Course: Master of Science MSc in Global Business Management
Introduction:
The mission of Nike is to bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete across the world. Nike Inc is an American multinational corporation which was founded in 1964 and focused on the development, design, manufacture and across-the-world marketing of sports apparel, accessories and equipment. The company champions in continual progress of athletes and sports so that they can attain their full potential (Nike.com, 2023). Athletes are the pivotal elements of the company, which is why the company has thought of introducing a sports club by the brand. A sports club also known as an athletics club refers to a group of athletes or sports personnels who are focused on the purpose of playing different sports activities. The Nike sports club will be established in the UK and the club's main focus will be on instructional, recreational, competitive or a combination of all three activities so that the sports club is able to attain its full potential.
Table of Contents
- Part 1: Introduction and Product/Service Description
- Part 2: A Critical Analysis of the Market Context
- Part 3: Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning (STP)
- Part 4: Your Recommended Extended Marketing Mix
- Traditional marketing mix
- Service marketing mix
- Part 5 A discussion of Implementation Issues
- References
Strategic Marketing Report Plan
Question: Report on the design of a marketing strategy and implementation plan for a new or improved product or a service of your choice underpinned by academic and professional literature.
Part 1: Introduction and Product/Service Description
The mission of Nike is to bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete across the world. Nike Inc is an American multinational corporation which was founded in 1964 and focused on the development, design, manufacture and across-the-world marketing of sports apparel, accessories and equipment. The company champions in continual progress of athletes and sports so that they can attain their full potential (Nike.com, 2023). Athletes are the pivotal elements of the company, which is why the company has thought of introducing a sports club by the brand. A sports club also known as an athletics club refers to a group of athletes or sports personnels who are focused on the purpose of playing different sports activities. The Nike sports club will be established in the UK and the club's main focus will be on instructional, recreational, competitive or a combination of all three activities so that the sports club is able to attain its full potential.
Nike over the years has already dominated the sports market, in terms of their footwear or accessories or apparel or even equipment. At the present time, with the rapid proliferation of sports clubs across the world, Nike entering this new market will help the company in attaining more brand visibility amongst the audience. In this assignment, the marketing strategy of Nike for promoting the sports club will be discussed in depth. This marketing strategy will help Nike to develop the new service to its full potential so that the brand in the upcoming years can have the capability of sending their athletes and investing in Olympic and Paralympic sports. This will help the brand to foster a sense of sportsmanship among its audience, help in reducing stress and improve health when the audience will be thrilled to watch the sports club in progress (Wu, 2022). The aim of this assignment is to discuss the strategy of marketing and the implementation plan for the new and improved service of the sports club.
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Part 2: A Critical Analysis of the Market Context
The UK market size of the sports club in 2023 is $14.0 billion. The market strength of the sports club industry in the UK is expected to increase by 3.1% in 2023. Since 2018, there has been a 0.1% growth in the annualized market share of the sports club market in the UK (IBISWorld.com, 2022). Rugby, once considered the national sport over the years has lost its popularity to games like football or cricket or even gold. Nike can look into the growth of the audience for the sport rugby in the upcoming years. The sports club being introduced by Nike should focus more on encouraging the players and athletes to rejuvenate the lost sport and bring back its lost vigour (Kendall, 2022). When a brand like Nike will be promoting the event and urging athletes to join the club to play rugby, this will have a major influence on the audience and people across the UK will once again enjoy this lost sporting event.
As of the previous years, there are 9,365 sports clubs in the UK. There has been an increase of 0.5% every year since 2021 (IBISWorld.com, 2023). The sports clubs promoting football have risen over the years and have huge competition in this arena. There are competitors like Arsenal F.C., Manchester United F.C., Liverpool F.C., and Real Madrid among others. The ongoing rise in sports clubs over the years has also demonstrated huge growth in the UK audience focusing on the development of football clubs. But Rugby sports club has a few competitors. There are 2099 rugby sports clubs in the UK and especially in the Yorkshire and the Lancashire area this sport has some prominence. Nike coming up with their rugby sports club can have a huge impact on the UK market and they will have to face less competition. Although the main competitors in this arena are AEI Rugby Football Club, Broadstreet Rugby Football Club, and Rugby Lions Football club among others (Rugby Borough Council, 2023).
