07-37282 Marketing Strategy Assignment Remit: Group report and presentation

Module Learning Outcomes of 07-37282:

This assignment is designed to assess the following module learning outcomes. Your submission will be marked using the Grading Criteria given in the section below.

• Explain the theoretical foundations of marketing strategy and its scope.
• Critically appraise the process and methods for identifying and selecting marketing strategies.
• Critically evaluate key concepts and practical frameworks and techniques for effective strategic market analyses.
• Develop a market-led strategy, clearly indicating the implications of the developed strategy for competitive advantage.
• Develop strategic and tactical approaches to address competitor's actions and the wider market.
• Explain the practicalities and limitations of marketing strategy implementation. Work, interact and communicate effectively in teams.

07-37282 Assignment: Recorded Group Presentation

Select a company of your choice and critically evaluate their recent marketing strategy activities.

Provide a 4000-word group report (worth 50% of your mark), and an 8-10-minute recorded PowerPoint Presentation.

Please note: If you choose a large complex organisation, then it is advisable to focus on just one product or a product line sold by that company.

1. Introduction

Overall, the purpose of the assignment is to assess your ability to understand and apply marketing theory in practice as covered in the module. You need to demonstrate your practical understanding of the topics covered during the course as well as to develop your skills in preparing a marketing presentation. The quality of your presentation will be assessed based on correct application of marketing theory and tools, as well as the strength of your arguments, justification, as well as your logic.

2. Choosing a company

You are required to pick a single company/organization for this assignment. Select a company and sector which interests your group. The following guidelines may be useful in helping you decide:

• Consider your long-term career interests. Studying a company / industry in which you may wish to seek future employment will raise the relevance of the study and provide you with additional knowledge which could prove useful in an interview.
• Pick an industry based on your general personal interests. Choosing a sector which reflects your personal interests should help to boost your enthusiasm for the project.
• You can choose service sector which has intangible products or an 'unusual' company, such as a film studio, football team, tourist attraction, etc. It does not have to be the industry with many multinational corporations or FTSE 100 organisations.
• Some companies / industries may have more information published about them than others. Sectors such as the car industry and mobile phone industry are well served in terms of available data. Others receive far less attention. This does not mean that you should not tackle them but you might have to think more creatively about how you will access data/information. You may want to do a bit of exploratory research on two or three ideas before you make your final decision. Check you have access to enough data to complete the presentation.

3. Researching the project

You are encouraged to conduct sufficient research to collect the necessary data and finish this project. The focus of this project should be based on secondary research (that is data which is already in the public domain). It is not suggested that you contact the company or any organizations.

A few suggestions on the types of reports and publications you may wish to look at include: Annual reports and accounts, Key Note or Mintel Reports, Euromonitor, The Economist, Newspaper articles (e.g. FT supplements), as well as many other sources (check what the Library holds in terms of industry reports and analyses).

4. Working in groups

Groups should comprise 6-8 members. You are free to form your own groups. If you cannot find a group to join, then let me know as soon as possible.

It is very important that you work with all your group members together and have thorough discussions about key issues for your company's marketing strategy. You are expected to work professionally within your groups, and to resolve any disagreements in a collegiate and supportive way between yourselves. If, however, you have a significant group problem (for example, one group member consistently fails to attend group meetings) then you should email me. It is also important to report any problems as early as possible in the term.

5. Writing the report

A good starting point when planning a project is to consider the structure of your final presentation. This will help you to decide what information you need to collect and identify any gaps in available information. A suggested outline structure for the project is as follows:

• Executive summary
•  Introduction
•  Main body (which will include your analysis and will form the largest section in your presentation).

I suggest that you start this section with a brief environmental analysis of the market in which the company operates as well as the main competitors.

Next, you should focus on the key marketing issues and your analysis of the company. The marketing issues/areas that you decide to focus on are up to you, but you should draw on concepts/frameworks/tools from the module to help analyse your data/information. The subject areas you look at might include (but are not limited to): Marketing strategy and objectives, branding, segmentation, targeting and positioning, marketing communications, value propositions etc.

• Recommendations for long-term development
• Conclusion
• References (Harvard style referencing)
•  Appendices

Or you may present your own structure for the report.

You need to apply marketing frameworks/models that you have learned in the lectures (as well as from your wider reading). You need to demonstrate a critical evaluation of the information you draw on, not just a descriptive account of the company and its activities.

Please submit your work via Canvas on the deadline by 12pm (GMT+0). A 5% penalty will be received for each day of late submission.

Word limit for the group report: 4000 words (this is the maximum word limit. This word. limit excludes references but includes any tables and appendices used). The spacing should be 1.5 or 2. Accepted fonts are either 12, Times New Roman or 11 Ariel.

07-37282 Marking Rubric:

Note that the information below is guidance and feedback only and not a quantitative measure to calculate the grade.
The final grade represents the overall quality of the work taking these criteria into account but is the academic judgement of the marker(s).