Buddie Bites will be packaged in a simple rectangular box of 100% recycled paper. The box itself will be an eggshell white to reflect the white chocolate taste along with a bold red font of “Buddie Bites”, along with a see-through section in front showcasing the different shapes of the treats. I will create the label and box in photoshop. There also will be multiple photos that I will then do a photo-shoot depicting a dog owner and his/her canine companion in different scenarios, where we at Puppy Café’, feel will be fun, positive scenes of the two friends sharing a snack. Such as on a couch watching television, cuddling on the couch reading book, at the park for a picnic, etc… These photos will be used for ads, posters, etc. Also I would like o create a website that gives access to a "fan club" where people can comment on our products as well as have applications ready for devoted fans to become one of our Buddie Marketers and we will give them the proper tools and freedom to blog about our products and in return our "Buddie Marketers" will receive free merchandise, incredible discounts, and our most successful "Buddie Marketer" will receive a free airline tickets to anywhere in the United States for them and their canine companion.“Engage a satisfied customer in a dialogue about a product—and give them a forum to express their creative aspirations for that product—and you will have a brand advocate who speaks from the heart.”- Marketing an Introduction 10th edition, Armstrong/Kitler, 2011.
I will also like to attempt a short 30 second fun commercial depicting a man in a dark house snacking on the couch watching late night television and his little buddy at his feet whining for a taste of the tasty chocolate snack the owner has. The owner says to his dog sadly, ”Sorry Buddie, these are no good for dogs. I wish there was something we could share together…” In steps a man dressed as a games how host answering excitedly “And now there is! Introducing Buddie Bites! A white chocolate treat for you and your lil’ buddie to enjoy together! Enjoy!” (He throws him a box) “ The man on the couch catches the box and replies gratefully ” I don’t know how you got into my house, but thanks!” Then cuts to a photograph from my shoot of the front of the box. I want the commercial to be humorous, yet get the ideal scene of when to enjoy your Buddy Bites.
We here at Treats and Eats proudly present a 1st to the dog treat market; an all-natural, white chocolate coated snack for dog owners to share with their pet companions. Buddie Bites is “A treat for everybody who has a buddie!”. "An organization exists to accomplish something, and this purpose should be clearly stated. Forging a sound mission begins with the following questions: What is our business? Who is the customer? What do consumers value? What should our business be? These simple-sounding questions are among the most difficult the company will ever have to answer."- Marketing: An Introduction, pg.39, Armstrong & KotlerBuddieBites mission statement is to offer tasty fun snacks for humans and dogs alike to share to help build a stronger bond in everyone’s relationship with their canine pet. If you own a dog or know somebody who does, then you are our target customer. Our goal for Buddie Bites is to have a fun and safe white chocolate snack for dogs to enjoy just as much as their human counterparts at a reasonable price. "Mission statements should be market oriented and defined in terms of satisfying basic customer needs. Products and technologies eventually become outdate, but basic market needs may last forever." - Marketing : an introduction, pg.15, Armstrong & Kotler Also, we here at Treats and Eats value the environment and our canine customers, which is why we use 100% recycled packaging and will donate a percentage of our annual profit to the Humane Society to help end the cruelty of puppy mills. What is better than snacking for a cause?
