Assignment 4: Supply Chain Management and Financial Plan

Assignment 3: Promotion and Pricing Strategies

XXXXXXXX

BU402 – Small Business Management

Prof: XXXXXXXX

May 24, 2019

The target market for Dream Chasers Learning Center are families who have one or more children who have reached a school going age. Even though the business will target specifically families who live in Wuhou District, there will be no limitation on the geographical location since learners can easily access the facility using various means of transport. Due to this, the target market will also expand to other surrounding districts in the region. One of the essential characteristics of this target population is their willingness and financial capability to cater for learning expenses for the students. The business will specifically target the middle income and high-income families when it focuses on improving the market. It is because they have a higher capability of enrolling to the institution and investing in the education of their children.

Studying the customers’ needs and wants will improve the business as it will be able to deliver services which are relevant to the target population. There are different methods which can be used to research customer needs and wants. The methods selected will depend on the type of information or data which will be gathered and its usefulness to the business. One of the essential techniques which will be utilized is customer surveys. There are two approaches which will be used when conducting studies; these include questionnaires and key informant interviews. Various questions related to how the customers perceive education and learning in the region will be included in the surveys. For the inquiries, community members will be randomly selected from different working environments and organizations which reflect the characteristics of the target market — for example, people working in public offices and private organizations. Questionnaires will be sent through emails. On the other hand, key informant interviews, on the other hand, will involve those customers who work in organizations linked with the education field. It will include community leaders and government officials.

The second method which will be used to research the customer needs is observation. It is an essential method since it gives the researchers firsthand information about the market condition. Researchers will observe the customers behavior, attitude, and trends as far as learning in the region is concerned (Pride, & Ferrell, 2014). It will enable them to note whether specific service gaps need to be addressed and predict how the customers respond to the business once it is established. The third research method is focus-group discussions and consultations. This approach may be the most effective approach as it will involve engaging the customers in open discussions to understand what their needs when it comes to learning.

The business will also focus on addressing certain factors which can be controlled to improve its appearance and encourage more customers to use its services. The marketing mix for Dream Chasers Learning Center is as follows:

a) Product

The main product which will be offered by the business is education and learning services, which will mainly include tuition for different learners who will enroll in the institution. It is a great marketing mix which will enable the Dream Chasers Learning Center to identify the specific educational needs for the learners. For example; what courses, units, and modules do the customers value the most? How long is every module?

b) Pricing Strategy

Pricing strategy is important in determining how much it would cost the customers to access the services provided by the business. As a learning institution, the business will aim at providing value for the customers’ money. As such, some of the basic courses will be offered at high but affordable prices. This strategy will ensure that the business can provide quality services to the customers and at the same time, make profits.

c) Promotion

Each of the educational services provided by Dream Chasers Learning Center will be differentiated to suit the specific needs of the customers. It means that customers who need additional service will be able to access them without having to pay a high cost. For example, the institution may offer free transportation services to customers who come from Wuhou District to encourage more people to join.

d) Placement/Distribution

The business is centrally located at Wuhou District, Chengdu on the "T" comer of Jinyang Road and Jingji Road in the west of Chengdu. This location is easily accessible to most of the district residents.

Create a one-year advertising budget and plan that incorporates the use of various advertising media and publicity.

Advertising media	Definition	Cost	Timeline
Physical advertising	1. Social gatherings 2. Print Advertisements	$500 $350	Quarterly Quarterly
Traditional advertising	1. Broadcast media (TV and radio) 2. Print media (Newspapers and Magazines)	$1,000 $750	Quarterly Quarterly
Online	Dream Chasers Learning Center Website (Domain Name, Hosting, & maintenance)	$15,000	Annually
Social Media	Paid Adverts and Promotions (Facebook, Instagram, You Tube, WhatsApp, and LinkedIn)	$350	Quarterly

Reference

Pride, W. & Ferrell, O. (2014). Foundations of marketing. Australia: South-Western.