File attached

Assignment:

Write an essay (one page for each chapter covered in this week’s reading) highlighting the main points from each chapter.  The essay should be double spaced with normal margins and font.  You will need to email the assignment to me as an attachment by the date specified in the email. Please see the course late policy below and let me know if you have any further questions.

Assignment Policy:

The nature of this course requires that the candidate interact with the material, professor and other candidates on a weekly basis. Because of this, it is difficult to achieve the fullest experience in this learning environment when assignments are late.

If unable to complete an assignment on time, the candidate must contact the professor immediately by email to make arrangements for the completion of that assignment. Assignments that are submitted after the due date without appropriate excuse and pre-approval will receive the following deductions:

1. Assignments submitted after the due date will receive a 10% deduction.

2. Assignments submitted more than one week late receive a 20% deduction.

3. Assignments submitted two weeks late or after the final due date of the class will not be accepted without documentation or extenuating circumstances.

AVERY BARNES

UNIT 1 – INDIVIDUAL PROJECT

MKTG408-: Advertising and Promotion Management

Date: January 13, 2013

Instructor:

Amy Hipelius

In order to successfully implement an IMC program in any organization, it is necessary to engage in the first step of situational analysis so as to be able to gauge and understand the requirements and considerations to take during the program. Situational analysis involves evaluating both internal and external factors that can influence the development of the desired promotional activities. In this paper, a situational analysis will be conducted for Mojo’s Rum and Surf Shack.

Mojo’s Rum and Surf Shack is a small bar that is located in Havensight Mall, St. Thomas. The bar originally only offered a drinks menu but has expanded to include a food menu as well. The drinks menu has received positive reviews from customers with its wide selection of drinks as well as the taste of the drinks “ReviewStream”. The bar has introduced a food menu which consists of finger food such as grilled chicken and homemade hummus “Mojo’s Rum and Surf Shack bar”.

The products and services offered at Mojo’s are cheap and affordable to the general consumer. The company offers an island-themed experience where drinks, food and decorations of the bar are strongly associated with island life “ReviewStream”. The target market of Mojo’s Rum and Surf Shack will be both the locals and the tourists. The bar is located in a convenient location which tourists can easily locate and access. Similarly, locals will find it convenient to go to Mojo’s given that it is located in a parking lot which means customers can easily find a place to park their vehicles and enjoy their time at the bar.

In terms of marketing efforts, the company has tried to stand out from the rest of its competitors by emphasizing on the appearance of the bar and keeping in line with the island theme. The appearance of the bar is unique since it is made to look like an island hut and this helps to attract the attention of consumers. In addition, the products offered at the bar are all given names that are associated with the island theme. The company has set up a Facebook page to reach out to its target market. This is an interactive platform which allows the business owners to interact with their customers as well as to provide information to attract customers. On the Facebook page, the business owners post information on themed events, new products as well as pictures so as to be able to reach out to customers and attract them to the bar Mojo’s Rum and Surf Shack bar. This method of marketing has appeared to be effective. By setting up a Facebook page, it has allowed the company to connect efficiently with its customers. In addition, it has also allowed satisfied customers to easy share information about the bar with others on internet forums through sharing the link to the Facebook page.

Mojo’s Rum and Surf Shack faces tough competition given that there is a large number of similar bars and restaurants on the Virgin Islands. Three examples of these competitors will be Iggies Beach Bar and Grill, Fat Turtle and The Rock Nightclub and Lounge.

One of the strongest competitor which Mojo’s faces will be Iggies Beach Bar and Grill. Iggies is one of the most popular bars in the area given that it was voted the best beach bar in the Caribbean by the readers of Caribbean Travel & Life’s “1855VIServices”. Iggies offers a wide selection of food and drinks, as well as buffets. In addition, Iggies also has specialty shows presented such as live music, limbo show, fire walking and broken bottle dancing. The company’s target market will be both locals and tourists. The company is also reaching out to families with children by offering lower charges for kids.

Like Mojo’s, Iggies has also set up a Facebook page as part of its marketing strategy. This allows the company to interact more conveniently with its customers as well as provide information to attract customers to its place. The company posts pictures of the bar, its band as well as those of their customers enjoying themselves on the page. This is a strong move to motivate others to visit “Iggies Beach Bar & Grill”. In addition, the company has also set up a website where it has posted information about the bar and its menu. This helps to attract customers and inform customers about the products and services offered at Iggies “Iggies Beach Bar”.

