Clarification

The market strategy will give a brief and concise overview of each section of the marketing strategy. It will contain a brief overview of the various sub-sections included in the market strategy. The sections are: mission, marketing objectives, financial objectives and target markets.

Mission

The mission statement of Clarification as a product will be defined in the company's formal mission statement and its defined core values. The mission statement will guide the decision-making, define organizations path and guide the organization's actions.

Marketing Objectives

Here, there is a definition of what goals should the company accomplish through the marketing activities, and the time within which the goals should be met. The marketing objectives should be specific, measurable, realistic, achievable and time specific. In this section, there will be a discussion of the organization's expected future sales, its brand identity, the intended market position and the time frame for achievement. Focus will be more on creating a strong brand that will ensure that future goals, defined by estimated future, sales will be met within a specified time frame.

Financial Objectives

Financial Objectives give an estimation of the future sales and profits that a company will make in a certain period of time. It helps to determine, if the business will make either profit or make loss and the expected trends and patterns in sales volume and growth. This section will include objectives in sales volume and anticipated growth patterns (Guiltinan, 1996).

Target Market

In this section, the detailed information will be given on the group of customers that the company will aim its marketing efforts. This section is aimed at defining the target audience with an aim of increasing sales through the marketing. There will be a breakdown of the company's market into the segments which will help in identifying how the product will satisfy the various needs of the market. The choice of the market strategy will give the product an edge over the competitors.

3.1 Mission

The mission of this company is going to introduce an amazing product in the beauty industry. The company will aim to deliver a reliable, high value all natural beauty products for women of color. The product is developed for ladies of color, but can also be used by anyone.

The mission statement will be 'To ensure the customer’s satisfaction by providing quality, high-value products at an affordable price through hard work, commitment and teamwork.'

The core values will be:

• Quality: Giving the best products to customers in the beauty industry.
• Commitment: Committed to customer satisfaction. To give a great product that will impact the lives of customers.
• Value: Providing value for money and service to customers, shareholders and employees.
• Consistency: Consistent in providing the great value to customers.
• Respect: Respecting oneself, customers and fellow employees to maintain growth and teamwork.
• Hard work: To work hard to be the top brand in the industry.

The mission that the company holds is to provide a high-value product at an affordable price. The company will aim at delivering quality to its customers by ensuring its products give the best results. The company will be committed to deliver on its promise to provide customer’s satisfaction and be a brand that is trusted in the industry. This company will seek to ensure the value is delivered to employees, customers and shareholders. The company will aim to be consistent through hard work and determination on everybody's part to ensure the company stays above its competitors. The maintenance of respect and dignity to all stakeholders to ensure everyone's contribution is accepted and appreciated by the company. The primary aim is to ensure the customer’s satisfaction.

3.2 Marketing Objectives

The market objective that the company will be having is to create awareness of the new product 'Clarification' among young adult women of color. Brand Identity: Clarification will seek to build a strong brand by setting itself as a reliable, all-natural, high value product in the market. The brand image will be a key aspect in developing a strong brand. The product will have unique packaging which will appeal to the woman of color, while portraying a product developed using the natural ingredients (Kotler, 2008). The name 'Clarification' is simple and memorable; it gives the idea of a product that will strengthen, moisturize and glow hair to improve the African-American beauty. Clarification will also seek to deliver on value to create a reliable brand image. Through strategic marketing in beauty magazines, endorsement from celebrities and distribution of samples, Clarification will set itself as a strong brand within 6 months. Clarification will pride itself in being a high-value, all natural products.

Intended market position: The intended market position for 'Clarification' is all women of color. The idea, however, is to market to the working women and the high per capita income. This market will have the highest growing population of women between ages 20-35. The socio-economic status of the women will be wide ranging from the upper-income professionals to the middle-income earners and students (Paul, 1997). Although the intended market is women of color, clarification can be used by all women from Caucasian to African-Americans. This market has been chosen because it has a fast growing population and a high number of potential customers who will be loyal to the brand.

The estimated unit sales will be given as month-by-month estimation of units sold over a period of 6 months.

The sales for the first month are expected to be low, as Clarification will not have penetrated the market. However, as the product increases its market penetration, and through aggressive advertising sales will gradually increase over time.

3.3 Financial Objectives

This section will focus on the effect that the marketing plan will have on the revenues in the business. The excel spreadsheet below gives an estimation of sales revenue on a month-by-month basis. The estimated unit sales will be given by average daily sales, multiplied by the number of days in a month to give the estimated monthly sales revenue.

The dismal sales in the first month are attributed to the lack of market penetration by the product. The business will make losses during the first few months due to the cost incurred in advertising and the competition in the market. However, as customers begin to know the product, sales gradually increase. To cut down costs during the first few months, production will be determined by the trend in sales. The higher the sales a product registers, the higher the production, and vice versa. Sales are expected to gradually increase over some time. This will allow the business to break even and start making profits.

The estimates above are an educated guess, since Clarification is a new product in the market.

3.4 Target Markets

The target market is broad with a big population and a wide coverage. New Jersey has an estimated 8,791,894 people living in it. It is the most densely populated state in America (U.S Census Bureau, 2010). The target market will be urban areas in New Jersey, and in particular, Newark, the biggest city in New Jersey. Newark has a population of 277,140 people with a 52.5% ratio of African-Americans and 33.8% ratio of Hispanics/Latinos (U.S Census Bureau, 2010). The target market is young women of color. The fastest growing population is people aged between 20 and 35 years old, with women accounting for a large portion of the population. In Newark, New Jersey, the target audience and estimated number of potential customers is 2 million people or more.

The target market will be reached through mass marketing in beauty magazines and celebrity endorsements to prove that Clarification is a high value, clinically proven beauty product. There are many beauty products in the market, but Clarification will have the competitive advantage of being an 'all-natural' beauty product. The existing beauty products in the market are Motions Hair care and Olive Oil which do not have a competitive advantage in the ingredients of their product. Clarification will be a leading product, clinically proven to strengthen and moisturize hair, while retailing at an affordable price to ensure the customer’s satisfaction.

The target market has two distinct groups: the upper income professional women and the middle income hourly workers. The upper- income professionals will be targeted through celebrity endorsements and by packaging Clarification as a high value product for the sophisticated woman which will guarantee the value and customer’s satisfaction. The middle-income hourly workers will be targeted through the competitive pricing, which will make Clarification affordable and working with stores, such as Wal-Mart and Walgreen, to make Clarification easily accessible.

The company will stay well-informed on what the competitor is doing. The company will invest highly in technology, information and aggressive marketing to ensure it is ten steps ahead of the competitors.

It is vital for the company to create and maintain a strong brand to keep it profitable. Once the product is accepted as a strong brand with a high number of loyal customers, information will be vital to keep steady sales and profits. The company will keep tabs on changes and trends in the beauty industry and customer preference. Constant marketing will capture the emerging young market and ensure the customer’s loyalty.

Potential revenue from sales for Clarification is $800,000 per month with unit sales of about 20,000 units per month. The greatest threat will be trying to stay ahead of competitors and adapting to changes in customer preference and emerging markets.