Marketing Strategies of Meghna Group of Industries Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder free essay sample

Marketing Strategies of Meghna Group of Industries : Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder BACKGROUND During the early seventies, the supply situation of essential commodities in Bangladesh was in turmoil. Such an uncertain situation prompted Mr. Mostafa Kamal to be in the business. He established trading companies and organized countrywide distribution chain. Gradually he got himself involved in more risky ventures of import trade in the early eighties. His companies participated in the bulk trade of essential commodities of everyday need, like wheat, sugar, refined edible oils, milk, peas, lentils etc. As the economy of the country is based mainly on agriculture, he felt the necessity to develop food processing industry that would help reduce import dependency of the country. So he established edible oil refineries to produce refined palm and soybean oil locally. He then established his first industrial unit – Meghna Vegetable Oil Industries Ltd. , in 1990. Gradually he developed and established other food and edible oil processing industries one after another in quick succession. This has now turned to a fast growing industrial conglomerate named as Meghna Group of Industries under the able leadership of its Chairman and Managing Director Mr. Mostafa Kamal. The   group produces most essential commodities like Cement, Milk Powder, Soybean Oil, Palm Oil,  Sugar, Mustard Oil, Coconut Oil, Natural Flour (Atta), Refined Flour (Maida), Semolina (Suji), Salt, Spices, Dalda, Margarine (Ghee), Mineral Water, Tea, Poultry and Fish Feeds, P. P. Woven Bag, Duplex board, Liner paper etc. in its own industrial park, located at Meghnaghat, Sonargaon, Narayangonj. It also has a large trading wing engaged in bulk trade of commodities and chemicals such as Wheat, Corn, Sugar, Dun Peas, Chick Peas, Yellow Peas, Rape Seeds, Mustard Seeds, PP Resin, Pet Chips, Soda Ash Light, Caustic Soda Solid/Flakes, Tallow, Oleic Acid and many other raw materials for use in its industries. The Group has its own Power Plant of 60 MW capacity to meet its power requirement. The group has about ten thousand (10000) permanent casual employees. Its annual turnover is approximately TK. 4000 crore (around US$ 600. 00 Million). The Board of Directors comprises the following personalities: Mr. Mostafa Kamal Chairman Managing Director Ms. Beauty Akhter Director Miss. Tahmina Binthe Mostafa Director Miss. Tanjima Binthe Mostafa Director For the uncompromising product quality and strong management policy most of the industrial units of the Meghna Group have been awarded ISO 9001:2000 certification. The group has been awarded the Nawab Sir Salimullah Gold Medal and also awarded the International Star Award for Quality (ISAQ) in Gold Category by BID (Business Initiative Directions) in Geneva in October, 2005 for commitment to Quality and Excellence. BID based in Spain has also awarded the Group with World Quality Commitment Award in Platinum Category in Paris, 2006 and Quality Summit Award in Diamond Category in New York, 2007 for outstanding performance in Quality Commitment and industrialization. MISSION The mission of Meghna Group of Industries is, â€Å"We want to be recognized as a market leader of world class consumer product manufacturers in Bangladesh by providing efficient marketing force and consumer satisfaction in order to contribute much to the industrialization and development of the socio-economic condition of Bangladesh. † OBJECTIVES To create a position in the market and sustain there, Meghna has established clear and distinctive objectives. ? Create a good portion of satisfied consumer market and sustain the customer lifetime value. ? Find new segments and achieve success in it. Expand the distribution network to make products available at customer doorstep. BUSINESS PORTFOLIO The collection of businesses and products that makes up the company is called the business portfolio. The best business portfolio is the one that best fits the company’s strengths and weaknesses to opportunities in the environment. THE PRODUCT LINE The Meghna Group of Industries co mprises the following units: Consumer Goods: †¢ Tanveer Dal Mill Flour Mills Ltd. †¢ Meghna Tea Company. †¢ Tanveer Mustard Oil Mill And Coconut Oil Mills Ltd. †¢ United Sugar Mills Ltd. †¢ United Edible Oils Ltd United Mineral Water PET Industries Ltd. †¢ United Salt Industries Ltd. †¢ Tanveer Oils Ltd. †¢ Tanveer Food Ltd. †¢ Janata Flour Dal Mills Ltd. Cement: †¢ Unique Cement Industries Ltd. Paper: †¢ Tanveer Paper Mills Ltd. Packaging Printing: †¢ M. M. Printing Packaging Co. Ltd. †¢ United Fibre Industries Ltd. †¢ Tanveer Polymer Industries Ltd. Power Electricity: †¢ Unique Power Plant Ltd. †¢ Everest Power Generation Co. Ltd. Poultry Fish Feed: †¢ United Feeds Ltd. Steel: †¢ Tanveer Steel Mills Ltd. Shipping, Logistics Transport: †¢ Mercantile Shipping Lines Ltd. †¢ G. Shipping Lines Ltd. United Shipping Lines. †¢ United Dockyard Ship Builders. Housing: †¢ Me ghna Properties Ltd. Others: †¢ Kamal Trading Co. †¢ Kamal Imports Exports Ltd. †¢ Everest CNG Refueling Conversion Ltd. STRATEGIC BUSINESS UNIT A SBU is a unit of the company that has a separate mission and objectives and that can be planned independently from the other businesses. An SBU can be a company division, a product line within a division, or sometimes a single product or brand. SBU’s for Meghna Group of Industries Consumer Goods Cement Paper Packaging Printing Power Electricity Poultry Fish Feed Steel Shipping, Logistics Transport Housing Others Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder Tanveer Food Ltd. is a major venture of the Meghna Group of Industries. Its Fresh brand of Full Cream Powder Milk is one of the most utilized milk available in the country. MARKETING MIX : The four Ps are the parameters that the marketing manager can control, subject to the internal and external constraints of the marketing environment. The goal is to make decisions that center the four Ps on the customers in the target market in order to create perceived value and generate a positive response. PRODUCT : Fresh milk is made from 100% pure fresh cow milk, imported from Australia and UK. All stages of the processing of Fresh milk are independently checked and certified by the Department of Agriculture regarding quality and radio activity before exporting to Bangladesh. Fresh milk contains high level of vitamins and protein. The plant produces 6000 MT milk powder each year. |Appropriate Analysis | |Milk Fat |28. % | |Protein |27. 5% | |Lactose |37. 05% | |Minerals |5. 5% | |Moisture |2. 05% | Packing Sizes |Packs per Carton | |2 Kg Foil Pack |6 Packs | |1 Kg Foil Pack |12 Packs | |500 gm Foil Pack |24 Packs | |400 gm Foil Pack |24 Packs | |225 gm Foil Pack 36 Packs | |80 gm Foil Pack |100 Packs | |25 gm Foil Pack |240 Packs | Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder is basically a convenience product because people usually purchase milk powder regularly as an alternative to cow milk. There are some other brands of milk powders. While people purchase milk powder they usually do not take much time to make comparison between these brands. Manufacturers of Fresh milk powder have set their price at an affordable level for consumers. The following characteristics are fulfilling the requirement of HABITUAL BUYING BEHAVIOR. 1. Since its introduction, Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder has been a popular milk powder for the target consumers because of its improved features and benefits at lower prices. It has been frequently purchased by the consumers as if it is their habitual activitiy to consume it. 2. Compared to its competitors Fresh milk powder charges lower price while retaining a good quality. 3. At first, Fresh milk powder distributed its product within the urban mega cities, now it has extended its market in remote towns in Bangladesh as well. 4. Fresh milk powder has promoted its product through different media from newspaper to television by advertising its product’s feautures and virtues. So we would like to say that people show Habitual Buying Behavior while they purchase Fresh milk powder. Levels of the product: Core benefit : Core benefit of Fresh milk powder is that it provides us with a healthy replacement for cow milk and gives us the good taste of milk which relates to the original taste of our pure cow milk. In short, it makes the foods we make from powder milk delicious. Actual product : Actual product is the brand name Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder, which is a sister concern of Meghna Group of Industries. Also the packaging and quality is supported by latest refining techniques. The actual product is the quality, packaging and the ingredients of the product itself. Augmented features of the product : The augmented part of the product is that Fresh milk powder is a milk powder with high levels of protein, minerals and vitamins that will help consumers with sufficient food values as well as maintaining the taste of pure milk. It also comes in different pack sizes for the benefit of the customers. Brand Development: Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder belongs to Tanveer Food Ltd. of Meghna Group of Industries which is a private brand company. It falls into the brand extension category in the brand development chart because it is a new product category under an existing brand name. | | | |PRODUCT CATEGORY | | | | | | | | |EXISTING |NEW | |BRAND