The reasons for the decline of rugby are numerous but long-standing. This is mainly due to the worst management of the top-tier clubs in the region and the farcical business practices, which have led to decreased customer loyalty for the sport as well as set poor precedents for the athletes and sports personnel in this area. In 2022, two large clubs, Worcester Warriors and Wasps RFC were closed down due to a lack of foresight and infrastructure (Kendall, 2022). Off the pitch, the HMRC had issued a petition against the Worcester Warriors and pointed out the significant operational issues present in the rugby football team. The firm Wasps RFC had faced issues as the sports club was not able to pay back the debts. The firm was unable to pay back the UK tax office and the retail bondholders, as they had been going through losses after Covid 19 had led to the cancellation of rugby events. Youth participation in the sport between 2016-2020, as per reports has continuously decreased. The game struggles to attract new players and more focus is paid to cricket and football among all the other games (Kendall, 2022). This is evident from the secondary school level only there is a major shift in the craze for football and cricket and rugby in the present times is not opted even at the school level, thus leading to a decreased awareness among the audience. The lack of technological improvements in this arena has also led to decreased awareness among the people of the UK and eventually across the world. Virtual reality and AI could have been introduced by the rugby football clubs but due to the lack of investors, the clubs cannot manage to implement the technological developments in the sport, which could have otherwise gripped the attention of the audience. According to researchers at the University of Glasgow, international rugby players have a higher risk for neurodegenerative diseases than the average population in the UK (Russell et al., 2021). The players are also likely to suffer from Alzheimer's and motor neuron diseases and even dementia from a very early age, as had been seen in the case of former England World Cup winner, Steve Thompson at the age of 42 years. The decline in rugby has been a real concern for the government of the UK, which can only be rectified with increased awareness by the brands and the sports clubs.
Nike entering this arena of introducing a sports club focused majorly on rugby football can help in attracting a large base of audience, especially the youth of the future. According to new research, the sport not only improves the fitness of the players but also helps in developing social skills. Rugby football has been associated with the development of tolerance, leadership capabilities, concentration, determination and teamwork among the players (Law in Sport, 2023). If Nike is able to market this sports club eventually in the upcoming years, then this can help in reviving the lost sport. The subsequent sections will be delineating the different aspects of STP and the marketing mix which will be applicable to the promotion of this sports club by Nike.
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Part 3: Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning (STP)
There are five types of market segmentation for the sports industry. Market segmentation helps in bifurcating the different sections of customers based on their common needs and tastes and preferences. This will help Nike to come up with unique strategies for attracting the different segmented groups towards the sports club. Segmentation based on gender, age, geography, behavioural and psychographics can be done in this respect (Naraine, 2019). Nike over the years has promoted gender inclusivity, which is why the brand needs to introduce a gender-inclusive and race-inclusive sports club focusing majorly on the promotion of the rugby sport. This will not only increase the interest among the audience about the sport but will also help in attracting more investors for the sports club. The major focus should be on targeting the younger age groups, which is why Nike can partner with schools in the UK region so that from the secondary school level the sport is introduced in the curriculum. This will help in increasing awareness about the lost sport. The brand also needs to grip the attention of the middle-aged and the seniors on the sport by collaborating with eminent rugby football players of the region.
Different locations across the UK, especially Yorkshire and Lancashire can be targeted by the brand so that more athletes and sports personnels from this area can be encouraged to join the rugby football club with better facilities and the latest infrastructural and technological developments (Koronioset al., 2020). Brand loyalty to Nike is immense which is why the brand coming up with a sports club focusing majorly on reviving the lost sport can be beneficial. As Nike is well accepted among the audience and has a large youth vase, the brand will be able to attract more athletes and sports personnel specializing in the area of rugby and football. Feedback can be generated with the help of social media or events so that the views and perspectives of the audience on the lost sport can be generated. This should be focused on their awareness and willingness to watch the game (Kaiser et al., 2019). Based upon these opinions, the brand can take effective strategies for the promotion of the sports club in the long run.
