.
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Broadcast Media- Television Channel i
Broadcast Media- Radio Radio Today
Print Media- Newspaper The Daily Star.
Prothom Alo
Print Media- Magazine Star Weekend
Magazine
Direct Mail Personnel of the
company

12. 3.0 Measurement and Control
First. the level of advertisement in different media and the volume of sales should be measured.
Questionnaires could be given in different stores and shopping malls to find out the current condition of
product in the market. Also questionnaire could be given to the people of target audience to find out their
response about the product. Information like, whether they recognize or recall the message, how many
times they saw it. what points they recall. how they feel about the message. their previous and current
attitude towards the product and company etc. could be found through the questionnaires. If it is observed
that, the rate of sales is satisfactory because of advertisement, then it is to be assumed that. the product is
doing well in the market.
Again control means comparing the actual and desired state ofaffairs and take steps if these two
mismatch. [fit is seen that the product is not doing that good in the market regardless ofof the
advertisement, everything has to be checked and, if possible, redesigned regarding the advertisement and
find out where the problem is. Finally. corrective steps have to be taken to make the position as preferred
4.0 Budgeting
Several factors will have to be considered while deciding the budget for the following
project:
• Stage in Product Life Cycle: The product is in the “introduction“ stage in PLC. Since it is a new
product. a large amount ofbudget should be allocated for advertisement to build consumer
awareness. It has to be done to gain consumer tryout.
• Market share and consumer base: As the product has to build market share or to take market
shares from competitors, it requires large advertising spending in order to achieve it.
• Compemion and clutter: There are a lot ofoven brands. i.e. competitors in the market. Again.
there are numerous advertisements on oven. So it requires quite a large expenditure.
• Advertising frequency: The aim of the advertisement is to aware consumers and to create the
interest in consumers‘ mind. In order to do that, the ad should be repeatedly telecasted on
different media. for which large advertisement budget should be allocated.
• Product sustainability: Oven is a commodity type product. thus it requires creating a level
ofdifference in terms of representation. Therefore it requires a heavy investment on
advertisement.
4.1 Pricing Strategy
The Micron Microwave Oven product line will target a more or less approach to pricing. Thanks to
decreasing technology cost. cheap Bangladeshi labour and local materials, we would by default have a
cost benefit. With rigorous cost control we have bought down our cost substantially while. thanks to
quality control circles. maintain a quality of product that consumers expect being surrounded by big name
brands such as Samsung and Phillips. Furthermore. a trade discount for the first year has been announced
to all channel partners which will hopefully help us create an initial demand. We hope that our low
pricing. coupled with a three year warrantee. will give us the edge over the international brands and
eventually take them over. Micron 1000 starts at 7,000 Taka MRP in a market where the cheapest
Samsung product is 8.500 Taka.
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13. 5.0 Conclusion
We realize that the above marketing plan focuses mostly on advertising and promotion, however, that has
to do with our belief that a new product should be extensively advertised in a new market. However. we
all know that first year is all about gaining market share and not about prolit. We believe that Micron can
achieve the highest possible market share and build a great brand image while maintaining break-even
provided the guidelines are being followed.
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