NAME | | | | | | | | | | |EXISTING |Line extension |Brand Extension | | | | | | | |NEW |Multi Brand |New Brand | PRICE : Price is the amount of money customers have to pay to obtain the product. Price of product is the only el ement of product which earns revenue for the company. Some examples of pricing decisions to be made include: Dynamic pricing, Internal factors such as, marketing objectives, marketing mix strategy, organizational considerations; External factors such as, the market and demand, price elasticity of demand, competitor’s cost prices and offers. We then have to take a general pricing approach which includes: Cost-Based Pricing, Break-Even Analysis and Target Profit Pricing, Value-Based Pricing and Competition-Based Pricing. When Fresh milk powder was introduced the market was filled with fierce competitors. So, the producers primilinarily charged low price for their product to survive in the market. This enabled them to obtain a strong market share. Following are the prices of Fresh milk powder in different pack sizes, and the comparison between the price of Fresh and the competitors products. |Pack Size |Price | |1 Kg |Tk. 90 | |500 gm |Tk. 200 | |400 gm |Tk. 180 | |75 gm |Tk. 35 | |25 gm |Tk. 15 | A. Prices of Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder in different pack sizes Brand Name |Pack Size |Price | |Dano |400 gm |Tk. 215 | |Nido |400 gm |Tk. 200 | |Diploma |400 gm |Tk. 185 | |Fresh |400 gm |Tk. 180 | B. Comparison in prices between the competitors’ products and Fresh milk powder As we can see from the charts above, Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder is more desirable to target consumers for its lower price than competitors. Fresh has carefully set its price so that it maintains consistency with its marketing mix. By putting the expenditures and drawbacks while designing the product, promoting and distributing on account it has charged a convenient price by comparing its price to the ones set by the competitors. Thus it is easy to understand that they have used the Competition-based Pricing. PLACE/DISTRIBUTION : Distribution is about getting the products to the customer. Some examples of distribution decisions include: Distribution channels, Market coverage (inclusive, selective, or exclusive distribution), Specific channel members, Inventory management, Warehousing, Distribution centers, Order processing, Transportation, Reverse logistics. Fresh milk powder is available in confectionary shops, general stores and departmental stores in different cities of Bangladesh. The company uses varites of distribution channels to send their commodities to consumers. For mass distribution they have established their own outlets in every division and subdivisions of Bangladesh so that the final consumers as well as retailers will be able to get Fresh milk powder as per their necessity. Channel Levels : Fresh milk powder is well known for its wide spread distribution channel. All of its distributing activities are conducted through indirect marketing channels. Following are the different market channels through which Fresh milk powder is distributedits to final consumers. A. Consumer marketing channels : Channel 1 : PRODUCER>CONSUMER Channel 2 : PRODUCER>RETAILER>CONSUMER Channel 3 : PRODUCER>WHOLESALER>RETAILER>CONSUMER B. Business marketing channels : Channel 1 : PRODUCER>BUSINESS CUSTOMER Channel 2 : PRODUCER>BUSINESS DISTRIBUTOR>BUSINESS CUSTOMER Channel 3: PRODUCER>MANUFACTURER’S REPRESENTATIVES OR SALES BRANCH> BUSINESS DISTRIBUTOR > BUSINESS CUSTOMER PROMOTION : In the context of the marketing mix, promotion represents the various aspects of market communication, that is, the communication of information about the product with the goal of generating a positive customer response. Marketing promotion activities include: Promotional strategy (push, pull, etc. ), Advertising, Personal selling sales force, Sales promotions, Public relations publicity, Marketing communications budget. Promotional activities are activities that communicate the merits of the product and persuade target customers to buy. Marketing strategy should maintain or improve both the consumer’s and the society’s welfare. Fresh milk powder is advertised in various channels of Bangladesh, including newspapers, magazines etc. They point out the benefits and taste to catch the attention of the consumer. Advertising objectives: Fresh milk powder follows certain advertising objectives to accomplish its promotional activities: †¢ Should get attention of the audience †¢ Should reveal message †¢ Should arouse desire †¢ Should present the benefits of the product †¢ Should present the difference in price and quality with its competing products. The slogan of Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder to communicate