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Unit 2 Marketing Process & Planning
Unit 2 Marketing Process & Planning
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Table of Contents
Part 1.....................................................................................................................................................3
1. Introduction...............................................................................................................................3
2. Definition of Marketing.............................................................................................................3
2.1 Product Manager......................................................................................................................3
2.2 Sales Manager..........................................................................................................................4
2.3 Sales Personnel........................................................................................................................4
3. Role of the Marketing Function.................................................................................................4
3.1 Creating Product Offering........................................................................................................4
4. Marketing Function Working And Interaction...........................................................................5
4.1 Traditional Marketing Environment........................................................................................5
5. Extended Marketing Mix...........................................................................................................5
6. Marketing Mix Adopted............................................................................................................6
6.1 Comparison of Coca-Cola and Pepsi.......................................................................................6
6.2 Effect Of Marketing Activities On Finance:............................................................................8
7. Recommendations......................................................................................................................8
8. Conclusions...............................................................................................................................8
Part 2.....................................................................................................................................................9
1. Marketing Plan..........................................................................................................................9
2. Clear And SMART Marketing Objectives.................................................................................9
3. Research In Marketing...............................................................................................................9
4. A Situational Analysis...............................................................................................................9
4.1 SWOT, PESTLE and 5C Analysis...........................................................................................9
4.2 A Competitor Analysis Including The Market Segments.......................................................11
4.3 Sub-Segments........................................................................................................................12
4.4 Articulation............................................................................................................................12
4.5 Marketing Strategies Development........................................................................................12
4.6 Marketing Budget..................................................................................................................13
4.7 Actions In A Tactical Context...............................................................................................13
4.8 Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)...........................................................................................13
5. A Media strategy......................................................................................................................13
5.1 A Media Budget.....................................................................................................................13
5.2 Recommendations..................................................................................................................14
5.3 Media Channels For Communication....................................................................................14
5.4 Quantitative And Qualitative Criteria....................................................................................14
References...........................................................................................................................................16
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Part 1
1. Introduction
Coca-Cola has been singled out as the company that should receive this honour. The current
responsibilities of marketing include choosing which consumer categories to focus on, researching to
ascertain the needs of specific consumer segments, designing product offerings that cater to the
requirements as well as the desires of specific consumer segments, and educating consumers about the
benefits of the planned product offering, manufacturing products in response to consumer demand,
and offering after-sale support (Usui, 2017). The following is a list of the most important
2. Definition of Marketing
Companies are increasingly employing a diverse group of employees to handle the many
components of marketing rather than designating a single individual as the point person for the
coordination of all marketing operations inside the organisation. Now, it is the responsibility of each
worker in the organisation to see to it that the needs of the customer are always satisfied ( Gardini,
2022). In the modern organisational structure, marketing exerts a tremendous influence over every
department. The marketing function is deeply linked with the majority of, if not all, an organization's
other operations. The following is a synopsis of the relationship that exists between marketing and the
The product manager at Coca-Cola is responsible for ensuring that the company's new product
offerings are both functional and feature-rich enough to satisfy the requirements of the company's
customers. To accomplish this goal, the marketing manager and the product manager will need to
work together to analyse the requirements and preferences of the target demographic (Chernev, 2018).
According to the findings of market research, the primary responsibility of a product manager is to
generate value and to construct a product that satisfies the requirements of the target market.
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2.2 Sales Manager
The sales managers at Coca-Cola oversee managing the sales team at the firm and ensuring that
every member of the sales team has both the essential abilities and the will to succeed. They are also
responsible for ensuring that every member of the sales team has the desire to succeed. The
responsibility of expanding and maintaining the corporation's product sales, such as those of Coca-
Cola and Minute Maid, falls on the shoulders of managers of sales (Whitler, 2018). The marketing
and sales departments of a company need to keep up constant contact with one another to determine
the strategies that are going to be most successful in attracting and retaining customers for the
Salespeople must provide management with feedback regarding what customers want. They
must collect input from consumers because they are the ones who are in the most direct touch with the
customers (Usui, 2017). The salespeople will need to make sure that they collaborate with the brand
manager and the sales manager to successfully establish the brand image of the things in the minds of
the consumers. Only then will they be able to properly explain the value of the product.
