Description
I need to make a presentation with 8-10 slides and a word document or notes for what im going to say in each slide of the presentation im presenting in a case in marketing document im attaching.
Unformatted Attachment Preview
CASE STUDY DEVELOPMENT 1
Case Study Development
Eliseo Molina
Cases In Marketing
Prof. A Vouldis
EU Business School
Barcelona, Spain
18/09/2021
CASE STUDY DEVELOPMENT 2
Synopsis/Executive Summary
The aim of project is to highlight some of the marketing problems that companies
encounter in the face of competitors. The specific purpose is to determine how marketing
theories can be applied to solve problems in the real market. It also provides vital insights into
how a marketer can analyze the market environment and develop solutions to the identified
challenges.
The field of research in which the project falls is marketing. This field deals with the
promotion and selling of products. It also deals on how to prepare effective advertisement to
attract customers. In other words, it provides a guideline on how firms can market their products,
the marketing concepts, and theories that can help analyze markets and determine the underlying
causes of the problems that a firm may be encountering.
The issue facing PepsiCo is that its sales have declined due to stiff competition in the
market. Customers prefer the products of competitors, citing that PepsiCo’s products are
expensive and have a high level of calories and, hence not healthy. Some customers are not
aware of Pepsico’s products, a factor that makes them prefer those of the competitors. The
customers who consume sugary beverages may still not buy the company’s products due to
quality or price compared to those of the competitors. The number of new entrants has increased
in the market making, the competition even stiffer.
The theory that would be utilized in the project is Porter’s five forces. According to this
theory, five forces determine the competitive intensity and market attractiveness. The five forces
include the threat of substitution, supplier power, competitive rivalry, buyer power, and the
threat of new entrants. The theory is connected to the case study because the market share for
CASE STUDY DEVELOPMENT 3
PepsiCo has been taken by new entrants and substitutes which are healthier and cost much lower
than the company’s beverage.
CASE STUDY DEVELOPMENT 4
Case Study Development
Case Study and Analysis
PepsiCo, a beverage and snacks manufacturing company has recently faced a decline in
sales in its American Market. Its customers have switched to other brands of beverages, arguing
that they are healthier and pocket-friendly. Most of its retail outlets have closed and, the owners
of the few remaining have replaced PepsiCo’s products with low-calorie varieties from the CocaCola Company and other manufacturers within the United States. Even the customers who prefer
sugary drinks ask for Coca-cola products and seem not to be aware of the existence of PepsiCo’s
products. The company needs to take action to save the declining market for its products in the
competitive beverage market.
The problem that PepsiCo is facing is competition in the market. There are new beverage
manufacturers with products that are appealing to the customers than those of Pepsico. The
company has failed to improve its products to match the current market needs. The company’s
customers are likely to have been convinced about the negative health effects of consuming highcalorie products. Additionally, the competitors might be providing high-quality products either at
the same price as PepsiCo or the same quality beverages but at a relatively lower price. Quality
and price of a product influence customer’s loyalty towards a given brand (Khoironi, Syah, and
Dongoran, 2018, p.51). The high price for PepsiCo’s sugary drinks makes the customers prefer
the competitor’s products over those PepsiCo’s even though they are high-calorie. Lastly, the
company seems to be not marketing its products appropriately and, that is why even the new
customers lack knowledge about the existence of the beverages manufactured by PepsiCo.
The problem that PepsiCo is facing can well be understood using Porter’s five forces
model. The theory is based on the premise that the attractiveness of a market and competitive
CASE STUDY DEVELOPMENT 5
intensity are determined by five forces. The forces in the model include the threat of substitution,
supplier power, competitive rivalry, buyer power, and the threat of new entrants (Michaux,
Cadiat, & Probert, 2015, p. 11). The previous customers of PepsiCo beverages have substituted
them with the ones with low calories, probably because they have become health conscious. The
company can also be lacking the power to change its products to match the market needs, or it
considers the cost of changing too much to bear. In addition, the retailers can easily obtain better
products from other beverage suppliers. The number of competitors might have increased as new
entrants join the market. This implies that the market that was previously dominated by PepsiCo
and Coca-cola is now shared by many new companies that were attracted by profitability.
Discussion
Summary of Major Problems
One of the major problems identified in the case study is stiff competition in the market
for beverages. This explains why the sales for the company’s products have declined as the
market is shared by many beverage manufacturers. The other problem is that the company’s
products do not meet the current needs of customers. The customers have become health
conscious and may no longer want high-calorie drinks (Sanders, 2020, p.77). The third problem
is that the company has not been able to market its products appropriately and that is why even
the customers who consume high-calorie beverages do not buy PepsiCo’s. The last problem is
that the company sells its products at a relatively high price despite the stiff competition in the
market.
