Marketing Analysis of Pentax PocketJet 3 - Research Paper Example

14 July MKT Unit 3 Individual Project This individual Project will explain Strategic Marketing Plan of Pentax PocketJet 3. This project mainly focuses on communications and promotion, by an integrated marketing communications (IMC) method. Such a method delivers an apparent and reliable message to the customers and is connected to Core Strategy. This project has been divided into two parts. Part 1 is general research about Communication channel, Advertising, Direct Marketing and Sales Promotions. Part 2 deals with Application to Product/Service, this part mainly focus on Strategic Marketing Plan of Pentax PocketJet 3. Introduction: This Project will be mainly about the Strategic Marketing Plan of Pentax PocketJet 3 using the integrated marketing communications method. According to the American Association of Advertising Agencies, integrated marketing communications identifies the value of a comprehensive plan that assesses the planned roles of a variety of  public relations, communication disciplines advertising,  sales promotion and  personal selling, and joins them to give  consistency, clarity, and highest communication impact. PART 1: General Research: Communication channel: A communication channel refers to a physical transmission medium for example a wire or to a logical connection more than a multiplexed medium for instance a radio channel. A channel is used to suggest an information sign, such as a digital bit stream, from one or several senders to one or several receivers. “Communication channels have evolved with more emphasis on multiplexing of multiple channels at higher data rates over the same link or channel” (Hura & Singhal 215). The Advertising Pros and Cons: There are a lot of contrasting estimations about advertising. Those in favor state that advertising educates customers regarding new products and services that can assist them develop their lives. It also enhances sales so that organizations can produce things at lesser costs and create things cheaper. And it helps the financial system and provides jobs to several people. With no advertising some free TV and radio channels would not be able to exist. Gaming and other procedures are promoted by ads. Ticket costs will be high without advertisements. In contrast, critics say that customers pay for advertising during higher product costs. They say that small organizations sometimes must close as they cannot fight with larger ones. Through advertising, persons sometimes buy goods that they cannot require and often may not afford. This guides to a high personal debt. It also guides to a casual society products are thrown away and more waste and pollution is produced. Children are so often the main aim of advertisers. They sometimes do not recognize which products are good and buy wrong things. Fast food and snack firms show ads, which guide to diabetes and obesity. Direct Marketing Pros & Cons Direct marketing contains direct trade. So it is cost helpful for customers, because there is no cost hike due to retailers or wholesalers. Marketing managers may state certainly of the correct answer to their goods. The profit or loss may be extra correctly judged. In contrast, it can be seen as attack of privacy, as consumer questions where we increased their private details. And negative figure of direct mail and not needed phone calls. “Relatively expressed due to high costs of making direct contact rather than the broad approach of advertising” (Somers, Cain, and Jeffery 335). Sales Promotions Pros & Cons: By running a sales promotion, a business owner can increase the sales and also improve the bottom line. Sales promotions have the prospective to develop relationships with customers and also the suppliers. One of the advantages of using sales promotions is that it influences customer behavior. The thought of the sale may well influence the consumer to do a purchase when they were not planning to do so. The notion of missing out on the price of sale is disturbing for many customers. This will lead to a raise in sales for a number of businesses. Another advantage of operating sales promotions is that we can often get help from the suppliers. The running of sales promotions makes customers aware of it. This can have a harmful impact the sales anytime that a sales promotion is not run. The customers may start waiting till they see that a sale is coming in. If they recognize that they will be able to get a better value at a different time, then they might be of a mind to hang onto their cash. Public Relations Pros & Cons: Public relations are very useful to the public as it can be able to get out information and this information will keep public up to date on promotions and services that is being done by a business. It can be extremely helpful for persons looking for various services. Public relations are very successful when they spotlight on what they offer. This will assist them to attract customers. Public relations can also have a negative impact sometimes. It misleads people in few cases and can also be misused. Public relations are negative when a business only focuses on the competition and tries to find ways to debase others. Personal Selling Pros & Cons: “Personal selling is a distinct form of promotion” (Dutta 1). Ore information can be conveyed with personal selling compared to other kinds of promotion such as advertising. A call for personal sales will last longer than any ad. Hence, there is time to discuss the details of the product. The customer need not wait to get his queries answered. One disadvantage is that only less number of customers can be reached. Longer time is taken to make the people aware of the product. Personal selling is also considered to be expensive. PART 2: Application to Product/Service 1. Quick Overview of the Product: Pentax has established a Bluetooth capable machine called the Pentax PocketJet 3. This product especially Portable printer is lightest, smallest and most successful full-page printing solution. This is a portable printer creation with elective Bluetooth wireless connectivity