Business Studies Controlled Assessment Essay Example Essay Example

Business Studies Controlled Assessment Essay Example Paper Business Studies Controlled Assessment Essay Introduction â€Å"What is the most important factor in improving the Promotion mix of the business?† Target Market- The set of people from the population to which a company wishes to sell. Target markets are typically defined by demographic information such as age, income level, ethnicity, or interests, and not by body size or shape. Marketing Mix- The marketing mix is the combination of product, price, place and promotion for any business venture. No one element of the marketing mix is more important than another, each element ideally supports the others. Firms modify each element in the marketing mix to establish an overall brand image and unique selling point that makes their products stand out from the competition. Promotional Mix- A business’s total marketing communications programme is called the â€Å"promotional mix† and consists of a blend of advertising, personal selling, sales promotion and public relations tools. There are seven main aspects of a promotional mix which are: Business Studies Controlled Assessment Essay Body Paragraphs 1. Advertising 2. Personal Selling 3. Sales Promotion 4. Public Relations 5. Corporate Image 6. Direct Marketing 7. Exhibitions Introduction to ‘Fig’ Fig is an entrepreneurial business which was founded by Maria Zoumides. There have two branches which are situated in Dartford and Blackheath. At Fig Hair Salons, they have a unique approach to hair design. Delivering beautiful styles – with knowledge of the latest trends and techniques – they take a personal approach to understand their customer’s hair and help them recreate the salon-perfect look at home. Fig has a Paul Mitchell Color Bar accreditation, offering best-in-class hair colour as well as Paul Mitchell products, and is a 365 salon – a guarantee of first class training and excellence. Product The owner states that their philosophy is â€Å"If we style your hair we please you for a day. If we teach you to style your hair we make a friend†. This can be assured to be right as Fig p rovides high quality services that incorporate the use of speciality products that produce of organic and natural ingredients. This is the main selling point of the Figs salon as it is one of the major reasons why customers would purchase from the business. (See Appendix 2 for survey and results) Price Fig’s pricing reflects the education level of their stylists, which is determined by training and practical experience, as you can see below is Fig’s price list to support this statement. Furthermore, I have carried out some primary research on the pricing offered by local competitors of Fig’s. The table below displays the pricing of a ‘Cut ; Blow Dry’ for Fig and 3 other competitors. My research conducts that Fig’s charge higher prices than its competitors except ‘Raw’, as Fig didn’t predict to approach a risk because the service is of such a high quality. This premium price also helps to create and support the image that F ig has the best quality and highest value salon available to the consumers. Saloon Type of service Price Fig Cut ; Blow Dry  £28.00 Raw Cut ; Blow Dry  £27.50- £35.00 TAG Hairdressing Cut ; Blow Dry  £20.00 Freestyle Design Cut ; Blow Dry  £26.65 Place Fig belongs 2 branches which are situated in Dartford and Blackheath. Both branches are located at the centre of the town, this is vital for the business as their target audience will be in the town most of the time resulting a lot of potential customers for the business. Customers will be travelling across the branch several times to get to places as it is also known as a short cut for the general public therefore it would be a great way of getting the business noticed and well known, and could imply more sales than if it was situated somewhere else. The other businesses are also quite near to the centre of town, but Fig still has a major advantage over them, as it is on a demanding main road, whereas the other restaurants are on more calm roads which interprets that it is less likely that people will walk past them. This makes it easier for Fig to attract new customers. (See Appendix 3 for a navigation of the branches Fig’s belongs on the Google Map) Promotion Fig is a growing business but which element of the promotional mix is most important in its success? In order to find out, I have gathered secondary and primary research making the research more reliable as most of the results are up to date which was produced by me. For my primary research I interviewed Maria Zoumides (the owner of Fig), while I was accompanied by my friends. Throughout the interview I used a questionnaire to give me guidance, which was given by my teacher (See Appendix 1 for transcript of interview). In addition to the interview, the owner agreed for me to do face- to- face surveys with their consumers outside their retail shop in Dartford (See Appendix 2 for survey and results). I questioned 20 consumers of any age an d gender as long they were a consumer of Fig, in order to analyse the effects of the promotions they had, for me to interpret whether they have been successful and to mention any improvements that could be made towards the promotions they do. I have decided to use all the data I have gathered except the primary research I have contributed in class, whereby the whole contributed in a questionnaire on the most effective method of promotion for a hairdresser, because It wasn’t very reliable as the majority faked their opinion just to speed the process up and more over, the hairdresser I have chosen (Fig) doesn’t target their services and products to the audience my class were which in fact are female teenagers. So therefore this data was irrelevant with my hairdresser. Fig’s methods of promotion (See Appendix 4 for promotional materials) 1. Peripheral advertising 2. At times in local newspapers 3. Magazines 4. Face book 5. Email 6. Using their own website 7. Arrang e events 8. Offers and sales 9. Text typical consumers (when it’s not busy) 10. Leaflets 11. Search engines 12. Mouth to mouth 13. Posters on their retail stores Before I select which promotions to improve and suggest, I am going to indentify the different types of promotions a local hairdressing business might use, which are listed below; 1. 