...ASSIGNMENT – CASE STUDY ADVANCED CERTIFICATE IN MANAGEMENT BUSINESS STUDIES A group of investors had formed Trap-Ease America after it had obtained worldwide rights to market the innovative mouse traps. The group had hired Martha to serve as president and to develop and manage the Trap-Ease America organization. Martha had initially forecasted Trap-Ease’s first year sales at five million units. Martha knew that the investor group believed that Trap-Ease America had a ’once in a life time chance’ with its innovative mousetrap. To evaluate this opportunity Martha must collect information from different angles. She must choose a best target market for the Trap-Ease. 1. As Martha and Trap-Ease America feel that they face once in a life time opportunity after obtaining worldwide rights to market the mousetrap. Martha had forecasted Trap-Ease’s first year sales at five million units. As she sensed that group’s impatient with the progress of company so far. So she budgeted approximately $250,000 in administrative cost and fixed costs for the first year, but this did not include marketing cost. To evaluate this opportunity Martha must evaluate write market for mouse traps. Market can be divided into different groups of buyers with different needs; buyers desire different benefits from one product. Consumers needs and wants change with their age. As Martha wondered, apart from trapping mouse using mouse traps consumers may also buy the trap as novelties. Company needed to sell...
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...Walmart vs Target Calculate profit margin, net marketing contribution, marketing return on sales (or marketing ROS), and marketing return on investment (or marketing ROI) for both companies. Which company is performing better? Profit margin: Profit / sales Net marketing contribution: Gross Profit - marketing costs Marketing ROS: net marketing contribution / sales Marketing ROI: net marketing contribution / marketing costs According to the data shown in the table above Target is preforming better than Walmart. At the first observation, one would assume that Walmart is performing better because of its higher sales and profits. However, the data above shows that Target is preforming better and is more efficient than Walmart. First, Target’s profit margin is 4.9%, this means that its profits make up 4.19% of its sales, while Walmart’s profits only make 3.51% of its sales. This tells us that Target manages its expenses relative to its net sales. Meaning it has managed to keep its expenses relatively low to its sales. Second, the net marketing contribution. This tells us the net contribution to profits after all marketing expenses are accounted for. Walmart here has a higher value because it generate more sales than target. By looking at the value one would assume that Walmart is better off because it has a higher net contribution to profits, but this does not mean that it is preforming better. Third, the marketing ROS. Target has an ROS of 15.9%, this means that its...
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...Case Analysis of Trap-Ease America A group of investors had formed Trap-Ease America after obtaining the worldwide rights to sell a patented and innovative mousetrap from an inventor. The group hired Martha as president to develop and manage the company. Trap-Ease America regarded housewives as the best target market. Because the company believed that women will be attracted to the safety and cleanliness that the traps offer. Unlike traditional spring-loaded traps or poisons, the tarp lures the mouse into a square tube in which it will be trapped alive. There is no danger in baiting and setting trap. It can also avoid the “mess” resulted by the traditional trap’s operation. Martha sold the trap directly to large retailers such as Safeway, Kmart, and CB Drug. The traps sold in packages of two, with a suggested price of $ 2.49, about five to ten times more expensive than the traditional trap. Martha promoted the mousetrap mainly through trade show and personal selling. Despite the innovativeness of the trap and its success at gaining public attention, sales are disappointingly slow. Following are analysis of the problem Trap-Ease faced and some suggestions. Martha and the investors believe they face an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that the patented mousetrap will bring huge profits. But things were not going on well in the start-off. We know that in order to evaluate any investment opportunity investors need to conduct a detailed analysis concerning a variety of different issues...
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...Marketing Company case Trap ease American: The Big Cheese of Mousetraps Presented for: Luis Fernando Correa Presented by: Andrés Felipe Doblado Paula Andrea Buitrago Luis Miguel Ramos Valentina Ramirez University of La Sabana Febrary 07 of 2014 BACKGROUND In 1987, a group of investors had formed Trap-Ease America in January after it had obtained worldwide rights to market the innovative mousetrap. In return for marketing rights, the group agreed to pay the inventor and patent holder, a retired rancher, a royalty fee for each trap sold. The group, then hired Martha House to serve as president and to develop and manage the Trap-Ease America organization. Martha had initially forecasted Trap-Ease’s first-year sales at five million units. Through April, however, the company had only sold several hundred thousand units. Martha wondered if most new products got off to such a slow start, or if she was doing something wrong. She had detected some problems, although none seemed overly serious. For one, there had not been enough repeat buying. For another, she had noted that many of the retailers upon whom she called kept their sample mousetraps on their desks as conversation pieces and she wanted the traps to be used and demonstrated. Martha wondered if consumers were also buying the traps as novelties rather than as solutions to their mouse problems. In these first few months, Martha had learned that marketing anew product was not an easy task. Some customers...
