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Startup/Idea

A startup is a business that is in the initial step of its procedures. These businesses are frequently
firstly financed by their entrepreneurial initiators as they effort to capitalize on evolving a
product or service for which they believe there is a demand. (GRANT, 2019) A business idea is a
starting point for any current or future entrepreneurs. It is essential because it is the beginning of
a new life – a life of a business and a life of an entrepreneur. (Entrepreneurship in a box, n.d.)

At the heart of every business is a product or service. This is the lever to persuade others to give
you money in exchange for them. It is easy to say that behind every product or service ever sold
was an idea. But, the essence of the idea drives everything forward. The business idea creates a
reason to invest and it also creates sales and profit. With sales and profits come the scope to
invest in more products and services, enabling the business to grow. It is the pure essence of
capitalism. All that said, if you have a bad idea, you are more likely to face competition. In turn,
this will lead to reduced sales and profits, meaning the business is less likely to grow and may
struggle to survive. (Matthews, 2019)

Through interview and observation, I come to know that subject is aware about the business
terms idea and startup. Subject initiate his startup with a best business idea to capture their target
market and make his business market competitive by using their best and unique business idea.

By studying multiple business courses, I strongly suggest that you should come up with startup
and with a unique business idea. Coming up with a business idea has advantages if you know
how to develop it successfully. Not only can it grow to become income for you, but the idea can
also provide you with a strong business network. The keys to developing a business idea are to
research the market, know your competition and find professional collaborators to assist you
with your business idea. Some key advantages are: Building Revenue Stream, Active and
Passive Income, Building a Network and Expansion and Brand Building. (Jane, n.d.)

Business Types
There are different types of business on the base of ownership: A sole proprietorship occurs
when someone does business activities but doesn’t register as another kind of business. There is
no separate business entity, meaning there is no distinction between the business owner’s
personal and professional assets and liabilities. A partnership is the simplest type of business
ownership when two or more people are involved. There are two kinds: limited partnerships and
limited liability partnerships. A limited liability company (LLC) separates the owner’s personal
and professional assets. Meaning if your business gets hit with a lawsuit or goes bankrupt, your
house, car, and personal piggy bank are safe. A C corporation, or just a regular corporation, is
its own entity kept separate from its owners. This means they offer the most protection in terms
of personal liability. A cooperative is a private business owned and operated by the same people
that use its products and or services. The purpose of a cooperative is to fulfill the needs of the
people running it. The profits are distributed among the people working within the cooperative,
also known as user-owners. (Novak , 2019)

Some advantages of sole proprietorship and partnership are as follows through which we can
know the importance of both types of business ownership. Sole proprietorship advantages are:
ease of formation and dissolution, establishing a sole proprietorship can be as simple as printing
up business cards or hanging a sign announcing the business, there are low start-up costs and low
operational overhead, ownership of all profits, any income realized by a sole proprietorship is
declared on the owner's individual income tax return. Partnership advantages are as: There is
clear potential for the enhancement of value resulting from two or more individuals combining
strengths, partnerships may be subject to fewer regulations than corporations, there is stronger
potential of access to greater amounts of capital, partnerships declare income by filing a
partnership income tax return, no corporate income taxes. (Study Finance, n.d.)

Subject is an educated person and he is well known about types of business ownership and their
advantages. Subject starting his business as a sole proprietorship and after some time he choose a
partner for his business.

Both types of business ownership have pros and cons. But I suggest that subject run his business
with a partner, and he already elect this type of business. He chooses the partnership but started
as a sole proprietorship. Partnership has advantages and disadvantages. Advantages: two heads
(or more) are better than one, your business is easy to establish and start-up costs are low, more
capital is available for the business, you’ll have greater borrowing capacity, high-caliber
employees can be made partners, there is opportunity for income splitting, an advantage of
particular importance due to resultant tax savings, partners’ business affairs are private, there is
limited external regulation, it’s easy to change your legal structure later if circumstances change.
Disadvantages: the liability of the partners for the debts of the business is unlimited, each
partner is ‘jointly and severally’ liable for the partnership’s debts; that is, each partner is liable
for their share of the partnership debts as well as being liable for all the debts, there is a risk of
disagreements and friction among partners and management, each partner is an agent of the
partnership and is liable for actions by other partners, if partners join or leave, you will probably
have to value all the partnership assets and this can be costly. (Tasmanian Government, 2019)

Product Features
According to Philip Kotler “Product is anything that can be offered to someone to satisfy a need
or a want.” Product features are characteristics of your product that describe its appearance,
components, and capabilities. A product feature is a slice of business functionality that has a
corresponding benefit or set of benefits for that product's end user. To offer maximum value,
product features must be prioritized effectively. Features should be added based on quantifiable
ways that they will add value for the product’s end users. Product features should also be
prioritized based on how well they achieve business objectives. Here are four tips to make
feature prioritization more efficient, meaningful, and enjoyable: Goal first, lead with conviction,
Write more (and less) down, and Rank features based on business value. (Aha, n.d.)

