3500 words assignment of marketing strategy

Marketing Strategy

MKT – 306

Assignment Guide – June, 2017

Module Leader: Karen Wharton

Email: K. [email protected]

MDIS Lecturer: Dr Alby Anand Kurian

Email: [email protected]

Introduction to the Assignment:

Please read all instructions and information carefully. You are required to submit your work under the University Infringement of Assessment Regulations.

Students are required to submit their coursework through JIRA. Only assessments submitted through JIRA will be marked. Any other submission including submission to your study centre in hard copy will be treated as a non-submission.

All your assignments must be submitted in conjunction with a Turnitin© report.

You will need to achieve an overall mark of 40% in order to successfully complete this module.

Assignment:

Mode of Assessment:	Individual Report
Weighting:	100%
Module Assessor:	Graeme Price – UOS (UK) Dr Alby Anand Kurian – MDIS Singapore
Issue Date:	…………………….
Submission Date:	…………...................
Word Count:	3500 (+/- 10%) (excluding Appendix and Reference List)

Assignment Brief:

The task is divided into two parts (Part 1 & Part 2) and candidates are expected to address both.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.,  doing business as  Walmart, is an American multinational retailing corporation that operates as a chain of  hypermarkets ,  discount department stores , and  grocery stores . Walmart is one of the  world's largest companies by revenue  – approximately $480 billion according to the  Fortune Global 500  list in 2016 – as well as one of the  largest private employer s in the world with 2.3 million employees.

However, when Walmart looks ahead, there are some dark clouds on the horizon. Online retail is growing at a rapid pace; companies such as Amazon pose a very immediate threat. Moreover, Walmart customers cite low prices as the most important reason for shopping there. In the USA, for instance, the average U.S. Walmart customer's income is below the national average.

In order to counter these challenges, Walmart is contemplating the opening of a line of brick and mortar retail stores that will be premium in their positioning and target sections of the market with greater purchasing power.

As part of the marketing department of the multinational, you have been tasked with creating the report for senior management; it is now your task to analyse, evaluate and prepare an individual report (3500 words +/- 10%, (excluding Appendix and Reference List)) addressing the following issues…

· Part 1:

· Using appropriate sources, undertake a full marketing audit (internal and external environments) to assess strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to your organisation. Include details about the industry competitive position and market share of your competitors.

· Provide a critical evaluation of the organisation’s competitive edge (USP). Demonstrate its effectiveness by providing value added to its customers and include other relevant market performance data to underpin your evaluation (e.g. growth, sales trends and/or profitability) of your competitors.

[Weighting - 50%]

· Part 2:

Based on your Part 1 analysis, elaborate on the proposed strategy to open of a line of brick and mortar retail stores that will be premium in their positioning and target sections of the market with greater purchasing power.

· Select target segment/s and set clear marketing objectives to increase brand awareness, market share, sales and/or profitability. Your marketing strategy should address these objectives with the application of the marketing mix to your organisation.

· These suggestions should be your own ideas but may include marketing tactics and strategies used by other successful organisations or companies.

[Weighting - 50%]

For the purpose of this assessment students need to focus on marketing strategies being used at the B2C level.

Your arguments, findings and recommendations should be supported by theories, facts and figures published within academic books, journal articles, recognised business magazines and market intelligence reports.

* N.B. Please note the maximum word count excludes Executive Summary, Table of Contents, Appendix and References.

Submission Policies:

1. You are required to submit your work within the bounds of MDIS and the University Infringement of Assessment Regulations.

2. Students are required to submit their coursework through JIRA. Only assessments submitted through JIRA will be marked. Any other submission including submission to your study centre in hard copy will be treated as a non-submission. 

3. All Students must submit a Turnitin© report along with their assignments. If under any circumstances assignments are submitted without this, the final mark will be withheld and there will be potential delays.

4. Students may submit drafts through Turnitin and generate reports prior r to submission. The last submission prior to the deadline will be deemed to be the final submission for assessment purposes. Please note that you need to allow 24 hours between submissions through Turnitin to generate a fresh/new/different report so please do not leave submission to the last moment.

5. All works submitted MUST be original. If under any circumstances a student is found to be violating any of the 'Academic Integrity' rules, the university deserves the right to take legal and disciplinary actions against the individual.

Assignment Structure:

This is an individual assignment as a single report in two parts. Candidates are encouraged to be creative with their analysis and recommendations by using theories covered in the lectures and workshops.

