Marketing Plan: Fritz Gelato Ice Cream - Essay Example

? Marketing Plan: Fritz Gelato Ice Cream Introduction An individual d Andrea Fritz from Switzerland was learnt to have founded the company Fritz Gelato in the year 1910. The background in which Andrea Fritz was brought up had a blend of Italian as well as German traditions which helped in developing a taste as well as preference for superior sweet along with food delights. Andrea Fritz produced or rather started making gelato since 25 years of his age and sold it at a tiny store. The product gained huge popularity among the locals as well as the tourists and was known by the name of ‘Fritz Gelato’. The product was perceived to symbolize the prototypical fundamental nature of the dishes that were considered to be a combination of both Italian and Germanic (Fritz Gelato, 2006). The ice-cream has been learnt to earn quite some awards as well as recognition owing to its superior taste. The Fritz Gelato ice-cream is known to enjoy a huge fan-following owing to the fact of being purely organic which is believed as its secret behind the superior taste. The company deals in products such as sorbets, organic ice-creams as well as coffee, frozen yoghurts along with organic donuts. The company is already operating in the niche market of Australia and is further planning to capture the mass market of Australia in Melbourne with its excellent range of products (Fritz Gelato, 2006). Thus, this paper would intend to develop an appropriate e-marketing strategy which would aid the company in successfully entering and capturing the market. Situation Analysis Internal Environment Frits Gelato is basically an ownership firm which even entails franchise model along with its present business model. The mammoth acceptance of the products as well as services of the company followed by the display of immense public enthusiasm triggered the need for the franchise model as it was expected by the owners that it would aid in facilitating the employment of superior operators accompanied with adding well-built connections to its consumer base and territory (Fritz Gelato, 2010). The company chiefly deals in Italian form of ice-creams that are claimed to be purely organic which solely accounts for its rich and excellent taste. The ice-creams have been learnt to be made with the assistance of customary recipes that are backed by contemporary influences. The organic element has been further measured to be amongst one of the imperative factors that are believed to have been the driving aspect behind its success and popularity. The fresh as well as the superior quality of the ingredients that are used during the process of making ice-creams are supposed to rule out the need for non-natural colors as well as flavors. The assortment of products other than ice-creams that the company deals in is sorbets, coffee, frozen yoghurts and donuts. It needs to be mentioned in this regard that all the products in which the company deals in are supposed to be organic (Fritz Gelato, 2010). The organic nature of the products makes them a healthy option in terms of indulging in a treat. The recipes of the products are fond to be developed with the intention of making them healthier in terms of fat, sugar and calorie content in contrast to the other similar products existing in the market. It maintains its quality concerning the products by opting for the premium quality in relation to the components used. The products are also made on a daily basis which makes it capable of serving fresh beverages to its consumers (Fritz Gelato, 2010). The franchise division of the company even offers the facility of conducting training programs for every individual operator due the reason of making certain that the chosen operators are provided guidance with the customs of working of the company in the form of training facility along with making them competent to be eligible for satisfying the guidelines as well as the obligations established by Fritz Gelato while commencing the business. The training plan entails providing training with regard to systems, sales as well as product which even involves marketing and also health as well as safety aspects in relation to the nature of work (Fritz Gelato, 2010). External Environment The people of Australia has been learnt to be quite fond of the sweet tastes which has been one of the major causes behind the popularity of Australian ice-cream industry. The sweet tooth of the Australians helped in the sustained existence of the ice-cream companies and the industry on the whole in-spite of the augmenting prices of the ingredients, the altering nutritional tendencies along with the sluggish form of economy. However, the industry has been identified to grow significant over the past few years since 2004 with an estimated revenue of 2.3% which has been quantified as AUS$485 million until the fiscal year of 2010-2011. Therefore, immense prospects have been assessed in relation to the ice-cream industry (PR Web, 2012). In Australia, the industry also attains the advantages of easy availability of labors along with a favorable condition prevailing in relation to customers’ purchasing behavior. It has further been recorded that political interventions and continuous technology advancements have proven to be another two major advantageous factors contributing towards the overall growth of the industry in the Australian market especially. However, the country offers a competitive landscape to the market players with a few renowned brands developing the structure of the industry to be concentrated to a certain extent. This tends to restrict the growth of new entrants within the industry, even though the constraint or rather the barrier is observed to prevail only in the niche market by a large extent (Euromonitor International, 2011). SWOT Analysis (Internal &External environment) Strengths (Internal) Its greatest strength can be stated as its idiosyncratic capability of producing purely organic ice-creams and even other products such as coffee. The business model of the company has been observed as quite strong and exceptional as it is known to have a steady flow of cash along with quite less amount of debtors. The company enjoys a strong brand presence owing to its