The Importance of Features and Benefits: When it comes to marketing a product or service,
there is quite a difference between Features and Benefits. “Features tell and Benefits sell” is a
slogan that is often heard from marketing professionals. Features refer to the characteristics that
your product or service has or does. For a cell phone features might include size of the screen,
storage capacity or a rear camera. Benefits are the reasons customers buy the product or service.
The cell phone storage capacity might have a benefit of many videos or pictures that can be
stored. While Features contain unemotional facts, Benefits can establish an emotional connection
with your customers that motivate them to act. Benefits tell your customers “what’s in it for
them.” The uniqueness of a product or service can set it apart from the competition. Given that
Benefits are ultimately more important to your customers than features, it is imperative that the
benefits of your products or services are well understood and communicated throughout all of
your promotional efforts. Many business owners make the mistake of providing a long list of
features while ignoring the benefits. By describing features instead of benefits, customers may
not make the emotional connection of why they should buy. (DARYL MURROW, n.d.)

When I take the interview of subject (owner) and I come to know that subject use best strategy to
start a business with unique and best idea. Subject launch their food point by providing unique
recipe of their food product which is not available in the city at that time. Subject focused on the
product features and benefits as business term (slogan) says that ‘’features tell benefits sell’’. By
using this technique subject bring different recipe from Lahore and Islamabad to the Bahawalpur
and sell food products which are full of features and benefits.

I’ll suggest some key points to subject regarding their product features/benefits and its important
that should be focused to maintain your good will and compete your competitors.
Here are four tips to help you communicate the value of your offerings.

 Identify the features of your product or service


Look at what you offer, and ask:

I. How is it made?
II. What is it made of?
III. How is it packaged and delivered?
IV. What is new or unique about it?
V. Does it offer a bonus?
VI. What is its life span?
 Showcase features and benefits
 Craft benefit statements
 Revise your message as needed (Wells Fargo, 2015)
Customer
A customer is a person or company that receives, consumes or buys a product or service and can
choose between different goods and suppliers. The main goal of all commercial enterprises is to
attract customers or clients and make them purchase what they have on sale. They also try to
encourage them to keep coming back. At the core of marketing is having a good understanding
of what the customer needs and values. (News, n.d.)

Customers are the biggest disruptor of all, and we tend to agree with him. Everyone knows of
course that only customers create value. You can create all the products in the world, you can
have all the inventory in the world, but if you don’t have a customer, you don’t have a business.
Customers play a crucial role in any businesses. They possess the power to see a company
prosper or fall. Cue the age of technology and they become even more powerful, especially when
it comes to purchasing goods and services. In fact, in a Customer Experience study undertaken
by McKinsey, it was found that three-quarters of customers expect a “now” service from
companies after only five minutes of online contact. Put simply, they want action. Gone are the
days of 24 to 48-hour service turnaround, the customer wants it and the customer wants it NOW!
Not only that, but they use apps to compare prices, businesses services, put their trust in online
reviews as if they were receiving them from close friends or family. Times they are a changing.
We all know that customers are the backbone of the reason businesses exist. These days, they are
more than just a number – they are Number One: the number one asset of any business. To have
a business tomorrow, owners and leaders need to step up, take note, see the business through the
customer’s eyes to start focusing on establishing a long-term relationship with them. The best
way to do that is to build a Customer Strategy… but that story is for another day. (Carr, 2018)

Subject set the target market for their business, but this target market is very specific it’s another
thing that subject has achieved their target to hit their target market. Subject achieved this goal to
hit the population of University students and most of the students become their loyal customer
due to their features and benefits in their products.

I strongly suggest to subject that he should do market segmentation which will be beneficial for
their business. I’m going to discuss some key points of market segmentation which will be
helpful for subject to focus on the market segmentation. Market segmentation is the process of
dividing a market of potential customers into groups, or segments, based on different
characteristics. The segments created are composed of consumers who will respond similarly to
marketing strategies and who share traits such as similar interests, needs, or locations. (Sky
Word | TrackMaven, n.d.) There are 6 main advantages of segmentation: Focus of the Company,
increase in competitiveness, market expansion, customer retention, have better communication,
and increases profitability. (Bhasin, 2018)
Product and Services
A product can be defined as anything that we can offer to a market for attention, acquisition, use
or consumption that could satisfy a need or want. Services are a special form of product which
consists of activities, benefits or satisfactions offered for sale that are intangible and do not result
in the ownership of anything. (Claessens, 2015)