BuddieBites objective is to create bonding opportunities and lasting memories for dog owners by sharing a tasty white-chocolate coated, peanut butter wafer treat with their loyal dog companion. “For Everybody who has a Buddie!”"within individual business units, marketing designs strategies for reaching the unit’s objectives. Once the unit’s objectives are set, marketing’s task is to help carry them out profitably."-Marketing: An Introduction, pg.47, Armstrong & Kotler Since this is a treat for every dog owner, an the objective for our ad campaign is to illustrate these bonding moments showing many different possible scenerios where BuddieBites will fit into and improve the lifestyle of any average dog. Treats & Eats as a company understands that it needs to work as one synergetic team to accomplish the goal objectives of the company. "...ownermarketing, finance, accounting, purchasing, operations, information systems, human resources, and others—must work together to accomplish strategic objectives."-Marketing: An Introduction, pg.47, Armstrong & Kotler
"Managing the marketing function begins with a complete analysis of the company’s situation. The marketer should conduct a SWOT analysis, by which it evaluates the company’s overall strengths (S), weaknesses (W), opportunities (O), and threats (T)"- Marketing: An Introduction, pg.31, Armstrong & Kotler. Keeping this in mind Treats & Eats believes that our number one strength that BuddieBites has going for itself is that it is the only treat on the market advertised to be shared between humans and their canine pet, creating a brand new market of treats. This, however, is also our greatest weakness as well because if and when BuddieBites becomes successfully popular, copycats will be quick to sprout up left and right. Threats of these future copycats remains to be seen, but as of now we are all alone at the mountain top. So BuddieBites’ opportunity is NOW. We need to hit the product market like a 10.0 earthquake, shaking up the treat market and changing the treat landscape forever."The main section of the plan presents a detailed SWOT analysis of the current marketing situation as well as potential threats and opportunities."-Marketing: An Introduction, pg.56, Armstrong & Kotler
Who is BuddieBites’ target market? Shown here in BuddieBites’ slogan, “A Treat for Everybody who has a Buddie!”BuddieBites target customer is any and every dog owner. "the company selects the customers that it will serve and involves dividing a market into smaller segments of buyers with distinct needs, characteristics, or behaviors that might require separate marketing strategies or mixes."- Marketing: An Introduction, pg.175, Armstrong & Kotler Treats & Eats didn't want to discrimintate against any age, gender, race, creed, or religion. The only market that Treats & Eats will target will be dog owners; also knowing that some people without pets will buy the treat just to enjoy for themsleves.
Food has traditionally been at the center of all formal and informal gatherings. For generations, mankind has often used it to facilitate bonding with friends and family or during the observance of important events such as birthdays, weddings, job promotions and even for the annual the Super Bowl. Warm nostalgic feelings are evoked, just as Sunday dinners often allowed time for communication and bonding with family, friends and loved ones. A meal shared during a first date or even a grandfather bonding with this granddaughter by sharing a chocolate cookie, all have the potential to be a memorable experience.
"The company’s marketing strategy outlines which customers the company will serve and how it will create value for these customers."Marketing: An Introduction, pg.13, Armstrong & Kotler. Treats & Eats will market their product, BuddieBites, not by selling simply a stand alone treat, but rather an experience, a means for an owner to share a special moment with his/her canine companion. BuddieBites will promote a positive bonding experience. "A new product must have the required functional features and also convey the intended psychological characteristics."-Marketing:An Introduction, pg.19, Armstrong & Kotler The treat itself is a tasty, circular, peanut butter wafer/cookie, dipped in canine safe white chocolate, as a delicious coating. Each wafer is approximately the size of a silver dollar.
Promotion
The Treats & Eats productlogo will use a simple red, white and black color scheme for instant recognition on the shelves. "Why do so many new products fail? There are several reasons. Although an idea may be good, the company may overestimate market size. The actual product may be poorly designed. Or it might be incorrectly positioned, launched at the wrong time, priced too high, or poorly advertised."-Marketing: An Introduction, pg.245, Armstrong & Kotler To avoid such problemspackaging colors will consist of red, white and black which will help let the BuddieBites box stand out from other dog treats. Red studies have shown evokes hunger, white to reflect the white chocolate coating of the treats, and black represents the chocolate. The official mascot, “Buddie”, will be represented as a cartoon dog, always wearing a smile and a tie dyed shirt. These will be featured on every box cover and advertisement.
Any creative visuals for BuddieBites will always depict an owner and their pet having a fun, lighthearted time, while enjoying an incredibly tasty treat together. Treats&Eats, has casted the perfect actor as its spokesperson, Carlos Cardoza. Carlos is a classically trained actor who did a brief stint on Broadway from 2008-2010. His character for this product will be an overtly friendly and energetic salesman, who uses humor in his intense sales pursuit. The salesman will rightfully be named “Buddie.”
The humor behind the commercial and its star will consist of poking fun at crazy late night infomercials and their hosts, in an exaggerated manner. The human actor will be featured in every commercial, appearing out of nowhere, to save the day and help create the bonding experience lacking between a pet owner and his/her dog. The application of the catchy tagline “Share together” and the BuddieBites slogan, “For Everybody who has a Buddie!” will also be consistently included in each commercial. “Buddie” the salesman, will always be featured wearing quirky outfits reflecting BuddieBites packaging colors.
