Kraft Heinz Marketing Plan

Kraft Heinz Marketing Plan

I.          Executive Summary

            Kraft Heinz on 6/25/18 will began transforming our marketing plan. One of our primary focus in our new marketing plan will be to rebrand our product into a healthier light. In previous years, we have seen our sells flatten due to consumers desire to eat healthier. In order reach this goal, 2 million dollars will be allocated to the research and development department with an expected completion date of 12/3/18.

            Once our products are tested and proven healthier, we will began deploying our products to our distributions sites around the word. This phase of the marketing plan will be completed in October. This stage of the process is important because we have to make sure we are able to keep up with the demand of our new product.

            The final stage of our new marketing plan will be to deploy are improved products on social media. We are expecting this deployment to happen in the first week of December. Our newly hired marketing manager and his team will ensure all the popular sites are advertising our products. To ensure top results, we have struck a deal with popular social media sites like Facebook and twitter for the month of December. 

II.        Situation Analysis

A.        The Internal Environment

                        Review of marketing goals and objectives

                        Kraft Heinz current marketing goals and objectives is aimed towards promoting their product more on social media. Kraft Heinz has created a team that’s already promoting their items on Facebook and twitter.

                        Review of current marketing strategy and performance

Kraft Heinz marketing strategy as previous discussed is to start putting their product in front of as many customers as possible. Given we are in the social media error, the best method of doing so is through outlets like Facebook and twitter.

                                    Kraft Heinz performance has be down due to many customers viewing their product as old and ancient. The new social media approach will allow the company to become relevant again amongst the younger generation 

                        Review of current and anticipated organizational resources

                                    The organizational resources of Kraft Heinz has increased tremendously after the merger of the two companies. Heinz could help Kraft sell more broadly in international markets do to their large footprint in international business

                        Review of current and anticipated cultural and structural issues

                                    The anticipated culture and structure of Kraft Heinz is positioned in a way to lever knowledge throughout the business. Kraft former CEO will lead the company and Heinz former CEO will be named the VP of the new organization.

                                    With Heinz already having a large international business, Kraft will benefit from the warehouse and the international relationships that have already been established. 

B.        The Customer Environment

                        Who are the firm’s current and potential customers?

The current customer base for Kraft Heinz are those individuals that are in the processing food market. This market ranges from old to young do to the busy lifestyle of most people. Processing food allows for quick meals.  

                        What do customers do with the firm’s products?

Customers of Kraft Heinz use their products for food. Kraft Heinz products range from Beverages, Cheese, Condiments, Desserts and Baking Ingredients, Meat, Meat Alternatives, Prepared Entrees, Salad Dressings, Dishes, Snack Foods, Sweet Toppers

                        Where do customers purchase the firm’s products?

Customers are able to purchase these products from store-based retailers, ecommerce, catalog retailers, vending, wholesale outlets, and direct from the firm.

                        When do customers purchase the firm’s products?

                                    Kraft Heinz product line varies and majority of their items are items that are on consumer’s weekly grocery list. The typically sees an increase in sales during holidays has consumers typically have more family gatherings during this time which increases the need of their products.

                        Why (and how) do customers select the firm’s products?

                                    Both Kraft and Heinz already had a strong customer base prior to their merger. After the merger, the company was able to capitalize on their customer base and also branding power. With brand power, customers select their items because they are familiar with them.

                        Why do potential customers not purchase the firm’s products?

                                    Potential customers may not purchase the firm’s product because of health reasons. Kraft Heinz products are process food which is often full off sodium.

C.        The External Environment

                        Competition

                                    Danone foods is Kraft Heinz’s competition

                        Economic Growth and Stability

                                    Danone products are available in more than a130 countries across the five continents.

                        Political Trends

                                    Danone foods like several other business faces potential future political issues. Some of those political issues could range from tariff increase on their product and increased regulations.

                        Legal and Regulatory Issues

                                    Regulations in the food industry continues to increase. Food regulations continue to increase due to the federal government attempt to make process food healthier to eat. Other regulations issues comes in the form of taxes. Taxes plays a huge factor in the company’s net profit.

                        Technological Advancements

                                    Technology has helped in the advancement of manufacturing, process efficiency, distribution, supply chain effectiveness, promotion, cost-reduction, and customer relationship. This positive advancements in technology is done their better equipment and also the ability to market their product through various outlets that once wasn’t there.

                        Sociocultural Trends

                                    The customer sociocultural trend is currently driven towards a healthier society. Citizens are more aware of health related disease and are straying away from products that are known to create high blood pressure, cholesterol issues, and cancer.

III.       SWOT Analysis

A.        Strengths

                        Strength 1: Third largest food company in the US

                        Strength 2: Fifth-largest food company in the world

                        Strength 3: Kraft is the number 1 maker of ketchup

                        Strength 4: Competitor has high raw material cost

                        Strength 5: Competitor has Poor distribution

                        Strength 6: Industry has a high initial capital cost

B.        Weaknesses

                        Weakness 1: Very little bargaining power with the companies already being so big

Weakness 2: Kraft struck a deal in 2012 allowing Mondelez International exclusive rights to sell Kraft brands

                        Weakness 3: Both companies’ revenues had been flat for years

                        Weakness 4: Both companies were seen as old school companies

                        Weakness 5: Competitor Has Better Quality of food

                        Weakness 6: Competitor Has Healthier food

            C.        Opportunities (external situations independent of the firm—not strategic options)

Opportunity 1: Potential cost cuts of 1.5 billion through greater economies of scale in North America and through Kraft’s better credit rating

Opportunity 2: Combined company would have more market power over retailers, giving it greater access to shelf space and the ability to raise prices

                        Opportunity 3: Heinz could help Kraft sell more broadly in international markets

D.        Threats (external situations independent of the firm)

                        Threat 1: Pricing wars among competitors

Threat 2: Falling Demand, the demand for highly processed packaged foods has been on the decline.

