Business Question

Monday morning, you meet with Jillian in her office. “We are so glad that you have come back to help us grow at Maryland Creative Solutions,” Jillian says. “As you know, with shifting markets, I have decided to reposition the company to focus more on clients with branding and digital strategy consulting needs. I feel that your long-term knowledge of our company and global mindset are perfect for leading the way on some of our new projects.

“To get you started, we have just signed on with ACME. I would like you to meet with their leadership:

Tarek

Fahmy, the company’s head of new-product innovation, and ACME’s CEO,

Erik

Knops, to finalize the details of their request. Again, it is a pleasure to be working with you. I am really looking forward to seeing your creative approaches in our partnerships.”

Calendar Invite: Startup Meeting with ACME

Client Name:

Meeting Organizer: Jillian Best

Attendees: You, Erik Knops, Tarek Fahmy

Click to attend the ACME meeting

After the meeting, proceed to Step 3 to enhance your knowledge about concepts relevant to ACME’s request.Required Readings

Chapters 2 & 13

Lancaster, G., & Massingham, L. (2018). Essentials of

marketing

management (2nd ed.). Routledge

http://ezproxy.umgc.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=1581263&site=eds-live&scope=site&profile=edsebook

As you read through the course materials, begin to think about how this information will apply to the report you will prepare for Erik and Tarek. To successfully complete the report, you’ll need an understanding of marketing. You will also benefit from a keen understanding of

consumer buying behavior

, and

evaluating business attractiveness

As you conduct your analysis of ACME’s consumer environment, remember that there are two types of market research:

primary and secondary research

. Both types of research are required in real-life, and each of them has its pros and cons. However, for this Project, only secondary research is required.

Finally, to fully understand ACME’s position, read about

offerings

—what a company provides its customers, be it a product, a service, or a mix of both. Also consider the

differences between a product and a service

. You know that a product can be more than just a physical good, it can be a service attached to a physical product, a “pure” service, an idea, a place, an organization, or even a person.

After you have read these materials, proceed to the next step, where you will begin your analysis of the specified consumer markets

NBOX: 1 New Message

From: Tarek Fahmy, Head of New Product Innovation, ACME

To: You

How are things going?

As previously mentioned, I would like you to conduct an analysis of the consumers in our main markets. Your analysis should consider both current and potential product users and should address the following questions under the discussion of each country:

Identify key trends and preferences among customers in these markets.

Discuss any cultural or regional factors that may influence buying habits.

Based on your research findings, identify potential areas of unmet demand in these markets.

Discuss why these areas represent opportunities for ACME.

Provide strategic recommendations for ACME to capitalize on the identified unmet demand.

Discuss potential challenges ACME may face and suggest ways to overcome them.

Deliverable: By the end of Week 1, I need you to produce a nine-page preliminary consumer buying behavior report (excluding cover page, reference list, tables, graphs, and exhibits) explaining your findings on consumer needs, wants, and preferences in these markets. Each country should be discussed in at least three pages with its own headings and subheadings. Make sure that your report is specific to consumers of ACME’s potential product in the three countries, and not to consumers in general.

Support your work with the course readings and at least four scholarly sources and 12 reliable nonscholarly sources, such as Reuters, Bloomberg, Yahoo! Finance, Barrons.com, Morningstar.com, Money, Forbes, Fortune, the Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Harvard Business Review, as well as the UMGC Library databases, such as Hoover’s, Statista, and ABI/INFORM. All sources need to be cited using APA formatting, both within the text and in the reference list. The report should be organized using headings and subheadings to improve its readability.

Expecting your best efforts on this,

Tarek

Early in Week 2, submit a one-page value proposition to Erik.

INBOX: 1 New Message

From: Erik Knops, CEO, ACME

To: You

Just a quick note,

I wanted to clarify that a customer-focused value proposition explains the reason why a customer purchases a product or uses a service (i.e., the value that a company delivers to its customers).

Deliverable: Based on your research of consumer needs in our main markets, describe in one page your value proposition, or the benefits that ACME and its potential new product would provide to customers. Remember, a value proposition is essentially the promise that is made to the customer. Also provide a half-page recommendation to ACME on whether or not to enter those markets.

Support your work with the course readings, scholarly sources, and reliable nonscholarly sources, such as Reuters, Bloomberg, Yahoo! Finance, Barrons.com, Morningstar.com, Money, Forbes, Fortune, the Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Harvard Business Review, as well as the UMGC Library databases, such as Hoover’s, Statista, and ABI/INFORM. All sources need to be cited using APA formatting, both within the text and in the reference list. The value proposition should be discussed by country, and organized using headings and subheadings to improve its readability.

I know these are tight turnarounds, but I have no doubt you’ll knock this out,

Erik