Marketing_-_Kudler_Fine_Foods_Virtual_Organization

This paper will analyze the possibility of Kudler Find Foods in expanding its service offerings to add a catering service in addition to the in-store parties that it currently offers. The paper will provide examples of the kinds of opportunities Kudler has in its marketing mix of product, price, place and promotions for its new catering services. Kudler Find Foods Kudler Find Foods is founded by Kathy Kudler in 1998. It is a high quality gourmet specialty food store. As the CEO of the company, Kathy has maintained the vision of Kudler Find Foods for many years. Under Kathy’s leadership and management, the company was able to expand to three stores in different locations. The three stores located in La Jolla, Del Mar, and Encinitas, California. Each store is located in the shopping center with an approximate size of 16,000 square feet and offers a variety of upscale specialty foods and wines. Recently, to help the company expand, Kathy decides to contract with local organic grower for organic produces and introduces catering services to their customer. Market Research According to Kerin, Hartley, Berkowitz, and Rudelius, “marketing research is the process of defining a marketing problem and opportunity, systematically collecting and analyzing information, and recommending action.” Kudler’s new market research effort concentrate on market size and opportunities, food marketing trends studies, and services benchmarking study. In 2008 and 2009, the company surveyed about 70 of their customers on company performance, which includes convenient of store hours, store appeal, selection of foods, produce value, merchandise display, and customer satisfaction about the produce. The market size is very important information for Kudler to understand their potential customer base within its area. Kudler should expand the survey pool if possible. The company can either conduct the survey by mail or email to expand the survey size to receive a more accurate result. Another area the company should focus on is the food marketing trends. Base on 2008 and 2009’s survey result. The company scores below 50% on the value of the produce and below 70% on selection of the products. This result could mean that the company is promoting the wrong item or the customer’s interest has change. With food marketing trends study, the company will have a better idea about the food they should promote in the store and for the new catering services. The final market research Kudler will perform is the service study. This tool will help Kudler to identify the needs and want of its existing customer and provide the service that can be the new source to help the company to generate revenue. Components of Marketing Mix for Kudler’s New Catering Service For Kudler Find Foods to successfully launch the catering business, the company much utilized the marketing mix tool to understand clearly the product that they are marketing. The marketing mix is the mixture of controllable market variables that the firm uses to pursue the sought level of sales in the target market. The marketing mix includes: Product, price, promotion, and place (Kerin, Hartley, Berkowitz, & Rudelius, 2006). Product The product in this case is the catering service. What should be include in the catering service to satisfy the wants and needs of its customers. Different products will fulfill different target group. Kudler should offer different type of combo catering menu to accommodate different occasion and target customers. Price Price will ultimately be determined by the market but it is important for Kudler to establish the initial price after the market research. Kudler should also offer the option for customer to customize their own catering combo so the customer will feel that they have the control of their budget. Product which has higher selling price and low turnover rate should be removed from the shelf and become an special order item to reduce the cost. Promotion Promotion is the key to success in any of the new service. How and what channel is Kudler going to promote the catering service is very important. Direct mail, email, and store flyer are some of the good option for Kudler to introduce its new catering service to existing customers. Other tools to attract new customer will be radio, newspaper, television advertising. Kudler can also host special food tasting event in each store. Place Kudler needs to define where the catering service should be implemented. The company needs to ensure that the food is delivered to the customer safe and on time. A good transportation channel can reduce the risk during delivery and increase customer’s satisfaction. Kudler Catering Menu and Price determination Kudler needs to decide what food to offer in their catering service and what price to charge for the service. Bench marking other gourmet catering companies will be one method to get an idea about the market. Setup sample in the each store and get customer’s opinion about the taste and price. Introduce the catering food in the cooking class will be another beneficial method to help Kudler to determine the menu and price. Kudler needs to be very careful about the price they set for their catering service because from the survey that was conducted back in 2008 and 2009. Their customers were not happy about the price of the product. More than 50% of the customers feel that the product does not worth the money they spend. Marketing Place According to Kerin, Hartley, Berkowitz, and Rudelius (2006), place is a means of getting the product into the customer’s hand. In Kudler’s catering business, the term place could be at any location desired by the customer. The location could be the resident of the customer, could be the retail store, or any public facilities. Delivery service is mandatory to ensure the food is stay in the best condition before its being serviced on the table. Kulder should assign an employee as the catering coordinator for each catering order. The catering coordinator will be responsible of contact the customer for deliver time and ensure the quality of the food and the service. For large order, catering coordinator should stay until the end of the catering event. Catering Promotion Plan Kudler can start promoting their catering service in an easy and inexpensive way by using the in-store advertisements. Flyers around the store, menu or price sheet attaché to the check out receipts and coupon attach to the store business card are some inexpensive promotion methods. In addition to in-store advertisement, direct mailings or email to all existing customer that already participate in their frequent shopper program. Local newspaper and radio station will be other good method to get the news around the community. Kudler needs to analyze their budget on advertisement to determine the best way to promote their catering service. Kudler’s Target Market and the Use of Technology Kudler needs to expand their current database and upgrade their software as the business grows bigger. The company should utilize the information that is collected by the frequent purchase program. For corporation customer, direct email, fax, and phone call to the contact person might be a better approach to contact the customer for new product and service. For regular customer, a direct mail to their residential address might be more suitable. Kudler should also enable the internet purchase option so the customer will be able to place their order online and track their order instantly. Catering Effect on the Organic Produce Business Kudler can include the organic produce in their catering menu as the fresh raw material can be easily available at short notice. However, the purchasing manger will need to work closely with the organic growers to ensure the supplies of the produce. The menu will need to be modified very frequent as most of the organic produces are seasonal. The local growers will benefit from the addition business if the catering service is stabilized. Conclusion As Kudler Find Foods continues to expand their business area, the needs of the customers must be maintained and considered at all time. The company needs to utilized their skills and provide the right mix of product, price, place, and promotion to continue their success. As the catering business takes off subsequent marketing studies should performed to ensure customer satisfaction and adjustments made as tastes or demands change.