The sports club marketing by Nike will help the new club to attain its target market in the upcoming years. The brand can market this club as being diverse, inclusive and family-friendly (Galea, 2021). A club having these values, besides the original brand value of Nike, will help in targeting more audiences and attracting more sports personnel who are aware of rugby- football. The target market of the youths is to be selected predominantly. This is because when the children will be encouraged from the secondary school level to play this sport, in the future these youths of the present generation with their increased awareness about the sport can become well-versed in rugby and football. This will help the Nike rugby football club to come up with more players. As this will be family-friendly, the friends and families of the players will also be watching, thus improving their awareness and interest in the sport from the secondary school level, and eventually at the international level.
The sports club should have the capability of understanding its audience and their subsequent needs and preferences from the club promoted by the brand. Good and effective positioning of the rugby sports club by Nike will help in attaining enhanced customer loyalty. The brand can come up with a Unique Selling Proposition for this sports club. To increase awareness among the UK audience about the rugby sport, the brand can focus on the differentiation aspect (Iyeret al., 2019). Most of the clubs across the UK are majorly focused on promoting football or cricket. Nike can come up with reviving the lost sport and partnering and collaborating with the world cup winners or major rugby football players in the UK playing for the domestic teams can be beneficial for increasing awareness among the public.
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Part 4: Your Recommended Extended Marketing Mix
Traditional marketing mix
• Product/Service- The service being promoted by Nike needs to come up with a USP so that the new sports club is able to attract a large amount of audience. This will also help the brand in gaining more visibility amongst the stakeholders, thus attracting more sports personnel as well as investors to partner with or finance the sporting club. The marketing potential of football or cricket clubs is more in the UK region, which is why unique strategies need to be introduced by Nike so as to grip the attention of the audience. The USP of the club can be to become gender and race inclusive, which will help them to attract sports personnel across the world who can coach future generations (Matic et al., 2019). This will then not get restricted only to the UK region but the sports club will also have the capability to explore other foreign boundaries. Nike can integrate their other products with this service. The equipment or apparel used for the sport can be promoted by Nike through this sports club, thus gaining more customers and increasing their chances of generating revenue from diverse products being sold by the brand along with the services.
• Pricing- This is the second component of sports marketing and is vital and decisive. This can be a very clever and challenging task for the brand to determine the pricing of the sports club (Pourzarnegar, 2022). As rugby is not played amongst the players to the extreme like the sports like cricket or football, the prices of the tickets for the audience who will be visiting the rugby matches can be lowered. This will help to gain more audience. The equipment and sports apparel that will be practising rugby at the secondary school level or higher levels can be offered to the players at lowered cost by the reputed brand. This will help to increase customer loyalty and brand visibility over time. Moreover, the membership offered by the clubs should be targeted across different income groups. This will help in gaining an audience from every sphere and increasing awareness among the whole society. Nike while purchasing the players who will be serving as coaches or for the team can be lenient. They should focus more on the quality of the players than on the quantity. The brand needs to encourage players from all spheres to come and join the club and delineate their calibre to the future generation in the rugby-football arena.
• Promotional strategy- Nike needs to come up with an effective promotional strategy so that they are able t market their newly launched sports club. This can be done through digital marketing mostly. Resorting to technological developments in the present era of rapidly developing technologies and technologically aware audiences can serve to be beneficial. The brand needs to utilize AR and VR technologies so as to give the audience and the players a view of the infrastructure at the sports club (Zhang et al., 2021). The brand can also include a video game format for the youth to join so that this serves as a pilot project for increasing awareness about the lost sport among the audience. The AI technologies used to address the queries of the audience or take feedback from the audience can also be beneficial. This will help Nike to utilize the views and opinions of the audience, who can be eminent players and sports personnel as well, thus increasing their brand visibility in the long run. This will help the brand in gaining a competitive edge over its competitors. This sport according to the earlier discussion has lost its prominence due to a lack of technological advancements, so when Nike can introduce their technological innovativeness in the sports club, this can serve to be beneficial for the brand in gaining and attracting a large base of audience.
