Lifebuoy is the world's number one soap that offers an idea of ​​health and hygiene. This report is based on Unilever's lifeline. The lifebuoy has more than 110 years of history. This report includes the mission and strategic objective of Unilever. External and internal analysis of the company shows the factors that affect the company. Internal analysis includes technology, government, customer and competitor analysis, which makes the company aware of the environment outside the organization. Internal analysis covers performance analysis and determinants of strategic options, which helps build future strategy from the past. The key success factor of the lifeline includes the objective of the product which is health and hygiene, the distribution system and meeting the customer's requirements. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the Original Essay Lifebuoy's loyal customer base is the biggest asset of the product. The lifeline is in its mature phase of the product lifecycle, where it requires changes. Therefore, Lifebuoy has been relaunched with a new fragrance and product line. The new lifeline is now targeting not only male consumers, but also families, with the aim of helping them protect themselves from germs and make life healthier. Introduction Lifebuoy is Unilever's oldest brand launched in 1894 as a disinfectant soap in the UK to help people in their quest for better personal hygiene. Lifebuoy is a truly “global” brand before the term “global brand” was coined. Lifebuoy soap is present all over the world, in certain countries such as India where it is one of the leading brands on the market. This report includes the strategic marketing plan for Lifebuoy, which covers the brand's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. It reflects the internal and external environment, the strategic marketing mix and ends with the recommended medium-term strategy. The strategic marketing plan covers the goals and strategies of the organization's marketing effort and should be coordinated with company-wide planning. Unilever Company offers 400 brands in 14 different categories of personal care products, home products and food products; no other company touches the lives of so many people in so many different ways. The company's portfolio of brands has made it a leader in all areas. Some popular brands of the companies are Lipton, Knorr, Dove and Omo. The company invests 1 billion euros each year in research and development and has five laboratories around the world exploring new ideas and techniques to develop products. Mission Statement: The mission statement describes what an organization does, what market it serves, and what it seeks to accomplish in the future. The mission statement serves as a guide for daily operations and a basis for future decision making. A strong mission statement builds commitment, loyalty and motivation. (Lifebuoy, 2010) “Unilever’s mission is to add vitality to life. We meet everyday nutrition, hygiene and personal care needs with brands that help people feel good, look good and get more out of life. » (Lifebuoy, 2010) Values ​​and strategy: The aim of the organization is the desire to grow sustainably and thus create long-term value for everyone involved in the business. The efforts of companies areguided by their Code of Business Principles which sets standards for employee behavior. It also outlines commitments to stakeholders including customers, suppliers, employees, communities and the environment. Lifebuoy The aim of the Lifebuoy is to provide an accessible, affordable hygiene and health solution that allows people to lead lives free from fear, hygiene-related anxieties and health consequences. health. . The lifebuoy was launched in 1894, which is consistent with the lifebuoy lasting for over 110 years. Supporting life with unbeatable protection is at the heart of the brand name itself: Lifebuoy, the guarantee protection in the event of a threat. In the 1930s, the campaign in the United States was called "Clean Hands Help Protect Health," encouraging the use of lifesaver soap to kill germs on hands that can cause health problems . A similar campaign continues today with a lifebuoy hygiene program in countries including India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Vietnam. Internal and External Business Environment Environmental scanning is the process of identifying and understanding emerging opportunities and threats. Internal Analysis Internal analysis provides a detailed understanding of strategically important aspects of the organization, which covers performance analysis and key determinants of strategy. Performance analysis includes profitability and sales, which provides an assessment of past strategies and an indication of the current market viability of a product line. Product portfolio analysis takes into account the strength of each company. The goal is to generate a business mix with an appropriate balance between new and mature products. The determinants of the strategic option include the strategic problem of the past and current product. (Mills, 2005, p56-58) Some of the points of internal analysis are: 1. Technological, governmental, economic, cultural, demographic. 2. Performance Analysis: Profitability, Sales, Shareholder Value Analysis, Customer Satisfaction, Product Quality, Brand Associations, Relative Cost, New Products, Employee Capabilities and Performance, Product Portfolio Analysis. 3. Customer analysis: segments, motivations, unmet needs. 4. Determinants of strategic options: past and current strategic issues, organizational capabilities and constraints, strengths and weaknesses. 