In total, this project should be no more than 12 pages (excluding the title and reference pages). Use APA (American Psychological Association) style guidelines when citing references and formatting the paper. Your project must include a cover page and a reference page. Use 12 point, Times New Roman font, and 1-inch margins.
The assignment is broken down as follows:
Part I: Choose a company/product to investigate. This should be a company/brand/product you are interested in (tip: choose a company you are interested in working at in the future). Do not choose Apple because it is the example I use in class. Include a brief description of the company including its mission statement and overall marketing strategy (cost-based or differentiated). Identify all the ways customers can purchase the focal company’s product(s). Does the company use multiple or a single channel? Describe the environmental factors that affect either the channel members or the channel structure; this includes competitive (horizontal, vertical, etc), legal, sociocultural, economic, and technological factors. You can find this information on many companies’ webpages, newspapers, and 10-k reports/ public announcements/ stockholder announcements (some of these reports are only available if the company is publically traded).
Part II: Discuss the structure of the channel (see the figure below). How many levels are there? If possible, identify how many and who the intermediaries are? What is the company’s distribution intensity? How does the company’s selection of channel members and channel structure fit with its mission statement and overall marketing strategy?
Part III: Provide your observations and recommendations. Through researching your company and its marketing channel, what have you learned and observed? What would you recommend to your chosen company to help it improve or sustain its marketing channel (ex: make it more efficient, bolster relationships with channel members, more closely align their members with their mission statement, etc.)? Provide three observations and three recommendations.
Also you can provide any visuals as needed.
