FACULTY OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

FUNDAMENTALS OF MARKETING

MKT 243

GIANT COOKIETELLA

NAMA NO PELAJAR

NURUL HASANAH BT ZASALI 2018409634

SITI NAJIHAH BT MOHD NASIR 2018297304

NUR HASANAH BT ABD RAHMAN 2018275722

FARAH IZZATI BT BADRUL HISHAM 2018644078

MUHAMMAD SYAHMI IMRAN BIN

2018252226
ZAHARUDDIN

CLASS : MBA111 2H

PREPARED BY :
MISS MASLIANA BT TAMRIN

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TABLE OF CONTENT

NO. TITLE PAGE NO.

I. Acknowledgement 4
II. Introduction 5
1.0 Company’s profile 6
1.1 Name and logo of the business 6
1.2 Business’ Address 7
1.3 Main activities of the company 7
1.4 Vision, Mission, and Objective statement 7
1.4.1 Vision statement 7
1.4.2 Mission statement 7
1.4.3 Objective statement 7
2.0 Market segmentation of company and product 8
2.1 Bases of segmentation 8
2.2 Type of strategy for selecting targeting markets 9
2.3 Company positioning in the consumers’ mind 10
2.3.1 Consumer perceptions of company and product 10
2.3.2 Location of company and product 12
2.3.3 Positioning bases of company and product 12
3.0 Marketing mix of company and product 13
3.1 Product Strategy 13
3.1.1 Company product 13
3.1.1.1 Product items 13
3.1.1.2 Product lines 13
3.1.1.3 Product mixes 17
3.1.2 Classification of company products 18
3.1.3 Introduction of new product that created 19
3.2 Place strategy 21
3.2.1 Type of marketing channel of company and product 21
3.2.2 Level of distribution intensity of company and product 23
3.3 Promotion strategy 24
3.3.1 Type of advertising of company and product 24
3.3.2 Type of medium for media decision 26
3.3.3 Type of sales promotion 28
3.3.4 Type of major public relations tools 30

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 3.3.5 Personal selling for promotional tools 33
3.4 Pricing strategy 35
3.4.1 Type of pricing objective 35
3.4.2 Type of price strategies 36
3.4.3 Type of pricing tactics 37
III. Conclusion 38
IV. Recommendation 39
V. Appendixes 40
VI. References 45

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 I. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Assalamualaikum WBT

Alhamdulillah, we are very grateful because we managed to complete our marketing assignment
within the time given by our lecturer Miss Masliana bt Tamrin, This assignment cannot be
completed without the effort and cooperation from our group members, Farah Izzati, Siti Najihah,
Nur Hasanah, Nurul Hasanah, and Muhammad Syahmi. We also sincerely thank our lecturer of
marketing subject (MKT243), Miss Masliana for the guidance and encouragement in finishing this
assignment and for teaching us this subject. Last but not least, we would like to express our
gratitude to our friends, and respondents for the support and willingness to spend some time with
us to fill in the questionnaires.

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 II. INTRODUCTION

Our group has chosen a Secret Recipe company for our research because we want to know
the prices of each cake, the types of cakes sold and marketing strategy that they are used to handle
the company. Before we go further, there are a few limitations that were identified before we
proceeded with our research. We listed down three major limitations which are time constraints,
lack of knowledge and low cooperation from certain people. We are aware that actions must be
taken to overcome these problems that could give a negative impact on our research. The research
focuses primarily on the prices, places promotions and quality of the product. Furthermore, the
method that was used to conduct this survey is through an online questionnaire that we had created
on surveymonkey.com. The data was then collected to be analysed.

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1.0 COMPANY’S PROFILE
1.1 Name of business and logo

! 

Diagram 1 : Secret Recipe Cakes and Cafe logo

Secret Recipe Cakes and Cafe was founded in the year 1997 by Dato’ Steven Sim. It is
known for their wide range of quality gourmet cakes and it started growing even bigger as the
cafe culture slowly enters in majority of Asian countries. As time passes by, Secret recipe
became one of the largest cafe chains in Malaysia and currently runs more than 440 outlets
all across the region which includes Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, China, Brunei,
Maldives, and Bangladesh. Apart from their wide range of award-winning cakes, they also
serve other types of food including Asian and Western cuisine.

Secret Recipe Cakes & Cafe offers a full, friendly and personalized dining experience for
customers and combines contemporary interior concepts and modern dynamics with a cozy
atmosphere and great food. It provides a good break for customers to enjoy good food and
quality time with family, friends or even relatives. It serves cakes and fusion foods in a nice
environment.

As a leading and largest cafe chain in Malaysia with Halal-certification awarded by Jabatan
Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (JAKIM), Secret Recipe is committed to continuing to adhere to the
standards of preparation of all food. They also promises a value lifestyle proposition of great
variety and quality food at affordable prices. The uncompromising quality of food and desserts
using quality ingredients, paired with reasonable pricing, has created a new lifestyle class,
compromising a loyal base of food and cake lovers.

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1.2 Business address

42, Jalan SS 25/28 Taman Mayang 47301 Petaling Jaya Selangor Darul Ehsan.

1.3 Main activities of the company (Goods or services)

Secret Recipe is already a household name which they selected unique product and unit
market to concentrate with. Not many competitors have cake restaurant which encourages
customers to walk-in with beloved family and dine inside the cafe. The competitors such as
bakery were meant only to bake a cake while Secret Recipe took it a step further by making
bakery as a restaurant as well by catering other foods besides cakes. In addition, their unique
product is cake. Their target is to show secret recipe as the identity of cake. Their selected
unique market and product uplift them to move further in food and beverages which only have
a few numbers of competitors.