The assistance and advice provided by a company to those people who buy or use its products or
services is called customer services. Customer service is often at the heart of a business which
aims to provide an exceptional service that leaves the customer feeling valued and respected.
Although providing an excellent service can involve extra resource, time and money, when you
get it right it will enable you to stand out from your competition, maintain a positive reputation
among future customers and encourage existing customers to purchase from your business again.
Remember, it is six times more expensive to acquire a new customer than to retain an existing
customer. Customer service is important because it can help you to: (Performance in People,
2016)
 Increase customer loyalty
 Increase the amount of money each customer spends with your business
 Increase how often a customer buy from you
 Generate positive word-of-mouth about your business (Performance in People, 2016)
Subject has problem regarding customer services. According to subject’s point view this is
because of increase in number of customers. To overcome this issue of customer services subject
hired separate staff for placing order and then serving and for home delivery. According to
subject in hotel industry it is very hard to meet customer services.

I suggest some points in the light of what I learn during my undergraduate study. These points
are related to how to focus and make better the customer services and win the customer
satisfaction to build your business good will. There are few points to improve customer services.

 Truly listen: Offer expertise, but make sure employees are listening as much as they talk.
Great service isn’t about forcing a strategy that doesn’t work for the customer. Try to
balance being an expert with listening to concerns and providing what customers think is
right for their needs. (Cutler, 2014)
 Be responsive: Customers want service, fast. Even if the full answer can’t be delivered
immediately, always email back the same day. Keep the customer looped into the
process, and make sure they understand everyone is doing their best to ensure issues are
being addressed quickly and fully. (Cutler, 2014)
 Accommodate customers: Unfortunately, customers can drop the ball just as often as
companies. Sometimes a client will show up late to a call and sometimes a customer
won’t have all the relevant information service-team members need to aid. While it can
be easy to get aggravated, it’s important to accommodate customer needs. Keep in mind
that every customer or client is a potential brand ambassador, meaning every interaction
can be a selling point or a barrier to attracting more business. (Cutler, 2014)
 Build trust: A company-customer relationship does not need to be strictly platonic.
Going the extra mile and showing passion for the client builds loyalty, trust and a longer
customer relationship. (Cutler, 2014)
 Live the company values: To ensure a great client-service experience, the company
needs to make service an important cultural value. When creating a company culture,
standard practices, or a mission statement, highlight the importance of customer service.
Making service a baked-in part of the culture means employees will be more likely to live
the company’s values on a day-to-day basis and create better service outcomes. (Cutler,
2014)
 Don’t grow too quickly: Don’t sacrifice quality in lieu of hunger for growth. At the end
of the day, happy customers lead to word-of-mouth referrals and an overall positive
company brand, image and reputation. This organic and steady growth is what will lead
to a healthy company. Client service is an integral part of any growing company. The
best way to deliver amazing service is to listen, build trust and be responsive to customer
needs. Keep in mind, a great service experience has the power to turn customers into
fans, and clients into brand ambassadors for the company. (Cutler, 2014)

Business Image
A business image is the perception people have of your business when they hear your business
name. A business’s image is composed of an infinite variety of information, events, personal
stories, promotional activities and goals that work together to make an impression on the public.
A business image would continually change with things like the business’s circumstances, media
coverage, and performance. Relevant to a business’s reputation or goodwill, a business image is
the perception of the business instead a reflection of its actual state or position. (Lin, 2015)

Every organization invests all their efforts to build a strong brand image as it is very helpful in
fulfilling the motives and objectives of a business. A strong image of your brand can deliver the
following benefits to your organization:

 It becomes easier to introduce new products.


 Additional profits in the form of new customers are attracted towards the product or
service.
 It tends to develop a better business-customer relationship.
 It helps in increasing the trust level of existing customers and is helpful in customer
retention.

Brand image is a deciding factor which determines the sales of a product and it is very
important because it is the aggregation of views and beliefs related to a certain brand. The
value and character of that brand are portrayed through its image and is eventually that
mirror in which the key values of the organization are reflected. (Shaw, 2018)

Through interview of subject I have come to know that subject have achieved their goal. Most of
it. At the starting there were some issues which subject faced. Regarding position, subject
wanted to attract customers as much he can because it was his priority to provide students with
quality food. Subject successful in that aspect.