superior quality of products that are considered to be highly regarded by the consumers. The company is further assumed to have a great command over the elementary knowledge regarding the wants of its consumers which makes them come up with fresh flavors at times as per the situational demand. The infrastructure of the company is also believed to be quite well developed which entails certain factors that adds to its advantages such as financial management, marketing, product sourcing and controlling the cash flow. The products are also assumed to be largely preferred in terms of its health value. The ingredients make the products quite healthy and free of any kind of artificial or harmful flavors. Furthermore, the products are made on a regular basis implying that the Fritz Gelato caters to the consumers with fresh products every individual day. The nutrition or rather the health value of the products are measured to be high owing to the amount of fresh fruits included in their food products and the excellent quality of the ingredients used makes the products much more healthier in comparison to the other available products in the market or rather in the industry. Therefore, it can be stated that the exceptional organic products of the company and its practice of manufacturing or making fresh products regularly acts as the competitive advantage for the company in the beverage industry (Fritz Gelato, 2010). Weaknesses (Internal) The weakness of the company has been assessed to be the absence of adequately qualified personnel or professionals for the reason of managing the legal as well as the accounting issues. Although the organic products of the company are assumed to be quite popular among the consumers, it still needs to introduce other kinds of products as well, in order to hold on to the fancies of the consumers; for instance, bakery products and additional flavors of ice-creams, coffees, donuts and yoghurts. The company is also known to cater to the niche market which can be regarded as strength but at the similar time can also act as a weakness owing to its limited amount of consumer base. Therefore, the company should also aim at catering to a broader market (Painter, 2004). Opportunities (External) The company entails great prospects in terms of aiming to cater to a wider range of market apart from only concentrating on the niche market. The company is already believed to enjoy an established brand name and recognition for its products which would make things simpler for the company in terms of capturing and penetrating the mass market in Australia. There is expected to lie great untapped potentials with regard to the mass market which remains yet unexploited. Frits Gelato also entails huge prospects in terms of its expansion plans as it can make approaches towards spreading out and growing nationally with the assistance of its already founded numerous franchised locations. The company also needs to make its presence stronger in the virtual world with the help of formulating e-marketing strategies that would facilitate in establishing a strong presence in the online world which remains yet to be explored by the company. The online presence would also aid in reaching out to a wide base of consumers which is likely to prove advantageous for the company. Frits Gelato can even access or demand better purchasing prices with the help of its group purchasing authority valuing the facilities attained in terms of freight, telecommunications, products and media (Fritz Gelato, 2010). Threats (External) The company needs to make immediate plans of approaching the mass market or else its limitation in the niche market can develop to be a threat in the upcoming days. The limited range of products can also prove to be a threat as it will witness in relation to the availability of substitutes along with the hazard of fresh entrants in the industry and contention. It can be stated in this regard that the threat or rather the degree of contention presently prevailing in the industry can be assumed to be at the minimal level. However, the threat with regard to substitutes and fresh entrants has been measured to be comparatively high. Therefore, the company needs to immediately focus on exploring its prospects along with enhancing its strengths in order to lead in the competition (Painter, 2004). E-marketing strategic planning Concept of E-Marketing Strategies The medium of internet has been found to have developed into an imperative marketing as well as distribution channel with regard to commodities along with services. This particular medium has gained immense significance owing to its aspect of being cost effective and also the benefit of convenience attached to it. E-marketing strategies facilitate the companies to reach out to an extensive base of consumers not only locally but even nationally. These strategies aids in identifying the target consumers along with gauging their respective requirements and striking or establishing channel of communication at a comparatively lesser amount of expense. Planning marketing strategies with regard to the online does help in reaching out to a large amount of consumers and is also known to act as a substitute in terms of advertising medium (University of Hertfordshire, 2005). E-marketing strategy is usually related to the application of digital technologies in order to assist in selling the commodities as well as services. The application of the mentioned technologies has been gauged to be an efficient and imperative balance with regard to the customary ways of marketing irrespective of the company size or the business model. It has been observed in this case that the fundamental concept in relation to marketing tends to remain similar that is to develop a particular strategy with the intention of making available the correct messages with regard to the commodities to the correct or rather the intended individuals or consumers. Although the fundamental notion in relation to marketing continues to stay the same but the only alteration that is observed in case of e-marketing strategy is in terms of the amount of available choices which is actually measured to be quite beneficial in comparison to the customary marketing strategies. It also becomes noteworthy