its product is : â€Å"FRESH MILK FRESH MILK SHAADE SHERA†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦which highlights the quality in taste of the product. Media: The marketers use television advertisements, radio advertisements, billboards and holdings in retail shops to advertise their products. To encourage the purchase of Fresh milk powder the marketers use coupons, price packs. It also co-sponsors nationwide television shows for their promotion. SEGMENTATION STRATEGY : â€Å"Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder† is a consumer product. For that reason Tanveer Food Ltd. uses the consumer market segmentation variables to segment the market of â€Å"Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder†. More specifically Tanveer Food Ltd. uses the following segmentation strategies for segmenting the product. GEOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION : Tanveer Food Ltd. has used the geographical segmentation for their product â€Å"Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder†, based on different regions. In the rural area, people have regular access to fresh cow and goat milk. But it is not readily available in abundance in the urban area. So, Fresh milk powder has been introduced as a credible replacement for cow milk. Its high level of milk fat, protein, vitamins and other food values provide sufficient energy as well as maintaining natural taste. DEMOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION : Fresh milk powder is also segmented on the basis of demographic variables, such as, age group, family life cycle, income etc. Age Segmentation : Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder is not suitable for kids under the age of 1 years old. As we know that there is no alternative to mother’s milk for children under the age of 1 year. So, Fresh milk powder targeted only the people above the age of 1 year. Family Life Cycle Segmentation : Fresh milk powder is segmented on the basis of family life cycle. For example, the working class families, where the mothers and other household people generally work outside and don’t have enough time, they can use Fresh milk powder to use in their daily consumption of tea, milk and other food items made by milk. Income : Fresh milk powder is segmented on the basis of income. All the people don’t have the same kind of income capabilities. For that reason, Fresh has introduced different pack sizes ranging from 25 gm foil packs to 2 kg foil packs. PSYCHOGRAPHIC SEGMENTATION : Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder is segmented on the basis of personality. Many people buy products for the brand name. Under a reputed brand name, Fresh milk powder is a popular choice for men and women alike. BEHAVIORAL SEGMENTATION : Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder can also be segmented on the basis of behavioral variables, such as, occasions, benefit sought etc. Occasions : During Eid, Christmas and other festivals or special occasions, Fresh milk powder provides a suitable alternative to cow milk for making different traditional sweet food items, like, custards, pies etc. Benefit Sought : Fresh milk powder also divides its markets in terms of different benefits the customers seek in their product. Following are their segmentations based on benefit sought by customers. (a) Fresh milk powder contains high level of proteins, vitamins and minerals. This helps kids to grow stronger as well as providing proper food values to every user. For this reason, people preferring more proteins and vitamins prefer Fresh milk powder. (b) Diabetic patients living in the urban area have only two alternatives for milk; powder milk and condensed milk. As condensed milk contains plenty of sugar, it is not advisable for diabetic patients. So, for them, milk powder is the only option and more specifically Fresh milk powder as it provides a good balance of food values. TARGET MARKETING STRATEGY : To cover the whole targeted market, Fresh has introduced different pack sizes in the market. So, that people can purchase their product as per their demand. Today as a leading company, Tanveer Food Ltd. is strongly customer focused and heavily committed to marketing. The twofold goal of marketing is being accomplished within a very short span of time as it has already drawn the attentions of the consumers by providing quality products and preferred services. Dedication to quality, uniform products, customer service and competitive prices has given them unique position in the market. Basically â€Å"Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder† is targeting the customers who are the final users of the products. Their target market is the people who do not want to compromise food quality but do not have proper access to