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...Company Case: Trap-Ease America Answer 1: Martha and the investors believed that the product they had was of excellent quality and it should be readily bought in the market. However there seems to be no evidence whatsoever to whether the investors had thought anything out about neither the marketing strategy they would follow nor the fulfilling of the customers’ needs and wants. Not even was there any effort seen to research out information about the market or the needs of the potential consumers. Many organizations develop formal mission statements. A mission statement is a statement of the organizations purpose- what it wants to accomplish in the larger environment. Some companies define their mission myopically in product or technology terms. But I think the group’s mission statement should be market oriented and defined in terms of satisfying basic customer needs. Answer 2: The best target market mean a set of buyers sharing common needs or characteristics that the company decides to serve since it’ll give maximum profit. The case study tells us that Trap Ease is targeting housewives since they are reluctant to set and bait traditional spring loads. As they are concerned about the health and safety of the children, and cleanliness of their homes Trap Ease would be a better product to use. There are other markets the company could possibly target. Segmenting the market we can find any business that handles food storage or production using Trap Ease for their benefit...
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...Trap-Ease America: The Big Cheese Of Mousetraps In: Business and Management Trap-Ease America: The Big Cheese Of Mousetraps Case Analysis Case: Trap-Ease America: The Big Cheese of Mousetraps Product: Variety, quality, design, features, brand, packing, services, warranties, returns. Price: List price, discounts, allowances, payment period, credit terms. Promotion: Sales promotion, advertising, sales force, public relations, and direct marketing. Place: Channels, coverage, assortments, locations, inventory, transport. Strategic Marketing Choose de value: STP: Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning. The marketing staff must segment the market, select the appropriate market target, and develop the offering’s value positioning. Tactical Marketing Provide the value: Product development, service development, pricing, sourcing making, distributing. Communicate the value: Sales force, sales promotion, and advertising. Strategy Formulation: Overall cost leadership, differentiation, and focus. 1) Diagnose Advantages: Consumers can use safely and easily with no risk, and it poised no injury or poising. Target Market: Women Distribution: Direct through national grocery, hardware, and drug chains (Safeway, Kmart…). Pricing: $0.99 – Suggested Retail Price $2.49 (2 unit) – Cost $0.392 – Retail net revenue $0.75. Price Positioning: 5 to 10 times more expensive Sales expenses: $60,000 ($50K for travel, and sales calls...
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...the Case Trap-Ease •Background ＄150million-250 million to solve the mouse problem ———SUNDAYSTAR •Details New product, problem, solutions. Introduction * Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats inside outside •low acquaintance •high cost •safe •easy to operate •clean •high demands •widely use •high price •little benefits Trap-Ease Question 1 What information do they need to evaluate this opportunity? * Loading... Trap-Ease Question 1 Other elements Opportunities inside Strengths outside Strategies Product position Channel Price What information do they need to evaluate this opportunity? * Trap-Ease Question 1 How do you think the group would write its mission statement? How do you write it? * Has Martha identified the best target market for Trap-Ease? What other market segments might the firm target? Trap-Ease →Women are the best target market →Other market segments: Government---State administration of grain Some industries---Pantechnicon of furniture industries Catering industries Question 2 * Question 3 Trap-Ease → Clean, safe, and easy to use. →Make its product be different from others. →Charge more than traditional ones. ——Differentiation How had the company positioned the Trap-Ease...