I strongly suggest that subject must focus on their business image because its very important to
grow up their business. In the light of what I learn during my undergraduate business degree I
want to suggest some key points through which subject will get idea which would be helpful for
their business image. Brand image is more than a logo that identifies your business, product or
service. Today, it is a mix of the association’s consumers make based on every interaction they
have with your business. Most entrepreneurs and small business owners don’t really think about
their brand image until there's a problem with the image they're developing. Here is some points
why business image is important:

 Brand Image Creates Recognition: You can probably spot an Apple device, a piece of
Tiffany's jewelry or a can of Coca-Cola from afar. It may look simply, but it takes a lot to
make your brand this recognizable to consumers. It’s not just about the logo or slogan;
your brand image encompasses both visual elements and brand associations like speed,
reliability and quality. If you don’t put the effort into maintaining a consistent brand
image throughout every interaction a consumer has with your brand, you’ll find it very
hard to develop an easily recognizable one. (Thimothy, 2016)
 Brand Image Makes an Impression: We know that making a good first impression is
important, especially in business. Consumers will create an impression of your business
and brand based on a variety of factors, such as the way your employees are dressed, your
website, your business cards, the cleanliness of your store and more. Call it superficial,
but these small details are points of contact you have with potential customers. In this
case, presentation is everything. (Thimothy, 2016)
 Brand Image Shows How Put-Together You Are: Imagine walking into a restaurant
where every server wore whatever they wanted, or a department store where no one wore
a name tag. How could a customer identify who to turn to for help? Everything might be
running smoothly in your eyes, but a polished brand image is necessary to show that you
know how to run your business. (Thimothy, 2016)

Business expansion
Business expansion means when you add customers, product, services, location and markets into
your business. Business expansion is a key goal for any entrepreneur who have a startup. Here is
some strategies through which you can expand your business in a better way:

 New products/services addition to your business


 Try to sell more as much as you can to your existing customers
 Build branches of your business to different location
 Make new target market and hit them
 Buy any other businesses (Sadler, 2014)

Pricing Strategy
Pricing strategy refers to method companies use to price their products or services. Almost all
companies, large or small, base the price of their products and services on production, labor and
advertising expenses and then add on a certain percentage so they can make a profit. There are
several different pricing strategies, such as penetration pricing, price skimming, discount pricing,
product life cycle pricing and even competitive pricing. (Suttle, 2019)

The manipulation of prices, both upwards and downwards, offers enormous potential for
increased profits. A famous study by McKinsey determined that for most companies, a 1%
increase in price would generate an 8% increase in operating profit. The key thing to remember
is that you must make the right move at the right time. This requires an understanding of how
price changes will impact on sales. For example, if a small decrease in price results in a
disproportionately high increase in sales, decreasing the price may be a worthwhile move. This is
where a carefully considered pricing strategy becomes useful. Price is one of the most important
ways in which customers choose between different products and services and knowing the
optimum price that you should charge to maximize sales and profits is key to beating the
competition. (International, B2B, n.d.)

After taking the interview of subject I came to know that subject’s pricing strategy is not
uniform. Because subject change the price only two times of their product. Subject changed the
price due to raw materials prices being expensive. Subject did not focus the competitors for
pricing strategy. Subject set the prices without focusing and analyzing their competitors. Due to
day be day increasing raw materials cost subject facing problem but still not change the pricing
strategy.

As my objective is to give the solution of the subject’s business problems by my observation and
by using the terminologies which I learn during my undergraduate business degree, so I suggest
few pricing strategies which is presented by different authors in their books. Subject should
follow these strategies to bring uniformity in their pricing strategy and boost up their sales and
profit.
Penetration Pricing Strategy: A small business that uses penetration pricing typically sets a
low price for its product or service in hopes of building market share, which is the percentage of
sales a business has in the market versus total sales. The primary objective of penetration pricing
is to garner lots of customers with low prices and then use various marketing strategies to retain
them. (Suttle, 2019)
Price Skimming Strategy: Another type of pricing strategy is price skimming, in which a
business sets its prices high to quickly recover expenditures for product production and
advertising. The key objective of a price skimming strategy is to achieve a profit quickly. (Suttle,
2019)
Product Life Cycle Pricing: All products have a life span, called product life cycle. A product
gradually progresses through different stages in the cycle: introduction, growth, maturity and
decline stages. During the growth stage, when sales are booming, a small business usually will
keep prices higher. (Suttle, 2019)
Competitive-Based Pricing: There are times when a small business may have to lower its price
to meet the prices of competitors. A competitive-based pricing strategy may be employed when
there is little difference between products in a market. (Suttle, 2019)
Temporary Discount Pricing: Small businesses also may use temporary discounts to increase
sales. Temporary discount pricing strategies include coupons, cents-off sales, seasonal price
reductions and even volume purchases. (Suttle, 2019)
Subject told us in his interview that customers pay them for products/services quality. According
to subject customer never compromise on the quality and they can bear price so subject giving
them best quality products and services and charging their own desire money.

