MARKETING STRATEGY:

A marketing strategy identifies (1) a firms target market(s), (2) a related marketing mix
their four Psand (3) the bases upon which the firm plans to build a sustainable
competitive advantage. A sustainable competitive advantage is an advantage over the
competition that is not easily copied, and thus can be maintained over a long period of time.
Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts are appealing to different target markets, and they are
implementing their marketing mixestheir four Psin very different ways. In essence, they
have very different marketing strategies. Although both stores customers seek a good cup
of coffee and a pastry, Starbucks is also attempting to reach the customer who wants a
coffee-drinking experience that includes a nice warm, social atmosphere and personal
baristas to make their esoteric drinks. And people are willing to pay relatively high prices
for all this. Dunkin Donuts customers, on the other hand, arent particularly interested in
the experience. They want a good tasting cup of coffee at a fair price, and they want to get
in and out of the store quickly.

Building a Sustainable Competitive Advantage:

There are stores and restaurants that sell coffee and pastries in every neighbourhood in
which there is a Starbucks or a Dunkin Donuts, and many of these have great coffee and
pastries. If Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts lowered their prices, their competition in the area
would match the reduction. If they introduced a peppermint swirl cappuccino for the
holiday season, other stores in the area could do the same. Thus, just because a firm
implements an element of the marketing mix better than competition, it doesnt necessarily
mean it is sustainable.
Establishing a competitive advantage means that the firm, in effect, builds a wall around its
position in the market. When the wall is high, it will be hard for competitors outside the wall
to enter the market and compete for the firms target customers.
Over time, all advantages will be eroded by competitive forces, but by building high, thick
walls, firms can sustain their advantage, minimize competitive pressure, and boost profits
for a longer time. Thus, establishing a sustainable competitive advantage is the key to
positive long-term financial performance.
There are four macro, or overarching, strategies that focus on aspects of the marketing mix
to create and deliver value and to develop sustainable competitive advantages.

 Customer excellence: Focuses on retaining loyal customers and excellent

customer service.
Operational excellence: Achieved through efficient operations and excellent
supply chain and human resource management.
Product excellence: Having products with high perceived value and effective
branding and positioning.
Locational excellence: Having a good physical location and Internet presence.

Figure 1: Marketing strategy of Starbucks

Based on these information, the main consideration for this project is to assess the
electronic marketing approach of Starbucks, therefore we are providing details about their
approach for recognising themselves as globally corporate social responsible firm though
their corporate website, whereas discussion is required to check what are the benefits of
using social media networks and other applications for marketing Starbucks products.

THE MARKETING PLAN:

Effective marketing doesnt just happen. Firms like Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts carefully
plan their marketing strategies to react to changes in the environment, the competition, and
their customers by creating a marketing plan. A marketing plan is a written document
composed of an analysis of the current marketing situation, opportunities and threats for
the firm, marketing objectives and strategy specified in terms of the four Ps, action
programs, and projected or pro-forma income (and other financial) statements. The three
major phases of the marketing plan are planning, implementation, and control.
Although most people do not have a written plan that outlines what they are planning to
accomplish in the next year, and how they expect to do it, firms do need such a document.
It is important that everyone involved in implementing the plan knows what the overall
objectives for the firm are and how they are going to be met. Other stakeholders, such as
investors and potential investors, also want to know what the firm plans to do. A written
marketing plan also provides a reference point for evaluating whether or not the firm met
its objectives.
A marketing plan entails five steps, the planning phase, marketing executives, in conjunction
with other top managers, define the mission and/or vision of the business. For the second
step, they evaluate the situation by assessing how various players, both in and outside the
organization, affect the firms potential for success. In the implementation phase, marketing
managers identify and evaluate different opportunities by engaging in a process known as
segmentation, targeting, and positioning (STP). They then are responsible for implementing
the marketing mix using the four Ps. Finally, the control phase entails evaluating the
performance of the marketing strategy using marketing metrics and taking any necessary
corrective actions. It is not always necessary to go through the entire process for every
evaluation. For instance, a firm could evaluate its performance, then go directly to conduct a
situation audit without redefining its overall mission.

E-Marketing Tools for attracting customers:

One of the tools of e-Marketing is Emails or e-Letters. The traditional style composing a
letter and posting incurred higher cost and was time consuming. With the establishing of
electronic marketplace, snail mails have been replaced with Emails. Sellers can now reach

out to the masses and/or to their target audience in the most economical but effective
manner through e-Letters or e-Newsletters.

Salient features of E-mail marketing

E-mail marketing is the most effective and economical E-marketing tool to convey the
message on a mass scale. It supersedes the traditional method of communication to market
a product or service. Some of the salient features of E-mail marketing are:
Fast:
Unlike the letters posted through postal mail, when one sends an email, its customers
receive it immediately. E-mail marketing is especially great if a bank has time sensitive
offers, like a special rate of interest for deposits or loans, a festive offer, bonds etc.
Cheap:
Almost any message one decides to send to their customers via snail mail can also be sent
via e-mail; one avoids the printing, materials, and postage costs. This definitely ensures big
savings especially for the business sectors like banks, which deal with many customers.
Easy:
Sending an e-mail is easier than sending regular mail, too. One does not have all the hassle
of writing a long letter, posting etc.
Inform dynamically:
It helps the users to know about the new changes and Developments adapted by the bank
for ensuring a better service to the customers. In addition, if a bank ever plans to move,
having a solid list of its customers' e-mail addresses allows the bank to make the move with
minimal interruption to its customer base.
E-mail is a great format for sending out a weekly or monthly tip, article or other updates to
the customers. It is something that will position the bank in the mind of its customer as an
expert. It helps in giving the customers valuable information that makes them want to read
the short newsletter. This type of regular communication reinforces the banks position as
an expert in financial dealings and does wonders at keeping its customers loyal. The ease
with which buyers can spread the word about a firm has spurred a new type of buyer
activism (Varadarajan and Yadav, 2002).

Advantages of e-newsletters
Some of the prominent advantages of using e-newsletters for marketing are mentioned
below:

Branding:
A bank can gain brand recognition by regularly keeping its name in front of the customers
or clients. An e-newsletter with interesting articles can provide that level of contact.
Typically, print newsletters are published quarterly while an e-newsletter to goes out as
frequently as every week, which reinforces the brand image.
Short lead-time:
Print newsletters can require several weeks to be put together, printed and mailed. By the
time they reach their destination, there's not much news in them. In contrast to this, an enewsletter can be prepared, formatted and updated right up to the moment it is sent,
allowing for the inclusion of the latest developments.
Timesaving:
It takes quite a long time to put together and distribute a print newsletter. On the other
hand, with an e-newsletter, the production and distribution time is slashed because many
steps are eliminated. There is no need to juggle the copy to fit into the available space, and
the companies/ banks don't have to deal with printers or mail delays.
Two-way communication:
The best e-newsletters allow readers to request services, provide feedback and ask
questions. By allowing readers to interact through two-way communication, banks have
better chances of building relationships with its clients, as well as begin new associations with prospects and referral sources.
Year-round contact:
Loyalty isn't built strictly through billable transactions. It is nurtured by developing and
maintaining relationships so that customers or clients know you care. Newsletters allow a
company to communicate throughout the year and e-newsletters with comment" capability
let readers know that they can maintain a dialogue with the company.
Proactive marketing:

Between transactions, a bank/company may want to offer additional products and services.
But how does the bank know which readers are interested? For example, a bank can focus
its energy approaching certain readers about a service if it finds they have consistently
opened articles on the subject. That can turn a cold call into a warm call.

Product development:
A bank can gauge readers' interest in certain products and services before deciding to
launch them. Online tracking that reveals what article or topics are read is a basic market
research.

Internet based e-Marketing Strategy tools:

Following are the key internet based e-marketing tools that can be used for advertising
products over internet such as:

Corporate Organisation Website: This tool can be used by organisation for advertising all
their products and facilities available in their stores to attract customers. These websites
can provide members and free voucher services to loyal customers, in order to attract more
customers.

Social Media Networks: These are the most popular tool used nowadays for advertising and
publicity of different products. There are different types of social media networks such as
Facebook, Twitter and Linkldn.

Interstitial Banners: Interstitial banners are shown between pages on a Web site. As you
click from one page to another, you are shown this advertisement before the next page is
shown. Sometimes, you are able to close the advertisement.

Pop-Ups and Pop-Unders: As the name suggests, these are advertisements that pop up, or
under, the Web page being viewed. They open in a new, smaller window. You will see a popupright away but will probably only become aware of a pop-under after you close your
browser window. These were very prominent in the early days of online advertising, but

audience annoyance means that there are now pop-up blockers built into most good Web
browsers. This can be problematic as sometimes a Web site will legitimately use a pop-up to
display information to the user.

Map Advertisement: A map advertisement is advertising placed within the online mapping
solutions available, such as Google Maps.
Wallpaper Advertisement: A wallpaper advertisement changes the background of the Web
page being viewed. Usually, it is not possible to click through this advertisement.

e-Marketing through social media networks:

