Marketing Strategy

1. Martha and the Trap-Ease America investors feel they face a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. What information do they need to evaluate this opportunity? How do you think the group would write its mission statement? How would you write it?

In order for the company to fully realize the potential of their product, they must formulate a strategic plan that incorporates the organization's goals and capabilities with its changing market opportunities. In order to do so, internal and external information must be evaluated and integrated. Internally, Trap-Ease America must ask itself: What is our business? Just mice traps or something more? What are our objectives that guide our short term and long term plans? Profit or market share? Sales quantity or quality? In regards to physical, human, financial and organization capital, what are our resource-based capabilities and constraints? What do investors want? From management perspective, what's realistic in what time frame? Externally, Trap-Ease must examine the threats and opportunities of the uncontrollable marketing environment to which it must adapt. Market information regarding existing competitors, available suppliers and intermediaries must be analyzed in context with the macroeconomic environment. What other companies sell mouse traps? What type of products are they selling with what marketing mix? With regards to this competition, can Trap-Ease pursue a market leader or market challenger stance? Demography and economics, technology and nature, society and culture, politics and law - these environmental factors affecting the company's marketing process, in turn, determine the feasible marketing mix and target market. External information regarding these target consumers' needs, wants and incomes must be matched with what the company can internally offer.

Currently it seems that the company is more product-focused than market-focused. Therefore, Trap-Ease

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