Typical Components of a Marketing Plan

1. Terms Of Reference

2. Executive Summary


3. Business Mission


4. External Marketing Audit

Macroenvironment
The macroenvironment consists of broad environmental issues that impinge on the business.
You may wish to analyse it using the following headings:

Economic:
Economic conditions and disposable income will have great influence in the sales of ice
cream, as peoples spending on goods and services other than basic needs will rationally
be based on the above said factors. Since the recession in 2008 economic growth has
been uncertain, for the past 2 years the expected GDP has not been met which has been
reflected through the lower consumer confidence. Though the economic conditions
have a greater influence they will not influence entire sales of the ice creams since it is
based on the discretionary and rational decisions of the consumer. In fact when the
economy is bad, ice creams are the relatively inexpensive way for the consumers to
treat themselves as is evident in the forecast of ice cream sales from 2014 as people
have moved to cheaper options like take home ice creams. Considering the forecast
sales of ice cream industry by the Euromoniter though the overall sales in the ice cream
is predicted to decline. Examining in detail for the category sales, the impulse ice cream
sales foreseen to drop while there is a consistent upward trend in categories like Retail
Artisanal Ice Cream , Take-Home Ice Cream , Take-Home Dairy Ice Cream , Bulk
Dairy Ice Cream , Ice Cream Desserts. With the big players like Ben and Jerrys, HB ,
Haagen-das not having greater share in the dairy ice cream industry, it is great
advantage for Emerald to concentrate on these categories.

Socio-Cultural
Technological
Political/Legal
Factors like taxation and legislation have a significant impact in areas like production,
brand image and pricing. With the higher VAT rate of 23% as ice cream falls under
Confectionery and Sugary Foods category whilst theres a 9% VAT tax for goods and
services mainly related to tourism, including restaurant and catering services which
makes it difficult for any ice cream industry to fix a lower price of the ice cream to the
customers. This is advantageous for Emerald as it gives them an opportunity to enter
the market with a penetration rate and get the attention of the customer.
http://www.revenue.ie/en/tax/vat/leaflets/increase-in-standard-rate.html
http://www.thejournal.ie/is-ice-cream-part-of-the-tourism-industry-1026224-Aug2013/


The Market

Although the current market for ice cream consumption is in stark decline we de still
maintain the 3
rd
highest ranking in Europe for consumption in this category. This would
suggest that despite consumption lowering there is still a market for this product. As
such most retailers have reduced their prices and reduced their levels of supply. Given
our current economic climate since the crash of 08 there has been a drop in consumption
as the consumers simply have less money to spend and therefore put it towards more
essential products. However due to this return to more traditional values those who are
purchasing ice cream are purchasing the more generic flavours which are preferred
among consumers as follows; Vanilla, Chocolate, Chocolate-Chip, and Strawberry
(Euromonitor International, 2012). This presents a significant opportunity for Emerald
to tap into the market with our first batch of production being focused on these
flavours enabling us to take advantage of a quicker turnaround, despite developments
into more intricate flavours being carried out also.
At emerald we have a significant advantage in that our product will be supplied in tubs
coming in two different sizes; Family and personal. This allows us to tap into both the
impulse ice cream market, bought as individual portions in shops for immediate
consumption (Jones & Sufrin, 2008, page 75), and the take home market, multi-packs
of single items designed for storage and consumption at home (Jones & Sufrin, 2008,
page 75), with the possibility of each size to be sold in newsagents and convenient
stores thereby competing with Irelands largest Ice cream supplier Unilever who
currently supply to 62% of the market and allows our product to be sold in larger retail
units such as supermarkets and grocery stores. Supermarkets currently account for
24% of the distribution of impulse ice-cream and 57% of take home ice cream making
them an ideal base to sell both our large and small tubs.
However it is important to note that the weather can have a substantial impact on
sales (Clarke, 2004, page 13) and especially for ice cream where sales are very
seasonal, peaking in the summer (Clarke, 2004, page 13) as such growth has been
further hindered in Ireland by poor weather conditions during the summer which
hindered sales in what was usually a very profitable period. The growth rates in
different ice cream categories for the year ended 2012 as per the Euromonitor
International report in December 2012 were as follows; organic by 4%, lactose by 61%
(despite dealing in substantially lower figures), and reduce fat growing by 3%. What we
can conclude from these figures is that consumers are more interested in a more health
conscious product nowadays presenting a further problem for Emerald. Currently
Emerald only 300 cows at the disposal of its ice cream production section limiting our
ability to produce lower fat products.

