Marketing Plan

Group or Individual: This is an INDIVIDUAL assignment. It should be worked on individually by each student.
Where to Submit: Submitted within the Assignment Area or in the Country Manager Assignments module.
Points: 100 points

Countries differ in the types of retailers distributing toothpaste, and the importance of each in the market. In Country Manager, you will need to decide on the best distribution channels for your brand in each country market (see the Student Manual). Customer shopping habits are an important factor in channel choice. This exercise will help you see the differences in channels and customer shopping habits for the various countries.

To properly understand distribution channels, you need to watch the videos and read the articles that I have included in the “Managing Global Distribution Channels” module. You should look at the “What is a Distribution Channel?” and “Distribution Channels Explained” resources in that module before starting on this assignment. (I have copied the links below)

https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/knowledge/other/distribution-channel/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MpKKM0ElCZA

https://www.thebalancesmb.com/what-is-a-wholesaler-2948311

https://www.netsuite.com/portal/resource/articles/inventory-management/wholesale-distribution.shtml#:~:text=The%20wholesale%20distribution%20channel%20describes,physical%20and%20online%20retail%20outlets.

https://www.shiprocket.in/blog/hypermarket-supermarket-departmental-store-difference/

https://www.ceintelligence.com/content_manager/contentPages/view/the-pros-and-cons-of-exporting

https://www.pivotint.com/blog/pros-and-cons-international-vs-domestic-manufacturing

https://muw.instructure.com/courses/22544/modules/items/762838

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/fdi.asp





The game provides 4 channels of distribution: Traditional, Self-Service, Hypermarkets, and Web/Other Home Delivery.
1. Hypermarkets are a new style of channel that is found primarily in cities. These are usually large stores with a wide variety of goods, which are typically purchased directly from the manufacturer (direct distribution). They are large, powerful stores that buy and sell large volumes of goods. Many of the hypermarket chains are foreign-owned or allied with a global distributor, such as Walmart or Carrefour.
2. Self-serve outlets are made up of more developed stores where customers serve themselves. These stores typically offer a narrow line of merchandise. Self-serve stores may be independent or part of a regional chain but are almost all locally owned. Convenience stores and local grocery stores would fall in this category.
3. Traditional sellers are small, independent stores or small kiosks and/or carts and who carry very little inventory and are almost exclusively served by wholesalers (indirect distribution). In countries with a lot of traditional retailers, the manufacturer may need to make extensive use of wholesalers to be able to most efficiently reach the retailers.
4. Web/Home delivery – Home delivery of household products and groceries is more common in Latin America than in the United States, which points to the possibility of a website-based channel of distribution once a higher percentage of the population has access to the internet. Note that for packaged goods such as toothpaste, very little direct selling occurs between the manufacturer and the end-user. While in the future the internet may become more important for the direct distribution of these goods, to date this channel is only just starting to emerge.

Important points to remember about distribution in the Latin American countries.
• The countries in Latin America differ in the types of retailers and importance of the types in each market. The importance of each channel (i.e., retailer) can differ considerably from country to country in the region.
• A primary driver of the channel choice in each country is the shopping habits of the consumers.
• For toothpaste, consumers often will not alter their shopping habits to buy a particular brand; that is, they will buy the brands available in the store(s) where they shop.
• In the simulation you will need to think about consumer habits and retail structure country-by-country as you decide how to allocate your distribution efforts.


Part 1: Distribution Channel Evaluation
• You will need to analyze 3 countries for this report.
• For each country, analyze the 4 different channels of distribution.
• Use the simulation reports to complete the table below for each country. Make sure that you the tab on the START location in the game. I want the data from the start of the game, not from a period in which you have been playing around in the individual practice rounds.


Country Name:
Traditional
Channel Self-Service
Channel Hypermarket
Channel Web/Other
Channel
Provide the % of each customer segment (i.e., younger, families, older, overall) that shops in each channel/retailer for this country (Customers tab and Shopping Habits and each country)
Total % of consumers shopping for toothpaste in this channel in this country (Customers tab and Shopping Habits)
What are the most important decision criteria for the customers for this country? (Customers tab and Decision Criteria)
What are the least important decision criteria for this country? (Customers tab and Decision Criteria)
Which brand is the biggest competition in this country? Why? (Customers tab and Brands Purchased)
Total # of retail outlets per channel/retailer type (Competition and Distribution Coverage and click on each country)
Retail sales for toothpaste for each channel/retailer type (Competition and Retail Sales and click on each country)
Which brand spends the most on advertising and how much did it spend? (Competition and Advertising)
Sales force allocation for each channel (Company and Sales Force and click on each country)
What brands are sold in each channel? (Competition and Distribution Coverage and click on each country)

Part 2: Benchmarking
• You will need to analyze 3 countries for this report.
• Use the simulation reports to complete the table below for each country. Make sure that you the tab on the START location in the game. I want the data from the start of the game, not from a period in which you have been playing around in the individual practice rounds.

Country Name:
What are the most important decision criteria for the customers in this country? (Customers tab and Decision Criteria)
What are the least important decision criteria for the customers in this country? (Customers tab and Decision Criteria)
What are the preferred sizes, delivery, and textures for this country? (Customers tab and Decision Criteria)
Which 2 brands spend the most on advertising and how much did they spend? (Competition and Advertising)
What price in American dollars (i.e., Average MSRP for SKUs) is the Local 1 brand charging for the small size toothpaste? (Competition, Price, Region)
What price in the country’s currency (i.e., Average MSRP for SKUs) is the Local 1 brand charging for the small size toothpaste? (Competition, Price, click on each country)
How many total professional sales representatives (i.e., Sales Force) is the Local brand employing? (Competition, Sales Force, click on each country)


Part 3: #1 Country to Enter

Using all of the information that you gathered in this report, out of the three countries that you analyzed which country do you feel your company must enter? Why? Be very detailed in your answer. You MUST reference A LOT of the data that you collected in the previous two parts to support your suggestion. If your discussion here is not well supported, you will lose points on the assignment. If your discussion here is not well developed and detailed, you will lose points on the assignment.



.