Lee Peck Group Advertising Agency Strategic Brand Development - Assignment Example

STRАTЕGIС BRАND DЕVЕLОРMЕNT RЕРОRT by Student’s Name Course Professor Institution City/State Date Introduction Lee Peck Group Advertising Agency works in the field of advertising and promotion and is based in the UK. The company market share has grown since it was established in 2008 as it has improved its business through continuous innovation and delivering on the high standards that have played a big role in enhancing customer satisfaction. The company is seeking to expand its business operations to other areas like Bournemouth, Portsmouth, Southampton, Reading, and Basingstoke, which will offer an opportunity for diversifying risks. The company, however, has to identify the market presented in these areas in order to expand its business. This report presents the points through which the business will be able to ensure that they develop a pool of loyal customers in these areas. The report will identify the manner in which the advertising agency can expand their business opportunities in the areas. The company offers services in areas such as leisure, education, health care, automotive, event marketing, professional services fields. In the new markets in the different areas, these services will provide an opportunity through which the agency market will grow as it will be able to target different segment. All people looking for promotional campaigns and advertisements will access the Lee-peck agency different range of services. Nonetheless, the company will deal with numerous competitors and this means that the company has to differentiate its services from those of the competitors in order to gain a competitive advantage. The company will deal with both direct and indirect competition from the players in the same segment, and also international companies and businesses working on the global arena. Differentiating its services will help the company to create a niche market (Aaker 2005). The advertising agency will have to create a pool of royal customers and enable the business to gain efficiency to maintain its competitiveness. Some of the targeted factors which will lead to this direction are price, timing, services and past experiences. When it comes to price, the agency will have to provide quality services at competitive prices in order to improve customer satisfaction. The agency will have to build its activities on the fact that price is determined by the quality of promotional campaign and advertisement in their business segment. When it comes to time, the agency will have to ensure that they deliver the advertisement on time and match the customer requirements so that the customers can attain maximum satisfaction and benefit. Providing quality services and differentiating them will also enable the agency to be in a better position than that of the competitors (Armstrong & Kotler 2013) The brand development model applicable for the lee peck advertising agency is the Keller’s customer-based brand equity framework (Keller 1998). The tool consists of tools and objectives (marketing programs, brand elements, and secondary brand associations) which are mediated via knowledge effects (brand associations and awareness) with resulting improvements of brand equity that will include better brand loyalty and larger profit margins (Washburn & Plank 2002). Building a strong brand in the new areas will be achieved through a number of steps, whereby every step is dependent on achieving the previous step. Strategic Theories and Models Keller Customer-Based Brand Equity Model Numerous factors will affect the strength of the services provided by the agency in the new areas. To build a strong brand, the agency will have to shape the way the customers feel and think about their services (Kotler & Armstrong 2012). In line with this model, the agency will have to build the right experiences type around the agency brand, to ensure that customers have positive, specific beliefs, thoughts, opinions, feelings, and perception about the promotional campaign and advertisement. Strong brand equity, will ensure that the agency clients buy from them, they will recommend the agency to other people, they will be more loyal and they will be less likely to lose the customers to competitors (Keller 1998; Keller 2001,). The Keller Model proposes four steps with six building blocks that have to be implemented for a company to develop a successful brand; “brand identity, brand meaning, brand response and brand resonance”. In the first step (brand identity), the agency will have to create brand awareness or resilience- this will entail making sure that their services/brand stands out and their customers are aware or recognize it. The agency will not only be creating brand awareness and identity, but it will also be trying to make sure that there are correct brand perceptions at the key steps of the buying process (Keller 1998). To begin with, the agency will be required to recognize who its customers are. To achieve this, the company will have to research the market in the new areas to acquire a complete understanding of how the customers see the company services, and investigate whether different market segments with different relationships and different needs exist (Cravens & Piercy 2006; Malhotra & Birks 2007). The next step will entail identifying the way these customers narrow down their choices and opt between the agency brand and those of the competitor. The decision making process that the customers go through and why they choose some competitor services over others. This will enable the company to sell its services, as it will satisfy a particular number of customer needs. This is referred to as the unique selling proposition or USP under this model. By the end of this step, the agency will be able to understand whether the customers will perceive the new brand as it want them or whether there exists particular perceptual issues that the agency needs to address through adjusting its services or the way the agency communicates its message (Thakor & Lavack 2003). The second step will be brand meaning- At this step the agency will be required to identify and communicate the meaning of the brand and the things it stands