Marketing Planning for Innocent Drinks and Foods

MARKETING PLANNING www.innocentdrinksandfoods..uk pls make uts original... life. Part 1: Identify a selection competitors (minimum 3 competitors) criteria price, quality, brand, level advertising, product range Using strategic positioning tools PLC, BCG matrix perceptual mapping, identify competitive advantage organization Part 2: Identify marketing objectives Ansoff's growth matrix Part 3: Identify a growth strategy Ansoff's growth matrix propose a short-term marketing strategy (marketing mix recommendations) target market.

Marketing planning

Competition and competitive advantage

Based on the nature of the products sold, as well as the means of targeting the customers, Innocent faces severe competition from three distinctive players:

Orchard House Foods Limited

Premier Foods Plc. And Wellness Foods Limited (Hoovers, 2011).

The competition posed by each of these entities is important, but it must also be noticed that each firm is characterized by its own strengths and weaknesses. At the level of Innocent, these are best observed through the lenses of the BCG matrix. The chart below indicates the BCG for the company and its products:

Adapted from Daft and Vershina's Management, 2010

As the chart above indicates, Innocent possesses products in all categories of the BCG matrix, meaning that it can compete on various market segments. But aside from this, it also means that the company is able to follow any competitive strategy it wishes, as it is supported by its wide array of consumer products. In other words, the wide array of products allows Innocent to select its future strategic moves based on the features considered of most interest to the company, rather than such a strategy being imposed on grounds of product details. Specifically, the competitive advantage is represented by the wide product selection, coupled with the adjacent benefits it generates.

Part 2: Marketing objectives

Innocent's future marketing strategies are influenced by the growth strategy it would implement, which is best assessed through the lenses of the Ansoff growth matrix, revealed below:

Kumar, 2010

Innocent's marketing strategy for the future is that of increasing its presence within the markets in which it already operates, but with the aid of new products. This is the result of the company's commitment to innovation and it translates into the strategic choice for the product development growth strategy.

The strategic choice for new product development creates a context in which innocent would retail within the same markets in which it is already present, but it would do so using new items. These new items can be either improved versions of the older products, or they can be totally new items. In the setting of commitment to innovation, but also high quality standards, Innocent would be expected to increase its market presence through both improvements and new product creations. This opportunity is quite unique as it allows Innocence to reshape the market to its advantage (Bock, 2010).

Part 3: Target market and growth strategy

In the context in which the product development strategy was selected as a suitable course of action for the future of Innocent Ltd., it is now necessary to devise a short-term plan of how this strategy would be applied. At this level, emphasis is being placed on the increased market presence of Innocent smoothies. These represent the cash cows of the company and their success within the market is guaranteed.

The product would be further improved by supplementary packaging to make it easier to handle and transport, and to as such become more appealing and convenient to the buyers. The selection of flavors would also increase. The prices would remain unchanged and the promotions would focus on the health benefits and good taste of the smoothies. More emphasis would however be placed on distribution so that the smoothies are more easily accessible.