• Channel or Distribution- Nike can use Integrated Marketing Communication for the promotion of the sporting club. IMC will help in integrating both traditional and digital channels of marketing, which will eventually help in reaching out to a large customer base. The use of digital media or social media for the promotion of the sports club will help in reaching out to athletes specializing in rugby-football across the globe. The sponsorships on sporting events and collaboration with reputed personalities by Nike can help the brand to become more attractive among the audience. The sponsorships will help in providing financial, technical as well as expert advice on the development of the new club so that it stands out among the other well-known competitors in the UK sports market (Nuseir, 2020). The new media used to promote this sports club through Facebook or Twitter will help to attract the GenZ audience and secondary school students, thus helping to promote the game from a very early level.
Service marketing mix
• Process- This refers to the purchasing of the players for the sports club or the collaboration done with the sports personnel or schools located in the UK region who have agreed to introduce rugby in the school curriculum. This can be done both online and offline. Offline purchasing of processes can be done by the brand through personal selling (Karg and Funk, 2020). But through online mediums, social media or emails or newsletters can be introduced for attracting the audience.
• Physical evidence- This aspect of the marketing mix refers to the servicescape. This will help in referring to the places where this service can be promoted. The Yorkshire and Lancashire have been discussed earlier, but Nike can also think of encouraging youths and audiences of other regions. This can be done through video games or sporting events organized in different areas. The audiences can be lured to attend this event with the help of collaborations with sports personnels or athletes or benefits like discounts, thus helping to raise awareness among the public about the long-lost sport. The understanding of the service offering, identifying the potential service providers and evaluating the service by the brand by conducting pilot studies can help in improving this aspect of the marketing mix for the sports club being introduced in the UK region (Karg and Funk, 2020).
• People- Nike earlier has engaged in different Corporate Social Responsibility events. The brand needs to inculcate this strategy while promoting its new service. This will be beneficial for the brand in gaining a large audience and also gaining recognition from the governments or NGOs focused towards promoting the lost sports. Consistency in service delivery from this sporting club being promoted by Nike is an absolute necessity. This can be done through the SERVQUAL model and a major focus should be given to tangibles, empathy, reliability, responsiveness and assurance (Karg and Funk, 2020). These aspects of the model will help in improving the quality of service and meeting the expectations of the audiences and the sports personnel, in the long run, thus gaining the brand's improved recognition in the eyes of the UK audience.
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Part 5 A discussion of Implementation Issues
Communication and collaboration is the key to promoting and marketing a new service in the market. Similarly for Nike, the brand needs to develop its communication skills and teamwork capability for promoting the sports club focused on promoting rugby in the Uk region. This can be done with proper assistance received from the R&D department of the brand. The R&D department will help to gain insights about the competitors and the different strategies that can be adopted by Nike so that the long-lost sport can be promoted effectively among the audience (Foster, O'Reilly and Naidu, 2021). The role of internal marketing and promoting among the employees before launching the sports club can be beneficial. This will help Nike to gain a brief knowledge about the opinions of the audience about the sport as well as the opinions and views of the employees can also be utilized for developing the sports club. The company can also utilize their networking capabilities for approaching sports personnels and athletes and even medical professionals, who are well-versed in the importance of sports and the importance of rugby in the life of the people. This will help the brand to utilize every available aspect for the efficient marketing of the rugby sports club in the long term.
To conclude, this assessment has shed light on the new product which is going to be introduced by Nike. A critical analysis of the market has been provided along with the STP process that helps in gaining an understanding of the sports club market that Nike will be entering. Moreover, recommendations based on earlier discussion and in the form of the 7Ps of the marketing mix have been provided in this assignment. The assessment has also provided a discussion of implementation based on the resources and capabilities which will be used by Nike while promoting the rugby sports club in the upcoming years.
FAQ: Designing a Marketing Strategy and Implementation Plan
- Who is my ideal customer?
- What problem does my product solve?
- What makes my product unique?
- What are my marketing objectives?
- How will I measure success?
- Who are my competitors?
- What is the current market landscape?
- What marketing channels will I use?
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