for. According to the Keller model, the two building components in this step are imagery and performance. Performance will define the effectiveness of the services in meeting the needs of the customers (Hooley, Nigel & Nicoulaud 2012). In line with this model, performance will consist of five categories: primary features and characteristics; product serviceability, durability, and reliability; services efficiency, effectiveness, and empathy; price; style and design (Keller 1998). The agency has to meet the needs of the customers on a psychological and social level. The promotional campaign and advertisement services by the agency can meet these needs directly from the client individual experiences with the services or indirectly with word of mouth or target marketing (Hooley et al 2012; McDonald 2007). The agency brand performance should demonstrate its durability and reliability: the customers have to know that the agency services are effective and they will not disappoint them. The company brand imagery can be improved by being committed to various social causes and environmental programs and other services, which can make the clients, feel good about buying products from an agency with an environmental ethics (Gilligan & Wilson 2009). The customers experiences regarding a brand results from the direct outcome of a product or service performance. The agency services have to meet, and if possible exceed the customer expectations in order to build their loyalty. The agency should thus strive to identify the needs of the customers in the areas and then explore the manner in which they can translate the needs into high quality services. The imagery and performance of the services should be taken into consideration in order to create the agency “brand personality.” When it comes to brand response, “feelings,” and “judgments” are the two building components. Customers normally make judgments about any brand and it usually fall into four importance categories: credibility, quality, superiority, and consideration. The clients will judge the agency services based on its perceived and actual values (quality). The clients will judge the services credibility using three factors (likability, trustworthiness, and expertise (innovation). When it comes to consideration, the clients will judge the relevancy of the services to their unique individual needs. The clients will evaluate the superiority of the brand compared with those of the competitors. The clients will respond to the agency brand according to the way it will make them feel. According to this model, there exist six positive brand feelings: self-respect, social approval, security, excitement, fun, and warmth (Keller 1998). The agency will be required to examine the four judgments categories; first, what it can do to improved the perceived and actual quality of the services; secondly, how they can improve the credibility of the brand. Thirdly, the agency will be required to examine how well its marketing strategy communicates the brand importance to the needs of the clients and lastly, how well its services compare with those of the competitors. The last level-brand resonance is the most desirable and most difficult to reach (Keller 1998). The agency will have attained this stage when its clients will experience a deep, psychological link with the agency services. Resonance comprises of behavior loyalty, active engagement, sense of community, as well as attitudinal attachment. Client behavior loyalty will be evident in repeat and regular purchases (Best, 2013; Burns& Bush 2012). Active engagement will be the strongest brand loyalty example. Customers will be actively engaged with the company services, even when they are not buying them. When it comes to attitudinal attachment, the customers will love the agency brand and services and view it as a special purchase. The customers will feel a sense of community with individuals associated with the agency, including company representatives and consumers (Kahle, Poulos, & Ajay 1998). The agency goal in this stage should be to strengthen every resonance category. For instance, it should consider what it can do to encourage clients’ behavior loyalty and can use customer loyalty programs or gifts with purchase (Baines, Fill, & Page 2008). Theory of Reasoned Action This theory is applicable in the case of Lee Peck Group Advertising Agency plan to expand its operations to Bournemouth, Portsmouth, Southampton, Reading, and Basingstoke. The agency will be operating in a very competitive business environment as the customers are exposed to various brand choice alternatives. It will thus not be easy to obtain and maintain customers loyalty to the agency services, as there will be various forces driving them to be seek competitors services such as the thirst for variety. In order for the agency to deal with the forces of disloyalty amongst the customers, they need to have the accurate method for measuring and predicting brand loyalty (Clow & Baack 2012). The theory of reasoned action provides a solution for this. This theory was developed to explain how a customer opts for a particular purchase behavior. It asserts that attitude towards buying as well as subjective norm are performed behavior antecedents (Hale, Householder, & Greene 2003). The two antecedents influence the buying behaviors additively. If the agency integrates the two purchase behavior antecedents in measuring and predicting brand loyalty, the measurement and prediction of loyalty to the agency services will be more accurate and stable over time. The maximum brand loyalty will be attained when subjective norm, attitude and purchase behavior are consistent (Miller 2005). The customer purchase behavior will be most accurately be predicted from a consideration of an individual’s intent to perform or failure to the behavior, whereas intention will be characterized by skewed estimate of the probability that one will behave in a particular manner towards an attitude object. Key Segments & Targeting Market segmentation will allow the agency to focus on its target market and the specific customers who will be interested in the agency services. The agency will target both individual and businesses that will need to spread the word about their services