"Clearly, sales promotion plays an important role in the total promotion mix. To use it well, the marketer must define the sales promotion objectives, select the best tools, design the sales promotion program, implement the program, and evaluate the results. "-Marketing: An Introduction, pg.44, Armstrong & Kotler The first commercial for Treats&Eats will be viewed on major channels such as Fox, NBC, CBS and TBS, as well as being featured on ESPN, the Food Network and in all major markets. Treats & Eats have received favorable results in their test audience with their pilot commercial. The following is the pilot commercial for BuddieBites.
"the importance of the media-planning function. The decision about which media to use for an ad campaign—television, magazines, cell phones, a Web site, or e-mail—is now sometimes more critical to the elements of the campaign."-Marketing: An Introduction, pg.360, Armstrong & Kotler After viewing the commercial you can see this will be linked to YouTube for future viewing for customers along with every other future commercial for BuddieBites. Along with YouTube, BuddieBites will use social media by finding "Buddies", people who love the product that are open to blogging, facebooking, and tweeting about the products. These "Buddies" will be essential to the success of the product; they meet twice a year for proper product consulting and be given bonus checks for specific blogging activity as well as free merchandise and prizes. "As consumers spend more and more time on the Internet, companies are shifting more of their marketing dollars to online advertising to build their brands or to attract visitors to their Web sites."-Marketing: An Introduction, pg.466, Armstrong & Kotler
Distribution
Treats & Eats will use intensive distribution of BuddieBites will be made up of popular grocery stores throughout the country. "Intensive distribution, stocking the product in as many outlets as possible."-Marketing:An Introduction, pg.324, Armstrong & Kotler You will be able to find it in any Wal-Mart, Target, Smith’s, Albertsons, Jewels, WinCo, WholeFoods and Trader Joe’s grocery stores. Although it is a human snack made to share with dogs, it will be located in the pet aisle, more specifically the canine aisle of these grocery stores."Companies often pay too little attention to their distribution channels, sometimes with damaging results. In contrast, many companies have used imaginative distribution systems to gain a competitive advantage."- Marketing: An Introduction, pg.312, Armstrong & Kotler. Treats & Eats has a fleet trucks for ground transportation, to save costs, with temperature controlled storage areas so that the white chocolate does not melt.
Price
"Business analysisinvolves a review of the sales, costs, and profit projections for a new product to find out whether they satisfy the company’s objectives." Marketing:An Introduction, pg.251, Armstrong& Kotler Understanding this, we realize there are many things to consider while pricing a product you have to consider many variables; labor, distribution, costs of materials, packaging, profit, etc. "Most companies try to measure their demand curves by estimating demand at different prices. "-Marketing:An Introduction, pg.248, Armstron & Kotler. Listing the basic costs helped me with the analysis of pricing BuddieBites.
BuddieBites basic cost + profit list:
· $0.85 per box (red, chineese take-out)
· $0.99 for vacuum sealed packaging
· $2.50 for the amount of 50 peanut butter wafers per box
· $1.50 white chocolate used in each box
· $0.75 for label
The sum of these items are $6.59, equaling the basic cost of one box of BuddieBites. Treats & Eats will then sell each box of BuddieBites for $11.99 for a profit of $5.40 a box(keeping in mind that a percentage of their annual profit will then be donated to the Humane Society in efforts to help stop the cruelty of puppy mills)."The strategy for setting a product’s price often has to be changed when the product is part of a product mix."-Marketing: An Introduction, pg.287, Armstrong & Kotler
"Managing the marketing function begins with a complete analysis of the company’s situation."-Marketing: An Introduction, pg.55, Armstrong & Kotler BuddieBitesis a completely new product, brand, and advertised treat. Because of this, evaluation and control is going to be forever changing with the tide. Treats & Eats have done extensive research in this area and determined that this untouched shared treat market could be a marketing goldmine. Implementation of BuddieBites involves Treats & Eats programs, budgets, and procedures as well. Along with its resources and motivation of its staff to achieve their common objectives. "We define sales first management as the analysis, planning, implementation, and control of sales force activities. It includes designing sales force strategy and structure and recruiting, selecting, training, compensating, supervising, and evaluating the firm’s salespeople."-Marketing: An Introduction, pg.416, Armstrong & Kotler. Knowing this, to be successful in these area's Treats & Eats has carfeully selected qualified managerial staff to at it's home warehouse in Las Vegas, NV.