2. Yellow pages Advantage- Highly Targeted, 24-Hour Coverage Disadvantage- Costly, One-Time shot, Declining Sales 1. Their own website Advantage- Can cut advertising costs, can promote multiple products Disadvantages- Needs high responsibility, Maintenance 1. A search engine Advantage- Effective marketing technique, targets the right audience, it is cost effective Disadvantage- Competition, Gestation period is long 1. Local newspaper press Ad Advantage- the audience is wider, have the flexibility in deciding the size and placement of the Ad, exposure to your ad is not limited, Free help in creating and producing ad copy, Disadvantage- Ca n be expensive, high competition, poor photo reproduction limits creativity, short shelf life, newspapers are highly visible medium, faces declining readership caused by the increasing popularity of the internet 1. Local magazines Advantage- More stable, portable, easy to produce, its touchable and has a physical presence Disadvantage- Hard time leveraging commerce, aims for one particular target, reaches far less customers 1. Leaflets Advantage- eye catching, Informative, handy, distributed in many ways, easy to produce, very cost effective, consumer friendly, Disadvantage- they have space constraints, limited space, message should be well expressed 1. Street sign Advantage- Has a captured audience, the message is frequently seen by the audience, its an excellent adjunction to other types of advertising Disadvantage- It’s a glance medium, the message should be brief 1. Window display Advantage-Cheap, Easy to create, grabs attention, basic Disadvantage- limited, contain littl e information, tend to be ignored 1. Radio commercial Advantage- a universal medium, permits to target the market, permits you to create a personality for your business, free creative help is available, rates are negotiated, least inflated medium Disadvantage- have to advertise simultaneously, listeners cannot refer back to your ads, are an interruption to the entertainment, it’s a background medium, the line could be not clear 1. Cinema commercial Advantage- the advert will gain 100% of the viewers attention, target audience can be decided which leads to broadcasting to the right people Disadvantage- High in cost, people try to ignore adverts by doing various tasks such as buy popcorn 1. Posters Advantage- Fast way of getting a point across, cheap, very effective depending on the layout Disadvantage- limited amount of information and image 1. TV Adverts Advantage- Reaches a very large audience, more diverse audience, it has the ability to convey your message with sight, easy to reach target audience Disadvantage- limited length of exposure, the ads are usually ignored, the relative cost is high 1. Word of mouth Advantage- Save time and money, attracts better qualified prospects, makes use of social proof, offers loyalty, offers greater flexibility Disadvantage- Negative customer feedback, Untraceable results, permanent internet footprint, bad referrals After narrowing all the different types of promotions, I have elected two new ways that Fig’s could promote their business which are: 1. Yellow pages (Online ; Paper directory) â€Å"Now buyers† are simply looking for the right place from which to obtain what they want. Very often their decisions are based largely upon what they see in the yellow pages. Virtually every business and every home has a telephone directory. Therefore, nearly everyone has immediate access to the ad in the Yellow pages. Over 85% of adults consult the yellow pages at one time or another. They follow up with a phone call, a visit, or a letter 93% of the time. About 75% of those who use the yellow pages do so at least once a month (statistics from BellSouth). There are several disadvantages to advertising in the yellow pages. First, the ads can be expensive. Second, once a business has signed the contract, you are locked in for an entire year. Third, the effectiveness of yellow pages ads can be difficult to test and track. Since the yellow pages are printed only once a year, you have infrequent opportunities to experiment with different copy text and designs. Fourth, the business will be displayed alongside all their competitors’ ads. 1. Street Sign Since it is in the public domain, Outdoor Advertising assuredly reaches its audience. People can’t â€Å"switch it off† or â€Å"throw it out.† People are exposed to it whether they like it or not. In this sense, outdoor advertising truly has a â€Å"captured audience†. Its messages work on the advertising principl e of â€Å"frequency.† Since most messages stay in the same place for a period of a month or more, people who drive by or walk past see the same message a number of times. Outdoor advertising is an excellent adjunct to other types of advertising you are doing. In fact, it is most effective when coupled with other media. At best, it only draws 2-3 seconds of a reader’s time. Messages must be brief to fit in that 2-3 second time frame. 95% percent of the time, either the message or the audience is in motion. The nature of the way you have to buy outdoor advertising is not conducive to a very short, week-long campaign. In conclusion, my research evokes that Figs should start using both of these promotional methods because both methods are very effective as they are a small business with professional services I suggest that they should develop to a more known and wider business leading an increase in sales and more experience in using different promotions for future projec ts. We will write a custom essay sample on Business Studies Controlled Assessment Essay Example specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Business Studies Controlled Assessment Essay Example specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Business Studies Controlled Assessment Essay Example specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer