Art Event at Magic Dust Lounge

One of the many events coming to the Magic Dust Lounge where relaxation and excitement meet! Each month will feature a different local artist.

Magic Dust Lounge

Starbucks is a wonderfully inviting environment for those who want to kick back and relax. They have nailed the coffee industry and provided their consumers with a quality "European environment." The one thing Starbucks doesn't have...? Alcoholic beverages. I want to provide the same type of relaxing environment for those who want to kick back and enjoy a cup of my Magic Dust Vodka Cider. My lounge will feature sofas, love seats, large arm chairs, and even two bay window seats. It will have lamp lighting and a fireplace to allow for reading and relaxing.





The lounge will only be open for those 21 and over and will also house several bookshelves with books for sale. Like Barnes and Noble or Borders, customers are free to read the books while enjoying the lounge. We want to provide an environment in which our customers can be social and relax according to their needs. This lounge will allow us to promote our product and expand our product offerings.


This lounge will also give us a place to host community events that attract locals and target our market. These events will draw more people in and increase our brand recognition. Some of these events could include book signings, art exhibits for local artists, free movies, etc.


Store Hours:
Monday-Thursday: 2 PM-Midnight
Friday-Sunday: 2 PM-2 AM

Bo Jones and the Magic Dust Vodka Recipe

I've created a children's book that's meant for adults! It's included in your purchase of Magic Dust Vodka. Read about how Bo Jones begins the brand, Magic Dust Vodka and continue buying Magic Dust Vodka to find out what happens to Claudia, Jesabelle, and our fearless hero, Bo Jones.

Magic Dust Vodka Marketing Plan: "Because relaxation shouldn't be optional."

BUSINESS MISSION STATEMENT: “To Spice up your Relaxation.”

“The foundation of any marketing plan is the firm’s mission statement, which answers the question, “What business are we in?”(MKTG, Lamb, pg. 18)

Magic Dust Vodka is a unique brand that mixes traditional powdered cider with a shot of vodka. Our idea is to combine a relaxing hot beverage mixed with the excitement of our premium vodka. This allows our consumer to enjoy an evening at home and further enhance their need to relax. My vodka brand will satisfy a niche in the market. That niche will be composed of people with busy lives who want to relax but remain young.

“For small companies with limited resources that potentially face giant competitors, niching may be the only viable option.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 21)

OBJECTIVES

“…objectives should be realistic, measurable and time specific…they communicate marketing management philosophies and provide direction for lower-level marketing managers so that marketing efforts are integrated and pointed in a consistent direction.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg.18-19)

-Increase market awareness of our product within our target market by 20 percent within the first year.
-Inform target audience on the use of our product and unique features it presents. Emphasize our product's superiority over competitors leading to a 10 percent increase in sales in second year of tracked sales.
-Achieve a 15 percent dollar market share in the vodka market within 18 months of product introduction.

SITUATION OR SWOT ANALYSIS

“Environmental scanning helps identify market opportunities and threats and provides guidelines for the design of marketing strategy.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 19)

Strengths

Unique product that satisfies a niche market of people who wants to stay home and relax but also remain young and lively. Magic Dust Vodka is unlike any other vodka brand in the market.

Weaknesses

Since Magic Dust Vodka is a niche product, I need to be able to reach a very specific market. My target market are people who probably have children and busy lives. Reaching these consumers will be difficult due to their lack of time and hectic schedules.

Opportunities

If I can become well-known and prominent within the middle-aged family and business people, I can attempt to expand to other markets. I may be able to move to an older demographic if I'm more recognizable.

Threats

There are hundreds of vodka brands available to the consumer. Many of these brands are already established and well-known within the target audience.

MARKETING STRATEGY

Product Development

“Managers following the product development strategy can rely on their extensive knowledge of the target audience.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 22)

When introducing a new product, the most important aspect is to understand the target market. My target audience will include younger parents and other middle-aged business people. I will focus on these people because I believe that these people need to relax more than any others. They have hectic, busy lives and want time to come home and drift away from the worries of their day.