that means one will be equal to send papers for printing over Bluetooth from portable tools for instance laptops, mobile phones and PDA. The printer measures about 10.04 inches broad and weighs below one pound. Bluetooth is an elective adds on to the printer that would permit remote devices the capacity to print wireless to the printer. The main features of this product include IrDA and USB and support, highly powered, continuing battery and User open indicator lights. Strategic Marketing Plan: A Marketing Plan “the part of the business plan outlining the marketing strategy for a product or service” (Marketing Plan par. 1). It is a written record that details the events essential to attain a particular marketing purpose. A marketing plan can be division of a generally business plan. The decision of strategic marketing gives consulting facilities in product pricing, policy and marketing strategy. The marketing mix method to marketing is one type of making and executing marketing strategies. It strains various decision factors in such a method that both consumer and organizational objectives are attained. The most general variables utilized in making a marketing mix are price, product, promotion and distribution. 2. Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC): It is where every parts of an organization are promotional efforts work together with a joined purpose to distribute a positive and consistent message. A strategy in which an organization organizes advertising, sales promotion, publicity and personal selling to present a single reliable image for the product and the organization. The PocketJet 3 was planned with the double objective of lesser the price of mobile printing at the same time as providing outstanding value printing with a Laptop, PDA and Handheld. With the Pentax direct thermal knowledge, the heat of the printing head decides the value of the print. Pentax has changed the heat of about 200 dpi print to have value equal to black and white laser production. The focus must be on mobility, freedom and latest skill to be given to the users. The rationale for choosing or rejecting the specific elements are Low cost-per-page, Nearly unlimited OS compatibility, Fast full-page portable printing, Virtually preservation free mechanism with few moving parts, 1.12 lbs with the battery, Free one year warranty and limitless tech support, Long-life NiMH battery, No ink cartridges to replace and Windows & Handheld compatible. 4. Message to be Communicated: To communicate the message goes an extended course in the success of any type of advertising. Every media vehicle has its negative and positive points, with a different reach and influence. Hence, an organization must be very clear regarding its target audience. Options accessible are television, internet, newspapers, direct mails, radio, magazines and hoarding. Each one of this has its merits and demerits. Organizations often go in for a media mix, that is, they select above one of the obtainable choices. Timing is of maximum importance here. In this case it can be Internet to provide community building and direct online orders. Using direct mails, radio, newspapers and hoarding selectively will also make the awareness. Internet is used in the IMC approach. It should work out a helpful ecommerce plan and integrate with the policy of the business. E-business is a policy, which makes use of technology to attain business objectives. It is essentially an evolution in the system companies interact. It offers information to make easy the deliverance of goods and services and helps to support change initiatives and strengthen business process reengineering. It also improves outside business relationship. At the daybreak of the new millennium, when looked back to the last century, one can realize the changes the globe has seen. And also the changes are becoming fast. The main cause of transform is technological innovation. The technology which is ever changing has affected business as well in the manner it has affected all other aspects of life. 5. Advertising Effectiveness: The message which the company wants to communicate should be put in a mode that will arouse interest. In addition it should persuasively highlight upon the produce. What is said is certainly important but the most important is the way in which it is said. The manner has to be appealing. The words which are used should be catchy and memorable. In the present days both print as well as electronic media are overflowing with advertisements. Public have no time to study or see them, and hence they should be attractive enough in order to attract the attention of the target audience. This is the work of message. As these products are high, expensive and image driven, cooperative advertising entails manufacturer presenting retailer an advertising agenda for the second to run. The purpose of cooperative advertising are- 1. Encourage short term sales 2. Long term object to strengthen the brand image of it and also to retain the company’s influence with the retailer’s trade. It may be in the form of newspaper and further media spends. Conclusion: This Project mainly speaks about the Strategic Marketing Plan of Pentax PocketJet 3 using the integrated marketing communications method. And it mainly focuses on communications and promotion. Communication channels have developed with more stress on multiplexing of various channels at high data rates over the same channel or link. In this case it may be Internet to provide community building and direct online orders. Making use of direct mails, radio, newspapers and hoarding selectively will also make the awareness. Works Cited Dutta, Bholanath. Sales and Distribution Management. I. K. International Publishing House Pvt. Ltd. 2011. Print. Hura, Gurdeep S. & Singhal, Mukesh. Data and Computer Communications: Networking and Internetworking. CRC Press LLC. 2001. Print. “Marketing Plan.” Marketing Terms. 2012. Web. 14 July 2013. Somers, Gillian, Cain Julie, and Jeffery Megan. Essential VCE Business Management: Units 1 and 2/ Third Edition. Cambridge University Press. 2011. Print. Read More