Purpose or Overview

 To develop understanding of marketing management tasks and of how marketing fits into other business functions within an organisation

• Use research information and apply marketing concepts to propose ethical, creative solutions

Detailed Assignment instructions

Assignment Overview 

First, as a group you will decide on what industry and product category you would like to focus. Each group member will then choose a brand within that category and do a report on that brand. This will be your Assignment 2.

Part a. Individual Brand Report.

In Assignment 2 you will work alone to analyse one brand within the product category chosen by your Group.

Companies are always trying to stay up to date with what is going on in the market, and the strategies of their competitors. Assignment 2 is where you conduct this “marketing intelligence” exercise. Then, in Assignment 3, you will work with your fellow Group members to compare and contrast the brands that you and your fellow Group members analysed in Assignment 2.

As soon as the group is formed you will need to choose one from the following product categories available on Canvas under the Assignment 2 tab. Your Group must choose a specific product category and then choose brands that directly compete with one another.

For example: within the Pasta, Cereal and Baking Mix industry you must choose one of the categories, such as “baking mix” and then a specific product category such as “cake mix” or “biscuit mix”.

We have given you IBISWorld industry reports to get started in finding information. Further industry information is available from the Library > Search > Subject Guides > Login to Canvas > Business & Law > Marketing & Advertising > Other Sources – Euromonitor Passport, Factiva, and Marketline in addition to IBISWorld.

Choosing your brand: - You are analysing the brand, not the company.

• Each Group member will choose a separate brand within the same product category. Some companies own more than one brand in the same category, with different brands targeting different consumer Preferably, choose brands owned by different companies. However you can choose brands offered by the same company if they are aimed at entirely different consumer segments (for example, Maybelline and Lancome are both owned by L’Oréal, but they target completely different segments, and so have different brand identities).
• Coordinate with your groupmates to choose brands that target as different consumers as possible. For example, if one person chooses a perfume brand that is low-end and targets adolescent males, then another could do a high-end perfume brand targeting mature

Fig 1. A company may have multiple brands in multiple categories, as this OXFAM 2012 report shows.

From: http://todayilearned.co.uk

You will coordinate with your team, but each will work on their respective brand individually.

Report content

The brand report must contain:

1. A summary of the brand with relevant background information of its presence in Australia. This may include (but not limited to) things such as the brand’s history in Australia, market size, recent performance trends, and other relevant marketing information. The analysis should also include a display of all relevant offerings (sub-brands, product lines, variants, brand positioning) that the brand (or its parent company) has in the product category that you have chosen. You should also present an overview analysis of the *Marketing Mix (“the 4Ps”)
2. An application of the Three Levels Theory – (Core/Essence, Actual and Augmented) of your
3. An analysis of at least one macro and one micro environmental factor using the SIP-CCC & DENT-PC framework that currently has the largest impact for your brand in Australia. For each factor, you will need to:
   1. Describe them and outline the role they play in relation to your brand
   2. Identify trends in this factor that either represent a risk or opportunity for your brand
4. A ‘persona’ of the ideal target consumer segment for your brand in Australia. A persona is a fictional character who represents a consumer segment who would be most attracted to your brand. Your persona must include the consumer’s demographic characteristics (gender, age, income, Family Life Cycle stage etc.) and a picture of a person that best represent that segment. In addition, the persona should also list:
   1. The consumer’s motivations for using products in your category,
   2. their frustrations with the products currently on offer,

• their criteria for choice amongst competing brands, and

1. life goals that are relevant to the product category.

Your persona needs to be supported by evidence, and should not just be a product of your imagination. Below are two examples of the variety of ways the persona could be presented.

1. You must also accompany your persona with an explanation of how the brand is triggering need recognition for that consumer segment. In other words, you need to answer the question “what is the brand doing to make the persona want what the brand is offering?” Use Step 1 Trigger Need of the Consumer Decision Making Process (CDMP) framework

Milestone Rule for Assignment 2

Guidance

Grading

When reading your assignment, the markers will be guided by these questions, elaborated on the rubric at the end of this document:

• Does the work give clear background information about the brand being investigated, supported by credible and relevant evidence, and presented in a way that gives good understanding to the reader?
• Does the environmental analysis demonstrate that the student understands the theory, and was the analysis itself supported by credible and relevant evidence?
• Does the persona have all the required criteria? Are all the details about the persona and need recognition analysis sensible and relevant to the product category being investigated?
• How much effort did the student put into the work to make it compelling while also adhering to the technical instructions?

Student Manual Guides – See Canvas > Modules > Student Manual >

• Chapter 4 – Finding information, Chapter 7 – Report Writing, Chapter 9 -
• Please consult Swinburne Library and/or Learning Skills Advisors if you require help with how to find and reference your information

Format

• Use Times New Roman font, font size 12 in portrait
• Ensure your report is free of spelling and grammatical

Referencing

• To avoid plagiarism, you are required to provide a reference whenever you include information from other sources in your
• Referencing conventions required for this unit are: Harvard Referencing System
• Helpful information on referencing can be found at http://www.swinburne.edu.au/library/referencing/ and at Canvas > Modules > Student Manual > Chapter

Submission Requirements

• Questions and other assessments must be submitted through Canvas assessment submission
• Please ensure you keep a copy of all assessments that are submitted.

Extensions and Late Submission

• Late Submissions - Unless an extension has been approved, late submissions will result in a
• You will be penalised 10% of the assessment’s worth for each calendar day the task is late, up to a maximum of 5 working After 5 working days a zero result will be recorded.
• Extensions can only be granted by the Unit