New-Product Strategy

“The new-product strategy specifies the roles that new products the organization wants to offer and the markets it wants to serve.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 147)

Magic Dust Vodka is the most important product offering because it is a revolutionary idea that will bring a new sense of excitement to the vodka market.


MARKETING MIX

Product

“We buy things not only for what they do (benefits) but also for what they mean to us (status, quality, or reputation.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 25)

My product will offer a premium vodka that will allow a unique experience for the consumer. Just as Starbucks offers the European coffee experience, I want to offer a certain experience for my customer. I don't want it to be solely about my product. I want people to buy Magic Dust Vodka for what the product means to them. I want to offer the experience of relaxation and an escape from the daily stresses of life.

Place/ Distribution

“Would you rather buy a kiwi fruit at the 24-hour grocery store within walking distance or fly to Australia to pick your own?” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 25)

I want my vodka to be offered at liquor and grocery stores to allow for convenience for my consumers. I have stressed that my customer has a hectic lives. I want my product to be readily available so that obtaining it doesn't add to their daily stresses. It should be as easy to pick up as a loaf of bread or a gallon of milk.

Promotion

“Promotion's role in the marketing mix is to bring about mutually satisfying exchanges with target markets by informing, educating, persuading, and reminding them of the benefits of an organization or a product.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 25)

I want to promote my product through both unusual and conventional methods. Since most of my consumers will have children, I want to create a children's book for adults. My consumers buy or have had to buy children's books for their kids, I want them to be able to have a book that is written for them. This book will be written as a promotional tool that will inform and excite people to my product. It will be written with adult concepts in the form of a children's book. I am hoping that this concept will also attract publicity and maybe some scandal that will act as free product publicity. Initially, I will include this book with purchase, and as my product develops and becomes popular, I may decide to create a comic book or a series of books that consumers can buy and collect. These books will then act as additional revenue for my company.

Conventionally, I will probably have television advertisements that will play during prime time to target my audience. I will also take out magazine ads in magazines that I believe target my consumer. These conventional methods will add to my total promotion capabilities.

Also, see branding strategy below to view another idea for unconventional promotion.

Price

“Price is an important competitive weapon and is very important to the organization because price multiplied by the number of units sold equals total revenue for the firm.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 26)

Magic Dust Vodka will be a mid to low range item. My target market, those with families, are mostly on budgets and will be looking to spend a minimal amount of money. By keeping my vodka affordable, I can beat out some of the competition. The combination of a lower priced item and the unique features will attract my target market, as well.


PORTFOLIO MATRIX

“The portfolio matrix classifies each SBU by its present or forecast growth and market share. The underlying assumption is that market share and profitability are strongly linked.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 23)

Ideally, I would like to strive to be a star in the marketplace by becoming a fast-growing market leader. To do so, I will need to maintain promotion throughout my product life. Without this maintained promotion, my product could become a dog and eventually leave the marketplace.

MARKET OPPORTUNITY ANALYSIS (MOA) and TARGET MARKET

“Target markets can be selected by appealing to the entire market with one marketing mix, concentrating on one segment, or appealing to multiple market segments using marketing mixes.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 24)

I will be concentrating on one segment in the market. I have selected a market niche and will target my marketing efforts accordingly. My target market, as stated previously, are middle-aged business people and those with families. By concentrating on this segment, I can effectively work on satisfying their needs and wants. By doing so, I can compete with larger, more established brands.

BRANDING STRATEGY

“Heineken is trying to do for its beer what Starbucks has done for its coffee—create a social “brand experience.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 137)

Heineken has set up bars within airports to attract customers to its product offerings. Similarly, I would like to eventually expand and create environments that my consumers can enjoy Magic Dust Vodka. I understand that many people can't relax fully at home due to children, spouses, or other distractions. By creating a place (similar to a coffee house), I can further promote by mission statement and brand slogan and attract a larger customer base. These “lounges” would allow people to have another place to relax and allow my company to branch into other product offerings such as other alcoholic drinks and snack items.