As Emerald Creameries is an Irish based firm we pride ourselves on selling a
domestically produced product to the Irish Consumer. This is true of our ice cream
produce also. What will give us an edge in selling to this market is our involvement with
the Love Irish Food movement. This association promotes a collection of domestic
brands that support local producers, people that work in our kitchens and factories and
those that make sure our products get to your local supermarket shelf
(http://www.loveirishfood.ie/brands/). This enables us to target those consumers in
Ireland who tend to buy Irish based products and those that have an interest in seeing a
re-growth of the domestic economy.
The main challenge to overcome here is the pricing issue. Companies such as Lidl and Aldi
are the primary source of shopping for grocery and supermarket consumers in this
economic climate and have offers on ice cream that undercut domestically produced
products which are typically at a higher price given more expensive production costs.
However we will be producing a higher quality product than those stores whilst still
maintaining a more competitive price than that of our main competitors such as Haagen
Dazs or Ben & Jerrys.
Distribution analysis:
We aim to distribute our product on multiple fronts. At present we have a reliable sales
base for our retailers with the establishment of a new account on our website whereby
each store no matter the size has their own account and can log in and see the orders
they have made, flavours, quantities and sizes for the year and orders pending delivery.
Through this new forum each company can place new orders on-line. We also have sales
reps working 9-5 selling these products and taking day-to-day queries.
Our sales staff team also expected maintain healthy and trusting relationships with our
wholesalers and retailers which ensures we receive maximum shelf-exposure in-store for
our product. Our sales team have long working relationships with much of Irelands major
retailers through the sale of our other products which will be advantageous for
promotion and treatment of our brand and product.


Competition

The Irish ice cream market is dominated by a single company: Unilever Group.
Collectively, Unilevers brands account for 62% of the ice cream market as of 2013. The
top 5 brands in Ireland (Magnum, HB, Cornetto, Viennetta, and Ben & Jerrys) are all
owned by Unilever. The sixth most popular brand, Hagen-Dazs, is owned by General
Mills (Euromonitor Intl). Of these top 6 brands, Hagen-Dazs (4.4% of market) and Ben
& Jerrys (5.0 % of market) represent the type of indulgent ice cream product most
similar to the product we are marketing (Euromonitor Intl). Further down on the list is
Tipperary Organic Ice Cream Co. with 0.4% of the market. Tipperary is an Irish owned
company that manufactures organic, natural ice cream in Ireland, making them a
significant competitor to our brand.


5. Internal Marketing Audit


6. SWOT Analysis


Positives Negatives
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F
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Strengths Weaknesses
Irish-owned company
Large stock of dairy cows
Irish-sourced dairy
In-house milk production insulates from milk
price fluctuation
High start-up costs for equipment
New to market
No experience in ice cream market
External

Factors

Opportunities Threats
Buy Irish trend

Unpredictable weather, impacts consumption
Market dominated by 1 giant player (62%) and
several medium sized companies
Market is in a decline expected to continue
Weak credit markets


7. Marketing Objectives

There are two main market thrusts that are likely to give us a competitive advantage over our
competitors; Cost and Innovation.

Cost Thrusts:
Currently we have in our employment 6 sales staff who each represent a certain region of the
country and a certain number of distributors of our products. We have eliminated the need to
increase our costs into the development of our product by not hiring any more sales staff.
Instead this new product will be sold by our existing staff who will do so based on their current
relationships with their clients as they have done with our other products. This decision saves
us paying new wages and training new staff and gives us an advantage over our competitors
as we have close working relationships with our clients granting us the opportunity for
maximum exposure, promotion and distribution of a new Irish based product.

Innovation thrust:
The development of this new product has ultimately led to the entry of a new market. A stark
advantage for us at Emerald is that we have the credibility of being a reliable dairy producer
despite being early entrants into the ice cream market. Some of our other items include
butter, cheese and milk as well as cream which are sold in large quantities to different
retailers including tesco and superquinn. Whislt ice cream remains a dairy based product it is
viewed as more of an indulgence item among our consumers more so than our other products
therefore it means that sales for this product are not expected to be as high among our typical
retailers. As such we have targeted new distributors for this product including cinemas and
takeaways where sales for indulgence products are typically higher and allow us to reach a
new demographic of consumers who can afford to pay for such luxuries in this climate.

Strategic Objectives

We have two main strategic objectives:

1. To broaden our customer base. This in turn means more sales for the
company by creating more demand in more locations around the country
thereby increasing our profit margins.

2. To expand our customer base beyond typical retailers and supermarkets. Will
see our brand in new and unexpected outlets including cinemas, DVD rental
stores and fast food chains allowing us to tap into a younger market.
Effectively this allows us to promote our brand and increase customer loyalty
by giving us the chance to reach new customers at an early age.


8. Core Strategy
Market Segmentation:
As Emerald Creameries is an Irish-based dairy with over 10 years in the market,
our target will be the domestic Irish market. Specifically, we will initially target
five counties with the highest population: Dublin, Cork, Galway, Kildare, and
Limerick (Government of Ireland, 2012). By selecting counties with higher
populations, our target segments will be more accessible, making it easier to
reach them with our promotions and other marketing activities Baines, Fill and
Page 2011, 230).


Although it will be difficult to compete with leading multinationals such as
Unilever, there are some movements that encourage consumers to purchase local,
Irish-made products and there are a significant number of Irish customers that
would like to support Irish brands. To target this psychographic, our product
packaging and marketing will highlight the fact that the product is Irish owned,
sourced, and produced. The product will also participate in the Love Irish Food
program as a means of appealing to this segment. Irish consumers are unique in
their commitment to buying Irish products over foreign products. 83% of
consumers report that they buy local food, with 67% of consumers willing to do
this even if it means paying more (Carroll 2012). This segment of consumers will
be one of our most critical, as a large part of our brand proposition is that we are
a local Irish company.


The target demographics for our product will be students, young to middle age
adults, and families. The product will come in 2 sizes - a single serving cup and a
take-home tub. These two product sizes will allow for the product to be
consumed by a variety of target demographics who may be looking for different
products at different times.
In 2012, Irish consumers remained loyal to classic ice cream flavours such as
vanilla, chocolate, chocolate chip and strawberry. In this case, the Emerald
Creameries first distribute some basics flavours: vanilla, chocolate, strawberry,
mint chocolate etc. Cause these flavours are all the popular flavours among
children and adults. In the meantime, as lactose-free ice cream set to record
current value growth of 61% in 2012, the Emerald Creameries will also have
some no sugar added ice cream, which focused on the group of people who
concerned about health and weight such as girls, over-weighed students and old
people.
Product Positioning:
Unlike Unilever and Haagen Daz and some other multinational companies, the
Emerald Creameries is a domestic local manufacturer only target on indigenous
market. The Emerald commit to meeting Ireland people ice cream requirements.
The Emerald Creameries is a homemade ice cream without using any chemical
additives, colourings or artificial preservatives.
Comparing to Ben&Jerrys and Haagen Daz, Emerald Creameries is still a
luxury brand but more affordable with an appropriate price for students.


Competitor Targets
The threat of substitute products is highly existed among ice cream competition.
Consumers will shop around, searching for the most suitable ones for
themselves, which deliberately evaluating alternatives and using information
available.
As Unilever and Haagen Daz take the top brand shares in Ireland, the
competition between domestic manufactures multinational companies is still
intense.


Another competitor Emerald has is Tipperary; which is also a homemade ice
cream brand focused on organic ice cream. Form 2009-2013, Tipperary brand
shares has been kept at 0.4%.


Competitor Advantage
Firstly, Ben&Jerrys and Haagen Daz set a high price for their products. Pricing
cheaper than them would be an advantage for Emerald Creameries. Families and
students might prefer Emerald Creameries considering the price.
Secondly, another pros for Emerald Creameries is that all ingredients from
Emerald Creameries has no artificial fertilizer, synthetic pesticides or herbicides
used on it due to a growing amount of people who begin to concern with health
and obesity. People start caring about food calorie and ingredients when they are
purchasing ice cream.
Last but not least, as todays milk shortage is a worldwide problem, a farm
holding with 300 cow herd is an advantage for Emerald Creameries.


9. Marketing Mix Decisions

10. Organization and Implementation



11. Control

.