Strategic Marketing Essay For Launch Of New Products By Guzman Y Gomez.

About Guzman Y Gomez

Question:

Explain the marketing strategy and plan for Guzman y Gomez.
 

This is the strategic marketing plan for the launching of new products by Guzman Y Gomez (GYG) in its existing market. In order to launch a new product in any existing market, the planning of the marketing is very important before launching. The company has to think about the way of capturing the market by the new product, attracting the customers to get the desired level of success in the business. Strategic planning regarding the promotional tool is one of the most vital tasks of eh strategic marketing plan. In this report, the different types of activities for the marketing of the new products will be analyzed with details. The company is conducting its business operations in the Australian market. The company is a casual dining restaurant in Australia and has the specialization in Tex-Mex dishes. The new product of the company will be Ice crusher drinks of different flavors. The report has the focus in the area of the product description and the 7 Ps of marketing of the products. The sales process, distribution plan, digital marketing and budget have been discussed in this report.

Guzman y Gomez is an Australian casual dining restaurant that specializes in Tex-Mex dishes (a fusion of Latin American and Mexican cuisines). The company was founded in the year 2006 in Newtown, South Wales Australia. Currently, the company has more than 70 stores throughout Australia. In addition, the company has opened restaurants in Singapore and Japan and plans to open more restaurants as the company is in expansion mode (Guzmanygomez.com 2016).The company is trying to expand the business by introducing some new products in the current market. The new products will help the company to capture new customers and increase the popularity among the target customers of the company.

The company is going to introduce ice crushers of different flavors in the restaurants. Various types of flavors of the ice crushers will be available in the restaurants. The customers will be able to have the flavored crusher drinks as per their choice. The aim of the company will be the enhancement of the product range in the target market.

Mission: mission is the long term strategy of the organization that determines the purpose of the business i.e. why the business exists and what it wants to achieve (Leuthesser and Kohli 2015). The mission of GYG is given as –

“The mission of GYG is to share the real flavors of Mexico with the world and we are 100 % obsessed with this mission”

Corporate objectives: are relatively short-term goals that a company set for itself that enables to strive on the right direction (Fleisher and Bensoussan 2015). The objectives of GYG can be –

“To increase market share by 5% in a period of 12 by focusing on customer needs and providing more dining options” 

Business strategies are long term planning and require detailed information about all the factors that can possibly affect the business decisions or strategies made by the management. For this purpose, it is important to analyze macro and micro environmental factors that influence the business situation of Guzman y Gomez (Grünig and Kühn 2015).

The New Product

Macro environmental factors

These are external environmental factors are beyond the control of management but directly influence the business. This can be discussed in detail with the help of PESTEL analysis of Australian business environment. These factors are –

Political factors: political factors affecting the business situation of GYG are political stability and governmental policies. The political situation and governmental policies of Australia are suitable for the company to operate in the Australian market. In addition, the government seeks to promote business as it generates revenues and employment opportunities in the country.

Economic factors: these factors refers to economic conditions of the country, employment rate, inflation rate, interest rates, labor cost and other related factors. The Australian economy is growing rapidly as it has recovered from the global economic recession of 2008. In addition, the interest rates are lower that increases consumer spending that is beneficial for the GYG.  

Social factors: are traditions, values, beliefs and demographic structure of the society, lifestyle, tastes and preferences of the society. The people of Australia are educated and the standard of living is high. In addition, the majority of population comprises of young and adult generation. This presents a preferable scenario for the business as these people have discretional income and willingness to spend in recreational purposes (Dale et al. 2016).

Technological factors: the level of innovation and infrastructure is supportive of the businesses’ requirement of technological knowhow. Even though the restaurant businesses are technologically less intensive, however the technological needs of the business can be easily met.

Environmental factors: environment factors are one of the most important issues that govern the success (or failure) of a business as people are getting more aware or concerned about the damaging effects that a business can have on the environment. Therefore, GYG needs to adopt environmentally sustainable business model and comply various environmental laws to succeed in the business (Issa and Issa 2014).           

