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Introduction
With the increase in globalization and travel, many family and friends not only in the United States but all over the world are separated by distances that are too vast to make face-to-face communication possible. Technology is a blessing to long-distance relationships. You can use computers, faxes, telephones and mobile phones to keep in meaningful touch with your loved ones. Cyber communication also makes it a lot easier to stay in touch.
Talking regularly on the telephone is a common and positive way of staying in touch. NetSpeak is an online telecommunication or VOIP phone distributor that provides friends and families in the US with an affordable call rate service that allows subscribers to choose from a wide range of service offerings. Additional product features are added for free to ensure customers high service satisfaction. Membership subscription is offered to customers in order to take advantage of the low rates. NetSpeak provides the lowest phone call rate for friends and families to stay in touch.

Marketing Objectives * Launch new product on January 1, 2012 to target market, achieving sales target of $250,000 by December 31, 2012. * Increase product awareness among the target audience by 35 percent in one year. * Inform target audience about features and benefits of our product and its competitive advantage, leading to a 15 percent increase in sales in one year.

1. Identify the marketing segment for the product and explain why this segment was selected;
The market segment selected for this product was young adults between the ages of 18 to 28. According to Zdnet Research in January 2006, the highest online activity by age group for instant messaging and text messaging were young adults between the ages of 18 to 28. It is believed that this age group spends the most amount of time communicating with each other. According to an article on cell phone usage in the San Francisco Chronicle dated February 27, 2006, Americans average 13 talking hours per month with the 18 to 24 age group averaging 22 hours.
Based on these stats, we believe the 18 to 28 age group will be ideal for NetSpeak as it combines the use of the Internet and phone use at an affordable price. This market segment was selected because they represent the biggest demand for long distance service, internet and phone use being offered by NetSpeak.

2. Discuss the target market and why these customers will be targeted The primary target markets for NetSpeak are young adults between the ages of 18 to 24 that are involved in long distance relationships, attending College or University and live away from home either overseas or out of state. These individuals are looking for the lowest rate for long distance calls as they spend a significant amount of time communicating with friends and family back home. Another target group will be people who want to switch from their present international or long distance calling provider to us. And lastly, individuals who are currently using traditional forms of communication and want to take advantage of our low call rates. 3. Conduct a SWOT (strengths, weakness, opportunities and treats) analysis for the company
The company’s strengths include, primarily, the owner of the business who has many years of experienced working in an international telecommunication company. Secondly, it offers the lowest call rates compared with other niche providers. Weaknesses include, as a new entrant in the industry, the company is still weak in terms of competitiveness. In addition, NetSpeak is a sole proprietorship, which means it has limited capitalization. An opportunity is the fact that the business focuses on a small niche with a big demand for service. Threat for this business includes big telecommunication companies that have direct impact to small business retailers of telecommunication. Any change in the price these big telecommunication firms impose on the telecom service may require a change in the price for the service NetSpeak provides. This can have a negative impact on our positioning as the company intends to win the position as the lowest call retailer.

4. Describe the market position for your product and service
NetSpeak will serve a small and specific target market. The service will attract customers because it is cheap. NetSpeak offers long distance and international calling plans that the company believes are the lowest in the industry. When purchasing a typically U.S. based calling card it is usually sold on a-per-minute type of billing. These rates will vary depending on whom you purchase your calling card from. If you are living abroad or working abroad, you certainly need a way to communicate with family and friends. Using prepaid international calling card is a good choice in finding a convenient way to communicate. On the other hand, if you make a lot of long distance and international calls then you need a subscription plan that is designed specifically for your type of calls.
Our service is branded NetSpeak.com. The tagline “Home is Here”, signifies our intention to provide accessible and valuable communication to friends and family regardless of distance. Brand-name is powerful since it directly states its main objective: communication with friends and family at home. The tagline will be used in all promotional communication and interaction with customers. Meta tags are used to increase accessibility of the site to all potential customers. The name NetSpeak.com shall become a family household name when calling long distance and overseas.

References
Growth of VOIP. Trends: New communication trends. Byz.Org. Retrieved from: http://www.byz.org/~rbanks/movableType/webLog/trends/archives/cat_403_new_communication_trends.html
Internet phone calls on the rise. BBC News. (2005) Retrieved from: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4401136.stm
TIA’s 2007 Telecommunications Market Review and Forecast. Telecommunication Industry Association. (2007). Retrieved from: http://www.tiaonline.org/news_events/press_room/press_releases/2007/PR07-mrf_release.cfm