MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 1 Assignment
Essay
Instructions
Using the CSU Online Library, research business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) models from an organizational standpoint. Research two companies, one of which is a B2B and one of which is a B2C. Use them as supporting examples when responding to the questions below. Ensure that you have a strong introduction to your essay.
What is the difference between the B2B and B2C organizational buying models?
What is the buying process within the B2B organizational model?
How is B2B marketing different from B2C marketing strategies?
What would you recommend to the B2B company that you selected as your example for this assignment with respect to increasing overall customer sales?
Your response should be at least two pages in length. Your references should include at least two sources. You are allowed to use the eTextbook as a source.
Adhere to APA Style when constructing this assignment, including in-text citations and references for all sources that are used. Please note that no abstract is needed.
This Sample Formal Essay provided by the CSU Writing Center shows this type of formatting.
The following video tutorials may also be helpful for you.
How to Use Business Source Ultimate for Business Research
Transcript for How to Use Business Source Ultimate for Business Research
How to Use the ABI/INFORM Collection for Business Research
Transcript for How to Use the ABI/INFORM Collection for BusinessResearch
Resources
The following resource(s) may help you with this assignment.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 2 Assignment
Case Study
Instructions
Case studies are important learning tools in business classes, as they provide an opportunity for you to critically analyze events that have taken place in real-life businesses. This develops your critical thinking and research skills as you research the competition and industry in which your business resides with an end goal of formulating a recommendation for the challenges faced by the company.
Evaluate the case items below, and then respond to the prompts that follow; use theory, practical managerial thinking, and supporting research to support your responses.
Review the case study resources below in order to complete your assignment.
Read the “B2B Snapshot 4.1 Flokk-Sustainable Office Chairs” on page 96 of the textbook.
Watch the video Why Choose HÅG Capisco? | HÅG. A transcript and closed captioning are available once you access the video.
Review the Flokk website.
Think about the importance of Flokk’s business-to-business (B2B) buying practices with respect to maintaining their sustainability philosophy and a competitive advantage in the furniture industry. In your case study, please address the prompts below.
Why does a B2B organization work within a more complex buying process? Evaluate Flokk’s buying process to support your answer.
Who are the stakeholders, and how should Flokk develop and maintain these relationships toward greater profitability within the organization? Include an explanation about the importance of these relationships.
Discuss any potential issues Flokk could face when utilizing marketing strategies. Recommend a course of action for the future based on your research.
Based upon your learning from the lesson, discuss Flokk’s Code of Conduct and the role of B2B ethics within Flokk’s relationships with suppliers, distributors, and other B2B partners. When responding to this question, discuss corporate social responsibility (CSR) and B2B marketing ethics. (Note: Flokk’s Code of Conduct is located on the Flokk website under About Us – Code of Conduct). Recommend a course of action with respect to their ethical stance.
Your case study submission should be at least three pages in length, not counting the title and reference pages. You are required to use at least three sources for this assignment. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased material must have accompanying in-text citations.
Resources
The following resource(s) may help you with this assignment.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 3 Assignment
Essay
Instructions
For this assignment, you will assume the role of a marketer for a global corporation of your choice. You have been asked to complete a global business-to-business (B2B) marketing analysis for a country into which the corporation is seriously considering expanding. You will need to conduct research on the country and provide a thorough marketing analysis to help senior leadership determine whether a global expansion into this country is a good decision.
Based on this assignment scenario, identify the country into which your corporation is considering expanding. Begin by navigating to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) website, and select a country from those provided on The World Factbook webpage. You may also use the Business Insights: Global database within the CSU Online Library database (look under Comparison Charts>Countries for the relevant data). Add countries and regions where you will conduct research in order to perform a PESTLE (political, economic, sociocultural, technological, legal, and environmental) analysis. Consider the critical factors a marketer must look for when expanding globally.
Identify the U.S.-based company and the product or service you plan to introduce into the foreign country. Describe the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code for the industry that the company operates; explain why this is important. Define the segmentation process your company should use. Be sure to include the firmographics, operating variables, purchasing approach, situational factors, and personal characteristics.
Perform a PESTLE analysis by describing the political (P), economic (E), sociocultural (S), technological (T), legal (L), and environmental/ethical (E) environment in your selected foreign country.
