Assignment 2 Part B Your Marketing Plan Due Week 6 and worth 240.docx

Assignment 2: Part B: Your Marketing Plan Due Week 6 and
worth 240 points
From the start of this course, you have accessed the Interactive
Marketing Plan tool and used the
step-by-step guide to complete Part B of your marketing plan.
You are required to submit a marketing plan for a hypothetical
product-based company. Your plan must include the company’s
mission, introduction and branding, and information collected
from Step 5 of the Interactive Marketing Plan, located in the
course shell. Note: Some elements may not be covered in the
Interactive Marketing Plan and will require additional research.
Note: You may create and /or make all necessary assumptions
needed for the completion of this assignment.
Write a four to five (4-5) page paper in which you:
2. Develop a branding strategy for your product that covers the
brand name, logo, slogan, and at least one (1) brand extension.
3. Develop a marketing strategy for your product and determine
an appropriate time table for execution of the plan (e.g., phase
1, phase 2, etc.). Provide a rationale for your response. 4.
Develop a positioning statement which should include, at a
minimum, a benefit, user, competitive, or innovative statement
about your product. Provide a rationale for your time frame for
execution of your positioning statement.
5. Examine the relevant marketing science of customer behavior

for your product. 6. Develop your company’s mission statement
and company introduction. 7. Use at least three (3) academic
resources as quantitative marketing research to determine the
feasibility of your product / service. These resources should be
industry specific and relate to your chosen product / service.
Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not qualify as academic
resources.
Your assignment mus
Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size
12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references
must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your
professor for any additional in
page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name,
the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover
page and the reference page are not included in the required
assignment page length.
Sample instructions:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
MKT500 Assignment #2

Executive Summary Placeholder
Regardless of what the Grading Rubric for Assignments 1 and 2
ask for, one cannot write an Executive Summary until the plan

is complete. That being the case, just use the first page of
Assignments 1 and 2 as a placeholder for the Executive
Summary. Assignment 3 is where you will come back, after you
have completed it, and write the Executive Summary. If this
placeholder is in your Assignments 1 and 2 , you will receive
the points for it. If there is no placeholder, you will receive no
points.
If you have the placeholder in Assignments 1 and 2, then on
Assignment 3, because there is no Executive Summary required,
if you put it in then, I will “give back” no more than 54 points
on the other sections in Assignment 3 that you might have been
“weak” on.

Endure Heavy Duty Aluminum Doors and Frames is a
manufacturer of aluminum doors and frames. These items are
supplied for water and wastewater treatment plants, schools,
and other locations where corrosion from water or other
chemicals is a threat; and where a strong, pre-finished opening
is desired.
Branding Strategy
Endure Heavy Duty Aluminum Doors and Frames has been in
the marketplace since the mid 1950’s. The logo is the word
ENDURE with a little bit of a slant to the right, and all block
capital letters. The letters are in a Reflex Blue, and the logo is
set on a white background. Because the logo is so old, and has
been in use so long, it is well recognized in the architectural,
engineering, and construction industries. Because the firm has
been in business so long, and has developed a reputation for
being able to “solve” any opening (i.e., door) opportunity, many
architects, engineers, and contractors will routinely send in
pictures and requests for help, which allows a large portion of
the business to be obtained direct, versus having to go through
an Invitation to Bid bidding procedure. The brand slogan used
with these customers is “Our standard is custom”, meaning that
while we offer standard sizes, we also do a lot of custom size
products that no other door manufacturer will take on. A brand
extension Endure Heavy Duty Aluminum Doors and Frames will
take on is including the specified door hardware as part of our
quotation to customers. This would make the company a “one-
stop shop” for the aluminum doors and frames, as well as all of
the specified door hardware for the project.
Marketing Strategy

The marketing strategy for 2015 will be to attend five trade
shows; hire seven manufacturer representatives; have Google ad
words; put on six webinars regarding all of the products
currently being sold. The trade shows are national and include
architects, engineers, water and wastewater treatment, schools,
and representatives. Each show will have members of our
market segment attending, except for the last one, where we
hope to meet additional representatives. Manufacturer
representatives have 4-6 products that they market to architects
and engineers. By hiring these commission-only representatives,
the hope is to complement the existing representatives, and have
full coverage in the continental U.S. and Hawaii. The Google ad
words will be used to end up on the first page of any search
being done for the words chosen. The webinars will be content
full, and introduce the architects and engineers to the full scope
of the firm’s capability.
January, 2015 - Interview reps and choose
February, 2015 - Trade Show; Interview reps and choose; Start
Google ad words; Webinar
March, 2015 - Interview reps and choose; Evaluate ad words
April, 2015 - Interview reps and choose; Evaluate ad words;
Webinar
May, 2015 - Trade Show; Interview reps and choose; Evaluate
ad words
June, 2015 - Trade Show; Interview reps and choose; Evaluate
ad words; Webinar

