Page 114 - Foundations of Marketing

The Marketing Environment, Social Responsibility, and Ethics | Chapter 3 81

A marketing strategy is dynamic. Companies must con- identify any changes in consumer buying power that
tinually monitor the marketing environment not only would affect the sale and use of your product?
to create their marketing strategy, but also to revise it if 3. Referring to Tables 3.2 and 3.3 , do you recognize any
necessary. Information about various forces in the mar- laws or regulatory agencies that would have jurisdiction
ketplace is collected, analyzed, and used as a foundation over your type of product?
for several marketing plan decisions. The following ques- 4. Conduct a brief technology assessment, determining the
tions will help you to understand how the information impact that technology has on your product, its sale, or use.
in this chapter contributes to the development of your 5. Discuss how your product could be affected by changes
marketing plan: in social attitudes, demographic characteristics, or
lifestyles.
1. Describe the current competitive market for your product.
Can you identify the number of brands or market share The information obtained from these questions should
that they hold? Expand your analysis to include other assist you in developing various aspects of your market-
products that are similar or could be substituted for yours. ing plan. Develop your marketing plan online using the
2. Using the business cycle pattern, in which of the four Interactive Marketing Plan at
stages is the current state of the economy? Can you www.cengagebrain.com .

TOMS Shoes Expands One for One Model to Eyewear
®

While many organizations try to incorporate cause-related Friends of TOMS, the company’s nonprofit subsidiary that
marketing into their business operations, TOMS Shoes takes would distribute shoes to those in need.
the concept of philanthropy one step further. TOMS blends a For his original product, Mycoskie decided to adopt the
for-profit business with a philanthropic component in what it alpargata shoe worn in Argentina. The alpargata is a slip-on
terms the one for one model . For every pair of shoes sold, shoe made from canvas or fabric with rubber soles. After a
®
another pair is provided to a child in need. Recently, TOMS Los Angeles Times article featured Mycoskie’s new business,
has also expanded into eyewear. For every pair of eyewear demand for the shoes exploded. Unfortunately for Mycoskie,
sold, a person with vision problems in developing countries he did not have enough shoes to fill the orders. Mycoskie was
receives surgery, prescription glasses, or medical treatment to able to work out the product shortage, and today TOMS is a
help restore his or her sight. Unlike many nonprofits, TOMS’ thriving business.
for-profit business enables the company to support its philan- After distributing its one-millionth pair of shoes in 2010,
thropic component, which keeps the company from having to TOMS began to consider other products that could be used
solicit donations. in the one for one model. “When I thought about launching
The idea for TOMS Shoes occurred after founder Blake another product with the TOMS model, vision seemed the
Mycoskie witnessed the immense poverty in Argentinean most obvious choice,” Blake Myscoskie explained. Because
villages, poverty so bad that many families could not afford 80 percent of vision impairment in developing countries is
to purchase shoes for their children. Recognizing the impor- preventable or curable, TOMS decided that for every pair of
tance of shoes to health and education, Mycoskie decided to eyewear it sold, the company would provide treatment or pre-
create a new business that would consist of two parts: TOMS scription glasses for those in need. TOMS chose Nepal as the
Shoes, a for-profit business that would sell the shoes, and first country for which to apply its one for one model.

Copyright 2014 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.