Describe the main competitor in the industry in which your selected company does business. Which company would have a greater competitive advantage in the country you have chosen to expand into? Why?
Discuss those unique business customs, if any, that are important for a company to adapt to in your chosen global market in order to be competitive. If no unique business customs exist within the culture of your chosen international market, explain the business norms that do exist.
Your essay should be at least three pages in length, be double-spaced, and contain a title page and references page. References should include at least three credible sources.
Adhere to APA Style when constructing this assignment, including subheadings, in-text citations, and references for all sources that are used. Please note that no abstract is needed.
This Sample Formal Essay provided by the CSU Writing Center shows the type of formatting that is expected for this assignment.
Resources
The following resource(s) may help you with this assignment.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 4 Assignment
Course Project
Instructions
It is now time to apply the concepts learned in this unit; you will develop a brief strategic marketing plan for a new start-up business that operates in the business-to-business (B2B) sector. Your primary customer should be other businesses. For your start-up, think about a for-profit business that you would hypothetically like to start someday.
Compile your strategic marketing plan following the guidelines below (feel free to use the headings below as your subheadings).
Company
What is the name of your company? (Be creative!)
What are the primary products or services your company will offer?
What is the value proposition?
Marketing Mix
Copy the table below to a Word document, and using complete sentences in a bulleted format, respond to each question or prompt for the marketing mix (7 Ps) component. Please note that some sections contain numerous questions and/or prompts.
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Marketing Mix Component:
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For your company:
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Product
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Describe the product or service, tangible or intangible, brand, variety, quality, features, benefits, and warranty.
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Price
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What is the pricing strategy: premium pricing, low-cost leader, or competitive pricing? What is the rationale for this pricing strategy, with a focus on the B2B customer?
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Promotion
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What is the communication strategy? What promotional/communication methods would you use? (Discuss at least five methods, including traditional and digital.) What is the rationale for using each of these? What percentage of the budget would you use for each method, and why?
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Place
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What is the intended distribution strategy location and coverage, and will you use indirect or direct distribution? What is the rationale for using this distribution strategy, both from an organizational standpoint and a customer standpoint?
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People
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Describe potential consumers, quality, skills and abilities of employees, management, labor pool, customer service, customer interaction, and customer relationship management.
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Processes
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Describe the delivery of service, response time, standardization, customization, and structure.
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Physical evidence
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Define the desired user experience, the store layout, facilities, recommendations, and referrals.
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Target Market
After the table, respond to the following prompt in paragraph form: Who is your primary target market? (Remember, this must be other businesses to align with the B2B requirement.)
Industry and Competitive Analysis
Respond to the following prompts in paragraph form.
What are the trends in this industry? Include citations to support your research.
Who are the main competitors, and how are they differentiated from your company? Think about the product or service offerings, pricing, and distribution strategies that might differ.
What is your company’s potential competitive advantage?
Your submission should be at least three pages in length. References should include three sources (one can be the textbook). Adhere to APA Style when constructing this assignment, including in-text citations and references for all sources that are used. Please note that no abstract is needed.
Resources
The following resource(s) may help you with this assignment.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 5 Assignment
PowerPoint Presentation
Instructions
For this assignment, you will use the same company you selected for the Unit IV Course Project. As you will recall, in Unit IV, you compiled a brief strategic marketing plan for a new start-up business that operates in the business-to-business (B2B) sector. You will now compile a PowerPoint presentation that you could present to potential investors in your start-up.
The presentation should include one slide introducing the company and then the following information:
the company’s mission,
details of the 4 Ps (product, price, place, and promotion) of the marketing mix,
SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis, and
critical issues.
Mission
Define your mission statement.
What are the fundamental goals that you would like to achieve with your new company?
Product
Describe the tangible and intangible product attributes.
What is your value proposition?
Describe the desired brand image.
What makes your product different from the competition?
Price
What price will you charge, and how will you determine what price to charge for your product?
How will you determine what your product is worth?
How will your pricing strategy set you apart from your competition?
Place
How do you plan to distribute your product?
Do you have alternative delivery methods in mind? If so, describe in detail.
Promotion
What kind of promotional tools will you use? Describe in detail.
How will you determine what promotional tactics will work best?
