unit 8 business plan

Product Description & Market Communications Strategy

A Team Consulting (ATC)

Glynda Carmicheal, Frank LaPrade, Demetreaus Moore, Shannon Oberlin, Tracy Reynolds

MT 490-01 Bachelors Internship in Management

Submitted by: Frank LaPrade

Professor Blake Escudier

Purdue Global University

4.0 ATC’s EleCycle Product Description

The A-TEAM EleCycle (ATC) is a great product. It gives easy and quick access from point A to B with minimum physical effort. Also, the Carbon Fiber Mountain Electric Bike is an excellent, light, hard, quality product, with 100% Toray Carbon Fiber Aviation graded frame, and is comfortable. It has a Power Assisted System, Torque Sensor, Assist Sensor, and “read real-time stampede strength” from the pedals, and assists the cycling smoother. The ATC has a high performance Panasonic Lithium Battery which supports a distance of approximately 230 Km. (ELECYCLE GS Carbon fiber electric bike., 2018).

4.0.1 EleCycle Product Specifications (ELECYCLE GS Carbon fiber electric bike., 2018).

· Weight 18 Kg, 1.5 times rigid strength.

· High quality motor – 36 V 250 W – Support Max Speed 40 Km/h (24.8 mph).

· Shimano Hydraulic Disc Brake – Shimano M446 Hydraulic Disc Brake with Servo Wave.

· Disc Brake System –Easy maintenance.

· Shimano Transmission System with 27 Gears.

· High temperature protection, Battery PTC protection, Short circuit protection – Charging over-voltage protection with charging over-current protection – Anti-reserve Charging.

· Discharging over-current protection – Battery under-voltage.

4.0.2 ATC’s EleCycle GS Carbon fiber electric bike – (ELECYCLE GS Carbon fiber electric bike., 2018).

4.0.3 EleCycle Power assisted system, Handlebar and Front LCD Display

(Picture and specs by: ELECYCLE GS Carbon fiber electric bike., 2018).

4.0.4 Panasonic Lithium Battery & Protections & Size Specifications

(Picture and specs by: ELECYCLE GS Carbon fiber electric bike., 2018).

4.0.4 ATC’s EleCycle Specifications – cont.

4.1 Manufacturer Source Profile

A-Team Consulting (ATC) EleCycle supplier is: CQ Group International Limited, which is a global business type manufacturer, trading company.

4.1.1 Global Description

· Location: China (Mainland)

· Main Products: Electric Bicycle, Electric Bike, E-bike.

· Total Annual Revenue: US $1 Million-2.5 Million established in 2014.

· Global markets: Western Europe 30% -- North America 15% -- South America 10%.

· Descriptions taken from (CQ GROUP INTERNATIONAL LIMITED., 2018).

4.1.1.1 They are a professional and experienced sales team mainly engaged in export trade, and specializing in various products such as: electric bicycles, electric scooter, electric bike kits, electric golf carts, electric sanitation trucks, electric road sweepers, vinyl floor & more (CQ GROUP INTERNATIONAL LIMITED., 2018).

4.1.1.2 Today, their products have been successfully exported to Italy, UK, Germany, Slovenia, USA, Australia, Canada, South Africa, Southern Asia. The manufacturer always assures excellent quality, high efficient OEM capabilities and on time production (CQ GROUP INTERNATIONAL LIMITED., 2018).

4.1.1.3 Buyer Interaction: Response rate (last 30 days) 98.4% of buyers who contacted this supplier received a response within 24 hours. Average response time (7days). supplier average response time of received inquiries is within 12 hours (CQ GROUP INTERNATIONAL LIMITED., 2018).

4.1.1.4 Quotation performance (last 30 days) the supplier has sent 22 quotes to buyers in last 30 days. Overall Rating: 4.8 to 5 buyers are very satisfied with manufacture’s service. On-time shipment, product quality buyers are satisfied (CQ GROUP INTERNATIONAL LIMITED., 2018).

4.2 Cost Analysis for Drop Shipment

Increasing the company sales means to manage business expenses, this part of the action is the key to greater profits. It is good idea to evaluate company’s expenses for delivering product and benefits as well. The lowest shipping cost might not be the best option; it might cost the company more in the long run.