Next, another competitor of Mojo’s will be Fat Turtle. Fat Turtle is bar and restaurant that is located near the beach at the Virgin Islands. The company offers a wide range of food such as lobster, seafood, salads and pizza. The company also offers a good selection of frozen cocktails. In addition, Fat Turtle is differentiated from other bars and restaurants in the area in that it markets itself as a place where customers can enjoy sports on large screens while enjoying the sea breeze. As such, it can be deduced that the company is targeting both locals and tourists. However, they are also reaching out to the sports enthusiasts “This Week”.

As part of its marketing strategy, Fat Turtle has set up a website which provides information on the products and services offered at the place. In addition, testimonials and quotes from other websites such as Tripadvisor are also provided. This helps to attract customers given that they are more confident about the company given the testimonials from other customers. In addition, attractive photos are also placed on the website which helps to attract customers to visit the place,”Fat Turtle”.

The third competitor of Mojo’s will be The Rock Nightclub and Lounge. The Rock has a good selection of drinks on its menu. However, the main differentiating point between The Rock and the other bars in the area will be its Vegas-themed place as well as the availability of gaming facilities at the bar. The bar also offers different events on different nights such as Ladies night and Buzztime Trivia Night “The Rock Nightclub & Lounge”.

In terms of marketing strategies, the company has tried to differentiate itself through the Vegas-themed nights and decorations. However, the web presence of The Rock is not very strong. Even though it has a page online, the page itself does not provide much information except for a brief description and a lot of pictures which are small and not very clear “The Rock Nightclub & Lounge”.

The marketing environment can greatly affect the effectiveness of marketing strategies implemented. First, in terms of demographic, the population on the Virgin Islands is relatively small with only about 109,574 members and a declining population growth “Virgin Islands Demographics Profile 2012”. However, the area has been able to attract a large number of tourists annually “U.S. Virgin Islands Annual Tourism Indicators”. As such, it will be important to put in more effort to reach out to the tourists in order to boost the success of Mojo’s.

In terms of the economic environment, United States and the world are generally still recovering from the global recession. As such, people appear to be more careful with their spending. In addition, with the ongoing European debt crisis, people are generally pessimistic about the global economy. As such, this means that consumers may cut down on travelling and spending. As such, marketing strategies need to take these trends in mind.

In terms of the technological environment, internet access is becoming more common around the world today. As such, the use of the internet to promote and reach out to potential customers is more feasible and is also gaining importance in order for the company to stand out from the rest. As such, the company can consider the use of new forms of social media in order to better reach out to the customers. In addition, it can also consider setting up a website in order to boost its online presence.

In terms of social and cultural environment, the general perception of society on the Virgin Islands will be the slow and enjoyable island life. As such, tourists who visit the Islands are looking forward to a similar environment. Therefore, it would be effective to ensure that products, services and the ambience at the bar be suitably adapted and shaped in order to allow customers to enjoy the kind of social and cultural environment which they expect and are looking forward to while visiting an island.

In conclusion, there are many factors that can impact the success of the IMC program at Mojo’s. Both internal and external factors need to be considered in order to ensure that strategies implemented are able to meet the needs and goals of the company as well as allow the company to stand out from the large number of competitors in the same vicinity.

Reference

1855VIServices. (n.d.). “Restaurants & Bars”. Retrieved from

http://www.1855viservices.com/directory/category/4d99403f-d0e4-4795-b559-650e997a702a

Fat Turtle. (n.d.). “About”. Retrieved from

Everything you Need to Know about Recipes: From Rich History to Varied Categories

Iggies Beach Bar. (n.d.). “Iggies Beach Bar & Grill Menu”. Retrieved from

http://www.iggiesbeachbar.com/menu/

“Iggies Beach Bar & Grill”. (n.d.). In Facebook. Retrieved from

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Iggies-Beach-Bar-Grill/93433060687

“Mojo’s Rum and Surf Shack bar”. (n.d.). In Facebook. Retrieved from

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mojos-Rum-and-Surf-Shack/119986177285

ReviewStream. (n.d.). “Mojo’s Rum and Surf Shack bar”. Retrieved from

http://www.reviewstream.com/reviews/?p=106703

“The Rock Nightclub & Lounge”. (n.d.). Retrieved from

http://www.shipwreckstthomas.com/the-rock/

This Week. (n.d.). “Fat Turtle”. Retrieved from

http://www.virginislandsthisweek.com/st_thomas_restaurants/fat_turtle.html

“U.S. Virgin Islands Annual Tourism Indicators”. (n.d.). Retrieved from

http://www.usviber.org/pdfs/TOUR09

“Virgin Islands Demographics Profile 2012”. (n.d.). Retrieved from

http://www.indexmundi.com/virgin_islands/demographics_profile.html