HND/HNC paper sample – Marketing Plan for New Product Launch

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Executive Summary

ZSneakers is a shoe company known for their breathable technology, comfortable, affordable, and lightweight designs that have been common amongst youngsters, particularly the ‘Gen Z’, since half a decade. ZSneakers is now launching a new product range for children’s shoes, Full Air, especially designed to focus on the comfort of school-going kids at an affordable price. After extensive research of the market, we have identified the demand for kids’ athletic shoes. Since we are a brand driven by the aim to satisfy our customers, we have come up with high-quality shoes for kids designed using advanced cushioning technology to provide maximum support and protection during excessive physical activity.

As we know that school-going kids engage in daily activities such as walking, running, playing, exercising, cycling, and others, our focus with this product is to give kids a one-solution-for-all shoe that they can use in their everyday life. The Full Air shoe will be available in most of the Western European markets and online. The business model includes a strong online presence with one-day delivery and try-before-you-buy options. The aim is to establish a customer base in areas where the brand has already been excelling and then gain a greater market share with the right marketing strategy. The vision of the company is to serve the community with sustainable products and affordable designs without compromising the quality. The Full Air shoe’s affordability, variety of designs, and advanced technology gives it an edge over its competitors in the Western European market.

Situation Analysis

The global kids’ footwear industry has seen significant growth over the last decade. The market faced a downfall in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, however, 2022 onwards there has been a significant boost seen and it is expected to rise. The global kids’ footwear market is valued at USD 46.75 billion in 2022 and is expected to grow with a CAGR of 8.2% in the next 10 years. The Western European market has recorded a huge demand for kids’ footwear including school shoes, sportswear, sandals, boots, slippers, etc. Several new kids’ footwear products and designs have been launched under exclusive designer labels. Recently, there is also a noticeable increase in new trends for kids’ footwear including more fashion shows, exhibitions, and influencer marketing.

The Western European market is mainly segmented into branded shops, departmental stores, and online stores. E-commerce in particular has contributed to the rise of sales and overall market growth. A change in consumer preferences has also been observed towards branded footwear for children. Many high-end brands such as Nike, Adidas, and Puma have separate sections for kids’ footwear. Other big players in the market are Primigi, Geox, Cienta, and Clarks. Consumer demands and preferences are rapidly changing given the influence of mass media, entertainment, and fashion world. At this stage, it is crucial for brands to continuously innovate and introduce new designs to retain in the market. The competition is also growing as many medium-scaled brands are able to provide the same technology shoes as Nike but at reasonable prices. Such brands have captured the attention of the consumers, especially in the kids’ footwear market, as consumers don’t want to spend extensively for a product their child can very quickly outgrow. This is why players like Nike or Adidas do not rely on their kids collection.

The opening of new hypermarkets and stores has allowed more brand visibility for new companies. Many European brands that are only dedicated to kids’ footwear focus on products that promote healthy foot development. These brands are more preferred by consumers than high-end fashion brands when it comes to kids’ shoes. They use high-quality material, soft lining, and lightweight technology to provide the ultimate shoe support for children and to avoid micro-shocks while walking or running that can hinder the child’s development. Moreover, most of the kids’ shoes are manufactured in Europe under the highest quality standards to ensure kids’ healthy growth and development, rather than just producing a fashion product. This is what the parents want for their kids and such brands are more successful in selling kids’ shoes than Nike or Adidas.

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Marketing Objectives

ZSneakers has set SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, time-bound) marketing objectives for the product launch of the Full Air shoe for kids. While Full Air will be launched in-store and online, the specific goal is to help the brand grow online and increase its sales revenue from its website. This will be done by driving more traffic to the blog and influencer marketing.

The measurable goal for the product launch is to achieve 50% more traffic on our website with 10 new blog posts every week, 20 social media posts every month, and 5 paid posts by influencers every month. The attainable goal is to increase online traffic. It is realistic and achievable as the brand is already established. A little boost in marketing will help achieve the goal of creating a bigger online presence. The relevance of the goal of greater online presence is to be able to reach and capture a bigger market share. With online sales, the brand can reach out to more customers geographically than by physical stores. Also, the Western Europe e-commerce market is flourishing and in order for the business to come on the map with other competitors, it is important to boost online sales. The marketing objectives are time-bound as the company plans to achieve the goals by the first six months of the launch.

While the marketing objective is specifically to increase more online sales, the Full Air kids shoe range will be available in ZSneakers stores and will be stocked in major departmental stores. The main goal is to acquire the consumer market by giving them a product that serves what every high-end brand would but in reasonable prices. After the rigorous marketing in the first half of the year for online sales, the second half will be focused on boosting both online and in-store sales.

Target Audience

While the end users are the kids, the target audience for the Full Air kids shoe range is the parents that typically fall under the age bracket of 25-40 males and females both. This is the target audience that will look for the product and take the decision to buy it. Both the parents are the target audience as they can be looking for athletic shoes for their young and school-going kids. The Full Air kids shoe targets the working class and middle class households that are not going to spend a hefty amount on high-end brands. The product is for those kids who are in a growing age, who are old enough to pick their favorite design of shoe, and need comfort to help them walk or run freely.

The parents of young kids have a certain buying behavior. They are looking for affordable yet durable designs that their kids won’t end up damaging. Since kids aged 5-12 are physically active and usually play in playgrounds or cycle around, parents want shoes that are durable and long-lasting while being comfortable. The Full Air shoe also has advanced cushioning technology and is made of lightweight material to reduce the weight of the shoe without affecting its performance.

