PART B - CASE STUDY

Sony

Sony was founded in 1946 by Masaru Ibuka and Akio Morita. The first Sony branded product was the TR-55 transistor radio, which went on sale in 1955. Currently with its headquarters in Tokyo, Sony is one of the largest consumer electronics manufacturers in the world, employing around 168,000 people.

Sony operates across a number of sectors - electronics, games, entertainment (including music) and financial services. In recent times, its financial performance has been declining across all business segments apart from music and financial services. Sony is facing tough competition and has not responded quickly enough to changing economic conditions.

Ibuka and Morita were global thinkers. They realised the need for a global brand which crossed cultural and language borders in order to expand the business in the US and later Europe. The Sony brand is now one of the company's biggest strengths as it is associated with good quality products, giving it competitive advantage. Recognising the significance of its global brand presence, Sony is now incorporating the umbrella brand into many new product areas, such as Sony Bravia TVs. Sony products are available across a diverse geographical base - this reduces risk when launching new products and enables the company to enter into new product areas across the globe with relative ease.

Most of Sony's manufacturing is carried out in Japan. As well as being an expensive manufacturing base, Japan is not within easy reach of much of Sony's customer base. The impact of natural disasters such as the tsunami and earthquakes has led to further cost implications and production disruption for the company.

The culture of innovation is still evident in Sony. Its research and development activities are a core part of its corporate business strategy to create new products and to extend the life of existing products. Its strength in producing technically innovative products has led to many recent developments, such as: new digital imaging products equipped with Exmor R CMOS image sensor, Z series of VAIO notebooks, and Xperia X1 0 (a smartphone built on a new open platform), to name but a few.

Recently, Sony has recognised the importance of working in partnership with other organisations, and has joined up with Discovery Communication and IMAX as a joint venture to develop the first 24/7 dedicated 3D television network in the US. In addition, by joining forces with Google, both organisations are working towards the joint development of new Android-based hardware products for the home, mobile and personal product areas.

The above data has been based on a real-life situation, but details have been changed for assessment purposes and may not be an accurate reflection of reported news.

Professional Certificate in Marketing

Answer All Tasks

You are to assume the role of a Marketing Assistant with Sony and produce a report for the Marketing Manager that addresses the following tasks.

Task One

1. Identify FOUR reasons why Sony would introduce a new product and/or service to the market.

(10 marks)

2. Outline the stages of the product life cycle (PLC) and identify TWO limitations for Sony of using this model.

(10 marks)

Task Two

1. Explain the importance of branding to Sony, and illustrate how Sony could use its brand to achieve its marketing objectives.

(10 marks)

2. Describe TWO appropriate global marketing communication tools that Sony could use to encourage sales of a new product internationally.

(10 marks)

Task Three

a. Explain the importance of price to Sony as part of the marketing mix.

(10 marks)

2. Recommend TWO different pricing strategies for a new product that Sony may wish to bring to market in the next year, and justify your selections.

(10 marks)

(Total for 60 marks)