With a limited promotional budget, how do you plan to gain market share?
SWOT Analysis
Include a SWOT analysis that includes the information described below.
Strengths: List and describe at least three positive internal aspects that add value.
Weaknesses: List and describe at least three negative internal aspects that place you at a competitive disadvantage.
Opportunities: List and describe at least three opportunities external to your business that will lead to your success.
Threats: List and describe at least three threats external to your business that will threaten your success. Be sure to include unexpected acts of nature; economic, technology, government and regulatory concerns; and competition in this section of the SWOT analysis.
Critical Issues
How will you leverage your company’s strengths and opportunities to your advantage?
How will you lessen the impact of your company’s weaknesses and threats?
Where is your company’s product in the product life-cycle, and why? Refer to the textbook for details of the product life-cycle.
Explain why investing in your company is a good idea.
Your PowerPoint presentation should be 6 to 10 slides in length, not counting the title and reference slides. As you create the content slides for your presentation, be sure to use the speaker notes function to explain the content in detail for each of the slides.
Note: Keep the 6x6 PowerPoint rule in mind (i.e., slides should only include six to seven lines of content with no more than six to seven words per line). Any illustrations should relate to the content discussed. Be creative!
Refer to the tutorial PowerPoint Basics from the Writing Center. The transcript for this resource can be found within the “Notes” tab to the right of the presentation.
Resources
The following resource(s) may help you with this assignment.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 6 Assignment
Course Project
Instructions
For this assignment, you will use the same company you selected for the Unit IV Course Project. As you will recall, in Unit IV, you compiled a brief strategic marketing plan for a new start-up business that operates in the business-to-business (B2B) sector. In Unit V, you compiled a PowerPoint presentation that you could present to potential investors in your start-up.
The presentation included the components listed below:
the company’s mission,
details of the 4 Ps (product, price, place, and promotion) of the marketing mix,
SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis, and
critical issues.
You will continue this scenario for the Unit VI Course Project. You received good news because of your successful PowerPoint presentation; the investors are interested in learning more about your distribution plans. The potential investors are asking you to provide additional details on the distribution strategy of your marketing plan.
You now need to compile your strategic marketing plan following the guidelines below. Feel free to use the headings below as your section titles and subtitles.
Situation Analysis: Write a two-paragraph summary of the current situation.
Products and Services: Discuss your product or service features, and describe benefits from the customer’s perspective.
Target Market: Who is your primary target market? Remember, this must be other businesses to align with the B2B requirement.
Value Proposition: Share your company’s value proposition.
Distribution Strategy: Provide details and the rationale of your distribution strategy, and include the information listed below.
Direct or indirect distribution channel
Channel partners, selection, relationships, channel support, sources of potential channel conflict
Supply chain management and logistics
Digital considerations
Potential plans for global distribution
Contingency plans for supply chain disruption for situations like COVID-19
Your submission should be at least three pages in length. The required title and reference pages do not count toward meeting the minimum page requirement. Include at least three sources (one can be the textbook). All sources used must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations. Follow APA Style formatting and guidelines.
Resources
The following resource(s) may help you with this assignment.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 7 Assignment
Scholarly Activity
Instructions
Research the pricing strategies of a company. Please select a company you have not yet researched in this course. Review the theoretical pricing strategies discussed in Chapter 12 of the textbook, and apply them to the company you have chosen.
After providing a brief overview of the company, please include the information below in your assignment.
How does the pricing process within your researched company operate?
Based upon your research, what product pricing strategies, which were described in the Unit VII Study Guide or Chapter 12 of the textbook, do you believe the company is using?
How does the pricing portion of the marketing mix influence the elements of product, place, and promotion? Use the company to support your discussion.
What would you recommend to this company with respect to its pricing strategies? Include a discussion around potential ethical implications of executing your recommended pricing strategies.
Describe how business ethics intervene in the pricing strategies.
Your assignment should be at least three pages in length, be double-spaced, and include a title page and references page, which do not count toward meeting the minimum page requirement. Include at least two additional credible sources beyond the textbook. Feel free to utilize the CSU Online Library for sources. Include the use of headings and subheadings in your report.
Adhere to APA Style when constructing this assignment, including in-text citations and references for all sources that are used. Please note that no abstract is needed.