Legal factors: in order to operate in the Australian market it is important to comply with various legislative requirements of the business. These laws aim at protecting the consumers from unscrupulous business practices, encouraging fair competition and protecting the rights of employees (Wall 2014).

Micro environmental factors are specific to the industry and are due to the overall structure of the industry. These factors affects the business and are beyond the internal control of the organization this can be discussed with the help of porter’s five forces as –

Porter’s five forces is an important tool that enables the business strategists to understand the level of competition and attractiveness of the industry (Magretta 2013). As GYG operates in fast food and restaurant industry, the industry analysis of Australian restaurant business is discusses as under –

Threat of new entrants (Low): the Australian restaurant industry has many well-established local as well as international brands. However, the industry is still in growth stage and there is huge opportunity grow. The industry poses little threat to new entrants; however, for new entrants to succeed in the market would require substantial investments and better marketing communication strategies (Wijaya 2014). 

Mission and Corporate Objectives of GYG

Threat of substitutes (High):  the products of restaurant industry has many substitutes that includes grocery chains that provides precooked foods products or readymade food products at comparatively cheaper price, food trucks and other small business that competes in the same industry (Porter 2013).

Bargaining power of customers (High): customers have the ultimate power that determines success of a business as there are many restaurant businesses that targets the same customer segment and provides similar products. Apart from the competitors, the customers have the option shift towards the substitute’s products (Westwood 2013).  

Bargaining power of suppliers (Medium): restaurant business is dependent on its suppliers as a restaurant is technically a processing unit that converts raw ingredients into exotic cuisines. The number suppliers in the industry are relatively low and a single supplier caters to many restaurants. Therefore, due to limited competition amongst suppliers of restaurant businesses, they can enforce some of their terms within the restaurant industry (Dobbs 2014).

Industry rivalry (High): the restaurant industry is marked by many sellers or service providers that compete for the same customer groups and offers solution to similar customer needs. Therefore, the inter industry rivalry is very high (Mäenpää and Brandt 2016). 

In order to assist GYG to develop and implement best business strategies that would beneficial for the business, Ansoff Matrix can be used. Ansoff Matrix is enables to explore various strategic choices that are present for the business by focusing on its current and potential markets (Hollensen 2015). Various strategic choices that GYG can adopt to develop its business has been discussed as –

Market development: Under this strategy, the company aims to sell the existing products of the company to more number of buyers in different market segments (MacCormack et al. 2012).  GYG has adopted this strategy as it has opened its branches across the Australian market to target different markets in different geographical markets. In addition, the company has also targeted international markets (Japan and Singapore) by selling same products to different market areas (Boone and Kurtz 2013). 

Market penetration: market penetration is the strategy of selling same products to the same market. To successfully implement this strategy GYG has to develop marketing strategies that would enable it to get more customers. Effective use of marketing communication and developing differentiation strategies are an important requirement to succeed in this strategy. The company can introduce loyalty schemes, discounts; value added services and other differentiation strategies to attract more customers (Mullins et al. 2012).    

Product development: this strategic choice for the company aims at selling new products in the existing markets. The company can adopt this strategy by introducing new menu items as a product development strategy. As the purpose of this report is to develop a product launch for the Nerang branch that also caters to large number to tourists as well as local customers, it can add seasonal food and beverages to its menu to attract more customers. In addition, to target foreign customers the company it can add other cuisines to meet the demands of local as well as foreign customers (Hussain et al. 2013).

Macro Environmental Factors

Diversification:  it is by far the most risky strategic business decision that a company can adopt. Diversification involves selling new products to new markets. As the company is in profitable position and the opportunity to grow in the same business is huge, it is not advisable to opt for diversification strategy (Schawel and Billing 2012).

Since, the company has adopted product development strategy to grow in the existing market, it is important to discuss the marketing mix of for the company that would enable the company to successfully implement product development strategies. 

Product: product refers to the goods and services that the company offers to its customers. For GYG the products include Latin American cuisines and beverages that it serves to its customers. As the company wants to launch other food items such as ice crushers, and other in demand cuisines, it can position itself as a multi cuisine restaurant that has something for everyone as per their tastes and preferences (Borden 2015).