July, 2015 - Evaluate ad words
August, 2015 - Trade Show; Evaluate ad words; Webinar
September, 2015 - Trade Show; Evaluate ad words
October, 2015 - Evaluate ad words; Webinar
November, 2015 - Evaluate ad words
December, 2015 - Evaluate ad words; Webinar
Positioning Statement
For general contractors, glazing contractors, and hardware
suppliers, Endure Heavy Duty Aluminum Doors and Frames will
have superior customer service; ship freight pre-paid to
destination; and handle all types of custom door jobs. Endure
Heavy Duty Aluminum Doors and Frames is the main supplier
of aluminum doors and frames to the overwhelming majority of
water and wastewater treatment plants. Our custom aluminum
door promises to have a lifetime guarantee.
(Note that the above was generated from the ecornell marketing
positioning generator at
http://blog.ecornell.com/how-to-write-market-positioning-
statements/
and recommended for you to use as well!).
The positioning statement was executed at the same time as
when the business started.
Relevant Marketing Science
Ariberg, Arora, and Bodur (2002) suggest that a member’s
influence in a group's decision could be decomposed into two

distinct elements of preference revision and concession. The
degree of preference revision and concession varies across
product attributes, individuals, and product categories.
To look at it from the buyer’s perspective,
two possible strategies to maximize satisfaction with a joint
purchase (involving, for example, a piece of furniture, an
appliance, or an automobile): preference revision and
concession reciprocity. Preference revision as a strategy refers
to an active effort by a buyer to update own preferences in light
of what others in the group like or dislike. Such a strategy
advocates the need for careful comprehension of others'
preferences and, in response, a flexibility to adjust own
preference. By adopting preference revision as a strategy, a
member decreases the need to concede, thus increasing the odds
of “buying into” the joint decision. Concession reciprocity, in
contrast, suggests the need to sacrifice own preference in
response to a sacrifice made by others. This strategy encourages
both members to be fair in their give-and-take, because such
fairness is likely to result in higher post-decision satisfaction.
Bearden and Etzel (1982) found that when respondents were
faced with a single decision type (e.g., product versus brand),
the decision factor was only significant for informational group
influence. However, the absolute values were consistently
greater for brand choices as opposed to product choice
decisions. This suggests a greater role for appeals based on
reference groups in stimulating selective demand. Variations in
the sets of products selected affected perceptions of value-
expressive and utilitarian reference group influence. The
absence of significant informational reference group effects
suggests consistent information seeking by individuals across
similar types of products.
Boulding and Kirmani (1993) research whether consumers
perceived warranties as signals of quality. Signaling theory

emerged from the study of information economics under
conditions in which buyers and sellers possess asymmetric
information when facing a market interaction. For example,
whereas sellers know their true product quality prior to the sale,
buyers may not if these products contain experience properties.
Experience properties, such as the durability of a shoe or the
reliability of a personal computer, can only be assessed during
consumption. They found consistent evidence that consumer
responses to better warranties are compatible with the existence
of a separating equilibrium under conditions of high bond
credibility. The results indicate that firms could offer either a
long or short warranty, but a longer warranty would not be a
signal of quality. There is also strong evidence that the high
warranty is beneficial only to the high-credibility firm and not
to the low-credibility firm.
Gerstner (1985) found results that suggest that for many
products the relation between quality and price is weak; hence,
for many products, higher prices appear to be poor signals of
higher quality. The findings also indicate that quality-price
relations are product-specific, with frequently purchased items
displaying weaker relations than non-frequently purchased
items. Two explanations for these findings are suggested. First,
the weaker relationship for frequently purchased products could
be attributed to the fact that non-frequently purchased items
usually are more expensive and big-ticket markets are more
likely to behave because the financial commitment of customers
is substantial. It has been shown that products with higher ticket
prices display stronger price-quality relationship than do
frequently purchased items. Second, the weaker price-quality
relationship could be caused by size variations across brands,
which make price- quantity and price-quality comparisons more
difficult. It has been shown that higher unit prices may signal
non-economical packages rather than higher quality.

Mission Statement and Company Introduction
Endure Heavy Duty Aluminum Doors and Frames is in business
to secure a long-term future for the owner and his family. For
our customers, we want to be the aluminum door and frame
manufacturer who they can rely on for a quality product,
delivered on time and freight pre-paid, and with excellent
customer service when they need it. For our suppliers, we want
to be a valued customer, and we want them to be valued
stakeholders in our company.
Endure Heavy Duty Aluminum Doors and Frames is a
manufacturer of aluminum doors and frames. These items are
supplied for water and wastewater treatment plants, schools,
and other locations where corrosion from water or other
chemicals is a threat; and where a strong, pre-finished opening
is desired.
(Note that this is simply a repeat from the beginning of
Assignments 1 and 2).