1.4 Vision, Mission and Objective

1.4.1 Vision Statement





“ To ride on the success of Secret recipe brand and engrave a good brand impression in all
over the world. We strive to adhere to strict self-regulation and control on the food and service
standards and quality that we provide to customers. “

1.4.2 Mission Statement

“ We strive to provide the best satisfaction to our valued customers, provide frinedl service
beyond customer’s expectation and serve premium quality products. “

1.4.3 Objectives

To achieve a break-even point within the first year of commencing operating of business. Foe
the following years, the objective continues positive percentage growth that can help Secret
Recipe cafe to expand steadily and remain dominant in the market segment that they are in.

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2.0 MARKET SEGMENTATION
Market segmentation is marketing strategy that involves dividing a broad target market into
subsets of consumers who have common needs. Secret Recipe market segmentation is
based on demographic and geographic.

2.1 Bases Of Segmentation

Secret Recipe uses demographic segmentation markets and geographic segmentation

markets.

A. Demographic Segmentation


Secret Recipe main target market is young adults between the ages of 18-30 both male
and female on the target list of the company. The foods offered are suitable for all type of
customers. In addition, the middle and high income level with approximately RM2000-
RM3000 is the target customer of Secret Recipe.


B. Geographic Segmentation


Secret Recipe is not only operating in Malaysia but expanded it to geographies like
Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, China, Brunei, Maldives, and Bangladesh.
There are over 440 outlets located all around the world.


As for the new product that was created by us which is a giant cookie called the Giant
Cookietella, we have decided to expand the demographic segmentation by including younger
consumers, male and female from the age as young as 12 years old to as old as 30 years old.
This is because cookies are something that is not too sweet for the elderlies nor too unsweet
for the youngsters.

Other than that, we have also decided to improve the geographic segmentation by
launching more outlets near schools and universities. Our product is to attract the attention of
students who needs a place to spend time and socialize after their classes end. Furthermore,
we would like to open outlets near the parks and offices. This is to attract older customers who
likes to take a stroll in the park every evening to sweeten up their day with our scrumptious
cookie. Those who are working are also our target as they often go for breaks during working
hours and often use their time to eat.

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2.2 Strategy Of Targeting Markets

Market targeting is a process of evaluating all market segment’s interest and selecting the
segment to enter. A target market is a group of consumers with similar needs who will most
likely buy a company’s products.

As for the company Secret Recipe, they use undifferentiated marketing strategy.
Undifferentiated targeting strategy aims toward an entire target market rather than only a part
of it. This strategy use a single marketing mix to reach the maximum number of consumers.
This strategy has made the company to attract a wider audience than the other marketing
strategies but it has also turned off a few groups of people due to the assumption that everyone
has the same interests. Secret Recipe’s strategy comprises to locate its stores at picky places
such as the first floor of blocks of offices, underground main entrance and urban areas. Secret
Recipe not only offer a wide variety of cakes but they offer heavy foods as well. The cafe’s
concept is flexible. They assume that everyone likes to eat at least one of the foods they offer.

Therefore with that, we have decided to use the undifferentiated targeting strategy as well.
Cookies are a type of food that is loved by almost everyone. Aside from the different flavours
of cakes offered, we wanted to give the consumers a taste of something new. With the product
that we had invented with an improvised size, we assume that it is going to be loved by
everyone disregard of their ages. The enormous size of our cookie will be perfect for the
consumers to share it with their loved ones. However, they can also opt to eat it alone as the
cookie will be sold in slices as well.

We have targeted young adults in our product. The big size of our giant cookie would
appeal more to the younger ones because most of those who are 40 years old and above are
health conscious and tries to avoid sweet food as much as possible. The giant size of the
cookie will also allow the consumers to have it more and can keep the leftovers in a portable
container which they can then bring it anywhere they go such as while having a soccer
tournament where they might have the urge to grab the scrumptious cookie as an energizer.
Other than that, we chose to promote our product online because almost everyone are familiar
with the social media platforms available on the internet today. Therefore, by targeting the
young adults, the profits and market share of our product will increase.

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2.3 Company Positioning In Consumer’s Mind

2.3.1 Consumers’ perceptions

In order to know about the company’s positioning in the minds of the consumers, we
conducted a research regarding it. The method that we used is through a questionnaire. A set
of questionnaire that contains 10 questions each were made and distributed to 30
respondents. The responses were then analyzed and the consumers’ perceptions can be
seen.

Based on the data that was analyzed from the first question which is about the
respondent’s familiarity with the brand Secret Recipe, majority of the respondents have heard
about the brand Secret Recipe before. 28 people (93%) claimed that they are aware of the
brand Secret Recipe Cakes and Cafe, meanwhile the other 2 out of 30 respondents (7%) have
never heard of the brand before.

Based on the second question of our questionnaire which is how the respondents hear
about Secret Recipe, most of the respondents which is 21 people (70%) have heard about
secret Recipe through the internet. This is because Secret Recipe’s main method of
advertising is through the Internet. On the other hand, 5 people (17%) found out about it
through their friends or family. 3 person (10%) heard from other platforms and lastly only one
person (3%) heard it from magazines, newspapers, or television. This is because Secret
recipe does not do television commercials.

Based on the third question, it can be seen that most of respondents go to secret recipe
once every month with 15 people (50%). This shows consistent customers as they buy their
products every month. Then, 10 of the respondents (33%) go there once every few months. 3
people (10%) go there once a week and the other 2 people (7%) go there twice a week. This
data shows that secret recipes have some loyal customers.