to be stated in this regard that even though the customary marketing methods such as direct mail and advertising will be continued to be applied by the companies, the application or the usage of the e-marketing strategies is likely to be perceived to make significant contributions in terms of a complete fresh rudiment with regard to the marketing mix of a specific company. Numerous businesses have been supposed to be delivering noteworthy results with the application and practice of the e-marketing strategies. The greatest advantage enjoyed by the companies applying this particular kind of strategy has been found to be its flexibility along with its characteristic of being cost-effective or gainful (Strauss & Frost, 2011). The Current Actions & Technology Access The e-marketing strategies are believed to provide the companies of every size and capacity the facility of right to entry with regard to the broader or mass market and that too at quite a reasonable cost. In contrast to marketing mediums such as print advertising or television, e-marketing truly facilitates the option of personalized form of marketing. The companies are endowed with the advantage of reaching or accessing the consumers on a global platform with the help of developing its own website. This way of marketing even facilitates the companies in locating fresh markets along with contending on an international level with the help of making a minimum amount of investment. An appropriately designed, formulated and efficiently aimed campaign or operation of e-marketing entails the potential of reaching and communicating with the intended consumers through the involvement of quite lesser amount of costs in contrast to the customary marketing methods. The notion of e-marketing strategies and its related applications are assessed to augment the chances of gauging the level or degree of effectiveness in relation to the executed campaign(s). It is owing to the fact of accessing detailed information regarding the reactions of the consumers in relation to the way of advertising, encouraging the measurement of the efficacy concerning the various attempted campaigns. The development of a website or rather marketing the commodities with the aid of a website makes it easy for the consumers to obtain information regarding the commodities at any time and even in instances when the office remains closed. E-marketing strategies also offer the benefit of personalization which implies that connecting the database or records of the consumers with the website of the companies would enable them to inform the consumers regarding the aimed latest available commodities or services at the time they visit the website (University of Hertfordshire, 2005). This form of marketing allows the companies with chances of communicating or contacting individuals who are presumed to display interest regarding the services or the commodities instantaneously. The facility of internet can even be accessed with the aid of mobile phones which makes the consumers access information regarding the commodities or the services at any point of time which further helps in establishing a direct communication with the consumers (University of Hertfordshire, 2005). Segmentation & Target Market Fritz Gelato has always acted quite wise while segmenting the market and targeting its consumers. Half of the job of targeting the consumers is done through the advertisements itself. Presently, the company is known to cater to all age groups in the niche market. Therefore, it is likely to witness comparatively less complications in segmenting the market. The segmentation will be done in terms of individuals who prefer to consume ice-creams. The Target Market The target market or the consumers will be preferably children, health conscious urban professionals and female consumers but in terms of a wider aspect it will usually target individuals form the age group of 06 to 45 years old. Ice-cream is widely considered to be a sweet dish and even a product that is opted for especially during good and happy times. The urban professionals would be an easy target as the stores would offer them a place to relax, accompanied with some great flavors of ice-creams as well as other organic food products. This implies that the product will be catered to consumers with a wide range with regard to age groups. The products of Fritz Gelato are also believed to be organic and high in nutritional value which even makes it safe for the older age group besides the young ones. The consumers from the middle to higher income group will be targeted as they have been measured to possess adequate disposal income to occasionally indulge in ice-cream treats. The city of Melbourne is considered to be the second largest in Australia along with being multicultural in characteristics. The city is further believed to be the home of several individuals who represent various parts of the globe. Thus, it could be inferred that Melbourne consist of quite a significant amount of population and ice-cream is assumed to be a product that is favored by all kind of individuals irrespective of their religion and background. The Psychographic Segmentation The psychographic segmentation can be made with regard to the taste as well as health conscious consumers. Fritz Gelato is known to have targeted its intended market with the help of creating a reputation for itself in terms of superior quality and organic products that are made fresh on a daily basis. The taste of the Frits Gelato products are supposed to be quite popular amongst the existing consumers and the superior quality of the ingredients used while making the ice-creams and its organic nature makes it quite healthy for which it proves to be appealing for the health alert consumers as well. The store of Fritz Gelato is located in market in the South Melbourne. The central isle in the location has been found to remain lined or crowded with fishmongers, food stores, delis and butchers. The stores that already hold a place there, cone with a delicious look in order to make them appear attractive to the consumers. Furthermore, the place is believed to be flooded with the presence of quite some renowned food brands and chains. The Frits Gelato store is just located amongst