Since ZSneakers have already established their brand image and targets people aged 25-35 years old, the new product can reach existing customers who are already using and are aware of the quality and durability of ZSneakers. Many of these customers may be parents and would chose their trusted brand for their children as well. Full Air shoes target kids from 5-12 years of age and hence, they are also the target audience for whom the product design is especially crafted. The kids can select the color and design of their shoe for themselves and so the Full Air shoe comes with a variety of colors, including prints, themed designs, and also solid colors to pick from. These designs use vibrant colors to attract the kids.

Marketing Mix

Product: The Full Air is an athletic shoe range made for young kids aged 5-12 years old. The shoe range uses breathable, lightweight, and advanced cushioning technology with comfort and high-quality manufacturing. This technology gives maximum impact protection and the cushioning absorbs impact forces to protect muscles and joints during physical activity. The product uses the same technology for kids’ footwear used by high-end brands such as Nike and Adidas. However, it is affordable so that parents don’t have to buy a shoe again and again for their children who quickly overgrow footwear. The shoe comes in a variety of designs and colors to attract the kids and give them a fun fashion taste. The product is also highly durable which is beneficial for kids as they can use it for playing, running, cycling or any other physically activity without worrying about its durability. The shoe is made from lightweight material that makes this shoe ideal for playing as well as everyday school wear. The Full Air shoe is also easily cleanable and machine washable. The product is manufactured in Europe according to the European standards to maintain kids’ health and development.

Price: The Full Air shoe price range comes between USD $20-48. The pricing depends on the design, technology, and model of the shoe. The most pricey Full Air shoe is marked at $48. Some designs are based on limited edition series and so they are priced higher. However, the consumer can buy a basic Full Air shoe for $20 offering advanced technology cushioning, sturdy design, and comfort.

The pricing for the Full Air shoe range is decided keeping the competitors’ in mind. The kids’ footwear range at high-end brands like Nike and Adidas start at $60 and go up to $130. Other ‘middle-end’ brands such as Clarks offer a price range starting from $20 and goes up to $60. ZSneakers is a middle-end brand and thus the pricing strategy is competitive to have an edge in the market. The Full Air shoe range will also introduce special online discount to promote the online sales and other seasonal discounts such as 4th of July sale and long-weekend sale to attract customers. However, these offers will be promoted after the first six months of product launch.

Place: The Full Air shoe will be available in-stores and online. ZSneakers has 3 outlets and we stock in 22 departmental stores across Western Europe. The new range of kids’ footwear, Full Air, will be available in all stores and will be available in departmental stores as well as these are the places where families come to shop. The online store, the website for ZSneakers, will have a separate section introducing the new product range. The website will include all designs and models available with a user-friendly interface for consumers to easily shop. Moreover, the website offers free delivery for the first 6 months of the product launch and try-before-you-buy service where consumers can order 2 sizes and try them on their doorstep before buying. ZSneakers also uses some third party sellers for their online sales.

Promotion: The promotional tactics for the launch of Full Air will focus mostly on lead generation, influencer marketing and social media marketing as the focus is on increasing online sales and revenue for the brand. The promotions will start two weeks prior to the launch of the product using influencer marketing. Social media marketing will start prior to the launch as well. Other traditional marketing tactics that will be used are in-store banners and standees and email campaign. ZSneakers will focus on online promotions in order to reach to the target audience. The content and timing of the promotions are finalized by a special team hired to ensure competitive marketing strategies and how to reach the right audience at the right time.

Implementation Plan

Now that the marketing strategy, target audience, and situational analysis is done, it is now time to create the implementation plan. The implementation plan includes the resources, people, structure and systems to put the plan in action. ZSneakers has a team of 22 people working on this product launch. The planning and execution will be conducted using in-house resources. The specific actions that will be taken in chronological order are:

• 2 weeks prior to launch: Introduce the product through online marketing, post prepared content for audience at intervals
• 1 week prior to launch: Place in-store banners and standees and launch email marketing campaign to existing customers’ database to start the buzz of the product
• Launch day: Marketing, manufacturing, and sales team comes together to ensure smooth operations
• Launch day: Customer service team is actively present for all customer queries
• Post launch: Marketing team continues to put the promotional strategies in action

The following is a roadmap to the marketing activities:

The teams have been provided with all administration and logistics requirements beforehand. While there is a new team hired, there are also senior members from ZSneakers marketing and creative team who are aware of how the consumers respond to the brand. The marketing team of ZSneakers has helped in brand recognition and awareness for the new product launch.

Since ZSneakers has been a successful brand with their current products and are serving for about 5 years, the structure of the organization remains the same. However, the systems and culture need an upliftment as kids’ footwear requires specialized resources who understand the needs of parents and their buying behavior. Since the kid himself is not our buyer, the marketing team has to ensure that the consumer behavior is studied and findings are applied to the implementation plan.

Evaluation and Control

The success of the monitoring plan will be monitored and evaluated using several tools and metrics. This will include both quantitative and qualitative measures. The quantitative measures will include the Return on Investment, sales numbers, marketing reach expansion, traffic on website, and overall numbers. Qualitative measures will include customer response and reactions, consumer feedback, and competitor analysis. Tracking tools and performance metrics such as Google Analytics will be used to monitor the trends and numbers.

There will be rigorous monitoring for the first month of the product launch to evaluate the consumer reactions, success of promotional strategies, etc. If the first month shows undesirable results, the contingency plans will be activated, which include more rigorous promotions using mass media such as TV, billboards, and newspapers.

Constant monitoring and quality assurance for goods and service will be carried out by a specialized team. This team has been hired especially for this product launch to assure quality control from production, manufacturing, to the end service. Every step of the marketing plan will undergo quality control and monitoring. Once the monitoring team approves, only then will the team move on to the next step. With such regular checks, there is less chance of error and any changes can be made at that step immediately. This method reduces the risk of failure. The monitoring and evaluation committee has been set up through the planning to the implementation and execution phase.