Social Networking is the interaction between a group of people who share a common
interest; Using social contacts to network; Using internet's network groups (such as
Facebook and Twitter) to network and communicate between consumers and businesses
Social networks are compiled from profiles and/or connections. Profiles consist of an
individual or businesses personal information and/or experiences such as; their background,
education, interests or affiliates. Connections consist of either implicit or explicitly obtained
avenues. Implicitly an individual or business can gain connections by actions such as emails
or telephone conversations, and explicitly by actual members of the social network
themselves. (Carfi, Chastaine, 2011). Currently the most popular social networking websites
are Facebook and Twitter, but there are thousands of social networking websites out there.
One can find a social networking website to suit almost any interest imaginable, there are
websites devoted strictly for chefs, auto enthusiasts, music lovers, and many more. With
this in mind a business can join a social networking website that is fine tuned to their
particular business to generate interest by thousands who have a passion for the products
or services that said business provides.
Todays generation and upcoming generations are both familiar with and comfortable using
social networking websites and are often their first choice in communication today. A
business, new or old to ignore the trends of communicating through social networking
would be a large mistake. Ignoring the trend could possibly lose businesses potential clients,
sales or future knowledgeable employees that may help said company to excel. It is
estimated today that Facebook and Twitter have a combined population of people and

businesses of over 200 million, keeping these figures in mind the imagined potential
business interest seems limitless.
Social Networking websites are not only a great instrument for gaining the public interest in
a company; they can also be a tool within an organization. Internally social networking can
be used as a tool to observe how information within an organization is being exchanged.
Gaining knowledge into how ideas are surfacing may help a company see how; who or what
is responsible for the changes within an organization (Carfi, Chastaine, 2001).
Generally a person will chose to do business with a company that is a member of the same
social network as them because the form of communication that they feel most comfortable
using is what they will naturally gravitate to first, and after all isnt the name of the game to
be first? Businesses have been forced to change their marketing strategies from selling to
engaging (Gordhamer, 2009). Another argument in favor of social networking is the vast
changes of how the public wants their information presented to them today, people
generally want to feel engaged by a company instead of marketed to. There are downfalls to
social networking that should be considered before a company makes the decision to invest
the time and money from their marketing budget. Although social networking websites like
Facebok and Twitter are generallyset up to be user friendly, if a company does not have the
appropriate technological knowledge to create the site, it can be a daunting task. If a
company lacks the knowledge to start a social networking website then they will most likely
need to hire either a knowledgeable consultant or staff member to set up the website.
Social networking sites arent always reliable, so a company is going to want to employ
someone who has the experience as well as the patience to deal with the necessary trials
that undoubtedly will occur (Bonfield, 2008). Like many forms of marketing within a
business, what you put in is usually a reflection of what you will gain but this is not always
the case due to the lack of statistical information provided today.
Social networking takes time and patience and there is not enough data generated as to the
level of response a business will receive from the work.
Another element to consider when deciding if social networking is right for your business is
the fact that in using a social networking website you do not have full control over the
content that is generated from the website. One factor to keep in mind is that within a
social networking site the individual or business that you associate with could potentially
associate with someone you do not want to have direct ties with. Social networking

websites have tools that are called friends or followers, these are the people or
organizations that agree to follow your business and have the permissions to write
comments on your wall which is showcased for anyone who uploads and views your page.
If a company allows an individual or business to be there friend, potential clients can then in
turn look at whom your business is associated with which can be good or potentially bad if
the associated friends are controversial to your causes (Bonfield, 2008). Another
consideration is the fact that an individual or business is limited to how the information is
presented on the particular social networking website. Most social networking sites do not
allow the user to chose the design or orientation of the content, if you have a design plan or
vision in mind a social networking website may not be the best option for your company.
A final issue to consider when deciding if social networking is right for your business is the
factor of unwanted criticism that can potentially get uploaded to the World Wide Web. With
the accessibility of the web today it is very easy for anyone with a computer to express his
or her opinions with little to no allowance for editing. In the past, when someone had an
issue with a company or organization it would take days if not weeks to tell everyone they
knew of the issue, but today it only takes a matter of seconds to tell everyone you know of
the bad experience (Gordhamer, 2009). The issue of opinion based comments are a two way
street.
Many individuals and organizations will express their opinions in a good light, but on the
other hand there will be some that express their complaints and this criticism circles back to
the subject of time management and having an experienced individual that is on hand to
handle the comments as they arise. Of course it is understood that there is no way to
respond to every comment that is delivered about your business but it will work in the best
interest of your company if you show a concern for the disgruntled clients that undoubtedly
will arise. In answering and showing concern publicly to those who have expressed a bad
experience, a company is viewed as customer oriented and that they are willing to change
to suit the needs of their clients. Criticism from such websites are also a great tool for a
company to use in making the necessary changes that will arise with the changing of your
target audience, keeping up with the change in times is a key to the marketing success of a
business.
To wrap up the discussion of whether social networking is the right choice for a company it
was discussed that social networking websites are a free tool to use, but can be costly to set

up and maintain if you arent knowledgeable with the technology. A business also has to
consider that the content within the site is not completely controlled by the said company,
which can be viewed as a good and or bad result. Regardless of the decision to use social
networking, the fact that todays generation has adopted it, as a very useful tool to
communicate with is unarguable. With the right tools and planning social networking can
become an extremely valuable tool for a business today.