MARKETING LEADERSHIP AND PLANNING

TASKS

Scenario: Improving customer experience to enhance market leadership

Most organisations are experiencing increased competition in today's global market, as products and services are so much more accessible for all customers. Therefore, many organisations are realising the importance of building customer trust and confidence and improving customer experience, to grow their sales and achieve market leadership.

In a competitive market, organisations' interest in customer experience and subsequent customer satisfaction has changed from merely pushing products and services and monitoring sales, repeat purchases and satisfaction, to an organisation-wide commitment to deliver a distinctive customer experience, in the realisation that this is critical to customer satisfaction, repeat business, brand reach, recommendations and referrals.

Strategic marketing has become an advanced multi-channel operation infused by conventional and contemporary practices, using social and digital media, to optimise customer experience. Strong customer experience needs competence throughout the organisation, with fast, responsive and personalised interventions. As a result, organisations are seeking to improve customer experience throughout all relative touchpoints of a customer journey, in order to enhance customer value and potentially achieve increased market growth.

You have been given responsibility by Senior Management to complete a wide-ranging strategic audit of an organisation of your choice. The strategic audit should critically evaluate how the current marketing strategy is utilising technology and other approaches within the organisation, to enhance its market leadership through superior customer experience.

Preparatory work

Provide a brief background to your chosen organisation and its brand, customer base, position in the market and product/service range (up to a maximum of two sides of A4 paper).

Undertake a strategic audit of the chosen organisation's existing marketing strategy in relation to its ability to improve its customer experience, throughout key customer journey touchpoints, as a means of enhancing the organisation's market growth objectives and ensuring sustainable competitive advantage (up to a maximum of four sides of A4 paper).

Business format and presentation

Business format and presentation is worth 10 marks overall for this assignment. You will be awarded marks for:

- relevance to the tasks
- use of supporting concepts and frameworks
- professional tone and required format
- Harvard Referencing.

Task 1 (Assessment Criteria 1.1, 1.2)

Utilising the key findings from the strategic audit, produce a report that:

(a) critically evaluates how the organisation's mission provides distinctive customer experience through the provision of seamless customer journey and user experience

(b) recommends ONE area of improvement to the customer experience, including relevant measures to monitor impact on growth potential.

TASK 1

Guidance notes

Consumers will form expectations regarding their interactions with companies and providers, based on their experience of other organisations they use. It is often reported that customers are increasingly demanding of products and services, and even of the organisation's values and standards.

The first part of the task requires candidates to critically evaluate how the organisation's mission provides distinctive customer experience through the provision of seamless customer journey and user experience (eg establishing customer journey touch points, robust customer relationship management (CRM), social and digital media platforms, unique product/service features, and other marketing metrics/analytical data) from a strategic perspective. Candidates are encouraged to consider customer expectations of the entire business process, but also how technology can support user experience and enhance their satisfaction in all areas of the organisation's activities and engagement, not just limited to communications or sales. Such commitments provide assured images of an organisational brand in customers' minds, creating sustainable reputations, and can influence satisfied customers, which in effect positively impacts on market growth.

The second element of this task requires candidates to focus on ONE area of improvement to support this commitment to customer longevity. Given the organisation's current situation and the relevant market forces, candidates should recommend an activity programme or a sustained plan that will have a significant impact on retaining customers, which could be via improvements in technology-based interaction and/or provision of service personalisation.

Candidates should be able to justify their recommendation in relation to the other strategic options available. Candidates should seek to demonstrate robust strategic thinking and rationale, and suggest innovative solutions in their response.

Task 2

(a) Create a two-year strategic marketing plan to improve the organisation's competitive positioning with customers/consumers, through enhancing customer experience and satisfaction.

(b) Prepare a briefing paper for the Senior Management Team (SMT), that advises on TWO important elements of building employee commitment to delivering an effective and improved customer experience package, and explain how this would impact overall customer satisfaction.

(c) Produce a short report recommending appropriate measurement techniques for evaluating the impact of the strategic marketing plan in relation to enhanced customer experience, giving justification for your answer.

TASK 2

This task is split into three sections and candidates should ensure that they appropriately align their effort with the marks allowed for each section.

Candidates are required to create a strategic marketing plan with a two-year time span. Candidates should use a relevant academic marketing planning framework of their choice. They must use analysis from their strategic audit, focusing on the key area of competitive positioning for enhancing customer experience, to support the development of the plan; and should build upon the recommendations made in the task. Analysis of competitor performance using appropriate measurement models is required.

The second part of the task requires candidates to create a briefing paper to advise Senior Management on TWO important elements of building employee commitment to and interest in delivering an improved and effective customer experience package, and how this would impact overall customer satisfaction and increase loyalty. Proposed solutions may be specific to each element, and may include, but are not limited to, the adoption of new technology for marketing planning, employee skills development and training, market scanning and response competencies, and infrastructure for enhancing customer experience.

The third part of the task requires candidates to recommend measurement approaches for the effective evaluation of the impact of the strategic marketing plan in relation to added value in customer experience and satisfaction. Candidates are encouraged to consider the pace of technology, varied channels of engagement and other such developments affecting consumer/customer behaviour within the two-year time frame of the plan. Candidates should also be mindful of the risk of strategic drift.

Task 3 - Report

Produce a report that:

(a) analyses how the SMT should create and build a customer orientation culture (internally) to support the implementation of the strategic marketing plan for enhancing customer experience and satisfaction

(b) recommends ONE contemporary style of effective leadership to overcome the challenges faced through organisational change.

TASK 3

In the first part of the task, candidates are required to analyse and justify the most effective approach to creating, leading and disseminating a customer orientation culture (internal) of shared values, ensuring a focused approach across all divisions of the organisation, building engaged employee communities that are committed to enhancing customer experience to support the strategic marketing plan. Candidates may refer to areas including the development of common goals and identity, and shared values. They may also consider the development of supportive approaches, rewarding employee innovation and performance, and so on.

The second part of the task requires candidates to recommend ONE contemporary style of effective leadership, which will endeavour to overcome the challenges faced by organisational change. Candidates must firstly focus on explaining their recommended leadership style, using appropriate theory. Candidates should then justify why this recommended leadership style will be effective for the organisation, in managing change to improve the organisation's customer orientation culture. Candidates should also justify how this recommended style will overcome internal barriers such as employee resistance and relate to other internal challenges to change.