Understand your competitors


Knowing who your competitors are, and what they are offering, can help you to make your
products, services and marketing stand out. It will enable you to set your prices competitively
and help you to respond to rival marketing campaigns with your own initiatives. This guide
explains how to analyze who your competitors are, how to research what they're doing and how
to act on the information you gain. (infoentrepreneurs, n.d.)
Who are your competitors?
All businesses face competition. Even if you're the only restaurant in town you must compete
with cinemas, bars and other businesses where your customers will spend their money instead of
with you. With increased use of the Internet to buy goods and services and to find places to go,
you are no longer just competing with your immediate neighbors. Indeed, you could find
yourself competing with businesses from other countries. Your competitor could be a new
business offering a substitute or similar product that makes your own redundant. You can get
clues to the existence of competitors from: (infoentrepreneurs, n.d.)
 local business directories
 your local Chamber of Commerce
 advertising
 press reports
 exhibitions and trade fairs
 questionnaires
 searching on the Internet for similar products or services
 information provided by customers
 flyers and marketing literature that have been sent to you - quite common if you're on a
bought-in marketing list
 searching for existing patented products that are like yours
 planning applications and building work in progress (infoentrepreneurs, n.d.)
What you need to know about your competitors?
Monitor the way your competitors do business. Look at:
 the products or services they provide and how they market them to customers
 the prices they charge
 how they distribute and deliver
 the devices they employ to enhance customer loyalty and what back-up service they offer
 their brand and design values
 whether they innovate - business methods as well as products
 their staff numbers and the caliber of staff that they attract
 how they use IT - for example, if they're technology-aware and offer a website and email
 who owns the business and what sort of person they are?
 their annual report - if they're a public company
 their media activities - check their website as well as local newspapers, radio, television
and any outdoor advertising (infoentrepreneurs, n.d.)
Learning about your competitors
Read about your competitors. Look for articles or ads in the trade press or mainstream
publications. Read their marketing literature. Check their entries in directories and phone books.
If they are an online business, ask for a trial of their service. Are they getting more publicity than
you, perhaps through networking or sponsoring events? If your competitor is a public company,
read a copy of their annual report. At exhibitions and trade fairs check which of your competitors
are also exhibiting. Look at their stands and promotional activities. Note how busy they are and
who visits them. (infoentrepreneurs, n.d.)
Hearing about your competitors
Speak to your competitors. Phone them to ask for a copy of their brochure or get one of your
staff or a friend to drop by and pick up their marketing literature. You could ask for a price list or
enquire what an off-the-shelf item might cost and if there's a discount for volume. This will give
you an idea at which point a competitor will discount and at what volume. Phone and face-to-
face contacts will also give you an idea of the style of the company, the quality of their literature
and the initial impressions they make on customers. It's also likely you'll meet competitors at
social and business events. Talk to them. Be friendly - they're competitors not enemies. You'll
get a better idea of them - and you might need each other one day, for example in collaborating
to grow a new market for a new product. (infoentrepreneurs, n.d.)
How to act on the competitor information you get?
Evaluate the information you find about your competitors. This should tell you whether there are
gaps in the market you can exploit. It should also indicate whether there is a saturation of
suppliers in certain areas of your market, which might lead you to focus on less competitive
areas. Draw up a list of everything that you've found out about your competitors, however small.
Put the information into three categories:
 what you can learn from and do better
 what they're doing worse than you
 what they're doing the same as you (infoentrepreneurs, n.d.)

Target Market
Market targeting is a process of selecting the target market from the entire market. Target market
consists of group/groups of buyers to whom the company wants to satisfy or for whom product is
manufactured, price is set, promotion efforts are made, and distribution network is prepared.
(Kotler, 2000)

It is not necessary for a firm to choose a target market; its product can simply be promoted and
distributed in the same way to all potential buyers. This mass-market approach was used widely
in the past, notably in categories like snack foods and soda. But mass marketing has fallen out of
favor as more and more companies have become concerned with wasting resources on
consumers who have little interest in their product, or who are loyal to competitive brands. The
target market approach is an important means of boosting efficiency. (Handlin, 2019)

By observation and by subject interview I came to know that subject did not focus on the market
targeting. Subject planning about marketing in future but still no progress. Unawareness
regarding this factor of business is not good for their business. It is essential key point to do
proper market targeting to optimize your business.