An organisation such as Coca-Cola needs to break down each function to determine the people
it wants to target for various goods and brands. Coca-Cola, for example, must assess the demands of
the health-conscious adolescent demographic before marketing to them. Primary and secondary
research can be used by Coca-Cola to uncover client needs (Usui, 2017). Primary research is the
process of gathering data directly from the source using methods such as surveys, in-person
interviews, and focus groups. Secondary research, on the other hand, is the collection of information
from existing data, such as Coca-current Cola's sales numbers or Pepsi Co's sales figures in the same
Coca-Cola will be able to examine the data and determine what people desire once it has
conducted sufficient study. After that, it will be able to design a brand-new type of energy drink that
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is aimed just at this market (Gardini, 2022). All the features and functionalities that appeal to
customers and meet their requirements will be included in the new drink.
Marketing has undergone a dramatic shift in the modern world. Those days are long gone when
a company's marketing strategy was limited to promoting or selling its products. Marketing as a
discipline has undergone a profound transformation. Organizations used to focus on providing the
best product possible, but today's marketers recognise that customers are intelligent and expect value
from the things they buy (Chernev, 2018). Instead of sticking with the company's offerings, customers
will look elsewhere. The marketing notion refers to the idea that customers should be at the centre of
all marketing efforts. When it comes to marketing, the roles and responsibilities have changed
dramatically throughout the years. A look at the changing roles and duties in the marketing landscape
is provided below.
processes and delivering low costs to customers to attract them (McDONALD, 2016). This has
changed. Since the advent of the manufacturing idea, businesses have become increasingly concerned
with creating goods that appeal to a broad range of consumers. After that, firms moved their focus to a
Sales orientation, in which the prevailing consensus was that salespeople with the right skills could
sell clients anything. A marketing strategy's success was also measured only by how many things it
was able to sell. All the foregoing approaches had one key flaw: they failed to centre their efforts on
meeting the demands of customers (Whitler, 2021). All the strategies centred on creating items and
then locating the right people to sell them to. Therefore in its early days, the job of marketing was
Coca-Cola must make sure that it interacts with its consumers through the marketing tasks that
it does to establish a brand image and the loyalty of its customers (Iacobucci, 2021). Consumers are
Coca-most Cola's precious asset; as a result, the corporation must make certain that it performs its
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marketing activities in such a way that its consumers are happy and can form a connection with the
company. Customers will go to the competition if a company can't do this, and its goods won't have
the long-term success they need. Coke's success may be attributed to the company's ability to cultivate
client loyalty and connect with them via advertising and marketing (Gardini, 2022). Coca-Cola was
able to successfully express its brand image in such a manner that it assisted the firm in developing a
product to which the consumers can relate and identify, which was necessary for the company to
achieve its goal of making the product relevant to the customers. Unless the firm can accomplish this,
its long-term goals are unlikely to be met. As a result of this connection, marketing operations are tied
to consumer relationships.
For a company like Coca-Cola, marketing operations affect the income and profitability of the
entire business, not just a single department. Because of this, it is essential to have an understanding
of how a disruption in marketing activities can result in damage to the whole firm. Customers are a
company's most significant stakeholders, and meeting their requirements is a key component of
marketing efforts (Iacobucci, 2021). Customers. As part of the larger context of the company's
finances, customer interactions, and image, marketing operations can have a significant impact on
these areas. The following is an examination of how the functions and duties of marketing connect
Product: When it comes to soda, Pepsi and Coca-Cola go head-to-head. The parent company of
Pepsi, known simply as PepsiCo, is the most successful food and beverage company in the world
(Đokić, 2016). Products manufactured by this corporation are exported to more than 200 nations on
every continent.
Price: The prices at which Pepsi sells its products are strongly impacted by those set by Pepsi's chief
competitor, Coca-Cola (Whitler, 2018). Since manufacturing and transportation costs are so high,
neither company can win a pricing war. Because of this, businesses have decided to participate in a
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Promotion: When it comes to preserving a company's brand image, the most efficient method of
marketing is to run promotions and advertisements, much like Coca-Cola does (Chernev, 2018). Pepsi
advertising, on the other hand, frequently includes kids, in contrast to Coca-emphasis Colas on adults.
Place: The distribution network for Coca-chief Cola's competitor, Pepsi, is remarkably comparable to
that of Pepsi (Whitler, 2021). Since the brand's distribution network is so extensive, the company's
People: Coca-Cola is a significant business that employs strategic HR management to help people
grow and be satisfied. Coca-Cola has utilised HRM practices to empower employees and boost work
satisfaction. The company's incentives and recognition programme boost staff retention (Chernev,
2018). Pepsi employs several professionals who play an important part in its marketing strategy.