With a slight difference, based on question four, 17 people (52%) thinks that Secret Recipe
is not an affordable option for them and 16 people (48%) thinks that Secret recipe is affordable
for them. Therefore it can be concluded that Secret Recipe’s products are not very affordable
for everyone.

For question number five, we analyzed if there are an outlet near the respondents’ housing
areas and it appears that 19 respondents (63%) said that there is no Secret Recipe outlets
near their houses. However, 11 people (37%) said that there is an outlet near their homes.

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 Based on the sixth question, 24 of the respondents (80%) find that the locations of the Secret
Recipe outlets are strategic. This is because most of the outlets are inside a mall therefore it
will be easy for them to visit. Meanwhile only 6 people (20%) find it to be not strategic.

Based on question seven, If Secret Recipe were to sell the product that was created by us
which is a giant cookie, 25 (83%) of the respondents would be interested in buying the cookie.
Meanwhile only 5 (17%) of them are not interested in the product.

According to question number eight, RM65 would be the price of the giant cookie and 23 of
the respondents (77%) find it affordable. This is most probably because of the huge size of it
and it is cheaper than the average prices of secret recipe’s cakes. The other 7 people (23%)
does not find it affordable.

Lastly, from question number nine, it can be seen that 11 of the respondents (50%) are
21 to 30 years old. Then 7 of the respondents (32%) are 10 to 20 years old. This shows that
majority of the respondents are young adults and teenagers. Next, 3 people (14%) are 31 to
40 years old and lastly only one person is above 40 years old (5%). Thus, it is proven that
young adults and teenagers are more attracted to buy from Secret Recipe.

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2.3.2 Positive Or Negative Effect Of The Company’s Location

Based on the survey question, most of the respondents had voted that the location of the
Secret Recipe’s outlets give positive effects for the company because it is strategic for
consumers to find and visit. Basically, Secret Recipe company opened their outlets at the city
or inside the shopping mall so it is strategic for consumers. Other than that, not only the
location is very convenient but the facilities inside the outlets also enables consumers to use
the facilities that the company provides such as the tables and comfy chairs to sit while
enjoying a meal there.

2.3.3 Positioning Bases

Products in a firm can be positioned in many ways in the marketplace. There are a few
major types of positioning bases available. The positioning base that is being used by the
company Secret Recipe is by price and quality as well as by product class.

Price and Quality

This type of positioning base focuses on the price that was placed according to the quality
of the product. The higher the quality, the higher the price. However, pricing does not need to
be high for higher positioning. Both price and quality play a vital role in creating the right
perception in the customers’ minds. Secret recipe uses this approach and keep their pricing
slightly higher than average as they are targeting those who comes from a well-off
background. They want to keep their brand exclusive. Secret Recipe maintains the quality of
their cakes so that the customers will always be willing to pay for it as the product gives
satisfaction to them. The price paid is suitable with the quality. The price and quality approach
is overall a good positioning tool, but it must be used wisely because when there is changes
in the market, it might affect the company as well.

Product Class

This positioning base tends to take the leading position in the overall market. This applies
to Secret Recipe because Secret Recipe is one of the top cafes in Malaysia that produces
good quality cakes. It is especially famous because of their cakes and not a lot of other brands
can compete with it. As soon as the word cake is said, the first brand that would cross a
consumer’s mind is Secret Recipe. Customers would buy their cakes for all types of
celebration such as birthdays, Mother’s day, and Father’s day. Positioning by product class
will increase the company’s profits if it introduces more items from the product lines to
consumers who are loyal. This plays an important role especially when the products positioned
are one of a kind that no competitors own. For example, Secret Recipe recently introduced a
new Cheese Cake which is the Butterfly Lemon Pea Cheesecake and no other brands have
the same type of cake.

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3.0 Marketing Mix Strategies

3.1 Product Strategy

3.1.1.1 Product Item

A product item is a specific version of a product that can be designated as a distinct offering
among an organization’s products. As for the company Secret Recipe, the product items are
as follow :

NO PRODUCT ITEMS

1 Starter

2 Asian Classic

3 Western

4 Kid’s Club

5 Shinjuku bake

6 Cream Cakes

7 Cheese Cakes

8 Brownies

9 Premium Cakes

10 Square Cakes

3.1.1.2 Product Lines (length, extension, contraction)

A product line is a group of closely connected product items that can fulfil the same needs and
wants. A firm would normally offer a variety of products and have more than just one product
in a product line. Each related set of products is considered as a product line. For the company
Secret Recipe, the product line is as follow :

NO PRODUCT LINE PRODUCT EXTENSION

1 Starter Chicken Satay

Beef Satay

Caesar’s Salad

Crispy Chicken Salad

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 Mushroom Soup

Minestrone Soup

Pumpkin Soup

Garlic Herb Roll

Crispy Chicken Fingers With Chilli Glaze
Chicken Meatballs With Smokey BBQ Glaze

Cheesy Fire Chicken Wrap

Deep Fried Wonton

Seafood Spring Roll

2 Asian Classic Nasi Ayam Rangup

Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup

Noodle in Tom Yum Kung

Thai Style Fried Rice

Special Beef Noodle

Singapore Laksa
Secret recipe Fried Rice with Chicken Satay

Noodle in Tom Yum Soup

Penang Asam Laksa

Curry Seafood Laksa

Curry Mee

Ipoh Hor Fun

Special Seafood Mee

3 Western Stewed Aussie beef Steak

Thai Seafood Spaghetti

Pan Geilled Dory With Lobster Sauce

Spaghetti Meatball

Norwegian Salmon
Spaghetti Bolognese
Mozarella Baked Fish

Aglio Olio

Irish Lamb Shank

Prawn Macaroni with Cheese

Fish and Chips

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 Carribean Style Fish Fillet

