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Marketing Case Approach?

Case marketing
Recent activity on Jun 08, 2018
2 Answers
12.4 k Views
Anonymous A asked on Jun 07, 2018

Hey there,

I am going to apply at a Marketing Consulting Boutique.

So, what is the general approach and structure for a marketing case? e.g for our client has a huge # of sales drop and wants to improve the marketing strategy (don't check on any other way to raise the # of sales). What kind of marketing push do you recommend?

Well, what is your approach here? What are the basic marketing strategies I should know, why use a specific and what are their advantages?

Thank you:)

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Vlad
Expert
replied on Jun 08, 2018
McKinsey / Accenture Alum / Got all BIG3 offers / Harvard Business School

Hi,

Tha classic framework is:

1) Analyze the situation

  • Customers
  • Company
  • Collaborators
  • Competition
  • Context

2) Develop the marketing strategy

Product

  • Existing product - add / delete features
  • Product line - trade down / trade up / horizontal
  • New product - differentiation from competitors / new target customer
  • Creating the new market - build primary / secondary demand

Place

  • Go-to-market strategy
  • Demands & channel design/management
  • Balance of conflict & cooperation

Pricing

  • Price Sensitivity of Customers
  • Economic value / perceived value / willingness to pay
  • Competitors pricing
  • Costs + desired margins
  • Price Customization

Promotion

  • Target Market
  • Mission (objective of communication)
  • Message
  • Media
  • Money: Marketing spend
  • Measurement: Investment & ROI

Best!

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Francesco
Expert
Content Creator
updated an answer on Jun 08, 2018
#1 Coach for Sessions (4.000+) | 1.500+ 5-Star Reviews | Proven Success (➡ InterviewOffers.com) | Ex BCG | 10Y+ Coaching

Hi Anonymous,

I would use a growth strategy framework concentrating on the usage of marketing only. Since the question is explicitly on marketing, I would assume it is not feasible to consider new products. Thus, a possible structure could be the following:

1) Clarify the goal and client information.

This will mainly include the analysis of:

  • The specific goal of the client
  • The potential constraints involved.

2) Identify the segment with the highest growth potential.

This will involve the following:

  • Analysis all the segments our client is present
  • Benchmark of competitors to understand which one has the highest potential in terms of growth and size.

Since in this case you had a sales drop, it is likely the key segment will be the one where the drop took place.

3) Identify the best growth strategy.

A good growth strategy will include the analysis of the variable to target and the way to apply such strategy. Assuming that for sales the question meant revenues and not sales volume you could structure as follows (if they meant sales volume, just cut the price bucket):

  • Strategy to increase revenues
    • Increase price (eg better marketing of prices to different segments to generate price discrimination)
    • Increase volume (eg promote discounts)
  • Way to apply the strategy
    • Online marketing channels (eg online ads)
    • Offline marketing channels (eg marketing in retail shops)

4) Shortlist top strategies and double check if you have all the capabilities.

Once defined the optimal segment, whether to target a price or volume increase and the best channel, you should end with a list of the most valuable strategies. You should now rank them in terms of:

  • Expected results in terms of your goal
  • Capabilities required, which should match your constraints

You can then choose the one that has the highest expected result and matches the constraints verified in step 1.

5) Consider risks of the strategy.

As a final step, you can check which are the risks involved with the strategy chosen – for example, whether there is any risk of a competitor reaction or longer timeline to hire the required stuff to implement the new action.

Best,
Francesco

(edited)

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