4.2.1 Shipping

In order to get the product from point A to point B, we must consider speed delivery, damage, tracking ability and easy return. These steps will affect company’s bottom line and customer service.

4.2.2 Hard Cost

To analyze shipping cost we need to determine the bottom line cost to ship products, know the price of services of shippers such as: FedEx, UPS, DHL, and the Postal Service. Cost of shipments from point A to point B includes the transportation cost, insurance, pick-up, preparation, over-sized package fees, and any miscellaneous cost. If company uses their own delivery trucks, calculate the driver, router, and loader pay and benefits, truck payments, maintenance, gas, tires, and insurance (Ashe-Edmunds, 2017).

4.2.3 Benefits

To get the products physically delivered, it is important to calculate the overall shipping cost. Late deliveries can reduce company’s sales or jeopardize customers and vendors relationship. Low price, slow delivery option might end up costing the company more than it save over the long term (Ashe-Edmunds, 2017).

4.2.4 Service

There are different shippers, some give the real-time tracking, while others give estimated times of arrival. There is a question about delivery, if it requires to take product to their center factor in your time, staff and mileage expenses should be added to the cost (Ashe-Edmunds, 2017).

4.2.5 Cash Flow

Quicker delivery results, quicker sales and vendor payments, this is a factor that should be consider into the shipping cost analysis. The sooner the company gets cash the better it will be to reduce interest payments on credit card. Getting cash in quicker might also help the company order more products, and increase sales, (Ashe-Edmunds, 2017).

5.0 Strategy Overview

With or target market in place, we will evaluate possible positioning strategies for our store. Here is where we will have to use the 4 P’s of marketing as our first strategy. They stand for, promotion, price, place, and product. We have our product, the A-Team EleCycle. the place is where the store location will be. The price, we have as well, now what we will do next is a promotion of sorts to draw attention to our store location, via several forms. A-Team consulting feels that the market is changing with the times, and what initially looked like a 30-year-old target market for or A-Team EleCycle is trending in the age group 50’s and older. This gives A-Team Consulting the opportunity to focus marketing efforts toward a demographic with an eye for leisure, sustainability, and health. Comment by Frank Laprade: a Comment by Frank Laprade: Comment by Frank Laprade: 50's Comment by Frank Laprade: Comment by Frank Laprade: eliminate this

With more time available due to retirement and vacation opportunities, there is more time for leisure. A-Team EleCycle is focusing on taking advantage of this market by providing this demographic an option of leisure, sustainability, and health. The A-Team EleCycle allows the user less effort through its electric option. The smooth riding, sustainability with lower maintenance costs, without emissions, and the ability to pack and go for a cardio work-out. The feel of throttle power “without a throttle,” a light-weight foldable frame, and no storage tank makes this product environmentally eco-friendly. Comment by Frank Laprade: work-out Comment by Frank Laprade: Comment by Frank Laprade: virtually Comment by Frank Laprade: and Marketing communication and social media tools. Comment by Frank Laprade:

5.0.1 The 4 P’s Strategy

Strategies around price, product, promotion, and place will be established to better emphasize what it is A-Team Consulting stands for and how processes will be implemented to ensure the target market is reached. The initial focus is on product positioning and differentiation.

5.1 Positioning

Now that we have determined who our target market is, let’s evaluate possible positioning for A-Team Consulting. Successful positioning requires key words and phrases. The Internet is a continuous data collection machine. To optimize store positioning, A-Team Consulting will use search engine optimization by positioning with high-traffic, highly related keywords and phrases (Ingram, 2017). Keywords such as leisure, recreation, healthy alternative, activity, retirement, environment, and value are important in attracting the market of 50 years and older. The product is sleek, the price is competitive, and the initial website will be tailored to attract the demographic who “controls 70% of America’s disposable income and who are becoming far more web savvy than most people believed” (Shaoolian, 2017). In positioning, it is very important to identify with the market and find other ways to connect. Focusing on this demographic places emphasis on understanding and offering a product that is different and relevant to needs. A good positioning strategy elevates the marketing efforts and helps a buyer move from knowledge of a product or service to its purchase. (Lauren, 2018)

5.2 Differentiation

In order to make our product different from others, we need to connect emotionally with the intended audience. Focusing on three main objectives.