pure cow milk. So, they are targeting working class, middle class, upper middle class and lower upper class. But they are more focused on the working class and urban area people. Then it is the retail customers who can buy the product and sell them at a profit. To cover the whole targeted market, Fresh has introduced different pack sizes in the market. So, that people can purchase their product as per their demand. POSITIONING : Positioning means to occupy a place in the minds of the consumers relative to competing products. Experts say that positioning is â€Å"How you differentiate your product or company and why a customer will buy your product. Fresh milk powder has some positioning strategies in order to compete with other products available in the market. Positioning Strategy : Marketers have followed some platforms by which they can differentiate their product from the competitors Product differentiation: Fresh milk powder possesses slight variation from the other brands available in our country. They are as follows – Service differentiation: As a product of Tanveer Food Ltd. under Meghna Group of Industries it serves a speedy, convenient and careful delivery through out the country. For example- You can find a packet of Fresh milk powder in any confectionary store near you. Channel differentiation: Being one of the important differentiations for positioning, it helps to gain competitive advantage through the way Fresh Milk powder designs the channel’s coverage, expertise, and performance. People differentiation: Fresh milk powder differentiates themselves through employing, hiring and training their employees. Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder has over 300 highly qualified professionals directly involved in the production and promotion of the product. Image differentiation: Being associated with Meghna Group of Industries, Fresh has become a hugely popular brand itself. It has its own image differentiation and its own signature logo. Differentiation that are being promoted: Though many marketers think that companies should aggressively promote only one benefit to the target market, Fresh follows slightly different concept. They promote product quality, product image and the brand image all at the same time. These three factors differentiates Fresh milk powder from other companies that compete in the respective field. Besides these they have their own USP (Unique Selling Proposition) to make their product demandable in the over-communicated society. Consumers usually choose the product and services that give them the greatest value. Thus, Fresh milk follows the â€Å"More for less† strategy by introducing the brand offering better quality but at a lower price than the existing brands. Key factors of differentiation : Distinctive: Fresh milk powder is offered to the market in a distinctive way. Communicable: The differences are easily communicable to the customers. Affordable: Fresh milk powder is easily affordable to the customers with its lower price. Profitable: The product is profitable to both the producers as well as the customers The marketers have developed an overall positioning statement to make a clear and distinctive image on their target consumers mind. CONCLUSION RECOMMENDATION : We would like to recommend that Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder should introduce new offers for their products, such as offering free bowls or glasses with Fresh milk packs. They also need to increase their advertisements to keep their product in the hearts of the targeted market. They may also introduce new campaigns in university or school campuses for promoting their product among the youth and kids. Finally, we would like to conclude by saying that the marketers of Fresh Full Cream Milk Powder have done a very good job in promoting their product. So, it has been a great pleasure knowing their marketing strategies and we’ve been benefited greatly through doing this research. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS : We would like to thank everyone who helped us in gathering information about the product and company and helped us immensely in the research. The official website of Meghna Group of Industries : http://www. meghnagroup. biz/html/group-pages/meghna_dairy. htm Some other websites : http://www. channelishop. com/inside. php? pid=781=2949=2=B http://www. channelishop. com/inside. php? pid=781=2949=2=B Others : â€Å"Principles of Marketing† – Philip Kotler Gary Armstrong Owner of â€Å"Tripty Confectionary† – Atahar Chowdhury[pic] Our target market is the users of milk powder who do not have access to cow milk (TO) Fresh Full Cream Milk powder (OUR) A full cream milk powder (IS) Provides similar taste of cow milk and proper food values at a lower price than other brands (THAT)