Price: pricing is one of the most important elements in the marketing mix of GYG. As the company want to launch a new product, it can adopt promotional pricing strategies to attract customers. As the customers provides feedback about the new menu items it can decide whether to keep the new product add to its menu or discard it.

Place: place refers to the distribution channels that the company employs to distribute its products. The company can offer its products to the customers at its stores as well as through the online order systems. However, the company needs to improve on its online delivery mediums as the area where the YGY branch is present has fewer online deliveries, therefore, the company needs to develop strong delivery channels to take advantage of the gap present in the market and gain competitive advantage over other.

Promotion: promotion is very crucial aspect of marketing mix that serves the purpose creating awareness among the customers and to create a positive brand image for the company. As the company is launching a new product, it is important to create awareness among the customers about the new offerings that the company provides. The various promotional strategies that can be adopted are –

Online marketing communications: as the customers of the company are young, educated and urban customers, that have a presence in the virtual world, it is important to employ online communication mediums. The company can promote itself via social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media platforms (Kwok and Yu 2013). These mediums enables the company to engage customers at a more personal level as the company have the opportunity to get customers’ feedback, suggestions and preferences and develop or adopt strategies accordingly (Huang and Sarigöllü 2012).  

People: people refer to the employees of the company. People have a crucial role in determining the success of the company and also in the new product launch. People are the brand ambassadors of the company and reflect the values and culture of the organization. For a new product to be successful, the employees must be excited and motivated about the new product and needs to communicate or replicate such feelings to the targeted customers (Lovelock et al. 2014). 

Micro Environmental Factors

Process: process refers to the mode of service delivery to the customers. A restaurant has the elements of both product and services, since services are consumed at the point of delivery, it is important to ensure that the quality of service delivered is of high quality, efficient and quick so as to create a positive image (Hanssens et al. 2014).

Physical evidence: Physical evidence refers to the ambience and overall experience that a customer derives from the service delivery providers. GYG has a very saucy and at the same time relaxing ambience at its restaurants. The restaurant provides an atmosphere where the customers relax and enjoy their food. The restaurant play Latin American tunes and displays the heritage of Latin America prominently in all aspects of its restaurant whether it is wallpaper, cutlery, music, food or uniform of its staff. Therefore, it can be said that the GYG provides holistic experience to its customers. However, for the introduction of new menu items, the restaurant can adopt as per the different cultures and traditions of which the cuisine has been derived (Suthar et al. 2014). 

The following diagram is showing the customer acquisition plan for the launching of the product: 

 

Figure 1: Customer Acquisition 

The projected budget plan is given in the below table. The initial capital for launching the products is AUD 100,000.

Projected Budget
Particulars	Amount
Initial Capital	AUD             100,000.00
Operating Expenses
Raw material	AUD               30,000.00
Machinery	AUD               20,000.00
Labor cost	AUD                 5,000.00
Miscellaneous expenses	AUD                 3,000.00
Cash in hand	AUD               42,000.00
Total	AUD             100,000.00

For the restaurant business of GYG, the organization can effectively implement new product development if gathers the information about the customer preferences from the local as well as foreign customers (tourists). The company has established in the market by differentiating itself as a Tex-Mex restaurant.  Therefore, the restaurant needs strategies that would ensure the success of the new menu additions. The company can achieve this by adding internal food and beverages into the menu that is in trend. In addition, adding local and seasonal dishes and dishes can be an effective strategy to retain existing customers and to attract more of the local customers. 

Conclusions

From the above, discussion it can be concluded that there is huge opportunity for the business to grow in the market. As evident from the situation analysis undertaken by employing PESTEL and Porter’s Five Forces framework, the business environment is supportive of the business development. As discussed with the Ansoff Matrix, the best strategy that the company adopt product development strategy to grow in the market. For this GYG has to modify its 7 P’s of marketing to successfully implement its product development strategy. Further, the company would require strategies to measure and evaluate the effectiveness of the new product development, and make amendments accordingly.  

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