First, is to provide visualization into what makes A-Team Consulting unique. Establishing a set of core values determined to be our foundation. What makes our product stand out from all the rest is ATC EleCycle is environmentally friendly and focuses on sustainability through environmental integrity. The A-Team EleCycle offers a 36V 8.7 ah Panasonic 2900P battery with a 2.5 to 3.5-hour charge (ELECYCLE GS Carbon fiber electric bike, 2018). Comment by Tracy Reynolds: cite should be (Ele-Cycle, 2015)

Second, is how A-Team Consulting focuses on customer service and relationship building strategies by offering a live chat solution to enable assistance to customers while navigating our site. This will provide the target market with a more face-to-face interaction for the sales channel. The A-Team EleCycle is a flexible, innovative product that requires a connection be made with the consumer. Providing a full product description, illustrating focus on environmental integrity and relaxation, and creating the best user-friendly customer service options will differentiate A-Team Consulting from the competition. Comment by Frank Laprade: why this Comment by Frank Laprade: site Comment by Frank Laprade: C

Third, inventive innovation of our brand by providing additional items to our product line. Accessories that will make your ATC EleCycle look like new. There will always be focus on continued growth through customer feedback and managing current social trends but continuing to maintain product integrity to retain customer loyalty.

5.3 Marketing Communication Tools and Social Media

To position and differentiate A-Team Consulting, marketing communication tools and Social Media options will be utilized. Automation is the platform for the drop-shipping businesses. Set-up for communication and advertising does not need to weaken the cash flow. Google offers many tools for easy data tracking and advertising. As discussed in the positioning strategy, the utilization of a search engine optimization is important for directing a target market to the site. Google AdWords Key Planner is a marketing communication tool that will allow A-Team Consulting the ability to identify key words and phrases that the target-market is currently using (Ingram, 2017). Another inexpensive marketing communication tool can be purchased through HubSpot. This software is a customer service haven. The tools provided allow for marketing communication and management across the board on overall communication tactics and increasing consumer traffic by its leading feature to create campaign landing pages (HubSpot, 2018). Comment by Tracy Reynolds: full reference : Technical. (2015). Retrieved from https://www.electricbike.com/category/technical/

5.3.1 Social Media Tools

Social media has also become an inexpensive way to reach consumers and communicate activities, promotions, and customer interaction. Understanding what social media avenue to take means understanding the target market. While the activity of online searching is improving among seniors so has adopting social media. According to Pew Research Center’s Social Media Update for 2014, more than half of senior adults use Face Book (Shaoolian, 2017). Although, there is a slight cost to advertising on Facebook. The site allows for a small business to choose the audience of interest and increase overall site traffic. Creating a user friendly profile will allow A-Team Consulting the ability to share customer testimonials and videos highlighting the unique attributes of such an amazing product. Social media sites allow and provide a free platform for communication plus customer feedback that can be tracked and analyzed for continued growth. Comment by Tracy Reynolds: 4PS OF MARKETING. (2017, November). Retrieved from https://www.4psofmarketing.com/ for the cite above Ingram

References

Ashe-Edmunds, S. (2017). Shipping cost analysis. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/shipping-cost-analysis-76138.html

CQ GROUP INTERNATIONAL LIMITED. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/pg/elecycle/about/?ref=page_internal

ELECYCLE GS Carbon fiber electric bike. (2018). Retrieved from http://www.ele-cycle.com/product/ELECYCLE-GS-Carbon-fiber-electric-bike.html

Ingram, D. (2017). How to advertise a business for free on the internet.

Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/advertise-business-internet-3464.html

Lauren, Lynn. (2018). What is positioning in a marketing plan? Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/positioning-marketing-plan-22983.html

Professional manufacturer of electric bicycle, electric scooter and bike kits. (2018). Retrieved from http://www.ele-cycle.com/

Shaoolian, G. (2017). How to find and reach your "older" target audience online.

Retrieved from https://www.bluefountainmedia.com/blog/reach-older-audience-online/

4PS OF MARKETING. (2017). Retrieved from https://www.4psofmarketing.com/