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...The case indicates that Trap-Ease is targeting housewives, and implies that housewives are reluctant to set and bait traditional spring-loaded mousetraps. They also are concerned about the safety of children and pets that may be around the home because once the spring-loaded trap has caught a mouse, one often has a mess resulting from its action. Besides being unpleasant, the mess presents health concerns due to the diseases that may be carried by mice. There are a number of other market segments that the firm could target. The issue of disease control suggests several other potential targets. First, the instructor might ask students where disease control concerns would be important. Any business that handles or stores food and, therefore, is attractive to rats and mice would be a potential target. Restaurants should come to mind here, both because of the presence of food and food products and also because these establishments cannot use chemicals near food. This also should suggest food wholesalers or warehouses where large quantities of food may be stored in the channel of distribution. Food manufacturers also need rodent protection. Another potential market is research laboratories. Here, researchers use large numbers of mice in research projects. It is not unreasonable to think that some of these mice occasionally get loose. A researcher would be interested in the ability to recapture a mouse without harming it—something that the researcher would be able to do with...
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...as its target market but Martha has to consider whether the woman is the decision maker when it comes to home improvement items like mousetraps. Martha could try targeting males. The men who see it as their role/duty to deal with pest control in the home thus protecting the women from the gruesome nature that is usually involves in the process. In the case of Trap-Ease the mouse maybe trap alive in the trap and women may not want to deal with that aspect but the man may have no problem of disposing the trap with a live mouse. Businesses such as offices and warehouses are another option Martha may wish to consider. Business owners who need to safeguard their supplies and equipment can well be served by the Trap-Ease. Martha should appeal to these people showing them the benefit of using the Trap-Ease instead of poison or the traditional mousetrap. One of the benefit is when poison is used the mice may end up dead anywhere and stink up the office environment before it is found whereas the Trap-Ease you would know exactly where you place it and can dispose of it in a timely manner. The food service industry such as restaurant, canteens is yet another market Martha can target. The food service industry has to maintain certain health standards one of which is maintaining a pest free Environment. Martha can show them the benefit of using the Trap-Ease to achieve these standards thus better serving their customers and at the same time protect their food supplies, ingredients and...
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...Trap-Ease Case Study. 1. Once in a lifetime opportunity. Need to know the range of mouse trap offerings. Need to know the level of marketplace acceptance, or not, of the various offerings. Need to identify the need of consumers that this product would meet in contrast to other offerings that did not meet the perceved need. "Why this particular conformation of a mousetrap?" They needed to know that the product was the answer to a cry coming from the marketplace. Trap-Ease mission statement. Trap-ease America believes it has developed a product that fulfills a great need in the mousetrap product arena. We have worked hard to develop a trap that eliminates the need to be "involved" with the trapped subject. The company's aim is to provide a seamless experience in pest control. Our product is made to insure an "out of sight, out of mind" experience for the user. The user is not invested in the caught object as it is with more conventional traps. We believe that our product is great for the individual who wants pest control without seeing the pest. My mission statement: Pests are a fact of life. The fact is , pests invade the dwellings of people more than we like to think. The distaste of the presence of pests in a dwelling is unacceptable. Trap-Ease has made as its goal, the production and sales of pest-control devices that meet the need of sense-disengaging pest control devices. This is the main goal of our enterprise. ...
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...women as its target market but Martha has to consider whether the woman is the decision maker when it comes to home improvement items like mousetraps. Martha could try targeting males. The men who see it as their role/duty to deal with pest control in the home thus protecting the women from the gruesome nature that is usually involves in the process. In the case of Trap-Ease the mouse maybe trap alive in the trap and women may not want to deal with that aspect but the man may have no problem of disposing the trap with a live mouse. Businesses such as offices and warehouses are another option Martha may wish to consider. Business owners who need to safeguard their supplies and equipment can well be served by the Trap-Ease. Martha should appeal to these people showing them the benefit of using the Trap-Ease instead of poison or the traditional mousetrap. One of the benefit is when poison is used the mice may end up dead anywhere and stink up the office environment before it is found whereas the Trap-Ease you would know exactly where you place it and can dispose of it in a timely manner. The food service industry such as restaurant, canteens is yet another market Martha can target. The food service industry has to maintain certain health standards one of which is maintaining a pest free Environment. Martha can show them the benefit of using the Trap-Ease to achieve these standards thus better serving their customers and at the same time protect their food supplies, ingredients and...