5. Analysis of competitors/industries: identity, strategic groups, performance, image, objectives, strategies, culture, cost structure, 6. Analysis of market characteristics: size, projected growth, profitability, barriers to entry, structure of costs, distribution system, trends. (Source: Mills, 2005, p51) External analysis Unilever tries to make its product affordable for everyone. The company evolves its technology based on trends. People have different lifestyles, tastes, preferences and budgets. The organization is sensitive when designing soap bars or shower gels because each market has different requirements which depend on the tastes and preferences of the consumer. The organization makes its decision based on customer analysis, available technology, and market characteristics such as market size, entry barriers, and distribution system. (Mills, 2005, p50) Key/Critical Success Factor Critical success factors are the activities required for the success of the business. It has been widely used to present or identify some key factors that organizations should focus on tosucceed. The critical success factor refers to the “limited number of areas in which satisfactory results will ensure successful competitive performance for an individual department or organization” (Critical Success Factors - Analysis, 2009). The key success factor can be developed based on the companies mission statement, develop five or six high level objectives, a list of requirements, a problem and hypothesis and a problem/requirement matrix. Some of the key factors for the lifeline are: Improving health and hygiene. “Swathya Chetana” Programs. Sensitivity to market developments. Understanding how and why customers buy Product line coverage Identification and positioning to meet customer needs. Prevention of price wars Distribution coverage and speed of delivery. Magnitude and Impact of Promotion High Product Quality SWOT Analysis SWOT analysis includes internal and external analysis to summarize strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The standard SWOT framework incorporates four essential elements that encompass the company's characteristics that include strengths and weaknesses as well as the competitive factors it faces in its environment that reflects opportunities and threats. (Novicevic, Harvey, Autry, & Bond, 2004) Dual perspective SWOT analysis shows the controllable and uncontrollable factors in the descriptive view of competitive factors and in the evaluative view of competitive factors which includes desirable and undesirable factor. Strength and weakness are controllable by the company and opportunities and threats are not controllable. The organization desires strength and opportunities and undesirable factors include threats and weaknesses. The Lifebuoy brand itself is a strength for the company. According to my research, since 2000, major changes have been made to the classic lifesaver bar soap to ensure that it provides improved hygienic protection and a healthier, more enjoyable washing experience for consumers. The new lifebuoy shape makes the bar easier to grip and use. The brand has developed a new formulation offering even better protection against germs which creates a foam worn on the skin. The lifebuoy is more than just a soap, which provides the hygiene and health solution to families. Lifebuoy strength includes brand name, loyal customer and affordable price, different product lines like lifebuoy soap, lifebuoy hand wash, lifebuoy shower gel rescue and clear skin for lifebuoy. Lifebuoy is a leading brand in the Indian market. The lifeline targets the limited segment of Monotones customer and product. Lifebuoy can improve its sales by increasing the different scents in its product line. Strategic direction The strategic direction is a general statement of planned actions. The strategic directions aim to create a broad and shared understanding of the strategic actions envisaged over a three to five year planning horizon. The company has defined four strategic axes. First, the company took a very thorough look at its brand portfolio and decided to focus on some major brands. The company selects this brand based on several criteria such as its absolute size, brand strength, relevance, competitive advantage and growth potential. This brand will receive a disproportionate share of its marketing spend and will be supported by a high level of relevant innovation based on true knowledge of theconsumer as well as new technological platforms. The new technology will give the opportunity to reduce their costs and be much more competitive against low-cost competition and will also help improve the quality of the product. One of the major strategic axes is to develop the activity by focusing on the brand. The second strategic axis will be to explore growth opportunities in new channels that reflect the start of new consumption opportunities in the different methods. Such as Lifebuoy soap, free emergency mobile washing facilities were provided to Londoners in 1940. Lifebuoy vans were equipped with hot showers, soap and towels. The company has appointed dedicated market activation managers who will focus on innovative promotion and strategies to increase market share. The third is to continue to reduce the total cost. The company will benefit from scale and efficiency advantages in media and is also exploring other shared services. It will also maintain tight control over overheads, including corporate center costs. The fourth strategic axis consists of building a proactive, flexible and rapidly evolving organizational culture. The organization