Order Description
Assignment
Household waste (also known as household refuse) is a growing problem for many countries. Household waste needs to be regularly collected to ensure the cleanliness and pleasantness of the streets and to ensure that waste does not invite rats and disease. Countries with warmer climates have an even more difficult task as they often need to collect waste daily in order to maintain standards of cleanliness and reduce the opportunity for disease to spread.
In the United Kingdom in 2013-2014, waste from each person amounted to 403kg, a staggering national total of 21.5million tons of household waste. As environmental management becomes much more critical, it is hoped that overall household waste will decrease in the coming years.
Refuse Plus is relatively new to the waste-collection business compared to their major competitors, having only been established in 2000. However, in entering the industry later, they brought with them new and innovative ideas and products. For example, they brought to the market the ‘split-two refuse bin’ process (the ability to simultaneously empty two bins into the waste vehicle at the same time, speeding up waste collection) and were first to the market with specialist recycling vehicles that could collect plastics, glass and paper/cardboard separately. The company’s 1100 vehicles have been extremely successful in terms of UK and European sales.
In 2008, the board of directors at Refuse Plus agreed to finance a project called Compacto.
Compacto is an innovative waste system that enables the collection vehicle to compact the rubbish densely and therefore collect a greater volume of waste before it needs to return to its depot for emptying.
Following considerable research and development, Refuse Plus launched Compacto at the National Specialist Vehicle Show in Birmingham in April 2012, with the ability to collect 300% more recyclable waste. This not only saves on vehicle user time but also money on fuel and operator costs. Refuse Plus soon had fast growing order books from UK councils and private waste-collection businesses. The company continues to develop the product, announcing Compacto Plus in early 2013, which increased the collection vehicle’s capacity by a further 25%.
Having established themselves as an innovative brand and product leader both in the United Kingdom and across Europe, Refuse Plus now want to develop a global business for their products, including the still-innovative Compacto and Compacto Plus products.
You are an International Marketing Consultant and have been hired by Refuse Plus to advise them on their planned progression into a global marketplace for their products.
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International Marketing Strategy © NCC Education Limited 2015
Task 1 – 20 Marks
Critically assess the global marketplace for a business of this type in the form of a short report addressed to the Director of Refuse Plus. The Director is keen to read your report and understand the benefits and the drawbacks of moving into the global marketplace.
Task 2 – 25 Marks
In order to determine which markets Refuse Plus should target, you have been asked to produce a short report for the Director of Sales and Marketing. The report should address and advise on the following:
? Whether the international research should be conducted internally or through an external agency (which would then be selected by Refuse Plus).
? The report should identify standard difficulties associated with conducting international market research.
? The report should highlight the need for the research to deliver market intelligence, not just data and information.
? The report should determine whether the research conducted at this stage should be country-specific or address geographical regions for potential business.
You should highlight in your answer an awareness of business-to-business marketing and the advantages and opportunities of this.
Task 3 – 20 Marks
Refuse Plus considers their product to be generally standardised and hope to be able to maintain this globally. The only adaptation they are considering is the fuel which powers the vehicle (petrol, diesel or bio-diesel). Write a short report that critically assesses the basis of global standardisation their products.
Task 4 – 30 Marks
As part of your role, you have been asked to produce a draft international marketing communication strategy and plan using an accepted international marketing communications format.
Rather than being country-specific, the basis of this plan is to consider how to communicate, develop and form a positive attitude towards Refuse Plus and its products in the global marketplace and to build sustainable business relationships.
Task 5 – 5 Marks
You should check your work prior to submission, ensuring that you have answered all of the tasks correctly. You should also check and correct the spelling and grammar. Ensure that all sources are correctly referenced to Harvard standards and that, if necessary, a suitable bibliography is included.
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International Marketing Strategy © NCC Education Limited 2015
Guidance
Complete all the tasks in order. Consult with your tutor if you are uncertain about any aspect of the assignment.
Submission requirements
? A single word-processed document containing all reports and other documentation i.e. explanations, output reports and page images of graphic tools etc. pertaining to all tasks.
? The word count is 3000 words, not including the appendices.
? The document should be properly structured with a bibliography (online and literature sources) and appendices (where necessary). Refer to the Assignment Presentation Requirements on Campus for more information (see front cover).
? Produce clear and specific reasoning to justify answers.