Country Fried Chicken

Grilled Black pepper Chicken

Grilled Mushroom Chicken
Golden Crispy Chicken

Chicken Parmigiana
Chicken Cordon Bleu
Spicy Seafood Medley Pasta

Seafood Marinara
Arrabiata Spaghetti

4 Kid’s Club Kid’s Mac and Cheese

Kid’s Chicken Burger

Kid’s Cheesy Fish And Chips

5 Shinjuku Bake Shinjuku Maple Bake

Shinjuku Nutella Bake

Shinjuku Caramel Bake

Shinjuku Chocolate Cake

6 Cream Cakes Signature Tiramisu

Moist Chocolate Cake

Chocolate Fudge
Chocolate Chip Walnut
Chocolate Banana

White Chocolate Macadamia

Chocolate Indulgence

Choc Mud Cake

Toffee Banana

7 Cheese Cakes Wild Blueberry Cheese

Cappucino Cheese

Hi-Fibre cream Cheese

Yogurt Cheese

Raspberry Cheese
Oreo Cheese

New York Cheese

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 Marble Cheese

Cheeze Chocolate

Choc Cheese Berries

Creme Brulee Cheese
Butterfly pea lemon Cheesecake

8 Brownies Brownies Walnut

Carrot Slice

American Brownies

9 Premium Cakes Premium Black Forest

Durian Fromage
The Red Velvet

Fruitilicious

Absolute Chocolate
Chocolate Brulee

Chocolate Odyssey
Salted Caramel Macadamia

Hokkaido triple Cheese

Chocolate Strawberry
Absolute Durian

10 Square cakes Chocolate Au Lait

White Chocolate Gateau
Red Velvet Supreme

Classic Tiramisu

Boston Chocolate

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3.1.1.3 Product Mixes

An organization’s product mix includes all the products it sells. Product mix also known as
product assortment, refers to the total number of product lines that a company offers to its
customer

Width

Refers to the number of product lines an organization offers. The width of a company’s product
mix relate to the number of product lines that a company sells. For the company secret recipe,
there are 10 product lines therefore the product mix width is 10 as well.

Length

Product mix length refers to the total number of items in a company’s product line. Each
product line contains its own number of products. The total products that Secret Recipe have
is 97 products with 10 product lines.

No Product Lines Amount

1 Starters 13

2 Asian Classic 13

3 Western 22

4 Kid’s Club 3

5 Shinjuku Bake 4

6 Cream Cakes 9

7 Cheese Cakes 14

8 Brownies 3

9 Premium Cakes 11

10 Square Cakes 5

Total products : 97

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3.1.2 Type of company products

A consumer product is a product that is bought as a personal consumption by final

customers. However, there are four types of consumer products and each of them are
different. The four types of the consumer products are convenience products, shopping
products, specialty products and unsought product. Each consumer product involves different
consumer buying behaviour. As for the company Secret Recipe, the type of the consumer
product is convenience product.

Convenience product

Convenience products are products that are bought the most often. Consumers buy
convenience products frequently without having to do a lot of comparison as well as putting in
high buying effort. The products can be found in many locations and are usually readily
available for the consumers to purchase. Secret Recipe is a company that provides food. To
be more specific, they provide every type of food which includes starters, western food and
even desserts. Food is a human being’s basic necessity and is consumed every single day
which is why it is known to be convenient.

Many customers tend to buy convenience products due to their loyalties. Therefore, the
consistency of the product itself as well as the packaging are both an important aspect. This
is because consumers would normally pick their favourite brand out of the other available
options. After that they would stick to only one brand to purchase the product needed. In this
case, the loyal customers of secret recipe will regularly buy the products there and changes
in the product might lead to a dissatisfaction in the customers and cause them to switch to
other brands.

Convenience products offer the manufacturer the right opportunities to increase market
shares and sales through product line extensions. This applies to Secret recipe as the variety
of foods provided will benefit the consumers. For example, Secret recipes has extended their
product line from just cheese cakes to premium cakes.

Furthermore, Secret recipe also has strategic store locations which will make it easier for
the consumers to find. They have more than 400 stores throughout the globe. This will result
in a more exposed product visibility. Lastly, Secret Recipe also occasionally conducts a sale
promotion. This is also an important factor because a company earns its sales through habitual
loyalty which is the repeated purchases out of habit by the customers. Thus, to win a market
share whether in short term or long term, a company needs to do sales promotion. With all
that being said, Secret Recipe provides convenience products as it is a food company and
food is something that is purchased on a daily basis.

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3.1.3 Introduction Of New Product

Diagram 2 : Giant Cookietella

The new product that we had created for the company Secret Recipe, is a cookie. A cookie
might sound a little too ordinary but to make it different, the cookie was improvised. Apart from
the regular chocolate chip cookies that can be found on thousands of other places, it was
turned into something extraordinary. The product that was created is a giant chocolate chip
cookie. The inspiration to come up with this product is based on the research done. It appears
that Malaysians love foods that are bigger than the average size and it has apparently become
a trend here in Malaysia to have giant-sized food.

