Herb Stationary Case Study
Q1. Though Herb produces numerous styles of writing utensils, would mass marketing be an option? In this scenario Herb should mass market his product. That is because he is producing wooden writing utensils which are stationary items of general utility and have universal appeal. Mass marketing is a strategy where the firm decides to ignore market segment differences and target the whole market with one offer. This strategy focuses on what is common in the needs of the consumer rather on what is different. Herb designs a product that will appeal to the largest number of buyers.
Pilot Pen Corporation before it went through diversification and came up with other stationary items, used to mass market its ball point pens in 1961 which had made it well known and recognizable in stationeries and office supply stores across the world (About Pilot Pen 2011). Therefore, Herb could mass market its product but since he started out making these utensils as a hobby, he does not own a factory or facility for production. So, in order to achieve this he must limit the types of writing utensils to its customers. This will enable him to produce larger amounts with ease and more consistency and at the same time adapt to mass market distribution.
Herb can benefit from this as mass marketing will save him on the production and marketing cost. This will enable him to ensure that he maintains the quality of the product which is likely to make him secure more orders in future. When one standard type of product is being produced, the production cost is lower compared to different products with various designs. At the same time the marketing cost is also reduced as it only needs to be marketed assuming that customers have similar needs (Lamb C et al. 2006).
According to Whitfield (2009), the mass marketing techniques are useful for maintaining a constant contact strategy with your potential clients. Herb says that he needs to have a backup plan in case Elmore no longer wishes to
Pilot Pen Corporation before it went through diversification and came up with other stationary items, used to mass market its ball point pens in 1961 which had made it well known and recognizable in stationeries and office supply stores across the world (About Pilot Pen 2011). Therefore, Herb could mass market its product but since he started out making these utensils as a hobby, he does not own a factory or facility for production. So, in order to achieve this he must limit the types of writing utensils to its customers. This will enable him to produce larger amounts with ease and more consistency and at the same time adapt to mass market distribution.
Herb can benefit from this as mass marketing will save him on the production and marketing cost. This will enable him to ensure that he maintains the quality of the product which is likely to make him secure more orders in future. When one standard type of product is being produced, the production cost is lower compared to different products with various designs. At the same time the marketing cost is also reduced as it only needs to be marketed assuming that customers have similar needs (Lamb C et al. 2006).
According to Whitfield (2009), the mass marketing techniques are useful for maintaining a constant contact strategy with your potential clients. Herb says that he needs to have a backup plan in case Elmore no longer wishes to