them in that particular location which has been assessed to be quite strategically advantageous for the business. It also needs to be mentioned that it is supposed to be the only store serving ice-creams which helps in adding more to its already existing popularity in the particular region (Campion & Curtis, 2009). This particular segmentation that is the behavioral segmentation is supposed to be made with regard to the attitudes or rather the behavior of the consumers. It needs to be mentioned in this regard that the behavior is known to be reliant on three various variables. They are rate of usage, occasions and advantages or benefits. The rate of usage refers to the consumption of ice-cream in the cold and the extent to which the cold weather influences the consumption pattern. The aspect of occasions relates to the intervals in the consumptions pattern in special or regular occasions. Finally, the benefits refer to the presentation, feel, packaging, quality and taste of the products. Ice-cream is usually found to be liked by all the age groups but especially by the children and the female consumers. This is supposed to be a product that is indulged in occasionally as well as in a regular period by the specified category of the consumers. Differentiation The Unique Selling Proposition (USP) that is supposed to differentiate the products of Fritz Gelato from the other existing competitors will be the organic nature of the ice-creams and also its other products. The usage of pure and the best quality ingredients ensure the healthy and nutritional aspect of the products which accounts for its superior taste. Another differentiation strategy can be stated with regards to the fact that the products are made fresh every individual day which might not be applicable for its other competitors in the industry. Therefore, the organic composition of the products is obvious to act as a competitive advantage with regard to the company. Positioning Strategies The product needs to be positioned effectively in the market in order to appeal to the mass market. The company needs to position itself as a homemade form of product that rules out the presence of any kind of chemicals in their products. It should attempt to position itself or create a perception with regard to the consumers of an ice-cream that is healthy, affordable along with a superior taste. The company is already known to enjoy quite a positive and favorable reputation which also needs to be highlighted which will help in luring increased number of consumers along with positioning the product effectively in the Australian market. Objectives The present concentration of the company on the niche market is further believed to limit the scope of exploiting the market of Australia to the optimum. The development of the e-marketing strategies has been measured to prove as the best suited and effectual way of expanding the base of the consumers. The benefits of this form of marketing have already been assessed in the above discussion which makes it more favorable in comparison to the customary methods of marketing. The most imperative benefit associated with the development of e-marketing strategies is that it entails lesser expenses. Another requirement that has been identified with regard to the company was the need of expansion in the category of products. Tasks Operations: The objective of the company would be to successfully develop effective e-marketing strategies with the intention to reach out to a broader base of consumers in order to explore the untapped prospects with regard to the mass market. Quantity of the Target: Three different marketing objectives have been identified with regard to the company which has been planned to be accomplished with the introduction and assistance of the e-marketing strategies. Time Frame: The three marketing objectives that have been deciphered from the situational analysis and the strategic planning strategies will be to apply the concept of e-marketing, to explore the potential of the mass market in Australia and to attain sustainability along with expanding their services through e-marketing within a time period of 12 months to 2 years. Increased Sales Revenue: Therefore, it can be stated that the present objective of the company would be to enter and penetrate the mass Australian market successfully with the e-marketing strategies which will aid the company to augment the revenue derived from sales. E- Marketing Mix Strategies Product Strategies The company needs to offer other products in order to expand their product category along with its other existing ones and the ice-creams. The freshly introduced requires to be positioned uniquely in the market with the help of the freshly developed e-marketing strategies. The superior taste of the products needs to be highlighted specifically along with the aspect of purely organic ingredients. The high nutritional value requires to be evidently communicated across the mass people in order to catch their fancy. The difference in the taste of the product in comparison to the products of the other existing competitors also needs due consideration while formulating the product strategies. The corporate website will also act as a tool for marketing the product along with developing the facility of mobile applications so that the website could be accessed with the aid of mobile phones as well (Business Plan My Way, 2012). Pricing Strategies The company is aiming to catch the attention of the mass market which means it needs to moderately and affordably price the products. Price is considered to be one of the imperative factors that are taken into deliberation by the consumers while opting for a particular product. Fritz Gelato needs to make use of the pricing method related to market penetration. This particular strategy implies that the price with regard to the products is set at a lower level in contrast to the other existing competitors in order to appeal to appeal to the intended market. This definite strategy would even act to be an additional competitive advantage for Fritz (Business Plan My Way, 2012). Distribution The products are intended to be directly sold from the outlets that are known to be distributed throughout the city. The products should