Secret Recipe has never produced cookies and because it is so famous for their variety choices
of cakes, it was figured that something different could be added this time by producing a cookie
that is of the same size with a cake. Giant Cookietella is the name of the cookie that was chosen
by us. This is due to the enormous size of it and the filling of the cookie which is a chocolate
hazelnut spread called Nutella, hence the name ‘Cookietella’. The cookie is made with 10
ingredients which are, flour, chocolate chips, sugar, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla essence, butter,
salt, nutella, baking soda and xx. It is then, placed inside the oven. The time taken to bake the
scrumptious cookie takes about 30 minutes and so that is how the Giant Cookietella is produced.
The cookie has both crunchiness and softness where it is soft on the inside and crunchy on the
outside. The appearance of the cookie is also an important factor when creating a new product,
therefore the cookie is decorated with drizzles of melted Cadbury chocolate bar. Not only it
enhances the look, but it enhances the taste as well. With the use of two of the most famous
chocolates in Malaysia which are Nutella and Cadbury, this cookie will definitely be able to attract
a lot of customers.

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 Our objective is to introduce the new product that we have created to the world, put in the
product to the market and increase the company’s sales and image. As a going globalized
concept cafe, a designer must be unique and creative to be outstanding. More exposure and
awareness activity can attract more people’s attention. It is easy for a new customer to
understand and accept this new product. The company’s loyal customers might even
introduce this product to their families, friends, and relatives about our new menu, Giant
Cookietella and bring them to the cafe. We believe that by creating this new product, it can
increase the company’s sales and image because it is something different from the average.
Secret Recipe is well-known in Malaysia for its fine quality cakes, fusion food, and distinctive
service. So we believe Giant Cookietella will be accepted by the public.

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3.2 PLACE STRATEGY

3.2.1: Marketing Channel



A marketing channel is the method used by a company to distribute their goods or services
to the customers. The method can be either direct or indirect. For direct marketing channel, it
means that the company will directly interact with the customers without the help of
intermediaries. On the other hand, indirect marketing channel will include the help of
interconnected intermediaries such as wholesalers, retailers and agents or brokers to
distribute the company’s goods or services to the end customer. As for the company Secret
Recipe, the marketing channel that is used is direct channel.

Direct Channel


This method is one of the most frequently used form of distributing products. Secret
Recipe does not involve the use of an intermediary and the manufacturer straightly interacts
with the customers at the point of sale. Some of the examples of direct channel distribution
are door to door sales, chain store sales, courier or post office sales, telemarketing sales, and
direct online sales. Secret Recipe uses chain store sales and direct online sales. 


Chain stores are retail outlets that are available in different locations that share a brand
and central management as well as uses the same business methods. Chain store sales are
often used by large manufacturing firms as they are required to open up retail stores in a lot
of different regions for the purpose of directly reaching out to the consumers. However some
chain stores are the branches that is owned by one company or they could be franchises
owned individually. Secret recipe has become one of the leading cafes in Malaysia and has a
lot of different branches and franchises in different areas. The locations of the chain stores
can be found in almost every state in Malaysia which inludes Penang, Perak, Selangor, Johor,
Kelantan, Sarawak and many more.

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 Next, direct online sales is also a method used by Secret Recipe. This method involves
online sales on the internet. The use of internet helps the sellers to market their products to
customers without having to move around. Secret recipe has created its own website at
http://www.secretrecipe.com.my. The customers can either order the food online or call their
delivery number and the product will be shipped via courier. However, they only deliver to
major towns in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur such as Petaling Jaya, Damansara, Kelana Jaya,
Kota Damansara, Sunway, Puchong, Subang, Glenmarie, Ampang, Bangsar and Mont Kiara.
A few terms and conditions also exists which are :

• Pre-order for cakes must be 4 hours in advance, for brownies 2 days in advance and
before 2pm
• Call & Delivery is only available for the standard whole cake(1 recipe)
• RM 10.60 delivery fee surcharge is applicable. Delivery time 11:00am – 6:00pm,
EXCEPT Weekends.
• Payments are to be made by cash on delivery or advance pay-in via internet banking
• Prices quoted are in Malaysian Ringgit and are inclusive of 6% SST where
applicable.

The benefit of using direct channel is that most customers prefer to deal directly with the
manufacturers of a product and this will create the chance for the product to be more
recognized thus create loyal customers.

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3.2.2 Level of Distribution Intensity

Distribution intensity is the level of the availability of a product in a market that is chosen by
the marketer. The distribution intensity level selected is usually based on the size of the target
market, the price as well as the capacity of production. There are three levels of distribution
intensity which are intensive distribution, selective distribution and exclusive distribution. For
the company Secret Recipe, the distribution intensity used is the selective distribution.

Selective Distribution

Selective distribution is a strategy that allow firms to set up a limited number of outlets in
a specific location. This strategy is the most effective for customers who have their own brand
preferences when buying a product. Secret recipe opens a limited number of outlets in a
particular location. For example, there are only 15 Secret Recipe outlets in Sabah and they
are mostly inside a mall. This method helps the manufacturer to filter out the outlet with the
best performance and only give extra attention to the outlets that are beneficial for the firm.
This method also helps the firm to focus on the few outlets that could give them high profits
and the best performances so that their resources will not be wasted on marginal ones. Other
advantages of using this method is that it allows the firm to get the ideal market coverage.
Customer satisfactions will also increase since the distributors are personally picked by the
firm. Besides, Secret Recipe offers uncompromising quality of food and desserts using quality
ingredients, coupled with moderate pricing, for food and cake lovers. The customers will gain
satisfaction from the good quality food as well as top notch service as the manufacturers have
a greater control in handling the outlets.

