SWOT ANALYSIS AND PROMOTIONAL STRATEGY FOR KOZY SHACK'S SWOT analysis for Kozy Shack's refrigerated pudding business

Kozy Shack, a company, dealing with the manufacture of rice Pudding has embraced substantial growth and expansion in its revenue. The Company is, however, facing a challenge with increasing competition in the market with a majority of them targeting the Kozy Shack's core market -- the adult market in the pudding industry. This paper presents Kozy Shack's SWOT analyzes, the company's market structure and strategy ideal for the company.

Strengths

Increasing revenue base; the company has embraced increasing volumes of revenues owing to rising demand for their produce. This allows the company an opportunity to increase its capital base and venture into the most innovative strategy of meeting customer needs.

The product's uniqueness; Kozy Shack's pudding is traditionally made with no artificial ingredients and preservative. This is a unique preference feature that competitor's product don't harbor. The company is thus in a position to attract a consumer who is mindful of quality and health.

Consumer convenience; Kozy Shack's product offers the consumer the convenience of availability thus creating a preference on the consumer. The products are available in a wide range of choice depending on location time and size. This choice explores the dynamic features of the consumer.

Location; The company has distribution networks all around the United States and Canada allowing it to reach more customers.

Weaknesses

Changing consumer perception; A challenge in changing consumer perception of Kozy Shack's mainstay product - refrigerated rice pudding - as a snack. Rather it is food and more nutritious than yogurt.

Low brand awareness; The company's brand though widely distributed is not well-known in the market considering the competition it faces from its archrivals.

Packaging; Kozy Shack's product packaging did not reflect the quality of the product, therefore, compromising the company's ability to market the products on the shelves.

Limited shelve life; Compared to other products, the shelve life of pudding is just 60 days thereby limiting mass production and requiring a highly efficient distribution network once produced.

Opportunities

Growing preference for fresh tasting refrigerated pudding;

Higher Consumer income and busy lifestyle; Higher incomes present an opportunity to explore higher revenue since the changing consumer income meant that the company can embrace a higher level of demand for their refrigerated products.

Threats

Increasing number of Competitors; Kozy Shark is facing a rising number of competitors venturing into their core market, and this is likely to compromise on revenues for the company

Dairy Market Segmentation

The appropriate segmentation of the dairy market is a division between the children's market, the adult market, and the family market. The segments provide a distinct measure of preferences defining the consumption patterns and thus the packaging for the dairy products. The Children's market segment is dominated by yogurt products that are considered nutritious for the children. The children's market shows a preference by children for the products owing to the fun associated and a preference for the mother's owing to the nutritional values.

The adult market is dominated by pudding such as the rice pudding by Kozy Shark. The market segment consumption pattern is dictated by the convenience the product offers considering the busy lifestyle of an average American citizen. The adult market segment is also driven by the taste preference where the individual is considered more conscious of the taste as opposed to the health aspects of a product. The family market segment relates more to the sharing aspect and the quantity of the product. This segment is a combination of both the children segment and the adult segment. The preference for this segment is the quantity of the product that makes it possible to share. The other aspects of the products such as taste, fun and health play a factor in this segment also.

Kozy Shack's Target Market

Kozy Shark's market for its product is the wider American population whose preference leans on fresh taste as well as convenience in access. The target market for Kozy Shark is the adult market with high income earning comprising of women aged between 25 to 54 years. The company's product is considered to be a premium product owing to it quality in taste and freshness. The product is destined to meet the need of economically capable individuals with a busy lifestyle that only allows them to select products that afford them convenience.

The company also targets the children and family market through the packaging of the product in differently sized packages. The...

The small children packages afford the company to offer a mixed range in their flavor to serve the different tastes and preferences. The family pack value is also taken up by fast food enterprises as an economy serving the pack. The target market in the family value pack also widens the market for the company through distribution.
Kozy Shack's Positioning Strategy

Owing to the company's product nature of being a perishable product and it potential in the market the company has opened a number of production branches and outlet across the country. This forms a distribution network to serve in accessing the market and reaching affording the consumers the desirable convenience in accessing the product. The nation-wide location of the company's branches also ensures a proximity to the market allowing production to be undertaken in ideal quantities considering the products shelf life. The company is also in a position to measure the market demand in period and plan for the ideal volumes to produce in a different location as opposed to producing for distribution in different locations. The planning for production in different regions allows also for flexibility to change production according to the market trend (Kotler, Armstrong, Brown, & Adam, 2006)**.

The regional positioning of the company and its brand also allows the company to understand better the different market it serves and differentiate the consumer preferences. This understanding of the market presents an opportunity for the company to customize their products in accordance with the market needs and the consumer preferences without compromising the other unaffected market or changing the overall company strategy (Gurau, 2008).

A wider distribution measure for the company's product should be considered. The company can form a partnership with a local supermarket, convenience and food outlet shops to make their product available. The partnership can include a special discount on purchase quantities where the outlets are given a higher discount on bulk purchase. This will make the products available to the majority of the shops and food outlets in a location. The company will thus embrace higher revenues from the sale and increase their consumer's reach through the distribution networks.

Brand Awareness

Additional to increasing the number of outlets with the company's product the company should consider developing a new attractive package for their product. Packaging of the product comprises an aspect of advertising that draws attention to the consumer. An attractive package on the shelves is likely to be picked by a first-time customer thus the company should consider the package's attractiveness (Henke, 2007). With the package being attractive to first-time customers, the company will embrace the new demand for their product and since the product has a great fresh taste the likelihood of repeat consumption is sustained. Attractive packaging tends to stick to mind for shoppers, and this will ensure that every time a customer visits a store with the product they will consider the product for purchase

The company's product is a premium product and their packaging ought to reflect the quality inside. From this perspective, it is thus important that the company develops a package that is reflective of the value attached to the product. The children packages should also be reflective of the fun bit that children associate with their preferred products. A consideration of animating the packages to make them more attractive would go a long way to influence children demand the product. The association of the product with popular animated character will also go a long way to remind the customers of the product. Product affiliation to popular characters helps in increasing the market awareness to the product and sustain its presence in the consumer's mind (Michael E. Porter, 2008)

Promotional Strategy

To help in building the products image in the market, a higher level of marketing and promotion should be considered. To influence demand by the end consumer the company can consider giving free samples to the consumers who purchase the family pack value. The free sample should give the consumer a feeling of appreciation for their expenditure as well as encourage repeat consumer (Henke, 2007). Since the company has different packages, a consideration for the small package given as a promotion to the purchase of the big pack will give the customer an idea that they can enjoy the product in smaller package also.

The company should also consider advertising the product in print, audio, and visual media. The promotions can comprise of plain advertisements or competition and winning chances activities. In this exercise, the company should come up with gifts attractive enough to influence the consumers demand. Additional to this…