References
Aribarg, A., Arora, N., & Bodur, H. O. (2002, Aug).
Understanding the role of
preference revision and concession in group decisions
. Journal of Marketing
Research, 39(3), 336.
Bearden, W. O., & Etzel, M. J. (1982, Sep).
Reference group influence on
product and brand purchase decisions
. Journal of Consumer Research, 9(2),
183.
Boulding, W., & Kirmani, A. (1993, Jun).
A consumer-side experimental
examination of signaling theory: Do consumers perceive

warranties as signals of
quality?
Journal of Consumer Research, 20(10), 111.
Gerstner, E. (1985, May).
Do higher prices signal higher quality?
Journal of
Marketing Research, 22(2), 209.
First Assignment:
Assignment #1
Part A: Marketing Plan/ Paradise Cookware
xxxxxxx
xxxxxxx
xxxxxxxx
MKT 500, Online
10/02/2014

Introduction
The “Paradise Cookware” company has been in this business
since the year of 1979. They have been making cookware at a
place called the Prince Edwards Islands, which is located in
Canada and Charleston, S.C. The company designs and produces
cookware specifically for people in North America. This
company offers pans, pots, and a lot of different cookware types
for not only individual clients but also for corporate clients
Executive Summary Placeholder
This “Paradise Cookware” company is a company that is in the
lead with a luxury type segment of cookware in not only United
States but Canada too. The positioning strategy will be based on
the emphasis of nothing but quality products while at the same
time these products will be higher among comparable items.

Environmental Analysis
Competitive forces: These products are available with a big
variety of all types of cookware. They are available in both the
United States and Canada. Within this cookware group, there
are about 216 brands that are available at retail through
Cookware manufacturers association (Cookware manufacturers
association, 2014). A Vast majority of companies operate at
several segments of the market simultaneously.
Economic forces:
We know from research that all cookware and kitchen stores
within this industry has been faced with a large number of
declines. This is because of the recession that we faced which
caused the decrease in disposable incomes of customers.
Looking at the time frame of about 2014 to 2018, we see that
the revenue is expected to grow bigger as consumers go forth
with increasing their spending on luxury industry products
(IBIS World, 2013).
Political forces: The increase in export-import operations
because of changes of the trade regulations between the United
States and some of the world’s largest manufacturers of
cookware (like China). Cookware, manufactured in the USA and
Canada are at a competitive disadvantage with respect to the
ones that are manufactured overseas. The luxury segment of the

market is estimated to be way less vulnerable to this trend as
the other segments are.
Legal and regulatory forces: These products comply with the
U.S. and Canadian safety guidelines. The tort liability of the
company is very ensured.
Technological forces: These products are manufactured with the
utmost regards to technology that is advanced in the cookware
field of manufacturing. The company is also monitored
thoroughly with the development of the industry-related
technologies.
Socio-cultural forces: Paradise Cookware will be responsive to
its target commitment with having products that are of a high
quality and its label “made in USA”. Techniques that are green
will also be used.
The Target Market
The primary target market for this company would have to be
females within the ages of 40-60. They will more than likely not
have a job so that they are able to dedicate a large amount of
their time to work around the house. Women that truly value a
products quality and reliability will view the “Paradise
Cookware” as an investment. Other types of customers that
would be included with this company’s primary target would
include market and corporate clients. This would be hotels and
restaurants. A Secondary market would include women in the
age range of 20-35. They would have to be employed or busy
with housework and trend toward premium brands.

Performance Analysis
In the context of the assignment, performance analysis is
similar to return-on-investment (ROI) that is calculated as
follows: (gain from the investment-cost of investment)/cost of
investment.
By knowing the benchmarking percentage, we will be able to
transfer to the analysis of each of the metrics in order to
compare the performance of the company to the performance of
its closest competitor, namely Paderno.
Customer engagement is the metrics that is characterized
through several other metrics, namely activity time and visit
frequency (with regard to websites). The average number of
visitors of the website of our company during a day is around
1500 people, while the average number of visitors of Padernos
website is about 4000 people.
1500/4000=0.375.
The number of Paderno website visitors exceeds the number of
our unique visitors by 72.5 per cent.
Let us suggest that while the retention rate of the visitors of our
company’s website was 30 per cent on January, the first, 2014,
and on January, the fifteenth it was 50 per cent, while retention
rate at Paderno company website was 50 per cent and 70 per
cent respectively.
(50%-30%)/30%=0.6=60% - increase in retention rate