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3.3 PROMOTION STRATEGY

There are different type of ways on how a firm can promote its product. It can be based on
either institutional advertising or product advertising. Institutional advertising focuses more on
the image of the company instead of promoting their products while product advertising
focuses on promoting the product to the target market by highlighting the specialties of the
product.

3.3.1 Type of advertising

Product Advertising

The type of advertising used by Secret Recipe is product advertising. Secret Recipe
focuses more on promoting the benefits of their products which are food. Secret Recipe also
uses pioneering advertising that is used to stimulate demand for their new product. It is to
expose to the customers about the arrival of their new product and how it could benefit them.
This will create a feeling of interest and curiosity in the customers.

Recently in 2019, Secret recipe has produced a new flavour of cake which is called the
Butterfly Pea Lemon Cheese cake. The Butterfly Lemon Cheese cake is made by chilled
premium imported Australian cream cheese infused with candied lemon zest and butterfly pea
flowers. It is deliciously creamy, light and packed with antioxidants for good health. The
appearance of the new cake is also very bright and appealing. Secret Recipe uses their own
online website to promote the arrival of this new cake. It is to inform the public what the product
is, what the specialty is, and where they can find it. They desire to convince people that their
lives will be fundamentally better if they purchase this new product. They screen new ideas all
the way through developing prototypes.

Diagram 3 : Butterfly Pea Lemon Cheese cake by Secret Recipe

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 On the other hand, the new product that was created by us which is the Giant Cookietella ,
it will also be promoted using pioneering advertising as based on the research done, this type
of advertising gains the most attention in the groups of young adults which is our target market
because most of them are tempted to try out something that they see is spreading on the
internet. The pictures below are some of the ways on how it will be advertised on the internet.

Diagram 4 : Giant Cookietella advertising photos

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3.3.2 Type of medium for Media Decision in Advertising

There are various types of mediums that can be used when advertising a product. The
mediums include newspapers, magazines, radios, televisions, and the internet. However,
there is only one medium that is used by Secret Recipe which is the internet.

Internet

Secret Recipe sells their products through other channels like distribution targeting through
their own online website as well as their Instagram’s official account. The use of the social
media platform instagram is really efficient as majority of the people here in Malaysia spends
plenty of their time on that specific platform. Therefore, by promoting their product on
Instagram, Secret Recipe managed to gain a lot of audience. They currently have a total of
102 thousands of followers on instagram. Their stated goal is to become the leader of the
brand of cake in each of its target markets. This pictures below is the evidence of the
advertisements that was promoted by Secret Recipe on their official Instagram page.

Diagram 5 : Secret Recipe’s official Instagram

Diagram 6 : Secret Recipe’s advertising on official website

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 Then, to broaden up the number of audience, a television commercial was created for the
product Giant Cookietella that we had created. The advertisement presents a short story of
how the cookie managed to unite a group of teenagers who were once enemies. This
commercial might be able to attract a lot of new customers due to the interesting content. It
will be aired on the television as well as the internet.

Other than that, an advertisement through a flyer was also made to gain the attention of
customers who do not use the internet frequently. The flyer will be distributed to all the passer-
by near the Secret Recipe stores. This will give the customers a closer look on the product
promoted as they can visit the stores immediately after seeing the flyer because it will be
distributed near the location of the outlets. The attachment below is the flyer that was
personally designed by us.

Diagram 6 : Flyer of the Giant Cookietella

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3.3.3 Sales Promotional Tools

Sales promotion are marketing activities that provide extra values or stimulus to the sales
force. The consumer-oriented promotion tools are aimed to increase the sales to existing
customers as well as to attract new customers. This is also known as a pull strategy where
the customer can obtain the benefit from the promotions offered.

Just like any other brands, Secret Recipe also have their own way of promoting their
products to people. Secret Recipe would normally have a special promotion during special
events in Malaysia such as during the Independence Day, Valentine’s Day and Parents Day.
Some of the promotional tools used by Secret Recipe are coupons, bonus packs and price-
off deals.

I. Coupons

Diagram 7 : Coupon of Secret Recipe

A coupon is a certificate that helps buyers to save up the amount of money needed to be
paid when they purchase a specific product. Coupons are normally issued along with the
product and can either be in the form of cash refund or a specific saving on a product. Foer
example, based on the coupon attached above, customers will get a free cake if they purchase
one cake. This means that they can get two cakes with the price on only one cake. However
there are the terms and conditions that usually comes along with it. Coupons can also
encourage customers to buy products in large sizes.

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II. Price-off deals

Diagram 8 : Secret Recipe price-off deals

This tool is the most frequently used tool in a majority of the companies. A price-off deal
provides a discount for the specified items. It is usually only eligible with the purchase of
another product from the brand. For instance, as seen in the diagram 8, customers can enjoy
50 percent off on the second slice of cake. This means that the customer will only get the
discount on the second slice of cake after purchasing a slice of cake with the normal price.
This price discount is very common during festival season or during off-season period. It
produces short-term sales, especially when satisfying discounts are given to customers.

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3.3.4 Major Public Relation Tools 


Public relation is the marketing function that evaluates public attitudes, identifies areas
within the organization that the public may be interested in and executes a program of action
to earn public understanding and acceptance. Public relation strives to gain or maintain a
positive image of the organization in the eyes of the public.

Based on our research, Secret Recipe has used different channels to promote their
products such as online website, brochures, catalogues, flyers, newspaper and television
advertisement. Secret Recipe will always come out with new products to attract more
customers especially during special occasions. The promotions are done heavily during
special occasions to increase customers’ awareness of new products they produced. Some
of the major public relation tools used by Secret Recipe are sponsorship, internet websites
and new-product publicity.