I’ll suggest the Philip Kotler’s market segmentation levels to subject to follow that levels and do
a better market segmentation. Here are four levels of market segmentation: segments, niches,
local areas, and individuals.
Segment Marketing: A market segment consists of a large identifiable group within a market,
with similar wants, purchasing power, geographical location, buying attitudes, or buying habits.
For example, an automaker may identify four broad segments in the car market: buyers who are
primarily seeking (1) basic transportation, (2) high performance, (3) luxury, or (4) safety.
(Kotler, 2000)
Niche Marketing: A niche is a more narrowly defined group, typically a small market whose
needs are not being well served. Marketers usually identify niches by dividing a segment into
subsegments or by defining a group seeking a distinctive mix of benefits. For example, a tobacco
company might identify two subsegments of heavy smokers: those who are trying to stop
smoking, and those who don’t care. (Kotler, 2000)
Local Marketing: Target marketing is leading to some marketing programs that are tailored to
the needs and wants of local customer groups (trading areas, neighborhoods, even individual
stores). Citibank, for instance, adjusts its banking services in each branch depending on
neighborhood demographics; Kraft helps supermarket chains identify the cheese assortment and
shelf positioning that will optimize cheese sales in low-, middle-, and high-income stores and in
different ethnic neighborhoods. (Kotler, 2000)
Individual Marketing: The ultimate level of segmentation leads to “segments of one,”
“customized marketing,” or “one-to-one marketing.”6 For centuries, consumers were served as
individuals: The tailor made the suit and the cobbler designed shoes for the individual. Much
business to- business marketing today is customized, in that a manufacturer will customize the
offer, logistics, communications, and financial terms for each major account. Now technologies
such as computers, databases, robotic production, intranets and extranets, e-mail, and fax
communication are permitting companies to return to customized marketing, also called “mass
customization.”7 Mass customization is the ability to prepare individually designed products and
communications on a mass basis to meet each customer’s requirements. (Kotler, 2000)

Marketing Planning
The marketing plan created for each product line or brand is one of the most important outputs of
planning for the marketing process. A typical marketing plan has eight sections: Executive
summary and table of contents, current marketing situation, opportunity and issue analysis,
objectives, marketing strategy, action programs, projected profit-and-loss statement and
Controls. (Kotler, 2000)

Marketing plans and strategies are important because they make sales easier for any business
owner. When you target your ideal customer in a smarter way, you reduce the costs of marketing
and increase your chances of converting leads into sales. Asking what problem, you solve and
why customers should choose you helps you identify the specific issues of someone ready to
buy. Putting an ad for your services in the newspaper is one-way small businesses start
marketing. However, the business is unable to control who sees the paper on any given day. This
means most newspaper, magazine or mailer ads are offering general branding services in most
cases, and not targeted marketing. Consumers rarely jump on general ads, so this costly method
is really developing branding. But creating an ad to solve a specific issue helps ready-to-buy
readers understand that your company has the solution. (Leonard, 2018)
Subject told us in his interview that he is ignoring the marketing plan from start to till now.
Marketing planning is a very important thing which you must do for your business to maximize
the sales and profit. But I’m wondered to know that subject is ignoring this key point without any
hesitation. In short subject is unaware about the importance of marketing planning.

I suggest planning process of Philip Kotler which is presented in principles of marketing. I


