Marketing Plan

Qonverse Mission Statement
Fun, energy, environment, passion, experiences and friendship are just a few of the things we care about at Qonverse.  “A firm’s mission statement establishes boundaries for all subsequent decisions, objectives, and strategies. As such, a mission statement should focus on the market or markets the organization is attempting to serve rather than on the good or service offered. Otherwise a new technology may quickly make the good or service obsolete and the mission statement irrelevant to company functions. - Chapter 1 - pg. 2” This vodka brand is special because we offer way more than just a drink. We offer an experience unlike any other. Our beverages are top quality and offer so much more in the taste department than other competitors in the same price range but they are most of all fun. We promise to add an exciting new and fresh energy to a much overcrowded and overrated market just flooded with more of the same by always providing a top quality product and a promise that you won’t be disappointed.

Objectives
Our objectives throughout the 2010 and 2011 year is to get the Qonverse brand and Lemon Spark product names out there. We plan to advertise heavily at clubs on the strip and to become a part of the regular nightlife scene here in Las Vegas. “Marketing planning involves designing activities relating to marketing objectives and the changing marketing environment. Marketing planning is the basis for all marketing strategies and decisions. Issues such as product lines, distribution channels, marketing communications, and pricing are all delineated in the marketing plan. The marketing plan is a written document that acts as a guidebook of marketing activities for the marketing manager. - Chapter 2 - pg. 21” Financially, we want to fully pay back our startup costs by the end of 2012 and to expand into other areas of advertising namely TV and Radio. During this year long time-span we would like to dig in and grab hold of a significant amount of the market share among late-night Vegas goers and build a foundation on which to launch us from a regional to national company.

Primary Objectives:
Focus on getting the name out there
Advertisements and promotions at clubs
Focus on paying start up costs
Look for new avenues to get noticed
Build up a share in the market


SWOT Analysis
A situation analysis is sometimes referred to as a SWOT analysis; that is, the firm should identify its internal strengths and weaknesses and also examine external opportunities and threats. The collection and interpretation of information about forces, events, and relationships in the external environment that may affect the future of the organization or the implementation of the marketing plan. - Chapter 3 - pg. 19"

Strengths:
One of Qonverse’s greatest strengths is that it’s a young brand whose energy, vitality, and excitement for our product will excite our target market. We are a smaller company so that means lower employee costs and smaller workspace and flexibility that come with less of everything. The plan is to keep our products affordable so that they will be accessible to as many people as possible while keeping the quality as high as possible which we expect will give us a competitive edge against our competition in the same price range. “The majority of Americans today define themselves as middle class, regardless of their actual income or educational attainment. This phenomenon most likely occurs because working-class Americans tend to aspire to the middle-class lifestyle while some of those who do achieve affluence may downwardly aspire to respectable middle-class status as a matter of principle. - Chapter 5 – pg. 71”

Weaknesses:
We are a young company and there is a potential that we could get burnt out by the typical overshadowing beverages giants. We plan to counteract that competition by providing an excellent affordable product, excellent customer service, and a fun image that will appeal to the masses while at the same time having the Cost Competitive Advantage. “Having a cost  competitive advantage means being the low-cost competitor in an industry while maintaining satisfactory profit margins. - Chapter 2 - pg. 20”

Opportunities:
With our look and our energy, we want to connect with the people and offer them an experience that will be un-paralleled experience that our competitors just can’t keep up with. We also want to offer some unique internet experience to our customers that we plan will help put us over the top when it comes to customer trust and loyalty. “The huge growth in the popularity of Internet surveys is the result of the many advantages offered by the Internet. - Chapter 8 - pg. 124”

Threats:
There’s a sea of competition threatening our share of the market. There are a lot of other companies that also realize the potential for success in the already over saturated beverage market. We also don’t have the resources of a large company. It is also going to be a challenge to achieve Product Differentiation "A positioning strategy that many firms use to distinguish their products from those of competitors.- Chapter 7 - pg. 109" so that our product will be able to stand out against our competitors inside our target market. As of now we do not have as much Brand Equity "The value of a company and brand names - Chapter 9 - pg. 135" as we would like to have, but that will come with time once our customers have had a chance to try our product and.