I. Internet Websites

Secret Recipe has its own web pages that act as a platform to inform and communicate about
their products. With this website, they display their core products along with high-quality
images. In addition, on the website, they categorize their products according to their product
line to offer an excellent user experience. The website is to communicate with the consumers,
to inform them of their products and services as well as to send them promotional material.

Meanwhile, for the new product that was created by us which is the Giant Cookietella, we
would like to stick the same method because it is easy and convenient for the customers
especially our regular customer to check it out and keep updated about the promotions and
latest news. The internet website is the most convenient platform for everyone these days.

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II. New-product publicity

Publicity is useful to promote new-product to the market by creating free news stories and
highlighting positive word of mouth about the product. In this era of globalization, people are
easily affected by the environment and people surroundings. Secret Recipe have chosen the
malay actor Awal Ashaari as their official ambassador to promote their brand. When a new
product is released by Secret Recipe, The malay actor will use his social media account to
promote about the product.

As for our own product, Giant Cookietella, this tool is a good opportunity to impress people
so they can recognize the product. The Giant Cookietella will be given out for free to actors or
actresses, bloggers, and youtubers so they can make a review and promote the product to
their followers.

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III. Sponsorship

Secret Recipe uses sponsorships to help build goodwill and to ensure their new products
are recognized by associating with an event or group. In 2008, Secret Recipe had participated
in a sponsorship program at SMK Sultan Ismail, Kota Bharu,Kelantan. The main aim of the
company is to promote literacy in the community, building a strong educational infrastructure,
enhancement of the reading and improve of the English language. Regarding of Corporate
Social Responsibility, Secret Recipe proves that they are not only acknowledged on the matter
of delivering quality foods but also with giving back to the society through various ways such
as awareness campaigns and sponsorship.

Meanwhile, for our new product, Giant Cookietella, we will use the same method as Secret
Recipe which is sponsorship to sell our new product. Since the target market is from middle
income group and high income group, we would like to sponsor homeless people and lower
income group so that they can also experience the delights of our cookies. In conclusion,
social responsibility is not merely an ethical business practice but also makes good business
sense.

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3.3.5 Personal Selling for promotional tools.

Personal selling involves communication and interaction with people to sell and promote
the products or services. Some of the commonly used tools are sales presentations where the
company provides an in-person and virtual presentations to inform the customers about their
product. Next is demonstration where the company demonstrate how the product works and
what benefit it offers. Lastly is reference selling where the company use satisfied customers
and their experiences to convince other targeted customers to buy their products or services.

After doing our research, it appears that Secret Recipe does use personal selling as a
promotional tool. The technique used is consultative selling. This technique involves a
consultation with a selected representative who usually have the power to influence other
people. The representative needs to inform the audience about the company’s products or
services as well as persuade and remind them of the characteristics of the products, the
benefits and the deals offered. In this case Secret Recipe had chosen Awal Ashaari who is a
well-known Malaysian actor as the face of the brand. Secret recipe also approached a lady
named Eika Azam who has a lot of followers on the platform Instagram.

Diagram 9 : Secret recipe’s selected representative of their products

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 As seen above on diagram 9, Awal Ashaari and Eika Azam promoted Secret Recipe’s
product and explains about the product’s characteristics and persuades their followers to try
out the new product by posting pleasant looking photos to attract the attention of their
followers.

Personal selling can minimize efforts and boost the power of persuasive marketing. It also
measures a market’s return on investment better than any other tools and will be able to give
insights into the customers’ habits and responses which will enable the firm to focus only on
a specific group of consumers and gain more sales.

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3.4 Pricing Strategy

Pricing strategy is the way a firm decides on the price or value that is put to their products.
In order to set a specific price, the firm must do a lot of calculations, some research and
consider the consequences. This strategy is combined with the four components of the
marketing mix which are products, price, place and promotion. This strategy is used to
generate and increase the revenue of the organization, which becomes a profit for the
company. Most companies want to maximize their profit when they have competitions so that
they can take the lead. The right pricing strategy needs to be used to achieve the objective of
an organization.

3.4.1 Pricing Objective

Companies set pricing objectives that are specific, attainable, and measurable. These
goals require periodic monitoring to determine the effectiveness of the strategy. There are
three types of pricing objectives which are profit oriented, sales oriented and status quo.

Profit Oriented

The price objective used by Secret Recipe is the profit oriented pricing objective. This
objective requires the firm to set prices that is certain to bring profits to each sales. When the
price of a product is above the actual costs, the firm will be able to avoid from losing money
on the products sold. Secret Recipe pricing objective is to be as reasonable as possible for
the average household income that demands a good dining experience. These target market
would be willing to pay for a meal that is slightly above the average pricing. Secret Recipe has
a set of price policies for their cakes which is different from the singular meals. As most of
Secret Recipe’s cakes are one of a kind and could not be found in other stores, customers will
often crave for it. Hence why they are able to introduce their cakes at a standard price of
RM9.80 per slice and a standard price of RM98.00 per cake. Customers are just willing to go
Secret Recipe for their quality cakes because their cakes have won a lot of awards. Other
than that, their cakes that require custom designs, shapes and decorations, a premium fee
will be charged because of the usage of more than 1 recipes and the additional work on the
cake. Custom designed cakes with 1 recipe or more will have a markup on its cost. The
premium cost actually are paid for the amount of recipes used in the cake making process.
With this, it can be concluded that Secret Recipe uses the profit oriented objective as they
primarily focus on the making profits for each of their products.

