Strategic Marketing Management of Apple Inc. Company;1.1 Discuss the role of strategic marketing in Apple Inc. Company. The contents that should be covered in the research are: Role of strategic marketing: key definitions of strategic marketing from the

Scenario

Marketing is the link between the organization and its customers. Responsibility for ensuring the establishment and maintenance of a successful interlinking of organization and customers and gain a competitive advantage over major competitors in the market industry lies with strategic marketing management. Marketing Managers are involved with planning; organizing; and strategic control of marketing activity. Marketing Managers must have the skills in choosing a combination of target markets and developing a marketing mix to meet the requirements of those targets in the long term to help sustain the profitability and growth level of the organization. A marketing manager must have strategy in place which is designed to meet the company’s marketing objectives. You have just been appointed to Apple Inc. Company as a Marketing Manager, during the first meeting with the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), he explained to you that the structures of the company are very strong, with the exception of the marketing department which needs more innovative strategies to make it more proactive and sustainable because the revenue of the company is dwindling in spite of their huge investment in new technology and a vibrant workforce. The quality of the company’s products and services has being rated very high by industry analysts. The CEO of the company has mandated you to provide effective and proactive solutions to all the following tasks and all questions which he thinks will be the blueprint for a launch of a new marketing strategy for the company.

1.1 Discuss the role of strategic marketing in Apple Inc. Company.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

Role of strategic marketing: key definitions of strategic marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing and key authors (eg Hugh Davidson; Peter Doyle; Philip Kotler; Malcolm McDonald); role and importance of strategic marketing in an organisation; concepts; systematic approach; sequencing and scheduling of activities; integration of activities; resource requirements; timescaling; monitoring and control elements

1.2 Explain the processes involved in strategic marketing in Apple Inc. Company.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

Processes: strategic marketing planning processes (eg Peter Doyle, Malcolm McDonald) including strategic marketing analysis, marketing strategy objective setting, perceptual mapping, factor analysis, option evaluation, choice, formulation, implementation and control

1.3 Evaluate the links between strategic marketing and corporate strategy in Apple Inc. Company.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

 Links to corporate strategy: the nature of strategy and marketing links to corporate strategy eg Michael Porter; links to mission statement, organisational structure, corporate responsibility and ethics; dynamic strategy (Carpenter and Sanders); knowledge management systems

2.1 Assess the value of models used in strategic marketing planning of Apple Inc. Company.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

Models: organisation, industry and market environment situation analysis; Porter’s Five Forces model; structure, conduct and performance; SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) analysis, STEEPLE (social, technological, economical, environmental, political, legal, ethical) analysis, PEST (political, economic, social, technological) analysis, marketing audit; portfolio analysis techniques eg BCG matrix, Product Life Cycle model, Ansoff matrix

2.2 Discuss the links between strategic positioning and marketing tactics of Apple Inc. Company.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

Links between strategic positioning and marketing tactics: strategic positioning, defining the future position, information collection, analysis, choice of strategy, implementation, monitoring; links to strategic plan eg internal growth, market penetration, market development, product development, marketing tactics; product tactics eg selection, range, quality, branding; price tactics eg skim pricing, penetration pricing, cost price, market price, price discrimination; promotion tactics eg customer loyalty schemes, product sampling, dealer loaders, extended credit, point of sale (POS) materials; place tactics eg distribution channels, transport management, stock and handling, run through times, terms of delivery

2.3 Analyse the merits of relationship marketing in a given strategic marketing strategy of Apple Inc. Company.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

Relationship marketing: direct response marketing strategies eg offensive strategies, obtaining new customers, increasing customer purchase frequency; defensive strategies, increasing customer satisfaction and increasing switching costs; customer retention strategies eg product bundling, crossselling, crosspromotions, loyalty programmes; customer satisfaction, customer life cycle value; personalised marketing; Payne and Ballantyne’s six markets model (internal markets, supplier markets, recruitment markets, referral markets, influence markets, customer markets)

3.1 Use appropriate marketing techniques to ascertain growth opportunities in the market.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

Marketing techniques: setting marketing objectives and marketing strategy, targeting markets; segmenting markets eg geographic, demographic, psychographic, behaviour; profiling markets eg revenue potential, market share potential, profitability potential; positioning segmented markets eg market leader or product line extension, mass marketing or targeted marketing, direct or indirect sales

3.2 Plan how to use marketing strategy options in a market.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

Strategy options: Porter’s generic strategies (focus, cost leadership and differentiation); core competences (G Johnson and K Scholes, G Hamel and C K Prahalad); competitive advantage (H Davidson, M Porter); investment opportunity evaluation (D F Abell and J S Hammond); General Electric model; Shell directional policy matrix; market leadership; market dominance strategies; market leader, market challenger, market follower, market nicher; innovation strategies; market pioneer; close followers, late followers; offensive, defensive and value-based marketing strategies.

3.3 Create appropriate strategic marketing objectives for the market of Apple Inc. Company.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

Strategic marketing objectives: marketing mix – 7 Ps (Product, Price, Place, Promotion, People, Process, Physical evidence); marketing activity strategies for product/service, pricing, distribution, promotion (advertising, sales promotion, personal selling, direct marketing, public relations), people (internal, intermediaries, customer service), processes and physical evidence, emarketing strategy; customer relationship management; resource requirements (financial, people, marketing); integration of marketing activity strategies

4.1 Report on the impact of changes in the external environment on a marketing strategy for Apple Inc. Company.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

Changes in the external environment: shift from supply to demand environment; fashionisation of markets; micro-markets; rising expectations; technological change; competition; globalisation; importance of customer service; commoditisation; erosion of brands; new constraints

4.2 Conduct an internal analysis to identify current strengths and weaknesses in the marketing Strategy of Apple Inc. Company.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

Strengths and weaknesses: focus of marketing objectives, links to corporate strategy, speed of new product developments, ability to customise, ability to handle information to gain competitive advantage; e-marketing position, core focus, target markets, nature and potential of key market segments, partnerships with customers and other stakeholders, organisational structure, innovation strategies, timescales, resource requirements, budgets, monitoring, review and control mechanisms

4.3 Propose strategic marketing responses to key emerging themes in the marketing strategy of Apple Inc. Company.

The contents that should be covered in the research are:

Strategic marketing responses: emerging themes eg impact of globalisation, the strength or weakness of competitors, importance of environmental factors, changes in the political environment, the state of the economy, the exchange rate, health and safety factors

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