(70%-50%)/50%=0.4=40% - increase in retention rate
The number of website visitors can to great extent determine the
revenue of the company due to the fact that all the products by
both companies can be purchased on line through their official
websites.
The market share is classical metrics, used in performance
analysis. Paderno is still the leader of the market, enjoying the
market share of 22%. In 2013 its market share increased by 1
per cent (from 22 to 32 per cent), while the market share of the
“Paradise Cookware” increased from 11 to 15 per cent.
(23-22)/22=0.0045=4.5%
(15-11)/11=0.36=36%
The fact of growth can be explained by the introduction of
several new distribution channels into the operation of the
company last year, while, being confident in its leading position
at the market, Paderno preferred not to introduce any changes to
its strategies.
The rate of adoption can be defined as the relative speed that
characterizes the process of social system’s members’ adopting
an innovation. The factors that influence adoption rate include
relative advantage (the degree of innovation’s improvement as
compared with the previous generation) compatibility,
complexity, trial-ability, as well as observability. In 2013
Paderno and the “Paradise Cookware” introduced similar new
products. They were cookware sets, consisting of several

cooking pans, steamers and covers. The adoption rate of
Paderno new product was estimated to be up to 10 per cent
higher than the one of the cookware set, introduced by the
“Paradise Cookware”. The difference can be explained by the
fact that Paderno aims at establishing long-term contractual
relations with corporate clients, and offers new products to
them as soon as they get to the market, while the “Paradise
Cookware” still concentrates on communicating non-corporate
clients.
Analysis of such metrics as the number of web site's visitors,
their engagement (via retention rate), the market share and the
level of new product’s adoption rates shows that the
performance of the “Paradise Cookware” is in considerable need
of improvement that will help the company maintain its market
share without introducing so large-scale changes as the
introduction of new distribution channels.
Four quantitative goals for the next stage of company’s
development are as follows:
Increase the number of unique visitors of the company from 3.5.
million people to 5 million
Increase the number of repeated visits to the website from 20 to
50%
Maintain the market share at the level of 15%
Expand to 2-4 new markets in Europe and North America
Four qualitative goals may include:
Strengthen communication between the brand and consumers,
and among consumers through the website of the company
Create more attractive and customers’ needs-based design of the
website
Elaborate on the program, aimed at promoting the establishment

of long-term contractual relationships between the company and
the consumer.
Increase trial-ability and observability of the company’s new
products, so that they get higher rate of adoption
Product’s SWOT Analysis
SWOT analysis represents a type of extensive needs analysis,
and is aimed at singling out strengths, weaknesses, threats and
opportunities related to the product (in our case: to the
cookware)
S:
High quality
Being produced with the help of green manufacturing methods
Providing 25+ years warranty to reaffirm the company’s
confidence in the quality
Meeting needs of both individual and corporate clients
W:
Narrow market segment (orientation on luxury segment only)
The lack of product-related communication
The lack of long-term relations with corporate clients
High prices that do not become subjected to any types of
discounts
O:
Entering new segments of the market
Creating different types of cookware sets
Orientation on corporate clients
Improving product-related communication
T:
Significant level of competitive rivalry among the U.S. and
Canadian cookware manufacturers
Increase in import of cookware from China
Decrease in consumers’ spending on cookware
High costs of developing new products that will have
considerable advantages as compared with previous generation

of products
SWOT analysis shows that despite the company’s products’
high quality and the usage of green manufacturing techniques,
product’s marketing mix is characterized with considerable
range of weaknesses related to pricing and promotion. The
observation of both weaknesses and threats makes it necessary
to reconsider the market segment the company is currently
operating within with respect to current state of competition at
the market and the opportunities related to starting multi
segment approach. Furthermore, promotion- and pricing-related
challenges need to be addressed in the light of the need of
improving communication with current segment of operation
and the opportunity to enter a new one.
References

Baron. R., Shane, S. (2007).
Entrepreneurship: a process perspective.
Mason, OH: Cengage Learning
Cookware manufacturers association (2013).
Brand finder
. Retrieved from:
http://www.cookware.org/
Iacobucci, D. (2014).
MM4, Marketing Management
. Mason, OH: Cengage Learning
IBIS World (2013).
Kitchen cookware stores in the U.S.: market research report
. Retrieved from:
http://www.ibisworld.com/industry/kitchen-cookware-
stores.html
Kahn, K. (2011).
Product planning essentials.
NY: M.E.Sharpe
Nicholas, J.M. (2004).
Project management for business and engineering: principles
and practice.
Oxford: Elsevier
Stevens, R.E., Sherwood, P.K. (1982).
How to prepare a quality feasibility study: a step-by-step guide.
NY: Prentice Hall

Assignment 2 Part B Your Marketing Plan Due Week 6 and worth 240.docx

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