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3.4.2 Price strategies

There are three types of pricing strategies which are price skimming, penetration pricing
and status quo pricing. Secret Recipe uses the penetrating price strategy.

Penetration Pricing Strategy

This strategy can bring in new customers as well as switch the customer’s brand loyalty.
This strategy offers products at a price that is below their value at the initial offering. It is to
draw customers away from competitors. The price of Secret Recipe’s products has definitely
increased throughout the years as the competitors increases their price as well. In the
beginning their prices are lower but after getting a lot of recognition, they increased the price
back to suitable price with the values offered.

For the new product that we had created which is the Giant Cookietella, we would like to
stick with this pricing strategy as well to draw more customers. The price for our Giant
Cookietella is RM 65 per cookie and RM 8 per slice. Tthere is a difference between the price
of the whole cookie compared to the price of the whole cake in Secret Recipe even though
the sizes are almost similar. The low initial price will be able to grab the attention of even
teenagers who does not have a fixed income yet. Therefore, this price strategy will bring us
high sales.

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3.4.3 Type of Pricing Tactic

I. Single price tactic

The single price tactic offers all goods and services at the same price. Single price selling
removes price comparisons from the buyer’s decision-making process. In other words, all
Secret Recipe stores use the same price and align. For example, the price of New York
Cheese Cake at the Selangor branch is RM98.00 as well as for all the other branches. They
do not have different prices according to the state as they are maintaining their quality and
image of the company.

II. Price Lining

Secret Recipe uses a price lining strategy on certain and specific categories of products.
This is to simplify the choices of the customers by introducing the same pricing for cakes and
foods of the same types. For example, square cakes line they sell at a price of RM70.00 but
for the cheesecakes line, they sell at a price of RM98.00. Therefore, they have their own price
line depending on their shape, material, and quality.

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Conclusion

According to the survey questions a lot of people are familiar with the brand Secret Recipe.
28 from 30 people are aware of the brand while the other 2 have never heard about the brand
before. It can also be seen that 21 out of 30 people heard about Secret Recipe through the
internet , 5 people found out about the brand from their family members or friends , 3 out of
30 heard from other platforms and 1 out of 30 heard about the brand from magazine,
newspaper or television. This is because Secret Recipe does not do a lot of advertising on
those three platforms. The respondents also show how frequent they go to Secret Recipe. 15
people buy from Secret Recipe once every month. 10 people go there once every few months,
3 people go there once a week and two people go there twice a week. For the affordability of
Secret Recipe, it shows that 17 out of 30 people thinks that it is not an affordable option for
them and the rest thinks otherwise. The locations of the Secret Recipe outlets are strategic
and easy for them to visit. This is because 19 out of the 30 respondents can find a Secret
Recipe outlet near their homes. Then, 24 out of 30 agrees that teh locations of the outlets are
strategic. Lastly, the most average age that buy from Secret Recipe are 21-30 years old and
that the majority of the respondents come from young adults and teenagers.

According to survey questions of product, 25 out of 30 respondents are interested in

buying a giant cookie from Secret Recipe. Next, 23 out of 30 respondents feel that the price
of the giant cookie is affordable probably because of the huge size and that the price is
cheaper than the average price of Secret Recipe’s cakes.

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Recommendation

1. Make sure that every branch of Secret Recipe keep updated about all new menus or
promotions that are in progress at the time set.


2. Secret Recipe should open until 12am because a lot of customers celebrate their family
members or friends birthday at night which will enable the customers to buy products from
Secret Recipe even at late at night.

3. Prices for the food in Secret Recipe can be reduced as a lot of people find it to be on the
expensive side.

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APPENDIX – QUESTIONNAIRE FROM SURVEYMONKEY.COM

1. Have you ever heard of the brand secret recipe?



Yes
No

Yes No

2. How did you hear about secret recipe?

Internet
Magazines, newspapers or television
Friends or family


 Others

Internet magazines/ newspapers / TV

friends / family others

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3. How often do you buy at secret recipe?


Once a week
Twice a week
Once a month
Once every few months

once a week twice a week

once a month once every few months

4. Do you think the food at secret recipe are affordable?



Yes
No

yes no

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5. Are there any secret recipe outlets near your home?


Yes
No

yes no

6. Do you think that the location of the existing secret recipe outlets are strategic?



Yes
No

yes no

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7. If Secret Recipe were to come out with a giant sized cookie that is as big as 21cm and as
thick as 1.5 inches, would you buy it?



Yes
No

yes no

8. Do you think RM65 is an affordable price for the giant-sized cookie?



Yes
No

yes no

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9. Which of the following is your age range?

10-20 years old

21-30 years old
31-40 years old
40 and above

10-20 years old 21-30 years old

31-40 years old 40 and above

44
 References

1. Ayob, M. (4th Edition). Fundamentals of Marketing. Universiti Teknologi Mara .

2. Kotler P. & Armstrong, G "Principle of Marketing" 14th edition l, Prentice hall (2012)
Retrieved from https://www.educba.com/pricing-strategies-in-marketing.
3. Phoebe Calver (2018, February 9) Secret Recipe Cakes & Cafe Sdn Bhd Retrieved
from https://www.asiaoutlookmag.com/outlook-features/secret-recipe-cakes-cafe-sdn-
bhd
4. Secret Recipe Cakes & Cafe Sdn Bhd (2018) Retrieved from
https://www.secretrecipe.com.my

45