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MKTG7512 - Strategic Marketing Management, 2025 Semester 1

Assessment 2: Case study report (individual; 40%)

• Scope: Course contents from lectures 1-5 and relevant textbook chapters

• Due date/time: 2nd May 2025, 3:10 pm (AEST/Brisbane time)

• Submission portal: On Blackboard (open from 1st September 2024)

• Format: 16 pages max. A4-sized, 2cm margins, 12-point font size (style:

Times New Roman).

- The page limit applies to the entire submitted document (cover page,

abstract/executive summary, main text, tables, figures, references,

appendices). All texts should be double-spaced except tables, figures,

appendices and pictures

• References: APA style; minimum eight (8) references; four (4) academic

and four (4) non-academic (no limit on the maximum number of references)

Description:

Select a focal product OR product line from a company/firm of your choice, conduct a

situational analysis (SWOT) of the company, identify (or define) the relevant

industry, evaluate the intensity of competition in the identified industry (Porter’s five

forces model), describe the market segments and the firm’s choice of target

consumers, and construct a perceptual map (i.e., the customer’s positions) of the

product and the competing offers from other firms.

Components in the report:

(suggested page numbers in brackets for each section):

(1) A cover page that includes the title of the report (e.g., “An analysis of xxx”),

course code (MKTG7512), your name, and your student ID (1 page)

(2) An abstract OR executive summary of the report (1 page)

(3) (main body of the report): A background section to introduce the firm, the

primary/core products it offers, and the focal product /product line which is

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the focus of this report (2 pages)

(4) A situational (SWOT) analysis of the company (2 pages)

(5) An analysis of the industry competition based on Porter's five forces model (2

pages)

(6) Analyse the segmentation (or segments) of the consumer market (2 pages)

(7) Select two key product attributes the focal and competing products have in

common, and construct a perceptual map onto which the four products (i.e.,

the core product, plus three competing products) are located (2 pages)

(8) References (1-2 pages)

Details:

(90 points for sections described below; 10 points for professionalism - see the

marking rubric for details)

1. Background section (10 points)

• A brief introduction to the firm and the main products/services of the firm.

• Briefly explain why you chose this firm (e.g., undesirable market

performance, good market performance but potential for improvements, self- interest, etc.)

• Choose one product or product line from the firm and describe it; this is the

focal product in subsequent analyses.

2. Company and Industry (32 points)

2.1 (20 points) – SWOT analysis

• A situational analysis of the company using the SWOT framework (strength,

weakness, opportunities, threats)

• List these points in a table; selectively describe the important points in texts.

Cite relevant information to support your analysis.

2.2 (20 points) – Porter’s Five Forces model

• Before conducting the analysis, clearly indicate the industry (e.g., t-shirt

industry, clothes industry, or apparel industry; the size of the industry

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increases from the first to the third in this example) and whether the focus is

on the domestic market or the international market.

• Explain and analyse each force; cite relevant information to support your

analysis

• Provide an overall assessment for each force (e.g., the overall entry barrier is

high/low, hence reducing/intensifying competition)

• Provide an overall assessment of the intensity of the overall competition in

the industry to conclude the industry competition analysis (e.g., high, low,

moderate, moderate-to-low, etc., averaged across the five forces)

(Note: analysis is deemed incomplete without a statement of overall competition).

3. Segmentation, targeting, and positioning (40 points)

3.1 (20 points) - segmentation

• Based on the consumer characteristics discussed in class (i.e., Consumer

background characteristics, Attitudinal characteristics, Behavioural

characteristics), (1) select two important consumer characteristics, and (2)

two levels for each characteristic that will segment the consumers into four

quadrants. (A 2 x 2 table, with the horizontal and vertical axes representing the

two characteristics). This results in four quadrants (segments) of consumers.

• Label and briefly explain each quadrant (or consumer segment).

• Explain/justify why the two characteristics are relevant and important for

segmentation (which should be based on searched information; when such

information is unavailable, your justification should be based on common

sense or reasonable assumptions)

• Determine the attractiveness of each segment based on the (1) size and the (2)

growth rate or growth potential of the segment from your information

search. For the purpose of this assessment, you can ignore other factors

affecting market attractiveness.

Note:

Don’t just pick conventional characteristics such as income, gender, or education

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simply because they are easy to work with. (Not saying that these can’t be used, but

these may not be the best choice). Ensure the consumer characteristics are important

in actual segmentation for the focal product.

3.2 (20 points) – perceptual map

• Select two important product attributes, construct a two-dimensional

perceptual map, and place the focal product and three competing products

from competing firms onto the same perceptual map (ensure that the three

competing products are representative of the overall industry – e.g., a strong

competing product and two weak competing products, or a weak one and two

strong ones).

• Explain or justify why the two product attributes are relevant and important

to the consumer characteristics used in your earlier segmentation analysis (i.e.,

the link between “consumer characteristics” and “product attributes”).

• Briefly explain/justify why the four products (the focal offer plus the three

competing offers) are placed as such on the perceptual map (e.g., information

from academic journal articles, industrial reports, and newspapers.)

Note: The locations of the focal and competing products need NOT be precise; they

should roughly correspond to market reality.

An example of the choice of product attributes and consumer characteristics.

The focal product is one of a company's Internet plans, “XXX”. "Usage"

(behavioural characteristic) and "Income" (socioeconomic characteristic) are

used for segmentation. "Data quota" and "Monthly charge" are used to

construct the perceptual map for product positioning. This is because heavy

vs. light users have different needs for the amount of data. Additionally, those

with lower incomes may prefer a cheaper plan…

Note: You may find it easier to start with the product attributes, then construct the

perceptual map and, finally, work backwards to figure out the two consumer

characteristics.

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