Alternative Solutions to the Problems
One solution to the problem of stiff competition in the market is to introduce new and
unique products that would meet the needs of the customers. The company also needs to begin
CASE STUDY DEVELOPMENT 6
manufacturing low-calorie products to attract health-conscious customers especially the older
adults who are health-conscious (Sanders, 2020, p.77). The company also needs to begin using
social media to market its products instead of relying on the traditional methods of
advertisement. As aforementioned, the company may needs to lower the price of its products to
compete well with other manufacturers in the beverage industry. This can be achieved by
employing new technologies to reduce the cost of production. The specific major problem can
therefore be said to be competition.
Advantages and Disadvantages for the Alternative Solutions
1. Introduction of New and Unique Products
Introducing new products is advantageous in that the company will not have competitors.
In addition, unique products will satisfy the needs of the customer. However, the company will
incur the cost of marketing to make the new product known to the customers.
2. Lowering the Price of products
Lowering the price of beverages is advantageous in that the company would sell more.
Employing new technology may cut the cost of production. However, the customers may
associate the low pricing with poor quality. In addition, employing new technology to cut the
cost of production may be too costly to the firm (Krcal, 2014, p.7). The firm may not afford it
due to the current financial problems.
3. Manufacturing Low-calorie Product
Manufacturing low-calorie beverages will increase the company’s market share. It can
also promote customer loyalty as many customers would feel that the company’s minds about
their health wellbeing (Cavallone, 2017, p.29). However, it would incur the company extra costs
to manufacture and market a new product.
CASE STUDY DEVELOPMENT 7
4. Advertising its Products through Social Media
Social media advertisement is cheap. It can also reach a wide audience. Social media
marketing can also be used to promote brand loyalty (Mutuku, 2018, p.18). However, negative
feedback from social media can ruin the brand image (Zimmerman, 2015, p.79). It is also timeconsuming and, measuring the results might be difficult.
Recommendation
Alternative Solutions that Should be Adopted
The most viable solutions to the problem of competition would be to have the company
begin manufacturing low-calorie products and begin advertising its products through social
media. The first step towards developing a low-calorie beverage would include researching the
number of calories that a healthy drink should have from health experts. The next step would be
to do marketing research and determine the number of calories in the competitor’s drink. Here,
the focus should be on the competitors’ low-calorie drinks. Looking at how competitors are doing
may give the company vital information regarding the market trends (Cavallone, 2017, p. 39).
The other step would be to have the chemical engineers in the firm develop a formula for lowcalorie drinks. After the formula is developed, the company should introduce a small quantity in
the market and see customer’s responses before beginning to manufacture in bulk. If the
performance of low-calorie drinks in the market is positive, the company can begin
manufacturing in bulk.
Social media advertisement would begin by first having the marketing department audit
the firm’s current presence in social media. This could have been initiated by retail outlets or
happy customers. The next step would be to identify the ideal customers for the firm’s products.
Some of the characteristics of the potential customers that one would look for include the age,
CASE STUDY DEVELOPMENT 8
location, and usage of social media. The next step would be to determine metrics for measuring
the success of the social media campaign. After determining how to measure metrics, the next
step would be to develop engaging content that would attract the attention of the customers. The
content should include infographics, the company’s news, videos, and images (Zimmerman,
2015, p.115). The last step would be to post the content on various social media platforms such
as Facebook.
Justification of the Choice and Explanation of How it will Solve the Problem
The manufacturing of low-calorie drinks is justified by the fact that many customers have
become health-conscious. Since they have realized the negative health effects of sugary drinks,
they will welcome low-calorie beverages (Sanders, 2020, p.77). In addition, the company will be
in a better position to compete with the other firms in the market manufacturing similar products.
Social media advertisement is preferred because people are with their mobile phones wherever
they are and can access Facebook whenever they want. Unlike the traditional methods of
advertisement where customers can see advertisements only when at home, social media would
enable the potential customers to see adverts while in any place at any time (Mutuku, 2018).
Social media advertisement will solve the problem by making the customers aware of the
company’s products and reminding them about their existence.
CASE STUDY DEVELOPMENT 9
Reference List
Cavallone, M. 2017. Marketing and Customer Loyalty: The Extra Step Approach: Cham:
Springer.
Khoironi, T.A., Syah, H. and Dongoran, P., 2018. Product quality, brand image, and pricing to
improve satisfaction impact on customer loyalty. International Review of Management and
Marketing, 8(3), p.51.
Krčál, O. 2014. An Explanation of the Inverted-U Relationship between Profitability and
Innovation. Brno: Masarykova univerzita.
Michaux, S., Cadiat, A.C., & Probert, C. 2015. Porter’s five forces. Nemur: Lemaitre Publishing.
Mutuku, C. 2018. Advantages and Disadvantages of Using Social Networks in Business.
München GRIN Verlag.
Sanders, N. R. 2020. Supply chain management: A global perspective. Hoboken: Wiley.
Zimmerman, J., & Ng, D. 2015. Social media marketing is all-in-one for dummies. Hoboken, NJ:
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Purchase answer to see full
attachment
