Strategic Marketing Problems Case Study || Are the Sun Chips multi-grain snacks a sustainable new product addition to the Frito-Lay product line

QUESTION:

Are the Sun Chips multi-grain snacks a sustainable new product addition to the Frito-Lay product line

Course Textbook

Kerin, R., & Peterson, R. (2013). Strategic marketing problems: Cases and comments (13th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Respond to the following questions with thorough explanations and well-supported rationale.

Read the case studies on pages 192-209 of your textbook. Once you have read and reviewed the case scenario, respond to the following questions with thorough explanations and well-supported rationale.

1. To what degree does the product align with the current trend of healthy living? How does the family life cycle work into the discussion?

2. What is involved with successful branding? Explain how solid brand management and positioning would impact this product.

3. Based upon your assessment, has Frito Lay identified the most appropriate target market? Include your rationale. Would you suggest an alternative or additional target market?

4. Are the Sun Chips multi-grain snacks a sustainable new product addition to the Frito-Lay product line? Think about whether it aligns with Frito Lay’s overall product-marketing strategies. Include some level of discussion on the competition and industry.

ANSWER:

Strategic Marketing Problems Case Study

Sun Chips Company prioritizes in offering healthier snacks to the consumers and prides itself on having high values which respect the society. The business became very popular when it launched as many people preferred their meals. The product aligned significantly to the trend of healthy living and Frito-Lay realized the need of being environmentally friendly. Sun chips as a brand served as a perfect example to capitalize on the trends of creating a friendly environment. The number of consumers increased substantially over the years signifying how the products affected people’s lives. Moreover, more people become concerned about the environment which offered a platform for the company to continue expanding the active culture. Furthermore, the business also is built on another element such as talent sustainability, environmental sustainability, and human sustainability.

Firstly, the talent sustainability primary intention is providing an inclusive and safe environment through respecting, investing, and supporting the communities living within the operation of the business. It shows that the company has significant concerns for the employees through creating a healthy environment for them to work efficiently and looking at their well-being (Kerin& Peterson, 2013). The focus on human sustainability mainly is demonstrated through the beverages and foods that people usually treated. The primary intention of the business, therefore, comes through offering the consumers with foods rich in nutrition value and also managing them on their convenience.   The company also ensures human sustainability through providing healthy snacks to all the customers purchasing food from the different distribution points. The firm keeps all the health factors in the snacks which distinguish them from other snacks from competing companies. The business finds innovative ways of minimizing costs through environmental conservation and water conservation.

The family life cycle entails the intellectual and emotional stages ones pass through from childhood until retirement. The person usually faces different challenges which help them in gaining new skills necessary in life. The steps normally involve ups and down which proves challenging to most people and the same applies when it comes to the operation of the business.  The company undergoes struggles financially, management issues, and in some cases, employees related problems (Kerin& Peterson, 2013).  The company learns through these stages which make them adopt strong policies to improve the performance of their performance. The family life stages commonly include illness, the death of close friend, and financial problems. People learn through passing in these steps which make them develop different skills critical for their development.

Branding normally is essential for the success of the business through helping in distinguishing the products offered from those of competing firm. Successful branding would entail defining the customers the company regularly seeks to target. Furthermore, the business should study the customers which would help in getting information about their demography and knowing what they expect from the firm. The company should also provide consistent positioning which explains the unique values offered and the benefits one gains from the business (Dessler, 2015).  Reliable brand positioning and management would affect the product through effectively addressing the needs of the customers achieved through effective communication of what the customers require. Moreover, it helps in creating competitive pressures through identifying the products the company deals with and how different they are from those of competing firms. The use of promotion strategy helps in consumer promotion through offering a retail store of the snacks. The plan also includes placing flavors besides others meals mostly the salty ones thus enabling the customers to buy them together.

The target market identified is more appropriate since it concentrates on the products located alongside their complements and not the substitute products. Frito-Lays make the customers associate themselves with the products offered by the company. The pricing of the goods is higher due to the need for more ingredients and time for preparation. I would also suggest the company to adopt additional target market since their snacks would attract more customers. The evidence about how appropriate the target market demonstrated through the profitability of the products.

 Sun Chips multigrain snacks have proven sustainable to add the product line of Frito Lay since it’s a result of program development and the research done on the market. The snacks also concur with the company’s marketing strategies since they offered in different sizes and flavors. Moreover, the snacks have distinctive graphics which frequently represent the approach used in pricing the company’s products and the image. The features under consideration should cater for the preference of the consumers especially when it comes to pricing. The distribution strategies usually entail using delivery of door and selling through convenience stores of the products. The marketing strategies thus are in line and would require purchasing of the grocery stores and other supermarket stores that already deals with the snacks. Most of the effort would thus involve making sure that the strategies reach as many customers as possible which would increase the sells levels and improve the profitability of the business. Most of the strategies would also help in reaching to more customers through targeting all the target audience.

References

Kerin, R., & Peterson, R. (2013). Strategic marketing problems: Cases and comments (13th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Dessler, G. (2015). Human resource management (14th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: PearsonEducation