reduces corporate center involvement in operational decision-making, while significantly improving the link between rewards and actual performance through a combination of variable pay bonuses and stock-linked programs. Product Life Cycle As each human being exits the life cycle, in the same way every product goes through its life cycle. There are mainly four steps for each product. Four stages include introductory stage, growth stage, maturity stage and decline stage. The decline stage is where the product needs innovation or requires some changes. Lifebuoys have been around for 110 years. The product life cycle of lifesaver is as follows: (Product life cycle, 2008) Introduction stage: The product has been launched in the market and people are not aware of the product. This is the market entry stage. The product can enter the product with the two-price strategy. One is price penetration and the other is price skimming. Price penetration is the product of price above market price. In the price skimming strategy, the price of the product is lower than that of competitors. Growth stage: At this stage, the consumer will become aware of the product through product promotion, which can be done in several ways. Sales will increase of the product. It is at this point that the lifesaver becomes the market leading brand. At this point, the price won't make much difference. The lifeline increases sales at this stage. Maturity stage: this is the stage where product sales will stabilize. There is a small fluctuation between sales but it will not make a big difference in sales. The similar product will enter the market and the competition will increase which will reduce the sale of the product and in some cases the sales of the product will be stable. As the lifeline focuses on health and hygiene, the other new product will enter the same market with a similar type of product. Many competitors will enter the market with the same concept, such as Dettol which launched antiseptic soap. And sales of the product will stabilize. Decline stage: Once the sales of the product are stable, the sales of the product will start to decline in the near future. This is the time when changes will be necessary in the product. This is the moment when the product will offer a different flavor orwill increase the product range. Lifebuoy has been relaunched with the new scent and with more protection against germs. Lifebuoy has expanded its product range, including shower gel, talcum powder, etc. Marketing Strategy A well-planned market strategy can be vital for business growth. Decisions are mainly made based on the marketing plan. Marketing strategy can help not only define business goals, but also develop activities to achieve them. To develop a marketing strategy, the first thing to consider is the company's unique selling proposition, which sets the product apart from the rest of the market. What is special about the product? Why should the consumer choose the product? These are the points necessary to develop the strategic plan. The next thing is the target market. Which consumer segment the product targets. The next step is now the positioning of the product, and finally the marketing method. India is the main market for the lifebuoy. Lifebuoy is the leading brand in India. Lifebuoy's goal is to provide affordable and accessible hygiene and health solutions that enable people to live without fear of hygiene, anxiety and health consequences. When we target India for the lifeline, the product will get a large share in the rural market. Rural customers are generally daily wage earners and therefore do not have a monthly income. The strategy therefore revolves around what attracts the rural consumer and requires changing the size of the packaging. Rural consumers in India are looking for a pack at a low unit price. So, packaging in smaller units and lower priced packs to increase their affordability. The lifeline should target the other market segment i.e. people who use shower gel and should provide more perfume and bath gel. Repositioning the Lifebuoy During my research, I learned that the lifebuoy is known for its health and hygiene. The Lifesaver features standard brick red soap with fragrance. But in the product life cycle, the life buoy is reached at the maturity stage where it requires a change in the product. The existing product is not competitive with other competitors in the market. So the company changed the lifebuoy and made the new lifebuoy with the new fragrance and lifebuoy to increase its product line. In India, Lifebuoy targets the rural market. The New Lifesaver is a completely new product with a new formulation, new scent, new foam profile and a change in positioning from men's soap to family soap. Seventy percent of lifebuoy sales come from rural India. Now the lifeline is no longer carbolic soap with a cresyl scent, it's toilet soap with a different scent. Lifebuoy changes the target market from earlier men's, the focus has shifted to the family message that Lifebuoy is for effective protection against germs that cause health problems. The new Lifebuoy range includes Lifebuoy active red, Lifebuoy international plus and gold, shower gel and talcum powder. For the high-end consumer, International Range Lifebuoys are used as deodorants. Marketing mix The marketing mix refers to the main elements to take into account in order to properly market a product or service. The marketing mix consists of the 4 Ps, which include product, price, place and promotion. Product It describes the product in detail, including its special features and the benefits it will bring to the consumer...