suggest that planning process to subject to follow that process of planning to give a shape to his
business regarding marketing planning. Putting plans into action involves four stages: analysis,
planning, implementation and control. (Kotler, Priniciples of Marketing, 1999)
ANALYSIS: Planning begins with a complete analysis of the company's situation. The company
must analyze its environment to find attractive opportunities and to avoid environmental threats.
It must analyze company strengths and weaknesses, as well as current and possible marketing
actions, to determine which opportunities it can best pursue. Analysis feeds information and
other inputs to each of the other stages. (Kotler, Priniciples of Marketing, 1999)
PLANNING: Through strategic planning, the company decides what it wants to do with each
business unit. Marketing planning involves deciding marketing strategies that will help the
company attain its overall strategic objectives. Marketing, product or brand plans are at the
centre of this. (Kotler, Priniciples of Marketing, 1999)
IMPLEMENTATION: Implementation turns strategic plans into actions that will achieve the
company's objectives. People in the organization that work with others both inside and outside
the company implement marketing plans. (Kotler, Priniciples of Marketing, 1999)
CONTROL: Control consists of measuring and evaluating the results of plans and activities and
taking corrective action to make sure objectives are being achieved. Analysis provides
information and evaluations needed for all the other activities. (Kotler, Priniciples of Marketing,
1999)
The four Ps: There are 4 Ps of marketing which is very important, and subject must adapt these
4 Ps. Product, price, place and promotion.
Product: The product is either a tangible good or an intangible service that is seemed to meet a
specific customer need or demand. All products follow a logical product life cycle and it is vital
for marketers to understand and plan for the various stages and their unique challenges. It is key
to understand those problems that the product is attempting to solve. The benefits offered by the
product and all its features need to be understood and the unique selling proposition of the
product need to be studied. In addition, the potential buyers of the product need to be identified
and understood. (Kotler, Priniciples of Marketing, 1999)
Price: Price covers the actual amount the end user is expected to pay for a product. How a
product is priced will directly affect how it sells. This is linked to what the perceived value of the
product is to the customer rather than an objective costing of the product on offer. If a product is
priced higher or lower than its perceived value, then it will not sell. Therefore, it is imperative to
understand how a customer sees what you are selling. If there is a positive customer value, then a
product may be successfully priced higher than its objective monetary value. Conversely, if a
product has little value in the eyes of the consumer, then it may need to be underpriced to sell.
Price may also be affected by distribution plans, value chain costs and markups and how
competitors price a rival product. (Kotler, Priniciples of Marketing, 1999)
Promotion: The marketing communication strategies and techniques all fall under the promotion
heading. These may include advertising, sales promotions, special offers and public relations.
Whatever the channel used, it is necessary for it to be suitable for the product, the price and the
end user it is being marketed to. It is important to differentiate between marketing and
promotion. Promotion is just the communication aspect of the entire marketing function. (Kotler,
Priniciples of Marketing, 1999)
Place: Place or placement has to do with how the product will be provided to the customer.
Distribution is a key element of placement. The placement strategy will help assess what channel
is the most suited to a product. How a product is accessed by the end user also needs to
compliment the rest of the product strategy. (Kotler, Priniciples of Marketing, 1999)

Customer Services
Customer service is the direct one-on-one interaction between a consumer making a purchase
and a representative of the company that is selling it. Most retailers see this direct interaction as a
critical factor in ensuring buyer satisfaction and encouraging repeat business. (GRANT,
Customer Service, 2019)

Good customer service makes sound business sense. It costs less to keep the goodwill of existing
customers than it does to attract new customers or woo back lost customers. Firms that provide
high-quality service usually outperform their less service-oriented competitors. A study
comparing the performance of businesses that had high and low customer ratings of service
quality found that the high-service businesses managed to charge more, grow faster and make
more profits. (Kotler, Priniciples of Marketing, 1999)

Subject has the problem of customer services. Subject told us that their mostly customers are
students, so they come here, and they don’t like to do wait for serving their order. Subject also
told us that they are unable to solve this issue.

I’m suggesting some key points which will be helpful for subject make their customer services
better. There are 4 strategies to make better your customer services.
Check Customer Feedback: To provide excellent customer service, you first need understand
their needs, experiences, and pain points. For these, you need to ensure that you provide your
customers multiple ways to share their feedback. You can do this through telephone surveys, or a
feedback form sent via email. Other than surveys, you can also establish a complaint system,
which will better enable your customers to raise their issues. This will let you know all about
their good, bad, and ugly experiences when interacting with your brand. Through this, you gain
real insights into what you're doing well, and which areas require improvement. (Sharma, 2018)
Strengthen Your Customer Service Team: No tool or AI element will compensate for the lack
of a skilled workforce - when you hire people for your customer service team, you should look
for individuals with the right skills. You should also organize training sessions for them to
improve their skills once they’re on board - some notable skills every customer service
representative needs to have are:
 Empathy and Patience - A customer service rep has to deal with different types of
customers: Some may be annoying or confused, while others may have a lot of questions.
A customer support representative needs to deal with all of them patiently and
professionally.
 Good Communication skills - The people you hire must be confident and possess
excellent communication skills. They should be able to convey what they mean in a
positive way, and they should strive to never end conversations in a way that leaves a
customer dissatisfied.
 Knowledge - Ensure that your customer service representatives have complete
knowledge of your product, services, and pricing plans. If they aren’t sure of something,
it’s best to say, “I’ll get back to you after checking with our product team,” than to
provide incorrect information. (Sharma, 2018)
Use CRM Platforms: Many companies struggle to establish effective coordination among
different teams, which often leads to customer dissatisfaction. To overcome this issue, businesses
can streamline their workforce processes using smart CRM platforms. Such systems help to
ensure that everyone is on the same page - which is important in establishing high customer
service standards.
Some of the benefits of using smart CRM software are:
 It provides useful insights about your customers which can help you understand their
needs, sell faster, and provide a personalized experience to each customer.
 It improves customer interaction and engagement, helping you build lifelong customer
relationships.
 Your sales and service teams can work more closely, eliminating the chances of any
confusion.
 Your customers get access to what was promised, which improves customer satisfaction.
 Most CRM platforms are accessible on multiple devices such as desktops, laptops, and
mobile devices. So, you can assist your customers anytime from anywhere around the
world. (Sharma, 2018)
Leverage Multi-Channel Servicing: You should enable customers to switch between multiple
channels yet enjoy a consistent quality of service. This can help boost your brand’s reputation
and credibility.
Here are some best practices that will help you provide excellent multi-channel service to your
customers.
 Mobile Devices - People expect good support services when they're on-the-go. You need
to ensure that your customer service and support pages are mobile-ready to meet their
expectations.
 Social Media - Many consumers are turning to social networks (especially Twitter) for
customer queries and complaints. You should utilize the power of social media to bridge
the gap between you and your consumers. Improve your response times on social media
queries and provide effective solutions to your customers.
 Self-Service - Many customers expect brands to help them fix minor issues by
themselves, and they'll often look for such solutions on your website’s FAQ pages. Your
FAQ pages should provide easy-to-understand fixes to all common problems. (Sharma,
2018)