If you are like me, you share everything with your dog. You take them to the park, they go on jogs with you, run errands, they cuddle next to your during blockbuster nights, sleeps on your bed, and you may even be nice enough to share left overs from last Sunday night’s dinner with your pet companion on a good day. BUT how unfair is it that man’s best friend cannot enjoy man’s favorite treat? Chocolate.
Don’t worry we are not going to harm your little buddy, we here at the Puppy Café would like to introduce a safe white chocolate treat for people and dogs alike; Buddie Bites.Now you and your most loyal friend (your dog) can share a treat together eating out of the same box!These small bite size treats come in an assortment of shapes and made from all natural ingredients. Yes, finally there is a tasty treat on the market with doggy-safe white chocolate for dogs and their human counterparts to enjoy together. Our biscuits consist of whole-wheat flour, cornmeal, wheat germ, cinnamon, eggs, carob chips, honey, and are dipped in white chocolate for a delicous coating.
Each box of Buddie Bites comes with assorted objects that make Buddy Bites fun to eat.Choose from a yellow fire hydrant, a kitty cat, or even a mailman become an enjoyable snack to indulge yourself along with your little buddy.And on the back of every box contains recipes for treats that you can bake yourself for special occasions when you have a good mix of human friends and their dog counterparts, such as doggy birthday parties.Each box of Buddie Bites are made of 100% recycled paper, include 50 snacks and cost just $15.00, with 10% of our annually profit being donated to the Humane Society to help end the cruelty of puppy mills.What can be better than snacking for a cause!?
I do not consider myself a huge consumer. Most of the time when I am out shopping it’s for a need, a gift for someone else, or if I see a good deal because I don’t like to spend money on wasteful things (and because my bank account is not large). The things I do purchase for myself on the regular are watches, hats, and music.
Watches have always been my most expensive purchase that I make. I love the way they look, feel on your wrist and my Mother always told me “You can always tell a lot about a man by the type of watch they wear.” Personally I am a very busy man and keeping track of time is essential. As well as I think a watch completes a outfit like a cherry tops a ice cream sundae.
Hats are my most addictive purchase. I am a huge sports fan and support many collegiate and professional teams, along with this I love the look of many different styles, and like a watch, I believe a hat can make an outfit. Not to mention I have difficult hair to style on a regular basis, so hats are a tremendous help to cover my crazy hair on my lazy, or rushed to get ready days.
This might sound weird, but I absolutely cannot stand a silent room. I find it hard to do anything without music in the background. It helps me concentrate with my homework, inspires me with while shooting my photography, and creates an essential vibe or mood when working out, having dinner with my wife, when I have company over, or even playing with my daughter. So, obviously because of this I purchase a lot of music. Whether it is old, new, iTunes, cd, records, tape cassettes, or what have you…I probably have it.
These days it seems like everybody has Facebook and companies are out to use this social network to their advantage.Companies such as JetBlue, Sony, Microsoft, and McDonald’s, among others, are now developing a new breed of brand ambassador programs that organize and supercharge consumer-to-consumer interactions about their brands. -Marketing at work 5.1 Brand Ambassadors: Employing Real Customers to Get Out the Word, Marketing an Introduction 10th Edition.These companies are focusing on the young, college student crowd.They look for students who are already voice truss about their product and have many friends on their Facebook account. For instance, JetBlue hired a young woman named Rebecca who is attending a Tech College and their new brand ambassador.JetBlue flew her out to New York to train her on the history of JetBlue and how to successfully promote their product when she is back home; organizing events such as her JetBlue BlueDay.I think this a positive way to intergrade a company or product to a market and it gives college student a chance to earn income as well as get some real world experience and insight of the corporate world.
On the other hand companies are using Facebook as job boards to hire future employees.The majority of social-media traffic to Waste Management Inc.'s careers website comes from Facebook, beating out LinkedIn, said Jenny DeVaughn, manager of social media and employment branding. The Houston-based environmental services company is currently trying to fill 1,500 positions—from software developers to garbage truck drivers.- The Wall Street Journal, “Recuiters Troll Facebook for Candidates it Likes”This is interesting because that means Facebook is beginning to compete with job board websites such as Monster.com and LinkedIn.com.As well as intrude a social network for other purposes than socializing.When I hear this I honestly don’t like the idea of an employer being able to search where one socializes.I think their needs to be a clear-cut separation between social and work lives.People like to keep their social life private and I think there is an inherited conflict of interest because of this.