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...Trap-Ease America: The Big Cheese of Mousetraps Company Case 1. Martha and the Trap-Ease America investors believe 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? Martha, the president of Trap-Ease and its investors need to improve their marketing strategy by understanding which is the best and the most efficient way to obtain their target market within their budget. When they talk about a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity, they are talking about the potential for profit and growth. Martha and the investors have to set company objectives and goals, to build strong customer relationships, to focus on a customer-driven marketing strategy (market segmentation, market targeting, market differentiation and positioning), to develop an effective integrated marketing mix in order to manage the marketing effort (marketing analysis, marketing planning, marketing implementation, marketing control). Particularly inside the marketing analysis, they have to realize a SWOT analysis which determines the company’s strengths, weaknesses, threats, and opportunities for Trap-Ease in the marketplace in order to match the company’s strengths to attractive opportunities in the environment while simultaneously eliminating weaknesses and minimizing the threats because they have not done research into the market to assess whether the demand for the product...
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...Trap Ease Case Study 1. Martha and the investors in the Trap Ease seem to face a “once in a lifetime opportunity.” What information do they need to evaluate this opportunity? How do you think the investor group would write the mission statement? How would you write it? Trap Ease America has obtained worldwide rights to market an innovative mousetrap which had won the title of “best new product” at a National Hardware Show in Chicago. In order to evaluate this once in a lifetime opportunity the investors at Trap- Ease need to understand the market place in which they will be operating in terms of customer needs, customer wants and demands in order to create value for customers and build a strong customer relationship to capture value from their potential customers in return. This will help Trap Ease to identify who will be the best target market for their product and what would be the best market offering, how your target market makes purchasing decisions, how your competition positions their products and what your product has to offer. B) I think that the investor group would write a product oriented mission statement stating the product that they offer for example “ we sell an innovate mousetraps” where as I would write a market oriented mission statement geared towards satisfying the customer basic needs. 2. How is the product positioned relative to the selected target market in the case? Are there other ways to position the product? Trap –Ease America’s research...
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...Trap-Ease mouse traps have huge potential, but it is a question mark when referring to the Growth Share Matrix. In my opinion it has a high market growth rate, or attractiveness to the market, but right now its strengths is not there, referring to it relative market share. This idea of a mouse trap that can catch mice and not make a mess and is easy to set up is attractive to everyone. While the case states that women are the target market, I feel that men can like this product as well. The trick is marketing it the right way. It seems that the major problem is a huge lack in advertising. The cases states that she is very successful at the National Hardware Show in Chicago, but its seems that nobody cares that Trap-Ease mouse traps won the Best New Product Award or that it got good press from the show. What Martha House needs to do is go back to the drawing board and stop investing so much of her budget in these stupid hardware shows. She even says it doesn’t help her much. It’s probably because nobody cares about a hardware show. Before reading this case I didn’t even know that they had hardware shows. So you need a way to connect to people other than just going to hardware shows, where the only people that are going to be there are people who are enthusiast in hardware, which I assume is a very small percentage of people who buy these mouse traps. The case mentions how she wants to target women, since consumers like less of a mess and is easy to set up. Do you think women...
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...Note: Solve any 4 Case Studies Case 1: Cub Foods In 2003, Cub Foods had 78 corporate and 30 franchised stores. The chain built its success by focusing on its primary market: families of four or five individuals with adults ages 24 to early 40s who are informed. Value-conscious consumers – consumers like Leslie Wells. Leslie Wells’s recent expedition to the new Cub Foods store in Melrose Park, Illinois, was no ordinary trip to the grocery store. “You go crazy,” says Wells, sounding a little shell-shocked. Overwhelmed by Cub’s vast selection, tables of samples, and discounts as high as 30 percent, Wells spent $76 on groceries - $36 more than she had planned. Wells fell prey to what a Cub executive calls “the wow factor”. A shopping frenzy brought on by low prices and clever marketing. That’s the reaction Cub’s super warehouse stores strive for and often get. Cub Foods has been a leader in shaking up the food industry and forcing many conventional supermarkets to lower prices, increase services, or, in some cases go out of business. With Cub and other super warehouse stores springing up across the country, shopping habits are changing too. Some shoppers must drive 50 miles or more to a Cub store instead of going to the nearest neighborhood supermarket and bag their own groceries at Cub Foods. Their payoff is that they find almost everything they need under one roof, and most of it is cheaper than at competing supermarkets. Cub’s low prices, smart marketing, and...
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