These personnel are trained in persuasive strategies and to respect corporate clients' preferences. Pepsi
employees at retail outlets answer inquiries and assist customers to choose the best product.
Process: Around 225 bottling companies are part of the Coca-Cola system. These bottling partners
and a wide distribution network help support the company's foreign commercial activities. Coca-
Cola’s bottling partners sell the final product globally. Coca-Cola’s final product activities include
bottling, sales, and distribution (Fomichenko et al., 2020). Pepsi has procedures in place to alert
merchants when inventory is low. It features an online delivery method where orders are processed in
the computer system and appropriate merchandise is dispatched to the delivery service provider. Pepsi
does market research to identify client wants. Through the retail, hotline, and social media input, it
Physical Evidence: Coca-Cola's physical operations are dispersed over the world. The company's
Packaging, ads, and promotional material all bear the Coca-Cola logo. There is rarely an area in the
world where you won't see a Coca-Cola ad or bottle (Đokić, 2016). Similarly, packaged in a
distinctive hue, Pepsi's goods are easy to spot in stores. These are displayed on a set of shelves given
by the firm, each with a unique colour and design. Pepsi's user-friendly website features high-quality
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6.2 Effect Of Marketing Activities On Finance:
It is possible for Coca-Cola to produce excellent sales and outperform the competition by
accurately identifying the needs of consumers and creating, communicating, and delivering the value
of its product offering to meet those demands. Simply said, increased sales indicate increased revenue,
which in turn means increased profitability for the organisation (McDONALD, 2016). This is the end
goal. For this reason, companies who fail to create a product that meets the demands of their
customers or fail to invest in marketing channels that assist their products to reach their intended
audience will suffer financial losses and be unable to recover their promotional investment
expenditures. Financial difficulties may ensue because of the company's decreased cash flow and
earnings. Thus, marketing's tasks and roles have an important bearing on the company's profitability.
7. Recommendations
After the drink is produced, it may use advertising and branding strategies to show how healthy
and better it is to the competitors. For Coca-Cola to achieve this goal, they would need to decide
which mode of communication they would use, how much money they would spend on advertising
via television, and how much money they would spend on advertising via print and social media
(Sahir et al., 2020). The company must decide which colour packaging to employ and what
8. Conclusions
Because the requirements of customers direct every aspect of Coca-business, Cola's the
company can no longer afford to delegate all its operations to a single department because those
requirements change so frequently. It is now necessary to select marketing specialists inside each
department to carry out the marketing activities that span the entirety of the business (Đokić, 2016).
every manager in a business to carry out the essential operations to encourage the expansion of the
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Part 2
1. Marketing Plan
Coca-Cola can use the following basic marketing strategy to attain its long-term marketing
goals. Be specific about what Coca-Cola hopes to accomplish with their marketing strategy
(Kitchenko 2019). As of 1892, Coca Cola is a well-known corporation. As a result of the company's
long history as a leading soft drink manufacturer, its Atlanta headquarters is home to the world's most
To prevent clients from switching to the competition, set prices that are as low as possible.
Launch fresh advertising campaigns emphasising the importance of Coca-Cola in uniting people.
3. Research In Marketing
Coke's target audience is not limited to a single demographic; the beverage is drunk by individuals
throughout the world from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds and ages. On the other hand,
the drink is aimed mostly at millennials, and the primary message that it conveys is that it draws
people together (Grosheleva et al., 2021). Pepsi Company is currently Coca-most Cola's significant
competitor, while Coca-Cola is currently a dominant player in the beverage business. Soda's
market strategy is to offer a wide variety of packaging options and flavour combinations to appeal
Retaining and enhancing relationships with customers and promoting brand loyalty
Support the soft drink industry's ability to innovate while maintaining market share
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4. A Situational Analysis
SWOT Analysis
Strengths: Coca-Cola is a brand that is incredibly well-known all over the world. Its name
recognition is one of its most valuable assets, and it may even be the only one of its kind. The name
Coca-Cola is well-known and recognised in nearly every country in the world (Fomichenko et al.,
2020). It possesses a well-established and widely recognised brand identity. In the world, the Coca-
Weaknesses: Because of this, Coca-Cola has a low-risk profile for its long-term financial success.
