FOCUSING ON TARGET MARKETS- A SHORT TERM AND LONG TERM STRATEGY FOR

MAERSK

BY

JABES G.O. KOTIENO

MBA, BED, CIPS

INTRODUCTION

Target Marketing involves breaking a market into segments and then concentrating the marketing
efforts on one or a few key segments. Target marketing is key to business’s success. The beauty of target
marketing is that it makes the promotion, pricing and distribution of the products and/or services easier
and more cost-effective. Target marketing provides a focus to all of the marketing activities. (Susan
Ward, 2010)

A target market is a group of customers that the business has decided to aim its marketing efforts and
ultimately its merchandise towards. (Kurtz, D.2010). A well-defined target market is the first element to
a marketing strategy. The target market and the marketing mix variables of product, place (distribution),
promotion and price are the four elements of a marketing mix strategy that determine the success of a
product in the marketplace. (Cohen A. Wiliam. 2005)

Once these distinct customers have been defined, a marketing mix strategy of product, distribution,
promotion and price can be built by the business to satisfy the target market.

MAERSK proposed marketing strategy can be achieved through implementing any of the four basic
strategies to satisfy target markets: undifferentiated marketing or mass marketing, differentiated
marketing, concentrated marketing, and micromarketing/ niche marketing.

Mass marketing is a market coverage strategy in which a firm decides to ignore market segment
differences and go after the whole market with one offer. It is the type of marketing (or attempting to sell
through persuasion) of a product to a wide audience. The idea is to broadcast a message that will reach the
largest number of people possible. Traditionally mass marketing has focused on radio, television and
newspapers as the medium used to reach this broad audience. For sales teams, one way to reach out to
target markets is through direct marketing. This is done by buying consumer database based on the
segmentation profiles you have defined. These databases usually come with consumer contacts (e.g.
email, mobile no., home no., etc.).

However, MAERSK has to take caution. It is recommended that when undertaking direct marketing
efforts — they should check the targeted market country’s direct marketing laws.

A principal concept in target marketing is that those who will be targeted will show a strong affinity or
brand loyalty to that particular brand. Target Marketing will allow the marketer / sales team to customize
their message to the targeted group of consumers in a more focused manner. Research has generally
shown that target marketing strategies are constructed from consumer inferences of similarities between
some aspects of the advertisement (e.g., source pictured, language used, lifestyle represented) and
characteristics of the consumer (e.g. reality or desire of having the represented style). Consumers are
persuaded by the characteristics in the advertisement and those of the consumer. (Aaker, J., Brumbaugh,
A., & Grier, S. 2000)

Their Marketing departments should spend quality time looking for "Growth Opportunities" in their
categories by identifying relevant insights (both mindsets and behaviors) on their target Consumers,
Shoppers and retail partners. These Growth Opportunities emerge from changes in market trends;
segment dynamics changing and also internal brand or operational business challenges. The Marketing
team can then prioritize these Growth Opportunities and begin to develop strategies to exploit the
opportunities that could include new or adapted products, services as well as changes to the 7Ps.

According to Bell, Simon J.; Eisingerich, Andreas B. (2007), specific marketing practices may involve:

 Encouraging collaborative filtering: They realize consumers are not only much more adept at
creating highly-targeted taxonomies (folksonomies) given that they are more adept at delineating
the segment they themselves constitute, but, also, that they are willing to do so for free. And to
the extent they cannot, they do it for them.
 Community development: Helping target customers develop their own communities or create
new ones.

 Community participation: Consumers do not filter and rate companies and their offerings
within company websites only. Being able, with little effort, cost or technical skills, to create their
own online localities, a large percentage of the filtering and rating takes place in non-sponsored,
 online spaces. Organisations must go and meet their target customers at their favoured online
hangouts to not only listen but also participate in the dialogue.

 Help consumers engage with one another: Give them content they can use to engage with one
another.

 Solicitation of user generated content: Engage them directly or indirectly with the product by
giving them the means or incentive to create user generated content.

 Customer self-service: Help them create a customer service. Create a blog where technical
support staff and customers can communicate directly.

 Product co-development: Create a blog where product developers and consumers can
communicate directly.

Anticipating competitors’ actions and reactions to your moves may be the key determinant of success
for any marketing strategy. One competitor cuts prices, undermining your pricing strategy. Another
may decide to offer new products and services, possibly over the Internet that have the potential to
completely undermine your existing strategy. Could you have anticipated such moves? How do you
respond?

Competitive Marketing Strategy teaches MAERSK how to anticipate their competitors’ moves during
the planning stage, so that they are not caught off guard. MAERSK learns how to analyze their
strengths and weaknesses. Discover a number of tools and concepts to manage the competition. By
helping MAERSK anticipate potential competitive responses to its actions, this course will help it
develop effective marketing strategies for the long term.

An offering encompasses the benefits or satisfaction provided to MAERSK target markets, tangible and
intangible. To successfully market its product, it must understand its benefits from the buyer’s
perspective. This approach will allow MAERSK to think beyond the tangible “product” entity and
consider what the consumer is actually buying and their reasoning behind that purchase.

MAERSK’s offering includes a tangible product or service, plus any related services, such as installation,
warranties, guarantees, and packaging. It also includes intangible benefits, from peace of mind, to
validating an identity, to showing off to the neighbors.
Focusing on the offering, rather than on the actual product or service itself, can be valuable for analyzing
consumers’ alternatives, to better identify unmet needs and wants of the target markets, and to enhance
development of new products or services. (Berry, T. 2010)

In a larger sense, MAERSK’s offerings are a part of who they are as a business. Their marketing plan
should address what types of customers they seek, what the buyers need, and how their offerings meet
their needs. It should also describe how their offering is communicated and what value it holds for the
consumer.

References

1. Kurtz, Dave. (2010). Contemporary Marketing Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.

2. Cohen A. Wiliam. (2005) The Marketing Plan. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

3. Aaker, J., Brumbaugh, A., & Grier, S. (2000). Nontarget Markets and Viewer Distinctiveness:
The Impact of Target Marketing on Advertising. Journal of Consumer Psychology (Lawrence
Erlbaum Associates), 9(3), 127.

4. Bell, Simon J.; Eisingerich, Andreas B. (2007). "The Paradox of Customer Education: Customer
Expertise and Loyalty in the Financial Services Industry". European Journal of Marketing 41:
466–486.

5. http://articles.mplans.com/product-marketing/#ixzz1tGhfnh1r/Tim Berry/2010

6. http://sbinfocanada.about.com/od/marketing/g/targetmarketing.htm

7.