Individual Assessment, Part 1
Company: McDonalds Corporation
McDonald’s is the world’s largest fast-food restaurant chain. It has more than 32,000 restaurants in over 100 countries, generates sales revenue of over $ 60billion and services over one billion customers every year (over 58 million customers daily).
Question 1:
In a highly competitive business environment most companies have moved away from mass marketing and toward target marketing, identifying market segments focusing on their needs rather than focusing on the market as a whole. This concept is known as a customer driven marketing . Designing a customer driven marketing strategy consists of four key components that when performed effectively allows the business to create greater value for its customers. These key components are: 1. Segmentation: Divide the total market into smaller segments 2. Targeting: Select the segment or segments the business is going to focus on. 3. Differentiation: Ensure that the business makes its product more desirable to its target market than all the others like it. 4. Positioning: Create an image for the product and position it in the minds of the target market.
An effective customer driven marketing strategy also involves the design and implementation of a successful marketing mix. The marketing mix is a term used to describe the four main marketing tools (4Ps): 1. Product: McDonald’s places considerable emphasis on developing a menu which customers want. Market research establishes exactly what this is. However, customers’ requirements change over time. In order to meet these changes, McDonald’s has introduced new products and phased out old ones, and will continue to do so. 2. Price: The customer’s perception of value is an important determinant of the price charged. The danger of using low price as a marketing tool is that the customer may feel that quality is being compromised. McDonalds products range in price
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