LABELING

“Informational labeling...is designed to help consumers make proper product selections and lower their cognitive dissonance after the purchase.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 141)

“Marketing costs in the introductory stage are normally high for several reasons...Advertising expenses are high because of the need to educate consumers about the new product's benefits.” (MKTG, Lamb, pg. 155)

When labeling my product, I want to be sure to include some form of instructions so that my consumer can easily understand how to use my product. When purchasing regular cider packets, there are instructions on how to prepare the product. My product is no different. My advertisements should also include some form of instructional information for my consumers' benefit.

Week 10 EOC: Customer Loyalty

Stores must really impress me to keep me coming back. I hate going into a store and not being able to find anything new. One store that constantly keeps me coming back is Anthropologie. Anthropologie specializes in clothing as well as home décor. They have only been around since 1992, but in that time they have created a new idea on what a store should be about. The store is not only about clothes or interior decoration, it is also about art.

This store is superior to any other I’ve been to in window displays and visual merchandising. Not only does Anthropologie display their clothing and home décor in the windows, they also build unique and different displays to go along with their themes. The current display at Anthropologie is a giant emu created out of book pages. The visual team also turned a bed into a giant box trap to display their animal printed pillows. I have seen bags of dirt hung from the ceiling promoting their new garden section. They never cease to amaze me.

I venture to Anthropologie for the clothing and for the décor, but most importantly I go for the environment. They always have candles lit and new discoveries and displays. Each time I arrive, I recognize the smell and the environment, but I find new and exciting things to capture my senses. Anthropologie is the perfect balance of the new and the old. They maintain their vintage feel but continue to keep up with trends and new fashion and home developments to spice up the store.

Anthropologie is one store that will always keep me coming back for more. I love to see the new and exciting developments and still know that I will, somehow, always feel at home when I walk into the store.

Week 9 EOC: Pricing

In most cases, I look for value. This may not always mean the lower price, but it does mean getting my money’s worth. I look at price versus quality and try to calculate what value I am receiving. Other times, convenience, location, and attitude take top priority.

For instance, gasoline is an inelastic good. This means that small fluctuations will not change the demand for gas. This is because Americans are reliant on gas for transportation. Unlike Europe, public transportation is not usually available, convenient, or timely. There have been many instances where I have paid more for gasoline than I had to.

Firstly, I will usually pay more for gas that is nearer to my house as opposed to farther away. Location is a deciding factor not only because of the convenience, but because it would end up costing more or the same amount to drive around looking for cheaper gas.
Secondly, I have paid more for gas when going on road trips. Most interstates have gas stations posted at multiple exits along the way. It is more timely to pull off right at the exit than driving further into a town looking for cheaper gas. Most people will relate that time is of key importance when taking road trips.

The third and final reason that I have paid more for gas is that of the actual station. I will sometimes choose to pay more for gasoline based on my attitude/perception of their station. If their station features one hundred flavors of slushies, I’m there. If they have a large beer cave, it’s the same thing. On the contrary, if I walk in and the man behind the counter looks as though he has just escaped from a mental institute, I may decide, in the name of safety, to pay more for gasoline elsewhere.

Week 8 EOC: Progress on Vodka Brand

When looking at other Vodka brands and their websites, I have noticed that there is a void in the market. There are few products that target to the casual, social drinkers. There are many types of vodka that target clubs and late-night partiers. My vodka brand will fill that void.

I’ve sealed down my pitch for my vodka brand and I am now developing a marketing plan to promote my brand. I am looking at marketing towards a slightly older generation which poses a set of challenges when deciding how to market my brand.

When marketing to the middle aged consumer, I think that it is important to be familiar with how they view life and themselves. I believe that most middle aged people want to still feel young as well as have a good deal. Most importantly, they want to relax. My marketing plan should incorporate these ideas to ensure that I reach my market segment.

Here are a few ideas that I am considering when promoting my brand:
· Determining which social networking sites cater to older generations and creating an account/page to reach those individuals
· Creating a coffee table book to be sold at Las Vegas bookstores
· Using a slogan that ties the idea of relaxation with my vodka cider
· Promoting my product heavily at Christmas and Thanksgiving

I want my product to be essential to the idea of relaxation. I want men and women alike to come home from a hard day’s work and curl up on the couch with a good cup of vodka cider. I will be targeting the middle class who work hard and want to really let loose at the end of the day without going out and partying.