Marketing Strategy

Business marketing. The marketing of goods and services to individuals and organizations of purposes other than personal consumption. - Chapter 6 - pg 83

Qonverse is planning and hoping on quickly becoming a commonly used name in the beverage market. We want to be known for supplying a great product in Lemon Spark, giving back to the community while promoting "Developing a specific marketing mix to influence potential customers overall perception of a brand product line, or organization in general - Chapter 7 - pg. 109" a fun and socially responsible environment.

We plan on doing that by adhering to a few simple rules and strategies that we estimate will give us a competitive advantage on our competitors:

Keeping our product within a certain price range to remain affordable to almost everybody which in turn will help boost our Market Share "A company’s product sales as a percentage of total sales for that industry. - Chapter 17 - pg 263"

Using various social media and the internet for advertising so that we can save money in the beginning on hefty advertising costs. "Opening an e-commerce site on the Internet immediately puts a company in the international marketplace. Sophisticated language translation software can make any site accessible to people all around the world. - Chapter 4 - pg. 60"

Keeping our products image squeaky clean by building up customer loyalty by using Empowerment "Delegation of authority to solve customers problems quickly-usually by the first person that the customer notifies. - Chapter 19 pg. 296"

Target Market Strategy:
Our Target Market "A group of people or organizations for which an organization designs, implements, and maintains and marketing mix intended to meet the needs of that group resulting in mutually satisfying exchanges." consists of mostly single men and women ranging between the ages of 21 and 35. Our position as a brand reflects a fun and social atmosphere, much like the ones you can find on the strip in downtown Las Vegas and expect it to appeal to younger adults. We also want Qonverse Lemon Spark to appeal to both sexes because both will be at the clubs.

Marketing Mix
Product
Brand Name: Qonversation
Product Name: Lemon Spark
Ingredients: Vodka 80 Proof - 750-ml, Natural Lemon Juice, Cayenne Pepper
(product pictures)
   
Distribution
Where to buy: Bars & Clubs, Grocery stores, Liqueur Stores
We are anticipating most of the sales to be made through nightclubs and plan to do gear most of our promotions towards club goers.

Promotion
We plan to do a lot of online promotions through our website http://www.qonversebeverages.com as well as other social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Some of our promotions will include discounts on drinks, table costs at clubs, and other merchandise upon purchasing a bottle of Lemon Spark. We plan on giving back to the community as well and will hold different promotions at clubs where if we sell X amount of bottles we will give X amount of dollars back to the community.

Price
$14.99 per bottle
"Consumers are interested in obtaining a ‘reasonable price.’ ‘reasonable price’ really means ‘perceived reasonable value’ at the time of the transaction. The price paid is based on the satisfaction consumers expect to receive from a product and not necessarily that satisfaction they actually receive. - Chapter 17 - pg. 261" We will establish brand consistency by pricing all of our new vodkas at the same price. We want our customers to get comfortable with our prices so that they know what they are going to spend each time.


Implementation
We plan to begin implementing our advertising strategies July 1st 2010 starting by Sampling “A promotional program that allows the consumer the opportunity to try a product or service for free. - Chapter 16 – pg. 249” at local bars and clubs around the Las Vegas downtown areas. There will also be promotional “Communication by marketers that informs, persuades, and reminds potential buyers of a product in order to influence an opinion of elicit a response. - Chapter 14 - pg. 211” displays next to the employees giving away samples that will have flyers, cards, stickers and other little merchandise that the customers can take away with them. Each flyer will have our website and facebook accounts URL so that people can looks us up once they get home. After a month of circulating our promotions around town we will officially launch and Lemon Spark will be for sale  at local bars, clubs, grocery and liqueur stores.

