Market Reserch II

Marketing Plan: Phase II

Procter and Gamble is a successful company who has been in business since 1837, and has built a rich heritage which has been able to provide consumers with brands that make life easier and better every day. In 2012, Procter & Gamble developed an idea for Headquarters Dandruff Shampoo because researchers confirmed that consumers were not satisfied with the existing anti-dandruff shampoos. It has taken nearly 5 years of research for Procter and Gamble's scientists to find an ingredient that would be effective against dandruff. In 2007 Procter & Gamble tested this product, and by spring of 2011, this product was given its name "Headquarters Dandruff Shampoo," once the name was in place Procter & Gamble started working on designing the products packaging, advertising and displays. Headquarters Dandruff Shampoo was introduced, a pink creamy shampoo with a flower scent in a pastel colored container. For the past 50 years, Head & Shoulders has evolved and now offers a variety of products including conditioners which meet consumers' hair and scalp needs.

When strategizing a business, whether it is a service or a product being offered, a company must identify two key factors to create a sustainable business with growth. Both the group of buyers who share a common need or target market, and the smaller subgroups within this target market a.k.a. market segments must be determined. Once these two factors have been established, a company may begin to relate them to its marketing mix.

The target market of our new and improved Proctor and Gamble dandruff shampoo line, "Headquarters," are those suffering with dandruff symptoms. Within this broad demographic, the segmentation groups can be identified as those with dry/damaged hair, dark hair, early adopters and seasonally afflicted. These segments will each relate to the target market, particularly in the seasonal segment. Although Dandruff indiscriminately affects people regardless of socioeconomic status, age, sex or hair type, our seasonally afflicted segment is influenced by the weather. Scientific studies have observed that the seasonal segment's condition routinely worsens during the fall and winter months and Proctor and Gamble coordinates their media campaigns to take advantage of this opportunity. The early adopter segment similarly affects the target market. As early adopters can be characterized by higher socio-economic status, education and willingness to try new products, a trendy and relevant marketing appeal to this group is crucial. Another group segment, those with dark hair, can also affect the target market. Because the symptoms of dandruff are literally more visible in this group, Head and Shoulders target marketing must be inclusive to its appeal.

All organizational buyers use four simple approaches in evaluating and buying products that are out on the market such as inspection, sampling, description, and negotiated contracts. It is important to understand each one of these approaches from strategy planning.

When inspecting something it means to look at everything about the product. As mentioned before, our product Headquarters Dandruff Shampoo is formulated with an active ingredient of five percent pyrithione zinc, col, tar, and keratolytic agents. In comparison to many of the similar products as ours, each ingredient that Headquartes Dandruff Shampoo has is to improve the everyday consumer that suffers from problems of dandruff better than the competitors out there to show brand loyalty.

Sampling buying means to examine into every aspect of the product to see if it will be a potential purchase. It is ideal to use these samples with actual and potential people/customers to gain their honest opinions and feedback of the quality of the product. This will provide the potential organizational buyers to view the data in the positive reactions of potential consumers. With our invention of Headquarters Dandruff Shampoo, our potential organizational buyers could be Procter & Gamble as an example and our target customers are those who have a particular need of our line of shampoo specific for problems with dandruff, itchy scalp and getting rid of the flakes due to the dandruff.

Description buying is buying a new product that is put out on the market and having the details and ingredients of this new product put in a written form. There needs to be mutual trust between the buyers and sellers of the quality of the product. The description can be interpreted to the consumer by wording the quality of the product on its own container to prove that our product not only says it is a dandruff