This Sample Formal Essay provided by the CSU Writing Center shows the type of formatting that is expected for this assignment.
Resources
The following resource(s) may help you with this assignment.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 8 Assignment
Course Project
Instructions
For this assignment, you will use the same company you selected for the Unit IV Course Project, Unit V PowerPoint Presentation, and Unit VI Course Project.
In Unit IV, you compiled a brief strategic marketing plan for a new start-up business that operates in the business-to-business (B2B) sector. In Unit V, you compiled a PowerPoint presentation to present to potential investors in your start-up. You continued this scenario for the Unit VI Course Project by developing your strategic marketing plan. You will continue this scenario for the Unit VIII Course Project. Please review the scenario below.
You have received excellent news! The investors are interested in financing your plan for a new B2B start-up business. Congratulations!
The funding is contingent upon a few more details regarding your strategic marketing plan. You will need to be sure that all of the information you provide is consistent with the goals of your new start-up. Ensure that you have a strong Executive Summary, as this is often the only section of the plan that a busy executive will read. Respond to the information request below by using both theory and practical managerial thinking and supporting research.
Specifically, the investors want to know the information below. Use the headings below as your section titles and subtitles.
Executive Summary: In 4–6 paragraphs, summarize your strategic marketing plan. Be sure to include the sections below in your executive summary.
Situation Analysis
Product/Services
Benefits
Target Market
Value Proposition
Competitive Analysis
Brief Overview of Your SWOT Analysis
Relationship Building Strategies: Propose the approach you could use to building strong relationships with B2B customers and other key stakeholders.
Customer Satisfaction: Discuss how you plan to achieve high levels of customer satisfaction. Explain how you will measure customer satisfaction.
Measurement, Control, and Marketing Metrics: How will you monitor revenues and expenses? How will you assess your marketing effectiveness? Discuss what metrics you will use to measure key indicators, and justify why.
Your submission should be at least three pages in length. The required title and reference pages do not count toward meeting the minimum page requirement. Include three sources (one can be the textbook). Adhere to APA Style when constructing this assignment, including in-text citations and references for all sources that are used. Please note that no abstract is needed.
Resources
The following resource(s) may help you with this assignment.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 1 Discussion
Part I: Introduce yourself to your classmates with your name, location, current employment, and future goals.
Part II: Think of the organization where you are currently employed (or one with which you are very familiar). I identify a product or service that your company purchases from this organization. Describe your company's relationship with the product or service provider. Can the relationship be improved? How? If not, state that and let your fellow students review your narrative. Perhaps they can find a way to improve the relationship.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 2 Discussion
Brennan et al. (2020) discuss allocating exchange costs in B2B relationships. Provide an example of how one of the three factors listed by the authors on p. 69 of the textbook can influence an actual B2B relationship.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 3 Discussion
There are several global market entry options. Select one that you think is a particularly good strategy for a local company from which you regularly make purchases. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of your selected entry strategy if the company were to expand internationally. In your response to another student, discuss why you agree or disagree with their selected strategy.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 4 Discussion
As you have learned, communication strategies and message content differ between business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-customer (B2C) organizations. Provide an example of a product you use in your daily life that represents the B2C side. From there, include a discussion about how this product is being promoted (marketing communications). Is this marketing effective? Why, or why not?
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 5 Discussion
Think of a company that you believe is truly innovative in its approach to overall operations. This can be through their product or service offerings, pricing structure, promotional strategy, and/or distribution strategy. For this discussion, it can be a business-to-customer (B2C) or a business-to-business (B2B) organization. Begin your post with a brief description. Explain your rationale with respect to why you believe they are truly innovative.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 6 Discussion
Think about a business-to-business (B2B) or business-to-customer (B2C) company that you believe uses an efficient distribution system. Begin your post with a brief description of the company (other than Amazon), and then explain your rationale for this company demonstrating an efficient distribution system.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 7 Discussion
Think of an example in your life that either supports or does not support the following statement: Satisfied customers are less price sensitive. Share your answer, and explain why you support it.
MKT5305 Business to Business Marketing
Unit 8 Discussion
How will you be able to apply the marketing concepts you learned in this class to gain life and/or career success?
