The Special Dark Chocolate Bar - Pricing & Creating a Plan

Faye Glenn

American Intercontinental University

Unit 4 Individual Project

MKTG 205 - Principles of Marketing

July 1, 2012

Abstract

The Special Dark Chocolate bar is presented as a marketing strategy. This bar will target consumers with cardiovascular conditions as well as chocolate lovers, young children, and females. The chocolate bar is tasty, but has some health benefits for the young at heart. Identifying the consumer's needs and wants is how businesses target their consumers. Segmentation helps manage the diversity of the consumers. Once a business creates segmentation, they have to make sure it is appealing enough to intrigue their customers and not send them to their competition. Everyday consumers will purchase their desired or needed items through a marketing channel of distribution. There is many ways for a consumer to purchase their items such as the internet, a department store, convenient stores, and/or catalogs.

Keywords: marketing strategy, distribution channels, and segmentation

Pricing & Creating a Plan

Introduction

The purpose of this paper is to add final plan to the marketing program for my product. In completing the marketing program, I will explain in my own words the definition of marketing by using the definition I used in a previous assignment. I will introduce my product. I will discuss the situation analysis of marketing environment forces impacting my product. I will discuss my marketing strategy. I will discuss the overview of my and the strategies to consider. I will discuss the pricing strategy and finally I will discuss the distribution channels. I will choose at least 3 promotion tools

Definition of Marketing

My own interpretation of marketing is: marketing is a strategy that is used to attract the public, consumers, and customers to participate in buying, selling, trading, and investing in numerous of products that are put on the market. In order for marketing to work there has to be more than one party participating, because of the exchange of a product or service for money. For instance, I walk into a shoe department store and find a gorgeous pair of shoes that I'm just dying to have. Well, the department store and I both exchange something of value. I exchange my money and the department store exchanges their product for my want. Marketing is basically choosing the perfect product; find the perfect place to sell the product; draw a group of customers to buy it for the right price; and promote it at the right time.

Introduction of Product/Service

First define product, a product is a mixture of goods, services, and/or idea of tangible and nontangible attributes that fulfills the needs of consumers and is also received as an exchange for money. A tangible product is an item that we can use our five senses on. A nontangible item would be services that are provided to a consumer. (Kerin, 2012) A daycare center is a nontangible service. Parents use a daycare center to care for their children while they are at work. Money is being exchange for the services the daycare center provides to the parents of the children they care for. The product of my choice is the chocolate bar. Not just a chocolate bar, but Hershey's Special Chocolate Bar. I chose the dark chocolate, because of the health benefits it can provide for the chocolate lovers, especially those chocolate lovers with cardiovascular illnesses. The special dark chocolate is said to be a stress reliever. (Candy Manufacturing, 2012)

Situation Analysis -- Marketing Environment Forces Impacting Product/Service

There are three forces impacting the chocolate bar such as; shortage of cocoa beans, cost of transportation, and competition of the market. Shortage of cocoa beans, the price of chocolate could rise because of the shortage of cocoa beans. Diseases, shortage of farmers, and old trees will be the cause of cocoa beans shortage. Cocoa beans prices could fluctuate because unrest in the producing region of West Africa. (Industry Profile: Candy Manufacturing, 2012) If the key producing region is short of farmers or if trees are too old to produce the cocoa all which can result in a shortage of cocoa beans, again this could raise the price of chocolate to an all-time high. Chocolate makers could start using artificial flavoring or more nuts instead of chocolate. Although there is a shortage of cocoa beans Hershey is still able to provide this tangible product to satisfy the consumer's taste for chocolate. Hershey has reserved a new premium line of natural chocolate and drinking cocoa that has superior flavors. (USA Today, 2007) The shortage of cocoa has not slowed down Hershey they are still moving forward with new products.

Cost of transportation; in today's economy fuel prices is raised daily. There are three options to transport the cocoa beans to make chocolate and they are via ship, railroad, and truck. All three transportations uses diesel as their source of fuel which is the most expensive fuel on the market today. An adjustment will need to be made to cover the cost to transport the chocolate. The company would need to decide which transportation will make sure the chocolate arrive in perfect condition. Although, the price of gas extremely high there are other alternatives to transport cocoa such as fuel cell technology. Fuel cell technology has been around for centuries, but it is now is affordable for the consumers. (Busby & Altork, 2010) This alternative for fuel can help keep chocolate around for a long time.

Competition of the market; there are two important thing to remember about competition and they are; pricing and placement. Make sure the market is not too saturated so the price does not have to be kept at a low price and make sure placement costs are not too high on the shelves. Although there is a variety flavor of chocolate bars, the price of the Special Dark chocolate bar needs to be able to attract the eye of the individual who has a craving for chocolate, but need the health benefits as well.

Marketing Strategy: Target Market(s) & Positioning

Consumer buying behavior is the action customers take when purchasing products and services. (Kerin, 2012) A consumer buyer behavior can be influenced by either factor, but I'm going to choose social factor. I chose social factors, because a