Threat 3: Safety Regulations, because Kraft-Heinz has a global stretch then they must obey the laws and regulations of many countries and this costs lots of money

                        Threat 4: Increase in labor wages

E.        The SWOT Matrix

Strengths:   Third largest food company in the US   Fifth-largest food company in the world   Kraft is the number 1 maker of ketchup   Competitor has high raw material costCompetitor has Poor distributionIndustry has a high initial capital cost

Opportunities:   Potential cost cuts of 1.5 billion through greater economies of scale in North America and through Kraft’s better credit rating   Combined company would have more market power over retailers, giving it greater access to shelf space and the ability to raise prices                         Heinz could help Kraft sell more broadly in international markets

Weaknesses: Very little bargaining power with the companies already being so big   Kraft struck a deal in 2012 allowing Mondelez International exclusive rights to sell Kraft brands                         Both companies’ revenues had been flat for years                         Both companies were seen as old school companies                         Competitor Has Better Quality of food                         Competitor Has Healthier food

Threats: Pricing wars among competitors   Falling Demand, the demand for highly processed packaged foods has been on the decline.   Safety Regulations, because Kraft-Heinz has a global stretch then they must obey the laws and regulations of many countries and this costs lots of money   Increase in labor wages

F.         Developing Competitive Advantages

Kraft Heinz has an amazing competitive advantage in its brand power and its customer base. My plan will be to capitalize on the brand power and customer base by promoting a healthier product. The processing food industry has built a bad reputation around their products not being healthy. 

G.        Developing a Strategic Focus

The strategic focus will aggressively find ways to make our product healthier for the customers.

IV.       Marketing Goals and Objectives

            A.        Marketing Goal A: Increase Sales

                        Objective A1: Marketing manager to participate in Social media

                        Objective A2: Marketing manager to participate in News outlets

            B.        Marketing Goal B: Promote healthier product

                        Objective B1: Marketing manager will identify healthy candidates that use our product

                        Objective B2: Marketing manager to market our products at health events  

V.        Marketing Strategy

            A.        Primary (and Secondary) Target Market

                        Primary target market

                                    Consumers in the US, young, and metropolitan areas

                        Secondary target market (optional)

                                    International, older, and rural areas

            B.        Product Strategy

When continue to use the same images that allow both companies to be successful prior to the merger. In doing so, we will continue our brand power. 

            C.        Pricing Strategy

Due to the size of our company, we will take advantage of bulk buying of raw material which will allow us to out price our competitors

            D.        Distribution/Supply Chain Strategy

Due to the size of our company, we will utilize our numerous warehouses to ensure an effective distribution strategy

            E.        Integrated Marketing Communication (Promotion) Strategy

We will promote our products through social media and offer exclusive discounts to those customers that follow our page

VI.       Marketing Implementation

            A.        Structural Issues

In order to beef up our marketing efforts towards social media, our firm will hire a new marketing manager that primary job is to develop a team that will be able to make our product more marketable on social media.

In addition to hire a marketing manager, we will also hire addition research and developers to help create a healthier product.

B.        Tactical Marketing Activities

Specific Tactical Activities	Person/Department Responsible	Required Budget	Completion Date
Product Activities: Healthier product	Research and development	2 million dollars	7/23/18
Pricing Activities: Compare prices with competitor	Accounting	100K	7/15/18
Distribution/Supply Chain Activities Ensure utilization of shelf stocking	Warehouse Manager	100K	10/23/18
IMC (Promotion) Activities: Social Media	Social Media Manager	150K	12/13/18

VII.     Evaluation and Control

            A.        Formal Controls

                        Input controls – Secure financial resources, capital expenditures, and properly staff our new departments.  

Process controls – New Management training, employees benefits, and public relations group.

Output controls- Data will be collected from our analysis and accounting department to track our desired outcomes. The analysis and accounting department will be responsible for monthly and quarterly reports.   

            B.        Informal Controls

                        Employee self-control– Employees will be given the opportunity to receive up to $5,000 a year in education reimbursement to ensure our personnel continues to educate themselves. We will also implement cash bonuses for those employees that continue to meet the company goals.

                        Employee social control– We will continue to monitor employee’s shared organizational values, workgroup relationships, and social or behavioral norms. If we find any deficiencies in these areas, we will offer training.

                        Cultural control- Our culture will be set by our senior leadership upon the morals we were established on. Given senior leadership will have good morals and ethics, it will trickle down to our employees.

C. Implementation Schedule and Timeline

Month	___July_____	__October______	__December______
Activities                                          Week	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4	1	2	3	4
Product Activities
Healthier product			X
Pricing Activities
Compare prices with competitor		X
Distribution Activities
Ensure utilization of shelf stocking							X
IMC Activities
Social Media									X

            D.        Marketing Audits

A Marketing audit will be performed once a quarter by an outside firm. The audit will be done by an outside firm to ensure unbiased data. The information in the audit will be presented to the CEO and the VP from both Marketing managers. The audit will display the increase or decrease in new consumers, social media likes, and the demand for our products.