Walkers
...ck remain fairly static, all other sectors are in growth in particular the more niche categories such as tortillas. Marketing Information (suppliers) The crisp market is valued at £1.77 billion. Over 12 billion packet of crisps are eaten each year 98% of households regularly purchase them Crisps rate of sale is generally 2 or 3 times greater than other categories Crisps have higher profit margin than soft drinks, confectionary and grocery items at 30%plus. The crisps market is showing growth at +8.7 % Walkers dominate the crisps market with 77% of the value share Walkers and P&G are the only players to be showing growth Key brands are driving growth are; Walkers crisp, McCoys (Max & Sensations) MARKETING SEGMENTS A market consists of all the potential customers sharing a particular need or want who might be willing and able to engage in exchange to satisfy that need or want. Thus the size of the market depends upon the number of persons who exhibit the need, have the resources that interests others, and are willing to exchange these resources in exchange for what they want. This quote from Kotler explains briefly that you need a market that has potential customers that may be interested in what you have to offer and may actually satisfy the segments needs There are many segments within the crisps market. Walkers have tried to cover all of the segments within the market so they can obtain a greater market share and keep predominately in control. Unlike other companies that specifically target different segments of the market, Walkers have managed to gain the interest of virtually all segments within the market due to the variety of crisps they have on offer. Walkers originals main segments are; working class, lower middle class and lowest level. This is owing to the fact walkers originals are a low cost alternative to other crisps including some of walkers other more expensive brands, yet they still provide the same high quality expected. MARKET ENVIRONMENT (P.E.S.T FACTORS) Political Factors Political factors include government regulations and legal issues and define both formal and informal rules under which the firm must operate. Some examples include: Tax policy Employment laws Environmental regulations Trade restrictions and tariffs These are all potential factors that could have an effect on Walkers crisps at present or in the future. Environment regulations could be an issue with packaging as walkers crisps material is not recyclable. Economic Factors Economic factors affect the purchasing power of potential customers and the companies capital. The following are examples of factors in the macro economy: economic growth interest rates exchange rates inflation rate Social Factors Social factors include the demographic and cultural aspects of the external Macro environment. These factors affect customer needs and the size of potential markets. Some social factors include: Heath cautious Population growth rate Age distribution Technological Factors Technological factors can lower barriers to entry, reduce minimum efficient production levels, and influence outsourcing decisions. Some technological factors include: R&D activity automation technology incentives rate of technological change SWOT ANAYLIS STRENGHT: Walkers strength is the size and its position in the market; they are the biggest selling brand in the UK at present. With the high growth with in the market they have been able to expand there brand and launch new products through out the years. WEAKNESS Its weakness is the involvement of sponsoring sports whilst promoting unhealthy crisps. This has been a recent problem that has occurred and could be potentially damaging in the future towards the brand image and name. OPPORTUNITY Walkers opportunity is to anticipate the future trends and to take advantage by introducing healthier crisps in to the snack market. THREATS Walkers have remained the top brand in UK for some time defeating its main competitors Golden Wonder and KP crisps. But Golden Wonders are now at a stage where they have a lot of money to re launch themselves and they intend on doing this by making adverts that make fun of walkers crisps; this is due to the fact that walkers changed the colour of cheese & onion original theme colour which was originally green but walkers changed it to blue. MARKETING THE CRISPS USING THE FOUR PS Using the four Ps I will explain the marketing mix. They are the following: Product Price Place Promotion PRODUCT Walkers Crisps have many other products other than walkers original. There are over 21 different brands of crisps that walkers have in the snack market. They are the following: Walkers original Walker Doritos Walkers Max Walkers French Fries Walkers lites Walkers shots Walkers 3d Walkers Dippa Walkers Monster Munch Walkers Square Walkers Wotsits Walkers Sensations Walkers Quavers The top brands out of the lists are Walkers Doritos, newly introduced Walkers Sensations and also Walkers Cheesy Wotsits. Walkers Doritos These crisp are Doritos and are used mainly for dips. But Walkers took it a step further and have introduced 3 different flavours as well as supplying sauces to dip them in. Instead of having the same bring flavour Walkers give you the option of three different flavours which are: Cool Original Extreme Chilli Heatwave Tangy Cheese Walker Sensations Walkers Sensations are 'Posh Crisps' from Walkers. They are an everyday treat, specially prepared crunchier crisps which are available in a range of indulgent flavours. There are seven flavours available they are: Four Cheese & Red Onion, Sea Salt & Cracked Black Pepper, Oven Roasted Chicken & Thyme, Thai Sweet Chilli, Roast Lamb & Mint and Tangy Tomato and Red pepper Salsa Sea Salt & Malt Vinegar. Walkers sensation is for those who prefer something a little different and of higher quality which is shown dramatically in their television adverts by using celebrities such as Victoria Beckham. Walkers wanted Sensations to be noticed as Posh crisps Walkers Cheesy Wotsits Cheesy Wotsits are a firm favourite with the kids. Its another product that is high in sales and is a huge success for walkers. This product used to belong to Walkers rivals (Golden Wonder) but was bought of them in 1998. PRICE Price is the specifications of the product e.g. characteristics, quality, performance, standards etc., this will be greatly influenced by the price being set. E.g. if the price is higher you then expect more for your money. This is common sense, if you are a customer paying lots of money you expect a high standard of service and quality facilities. The prices of walkers crisps are acceptable compared to other crisps companies with in the market. If they were too high we would cut our selves short. The prices are more for the higher quality crisps e.g. Walkers Sensations. PLACE With the product and price elements there are many alternative ways of making a product available to customer. This might be directly from the manufacturer or indirectly from the middleman or the wholesaler or retailer. Supermarkets (customers can purchase there potato crisps through supermarkets, newsagents,) Pubs, Sandwich shops (Customers can also buy them from pubs and Sandwich shops who will be supplying for the customers interests s...