also be planned to be distributed to its various locations from its production facility in the city. It should also get distributed with the help of e-commerce operations where the order for the products would be placed with the help of the internet through their organizational website and the products will get delivered to the specified locations. The corporate website of the company through which the order will be placed would have the facility of selecting the desired and convenient language by the consumer. As Fritz is supposed to be an already established brand, it should rely on the active franchises as well as other distributing channels (Business Plan My Way, 2012). Communication Strategies The company has been focusing on the aspect of formulating e-marketing strategies which implies that the communication strategies would entail the medium of internet. The chief source of communication for the company with the consumers through the medium of internet will be with the help of its corporate website. The company would publish information regarding its products, services and various available locations along with other pertinent information in its website for the reason of directly communicating with the consumers. The consumers will also be able to place orders for certain products through the company’s website (Hou & Rego, 2002). Relationship Management Strategies The fundamental role of the relationship management strategies would be to form a picture of itself in terms of community growth by Fritz Gelato. The company should indulge itself with the local charities and their fund-raising programs. This would not only help the charities in raising good amount of funds for community development but would also provide outstanding exposure for the products of the company (Business Plan My Way, 2012). Budget The fundamental requirement of the company has been identified to be the development of a corporate website. The company intends to take the professional assistance of Quadra Hosting which is a company that provides assistance to the business firms to host webs (Quadra Hosting, 2012). The potential costs for the development of a corporate website would entail the following tasks and their approximated relative fees. Tasks Fee Domain Name Registration $42 Technical Specifications $749.95 The Development $ 1695 Delivery & Deployment of the Corporate Website $ 500 TOTALS $ 2986.95 Therefore, it can be observed from the above made budget plan that the potential expenses would fit in the budget that was estimated for a year. Evaluation Plan The assessment of the various strategies such as the product, pricing, distribution, communication and relationship management would be carried out in order to ascertain their effectiveness in attaining the desired objectives by the company. The measurement of the activities would be conducted on a regular basis. A survey has been planned which would be performed at the completion of every three months of the aimed operation. Furthermore, the survey has been designed accordingly in a way which will assist in ascertaining the awareness of the product brand, consumer knowledge, the website traffic, the orders placed online by the consumers and the popularity of the company. The strategy related to positioning will also be gauged in order to ascertain the position of the company among the consumers. The intended and planned survey would be carried out for four times in a year for the reason of building up a longitudinal record of facts as well as figures for the purpose of assessment of the e-marketing performances in the long run (Business Plan My Way, 2012). The marketing strategies of the business are intended to be implemented by the first week of July, 2012. Conclusion The entire research paper provides a complete picture of the whole process of developing an e-marketing plan for Fritz Gelato. The above study signifies the need and importance of the formulation of e-marketing strategies in order to market the products in an increasingly effective way and with the engagement of lesser amount of expenses in comparison to the customary ways of marketing. It also provides a logical comprehension regarding the factors that requires to be taken into deliberation while ascertaining the e-marketing objectives of a company along with deciding on the contributing factors. The development of the objectives has been done with the assistance of a strategic analytical tool, i.e. the SWOT analysis. It has further helped in comprehending the areas with the need of improvement which has been considered while developing the strategies. The need of the development of a corporate website has also been identified for which an annual budget had been prepared. Finally, an evaluation plan has even been designed in order to keep a check on the progress of the company with regard to the objectives. Therefore, the imperativeness of e-marketing strategies even for a well reputed brand like Fritz Gelato can be evidently inferred from the overall research study. References Business Plan My Way. (2012). Davis’s ice cream. Customers. Campion, A & Curtis, M. (2009). The foodies guide to Melbourne. The Age. Euromonitor International. (2011). Ice Cream in Australia. Retrieved from http://www.euromonitor.com/ice-cream-in-australia/report Fritz Gelato. (2010). Detailed franchise information. Fritz Gelato Franchising Pty. Ltd., pp. 1-9. Fritz Gelato. (2006). The Fritz story. Retrieved from http://www.fritzgelato.com/about-us/the-fritz-story/ Hou, J. & Rego, C. (2002). Internet marketing: An overview. School of Business Administration, pp. 1-19. Painter, R. S. (2004). Business plan of Gelato cafe. Docstoc, pp. 1-66. PR Web, 2012. Ice cream manufacturing in Australia industry market research report now updated by IBIS world. Retrieved from http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/4/prweb9372983.htm Quadra Hosting. (2012). Home. Retrieved from http://www.quadrahosting.com.au/ Strauss, J. & Frost, R. (2011). E-Marketing. United States: Pearson Education. University of Hertfordshire. (2005). Developing an e-marketing plan. Business Link. Bibliography Pahl, N. & Richter, A. (2009). SWOT analysis-Idea, methodology and a practical approach. Germany: GRIN Verlag. Read More