Evaluation
We will closely observe our sales throughout the rest of the year and upon results we will adjust our marketing plan accordingly. We will also conduct constant low-cost Survey Research “In which the researcher interacts with people to obtain facts, opinions, and attitudes. Chapter - 8 - pg. 117” through our website for those who have free time to give us some feedback.

Control
Based on the results from our evaluation we will be able to decide where to go on from there. If we find that we have extra money left over we can then allocate it to building more promotional strategies and resources to enhance our business and community.

Week 10 - EOC

Kembel likens brand-online communities to gardens—you don’t just launch them, you grow them. That, he says, is what Right Now was able to do on behalf of client Environmental Data Resources (see “A Community in Crisis,” Real ROI). “The fundamentals of [a brand-online community],” Kembel says, “[are] to be able to be shaped and architect-ed for support, loyalty, marketplace, insight, and innovation.”

I like this quote because I agree with Kembel. I think it's important, especially for a new company like mine, to really care for and nurture your new company. My company will not become a giant redwood towering over all the world overnight. It takes time, patience, and many many days nurturing you brand so that it can grow a solid foundation upon which to grow.

To work on my foundation I will use online media(namely Twitter + Facebook) to help plant my brands name into the hearts and minds of my readers and followers. Since we are a company who's main export is Vokda, we will provide information on when our newest drinks hit the market, and what is coming soon. We will provide fun stories sent in by our followers about how they best enjoyed their nights out with Public House.

Part of nuturing and building a brand is protecting it. We plan on providing different ways to keep our customers safe so that they can enjoy our product while making sure they get home safe at the same time. We will use websites like Twitter to remind all those drinking to do so responsibly and safely. We will also provide a service on our websites home page to all those who plan on drinking tonight to please enter your phone number, zip code, and the time you plan on coming home and we will text your mobile phone will numbers for cab companies in you area so ensure that you always come home safe.

Week 9 - EOC

Something I bought at a high price that I just had to have was the Deluxe Edition of Radiohead's Kid A album that was released in October 2000 for $45. This album came out ten years ago and I still paid over 3 times the normal c.d. price because I guess you could say that I am a fan? Maybe subconsciously I wanted to look like I really know my Radiohead and thus must have the album. To me, this c.d. means a lot of things both musically and personally. I've listened to my old copy of Kid A probably a hundred times on and off through many different times in my life and have thoroughly worn it out. It's special to me and almost sacred in nature. I get personally offended if people don't like it and feel that if they do like it, then we will probably be kindred spirits. The c.d. isn't just music either, it has a few videos from a few of Radiohead's live shows and also features interviews the band has given throughout the years. This album may only be 9.99 on iTunes, but to hold a copy on my hands and to know that I'm willing to invest in bands that I like is important to me, so that's why I paid so much for it.

Week 8 - EOC

Qonverse Select Vodkas

Qonverse Vodka is fun. We are about the experience. We take boring old flavors of vodka and judo chop them into new and intoxicating flavors like Lemon Spark. It's our fabulous new mixture of lemon juice and cayenne pepper that starts out slow, letting that familiar flavor of lemonade tickle your taste buds for a few nostalgic seconds that remind you of your childhood days. But before you know whats happening it follows up with a blast of tangy pepper gold that reminds you why life is always better as an adult. 

Qonverse wants to be at the center of every night, every party, every wedding and every wake. Something has to get the mood going again.


Qonverse Vodka - Join the party

Week 6 - EOC

This EOC requires us to come up with fantastically bad products. My hypothetical new product that follows along those guidelines is a set of feet warmers for driving. Hear me out, these feet warmers will be strapped to the floor, ideal for those long drives when the cruise control is on and having your shoes on is just too uncomfortable. The feet warmers will be attached to the floor with Velcro so if there is a need to quickly get your foot up to the brake pedal you can bust out with minimal effort.

Week 5 - EOC

The 1971 Chevelle SS.