Train the customer services team


According to subject that their customer services team didn’t their 100% on the workplace.
Subject do train session but still they are not doing well. So, to solve this problem I’m suggesting
some tips to adapt it for making a winning team.
Focus on team building first and foremost: To create that synergy mentioned earlier, your
team needs to spend time together and get to know each other. Your employees often spend more
time together during the week than they do with their own family. But do they know each other?
Do they understand each other? It’s one thing working alongside someone, it’s a totally different
thing to work together. Research shows that team building has a positive effect on many different
areas of the workplace; on goal setting, relationships and problem-solving. (Meij, n.d.)

Instead of focusing on individuals and personal goals, good team-building skills can unite
employees around a common goal and increase productivity. They could be working across
departments in different jobs, but their teamwork means they’re all working towards the same
organizational objectives. (Meij, n.d.)
Find out how your team members prefer to learn: One size doesn’t fit all. Diversity is key,
not only within the workforce (which makes for a financially better performing organization) but
also in the way you present learning opportunities to your team. Some people prefer hands-on
training, while others prefer instructor-led classroom training. Some prefer to immerse
themselves in a topic for a day, while others like to put aside an hour each day. It’s fair to say
that catering to the different learning needs of your team is hugely important to the success rate
of the training and to increase learning retention. The four styles are: Feeling and watching
(diverging), watching and thinking (assimilating), doing and thinking (converging) and doing
and feeling (accommodating). (Meij, n.d.)
Offer different training methods to individuals in your team: Some training styles suit teams
better than others. Hands-on training, for instance, can work well for teams when combined with
team building activities, to allow people to practice what they’ve just learned in a controlled
environment and work together towards a common goal. The same goes for interactive training,
where you can use games to run your team through different work scenarios and get them to
collaboratively figure out how to best handle them. It can help them feel more prepared for
different situations they may encounter at work, by practicing them beforehand. Research shows
that time, workload demands, budget constraints, and employees working remotely makes it
harder for formal training programs to be successful. Not everyone has the attention span to sit
through a day of training, take in and remember all the new information that’s being thrown at
them. Research from LinkedIn shows that 58% of employees prefer to learn at their own pace.
(Meij, n.d.)
Follow up after training sessions: You may think once you’ve trained your team, you can sit
back and relax. Not quite. Once the training is done, the development of your team doesn’t stop.
Continuity is key. Make sure you keep enabling learning, follow up training sessions with
personal feedback (avoid mass feedback) and give your team extra responsibility following their
training. You could create incentives to encourage your team to put what they’ve learned into
practice. (Meij, n.d.)
Don’t underestimate the power of informal training: It’s easily overlooked, but informal
learning is estimated to make up to 75% of learning within organizations. It includes learning
through self-reflection, learning from your colleagues, supervisors, and mentors and learning
from reading articles and books. This is where investing in team building comes in as well,
because the better your team gets along, the higher the chance of them learning informally from
each other. (Meij, n.d.)

Functional areas of business


Knowing the different functional areas of business is a basic knowledge that every entrepreneur
needs to have. Without these business departments, a company will not only fail to implement its
policies but also fail to operate successfully. The functional areas of business are follows:
(Nathan, 2018)
 Human Resources: Subject has issue that their customer services staff is not doing their
best despite having well experienced staff. This is the problem on which he works many
times but unable to solve it.
 Operations: Subject has no major issue in operations as he has the experienced staff in
production area.
 Marketing & advertising: After observation and taking interview I came to know that
subject not focused in marketing and advertising strategy from start to till now.
 Accounting & finance: There is no issue regarding capital in his business. There is only
lack of some key points and basics things like marketing and advertising, staff training
and customer services.
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