However, for them to develop beyond their current position, several deficiencies need to be solved
first. Word of mouth may be beneficial to a company's bottom line as well as detrimental to its
success (Goel et al., 2017). For the most part, reviews of Coca-Cola are overwhelmingly positive, yet
the company and its products are despised by just as many consumers.
variety of well-known brands, all of which it needs to continue to capitalise on and expand upon
(Munsch, 2021). In addition, Coca-Cola can advertise even its less well-known brands and products
Threats: Nevertheless, Coca-Cola is vulnerable to several threats, even though the firm dominates the
worldwide market.
PESTLE Analysis
Political: Coca-political Cola's lobbying efforts are well-documented, as seen by the company's
official website (Anjum et al., 2020). Coca-Cola, which makes political contributions as well,
employs a range of strategies, including trade associations and direct campaigning, to make sure that
Environmental: Packaging should make greater use of recycled materials, and the beverage sector as
a whole ought to come to a consensus on a unified strategy for waste reduction (Grosheleva et al.,
2021). Coca-Cola has been a strong supporter of a more responsible and sustainable system of
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Sociological: The United States is the world's most overweight nation, with a large percentage of the
population being classed as obese, mostly due to the easy availability and aggressive marketing of
fast-food chains.
forward-thinking programme with the catchy name 'Bridge,' the purpose of which is to guarantee that
the firm embraces emerging technology at a faster rate than its competitors.
Legal: Increased litigation involving food and beverage components by multinational firms has led to
Economic: Coca-revenue Due to the launch of healthier beverages, Cola's has surpassed Wall Street's
expectations. Per-share, earnings increased from the forecasted level of 57 cents to the level of 59
cents. Rather than $9.652 billion, revenue came in at $9.702 billion (Kitchenko 2019). As a result of
the uncertainty surrounding Brexit and Trump's presidency, many feel that a global recession is
5C Analysis
Company: Corporations may gain a competitive advantage by ensuring that their business strategies
are aligned with each of the operational areas in which they compete (Munsch, 2021). The market for
worldwide scale.
Customers: In the foreseeable future, no other beverage business will be able to compete with Coca-
Competitors: The advantages a corporation held in the market were directly attributable to the
resources at its disposal (Goel et al., 2017). It is not impossible to own both tangible and intangible
Collaborators: Coca-value Cola's supply chain includes financial and marketing resources,
Climate: In addition, because of the reduction of 5.5% in their carbon emissions that took place
between 2007 and 2010, the company now can become more environmentally conscious.
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4.2 A Competitor Analysis Including The Market Segments
It's the technique of identifying various client groups in a certain market. The first thing that
needs to be done is to determine the different types of customers that the sector serves and the
requirements that each of these customers has (Fomichenko et al., 2020). Customers search for
vehicles based on a variety of criteria, including their speed and performance, the amount of space
inside, how secure they feel, and how unusual the car is. The Coca-Cola Company has access to a
4.3 Sub-Segments
including income, location, level of education, age, and gender, among others (Grosheleva et al.,
2021). It is simple to segment the Coca-Cola Company's market by utilising demographic parameters
because various regions of the world have distinct populations. Another market segmentation strategy
4.4 Articulation
Another strategy for market segmentation is available to The Coca-Cola Company, and that
strategy is to divide customers according to the benefits they seek. A single product can serve as many
as 16 different functions, depending on who uses it and why (Ghai et al., 2018). Because the younger
generation wants a different form of fulfilment and feeling from utilising a product than the older one,
this is more likely to happen to them than to the older generation. It's not uncommon for Coca-patrons
Cola's to wish to quench their thirst, refresh themselves, or invigorate their bodies, depending on their
specific needs (Ramesh et al., 2019). Putting clients into various groups according to the benefits they
seek from Coca-Cola goods is something that may be done utilising any of these methods.
It would be most helpful to propose to Coca-Cola that they segment their market depending on
the demographic features of their customers. This is because demographic characteristics can be
easily categorised and recognised because of the simplicity with which this may be done (Kannan,
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2017). When it comes to segmenting a market, demographic characteristics like income, age,
education level, and geography are all useful tools that may be utilised. This allows for the creation of
The question "how well are existing segments provided by other competitors?" is one technique
to analyse a market segment. This question is determined by the market segmentation that was
explained earlier in this paragraph (Kitchenko 2019). Coca-Cola might have a simpler way of catering
to a market segment that is currently being underserved by its competitors rather than something that
is already being well handled by competitors by making products that are like or equivalent to the
ones that Coca-Cola already offers. Coca-Cola might evaluate the proposed segmentation method by
taking into account the size of the segment as another factor (Anjum et al., 2020). The first and most
critical stage for the company is to evaluate the scope of its potential for growth inside the market
segment that is being targeted. This is not just about how large anything is; it is more about how
rapidly a market can develop with no need for a lot of competition to enter the picture.