or products creative effective adverts and conducting promotional campaigns to appeal to the target audience. The key target segments will be government agencies, Universities and colleges, online companies with e-commerce, business and corporations, TV and radio stations. Most businesses usually need to advertise their new and/or existing products from time to time (Hooley et al 2012). They also seek promotional campaigns for advertising their products. Government agencies also constantly place adverts to inform citizens and hence they will be an attractive key segment. Universities and Colleges also place adverts constantly for their students and outsiders and hence they will be a key segment. Agency Objectives Lee-Peck advertising agency will provide its customers the best tools and methods in planning and implementing successful promotional campaigns and advertisements. The promotional campaigns will cut through mass marketing, increase the customers’ sales, and improve customer satisfaction with the company. The agency will offer custom and complete advertising campaign, which covers all printed and audio-visual media. Example included television and radio ads, building adverts, business cards, brochures, and direct mailing. By focusing on the identified key segments, the agency will be able to serve the clients and offer superior service that is more effective than that of other advertising companies. The first year objectives for the agency are: Achieve break even by Year 1 in all the new areas Establish long-term contracts with major businesses, colleges and universities and government agencies Establish a minimum of 96% customer satisfaction rate in order to establish long-term relationship with the customers and to create word-of-mouth marketing. This will generate repeat business as well as top notch reputation To differentiate the agency services from those of the competitors so that the customers will realize that the agency can serve their needs better and communicate their message effectively. Establish a wide-ranging service experience for the customers and exceed the customers’ expectation for set targets. Strategy & Implementation Plan Initially the agency will grab the targeted key segments immediately through e-mail campaigns, which will inform them about the agency and its services. There are over 100,000 potential customers (businesses) in Bournemouth, Portsmouth, Southampton, Reading, and Basingstoke. The agency will focus on a select group of 60,000 businesses every fiscal quarter. A twenty percent response rate to the campaign will generate 12,000 leads. This will be a good start for the company and with time, the number will increase to about 30,000. In order to attract the customers, the agency will start by contacting these promising firms and individuals and provide free consultations, as well as initial contracts at reduced prices. Such services will enable the agency to embark on making and building its reputation in the new areas. Booths will also be used in the first two months of operations in order to advertise the company agencies. The agency will be entering into a niche market whereby it will provide a superior quality standard, which will enable it to charge higher prices to the customers for the differentiated services. The management will focus on leveraging its extensive contacts to generate contracts. The agency will accept bids for long-term advertising contracts and this will generate the much needed revenues and reputation. The agency sales will be based on the various contract projects that it anticipates to acquire in the different key customer segments. The returns will be derived from the average costs for every venture founded on the projected time as well as the complexity of the advertising or promotional campaign and the undisclosed profit margins. Reference List Aaker, D 2005, Strategic Marketing Management, 7ed, John Wiley & Sons, Hoboken, NJ. Aaker, J 1997, Dimensions of Brand Personality, Journal of Marketing Research, vol. 34, pp. 347-357. Armstrong, G, & Kotler, P 2013, Marketing – An Introduction, 11ed, Pearson. Baines, P, Fill, C & Page, K 2008, Marketing, Oxford University Press, Oxford. Best, R 2013, Market-Based Management: Strategies for Growing Customer Value and Profitability, 6 ed, Pearson, Harlow. Burns, A & Bush, R 2012, Basic Marketing Research, 3rd ed., Pearson Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ. Clow, K & Baack, D 2012, Integrated Advertising, Promotion, and Marketing Communications, 5ed, Pearson Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ. Cravens, D & Piercy, N 2006, Strategic Marketing, 8ed, McGraw-Hill, New York. Gilligan, C & Wilson, R 2009, Strategic Marketing Planning, 2ed. Elsevier, London. Hale, J, Householder, B & Greene, K 2003, The theory of reasoned action, In J.P. Dillard & M. Pfau (Eds.), The persuasion handbook: Developments in theory and practice, Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA. Hooley, G, Nigel, F & Nicoulaud, B 2012, Marketing Strategy & Competitive Positioning, 5ed, Prentice Hall, London. Kahle, L., Poulos, B & Ajay, S 1998, Changes in social values in the United States during the past decade, Journal of Advertising Research, pp. 35-41 Keller, K 2001, Building customer-based brand equity, Marketing Management, vol. 10, no. 2, pp.14-19 Keller, K 1998, Strategic Brand Management: Building, Measuring, and Managing Brand Equity, Prentice-Hall International, Hemel Hempstead. Kotler, P & Armstrong, G 2012, Principles of Marketing, 14ed., Pearson Prentice-Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ. Malhotra, N & Birks, D 2007, Marketing Research – An Applied Approach, 3ed, FT Prentice Hall, Harlow. McDonald, M 2007, Marketing Plans: How to prepare them, How to use them, Elsevier, Oxford. Miller, K 2005, Communications theories: perspectives, processes, and contexts, McGraw-Hill, New York. Thakor, M & Lavack, A 2003, Effect of perceived brand origin associations on consumer perceptions of quality, Journal of Product & Brand Management, vol. 12, no. 6, pp. 394-407 Washburn, J & Plank, R 2002, Measuring brand equity: an evaluation of a consumer-based brand equity scale, Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 46-62. Read More