Product

Our product is Soosaphone's Cactus Supreme. "However, finding the best brand name is a difficult task. It begins with a careful review of the product and its benefits, the target market, and proposed marketing strategies" (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. page 230. It is a finely hand-crafted, cactus infused alcoholic beverage full of hoppy goodness.We are different, we make the consumer feel fulfilled, we invite the curious to learn more about us and we put so much care into our porduct that the consumer acan see it though the taste. "strength along four consumer perception dimensions: differentiation (what makes the brand stand out), relevance (how consumers feel it meets their needs), knowledge (how much consumers know about the brand), and esteem (how highly consumers regard and respect the brand)." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 55)

Implementation Evaluation Control

"For effective implementation and control, the marketing plan should define how progress toward objectives will be measured." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page MP2). Our progress will be measured by not only our growth, but maintaining a steady revenue after we hit growth. Once we experience growth and some stability in sales, we will discuss further ways to be present in the community in order to be seen by a bigger audience, further increasing the power of our word of mouth marketing plan. "The process of measuring and evaluating the results of marketing strategies and plans and taking corrective action to ensure that objectives are achieved." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 58).

Promotion

We want to create a very positive experience for our customers. A great, unique tasting beer accompanied by a great time. With this we hope to create loyal customers that will share our product with the people they love. We want to spread by word of mouth. We want to associate our brand with happiness. "Today, customers come to know a brand through a wide range of contacts and touch points. These include advertising, but also personal experience with the brand, word of mouth, company Web pages, and many others." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 236). What is important is our positioning. Our product will be in the handcrafted brews, right in the center. This is to create the idea that our product is the epitome of high quality. "Arranging for a product to occupy a clear, distinctive, and desirable place relative to competing products in the minds of target consumers." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 52). Once business picks up we will "increase its products’ availability and promotion in existing markets and expand business via acquisitions" (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 43).

Price

The price of our product will be a little higher than our competition only because we want to create the idea that, we put care into this product, the high price is for quality. A 6pack of BudLight is $5. A 6pack of Soosaphone's Cactus Supreme is $9. Almost double the price of our biggest competitor, yet still reasonable. "Perceived value: To some customers, “value” might mean paying more to get more. For example, are GE’s Profile Harmony washers and dryers worth the higher price? To the target segment of style-conscious, affluent buyers, the answer is “yes.”" (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 14)."Companies today face a fierce and fast-changing pricing environment." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 14). With that said, we will make it a goal to stay ahead of the varying changes in price.

Target Market

"The first part describes the target market; the planned value proposition; and the sales, market share, and profit goals for the first few years." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 250). Our target market is males ages 21-35. Our reason behind this is simple. Men drink beer. We want to introduce our product to the younger male audience because they are not set in their ways. They want to try new things, they don't exactly know what they like and it's our job to give them something amazing. Something that they can look back at and say, "you know what? that was a damn good beer!". "The art and science of choosing target markets and building profitable relationships with them." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 9)

SWOT Analysis

A SWOT analysis is :"an overall evaluation of the company’s strengths (S), weaknesses (W), opportunities (O), and threats (T)." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 55). The strength of our product is it's uniqueness. The strange flavor of our beer is for the adventurous. We want our customers to stumble upon us and find it appealing that their friends haven't heard of us. They will introduce them to it and be the cool guy with his cool beer, it is a New Task or " a business buying situation in which the buyer purchases a product or service for the first time." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 161). Our strengths, "strength along four consumer perception dimensions: differentiation (what makes the brand stand out), relevance (how consumers feel it meets their needs), knowledge (how much consumers know about the brand), and esteem (how highly consumers regard and respect the brand)." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 229). The opportunities of our businesswould be to make sure that we are on every shelf in America but do little publicity. When people actually find out about our product and do some research, they will find a website dedicated to our Vegas based brewery, where we give tours of our facility. At the end of the tour there will also be a gift shop and some photo opportunities. We want to spread by word of mouth. "Weaknesses include internal limitations and negative situational factors that may interfere with the company’s performance." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 55). Our weaknesses are the fact that we spread through word of mouth and although we will make loyal customers, we will not be a high selling product. "Increased competition and clutter on retail store shelves means that packages must now perform many sales tasks—from attracting attention, to describing the product, to making the sale." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 216). Our threats are the bigger companies that monopolize the marketplace as we will not have the resources to compete with their marketing campaigns. "When the seller requires that these dealers not handle competitors’ products, its strategy is called exclusive dealing." (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 328).

Week 10 EOC: Benefits vs. Features

The benefits of Soosaphone's Cactus Supreme are simple. You get a masterfully hand-crafted beverage with a unique cactusy taste. Another benefit is that we promise a unique experience with every bottle of beer consumed. Life is always better with a little beer to top it off with. All of our proceeds go to the Philippines in one of two ways. Either through the, buy one get one for the water we send or the other way, which is our money going to Red Cross. "These benefits are communicated and delivered by product attributes such as quality, features, and style and design" (Armstrong & Kotler (2011). Marketing: An Introduction, 10th Ed. Prentice Hall Publishing, page 214).