If a consumer has a smaller purchasing power, the firm may be able to deliver the same goods
to the customer in fewer packaged quantities (Ghai et al., 2018). This is because the buying power of
the customer influences the company's capacity to provide large quantities and types of commodities.
Lifetime Value of the Customer: The markets, the costs, the governments, and the competitors
are the elements that promote the developmental goals of the organisation. Markets are characterised
not only by the universal aspirations of consumers, but also by worldwide channels, global customer
demands, and market strategies that are easily transferrable and easy to impact ( Anjum et al., 2020).
The acquisition of knowledge and expertise, as well as large size and scope savings, high resource
management and development expenditures, and favourable logistical, and sourcing efficiency, all
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5. A Media strategy
The stills portfolio of Coca-Cola, which comprises fourteen products that generate annual sales
of more than $1 billion each, controls just 18.1% of the market, even though these products account
for most of the company's revenue (Ramesh et al., 2019). The expansion of the stills industry is
another reason that is boosting sales for Coca-array Colas of stills beverages. Since the year 2000, the
percentage of the market held by stills has climbed from 16 per cent to 36 per cent.
5.2 Recommendations
Additionally, Coca-Cola ought to increase its spending on marketing by a factor of two. The
expenditures associated with Coca-Cola advertising have the reliability of the model for 6.9 per cent
of the company's total sales each year (Munsch, 2021). Coca-Cola is the most efficient firm in the
world when it comes to marketing, and the only other company that comes close is PepsiCo, which
generated $62.80 billion in revenue while only spending $4.2 billion on marketing.
Businesses use social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for a variety of
purposes, including advertising and community outreach. When it comes to social media, Coca-Cola
has pushed above and beyond the typical suspects, such as Facebook and Twitter, by embedding
social media into the most easily recognisable emblem of their company (Goel et al., 2017).
Coca-"Share Cola's a Coke" campaign is widely regarded as one of the company's most effective
The level of success that this marketing plan achieves will be directly proportional to the level
of the company's capacity to maintain a high level of control over its day-to-day operational activities
(Melović et al., 2017). It will be required to engage a marketing expert who can maintain tabs on the
marketing efforts and strategy of the firm for the company to be able to effectively meet the goals that
have been set for it. The corporation will be able to better train its personnel and identify issue areas
by soliciting input from customers if it maintains tight control over the resources and costs of each
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department (Grosheleva et al., 2021). Since it was founded, the firm has expanded to become one of
the most important mobile network providers in Zimbabwe. To accomplish this goal, it has
consistently provided its customers with unique products and services. To increase the number of
customers, it is vital to improving both the quality of the customer service that is provided as well as
the communication between employees. This will guarantee that the target level of customer
satisfaction is reached (Kitchenko 2019). If these marketing techniques are put into action, the firm
will accomplish the marketing goals that it has set for itself.
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References
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Sahir, S.H. and Rosmawati, R., 2020. Improve Marketing Mix for Marketing Plan Strategic in
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Whitler, K.A., 2021. 5 The Strategic Marketing Plan. In Positioning for Advantage (pp. 99-120).
Usui, K., 2017. The development of marketing management: The case of the USA c. 1910–1940.
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Kitchenko, O. and Kuchina, S., 2019. Enterprise communication policy indicators analysis as a part of
Fomichenko, I., Barkova, S., Dykan, A., Kosik, K.V. and Kozlova, K.O., 2020. Internet Marketing as
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Goel, R., Sahai, S., Krishnan, C., Singh, G., Bajpai, C. and Malik, P., 2017. An Empirical Study to
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Munsch, A., 2021. Millennial and Generation Z digital marketing communication and advertising
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Ramesh, M. and Vidhya, B., 2019. Digital marketing and its effect on online consumer buying
Kannan, P.K., 2017. Digital marketing: A framework, review and research agenda. International
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Melović, B., Jocović, M., Dabić, M., Vulić, T.B. and Dudic, B., 2020. The impact of digital
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