This car is bursting with testosterone, grease, and beer. I'm not saying women won't like it because all women want guys in muscle cars, I'm just saying it won't like women. It wasn't made for women. This man-made beast of a machine was built for one purpose, burning rubber. Check out the racing tires, look at the hood(and picture what's underneath), and just imagine yourself churning down the road as other cars remain flecks in your rear view. Picture yourself rolling down the road in this horsepower strapped piece of retro-badassery and then ask yourself, do I really want that Toyota anymore? Is it really that important that I get that hybrid for the environment, I'm just one man what can I possibly do to help save the o-zone? The answer is nothing, decide to place the o-zone into the hands of much lesser men than yourself and sit down on the cigarette burnt leather seats, grab your 8-track collection(you know you still have one), and prepare to propel your life into the well-used future.

Week 4 - EOC

Marketing & Advertising, what's the big difference?

Marketing:
The systematic planning, implementation and control of a mix of business activities intended to bring together buyers and sellers for the mutually advantageous exchange or transfer of products. 

Advertising:
A single component of the marketing process. It's the part that involves getting the word out concerning your business, product, or the services you are offering.

Sounds kind of similar right? Well let me say it like this. Marketing is the big picture, advertising is one small piece of the big marketing scheme. Marketing encompasses advertising and everything else like public relations and market research. Advertising is one piece to the puzzle(albeit a big piece) that makes a successful campaign.

Week 3 - EOC

Something interesting I never knew about until today is that we don't want the dollar to have too much power, and we also don't want the dollar to have enough power.

Definition of Inflation:
"Inflation is defined as a sustained increase in the general level of prices for goods and services. It is measured as an annual percentage increase. As Inflation rises, every dollar you own buys a smaller percentage of a good or service."

What happens when Inflation rates go up, is that the purchasing power if the dollar goes down. Something you would be able to buy for $1.00 this year, could cost $1.05 next year if the annual Inflation Rate went up 5%.

The opposite of Inflation is Deflation which is the decrease in the power of the dollar. When you see the worth of the dollar fall, you will also see rising rates in unemployment which if lasting long enough can cause an economic depression.

Sources:
http://www.investopedia.com/university/inflation/inflation1.asp
http://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/deflation.asp

Week 2 - EOC

Bad Customer Experience

My worst customer experience was probably at the DMV, duh. First, I had to be there on my birthday which already had me in a bad mood, but there is nothing worse than being in a bad mood when the person serving you is in one as well. I stood in line for 3 hours, then was told that I was in the wrong line and that I needed to be in another. I told the lady that not only was I told to be in this line by an employee at the DMV but all I was standing in line for was to pick up some paperwork that she totally could have gotten for me. But she was in a bad mood, and said she couldn't help me and that it's my fault for believing what I was told. Nooooot cool.

Good Customer Experience

One of my favorite experiences as a customer was when I bought a suit for my wedding reception. I was with my future wife and the time, and we were stressed because not only did I(and still don't) know or care anything about suits, but I had other things on my mind, like getting married. So we went to Macy's at the Galleria Mall and headed up the the mens suit department. When we got there, we were greeted by an older lady who promptly measured me and then gave me a handful of suits to try on and then put me in a dressing room. Now she was probably just doing her job, but her knowledge of how to handle a groom like me and her skills in customer service, she was able to give me a very stress free shopping experience in a very stressful moment in my life.

Week 1 - EOC

Hello my name is Bryan Blake. I’m a Web and Graphic Designer focusing on creating brilliant websites and interactive materials that enhance user interactivity and encourage communication.

What I find most exciting about Web Design is the fact that the web is always changing and evolving, forcing the user to try and experience new things. I like the web, enjoy change and am very excited about the direction the web has taken in recent years. I am interested in making the web a more beautiful place and always appreciate a website that has a clear message, good copy, clean typography and a fast loading time, because nobody likes to wait.

I hope to one day work in the advertising world creating dynamic websites and online materials for new brands, old brands, musicians, movies and everything in between using programming languages like PHP, JavaScript, HTML and CSS.

Aside from Web Design I also enjoy Graphic Design. I love creating printed materials and graphics like logos and brand Identities, Magazine Layouts and Publication Designs, CD Covers and much more.