Below is a structure that candidates may follow for this report:

PART 1

1. Title page

1. Executive Summary

1. Table of contents

1. Introduction

1. Situational Analysis – (PESTLE) (SWOT)

1. Competitive advantage (USP)

1. Evaluation of current marketing strategy

PART 2

1. Segmentation Targeting & Positioning (STP)

1. Recommended objectives and goals (SMART)

1. Recommended Marketing Strategies, based on the application of the marketing mix to your recommendations.

1. Conclusion

1. Bibliography (with references)

1. A receipt from TurnItIn©

Detailed Explanation of Individual Sections:

You’re aiming for a 3500 word (+/- 10%) report following the given structure.

Title: In a short report this may simply be the front cover. In a long one it could also include Terms of Reference, Table of Contents and so on.

Executive Summary: Give a clear and very concise account of the main points, main conclusions and main recommendations. Keep it very short, about a page or a few % of the total length. Some people, especially senior managers, may not read anything else so write as if it were a short stand-alone document. It isn’t but for some people it might as well be. Keep it brief and free from jargon so that anyone can understand it and get the main points. WRITE IT LAST, but do not copy and paste from the report itself; that rarely works well.

Introduction: This is the first part of the report proper. Use it to paint the background to ‘the problem’ and to show the reader why the report is important to them. Give your terms of reference (if not in the Title Section) and explain how the details that follow are arranged. Write it in plain English.

Current Situation: This is where you report the facts as they are now. It will probably have several sections or sub-sections each with its own subtitle. It is unique to your report and will describe what you discovered about ‘the problem’. Make sure you answer the exact question which has been set. If in any doubt ask your lecturer/tutor!

These sections are most likely to be read by experts so you can use some appropriate jargon but explain it as you introduce it. You are supposed to be demonstrating your understanding of the topic so this is a great opportunity to arrange the information logically, putting things in order of priority -- most important first. In fact, follow that advice in every section of your report. You may choose to include a Discussion in which you explain the significance of your findings but remember to use a report style structure throughout your work.

Recommendations: This is the heart of your report. What do you suggest should be done? Don’t be shy; you did the work so state your recommendations in order of priority, and in plain English. Again it will probably have several sections or sub-sections each with its own subtitle

Conclusions: Present the logical conclusions of your investigation of ‘the problem’. Bring it all together and maybe offer options for the way forward. Many people will read this section. Write it in plain English. If you have included a discussion then this section may be quite short.

Appendices: Put the heavy details here, the information that only specialists are likely to want to see. As a guide, if some detail is essential to your argument then include it in the main body, if it merely supports the argument then it could go in an appendix. Make sure you signpost this information in the main body of your report.

Marking Scheme

1st (70+%)

An excellent assignment. It demonstrates a high level of understanding of the learning outcomes. The report provides evidence of significant understanding of marketing strategy theory/techniques and its application to the selected organisation. All decisions are logical, coherent, fully justified, explained succinctly and coherently, but also demonstrates a high level of insight and originality. The presentation is of a very high standard demonstrating a professional approach which is generally free of errors.

2:1 (60-69%)

A very good assignment. It demonstrates a reasonably high level of understanding of the learning outcomes. The assignment provides evidence of understanding of marketing strategy theory/techniques and its application to the selected organisation. All decisions are logical, justified and explained however are less strong in terms of insight and originality. The presentation is of a high standard and predominantly free from errors.

2.2 (50-59%)

A good assignment. It demonstrates a sound understanding of the learning outcomes. The report provides evidence of understanding of marketing strategy theory/techniques and its application to the selected organisation, though this may be somewhat limited. Most decisions are appropriate however are less strong in terms of insight, logic and originality. The presentation is adequate.

3rd (40-49%)

A satisfactory assignment. It demonstrates an understanding of the learning outcomes. The report provides evidence of understanding of marketing strategy theory/techniques and its application to the selected organisation, although this is limited. Decisions are appropriate however lack coherence, insight and logic. The presentation is adequate, but lacks cohesion.

Grade F (<40%)

An unsatisfactory assignment which demonstrates a lack of understanding of the learning outcomes and has not answered the question. It contains some elements of marketing strategy/techniques applied to the context however is not wholly appropriate. The assignment lacks logic, coherence, originality and insight. The presentation is poor with a number of errors.

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