Marketing and Plumbers Essay

Submitted By jspencer041
Words: 808
Pages: 4
Open Document
Aqualisa Quartz Case Analysis: Simply a Better Shower

Introduction
The purpose of this memo is to discuss new strategy to solve the issues facing the Aqualisa Company and Mr. Rawlinson. Struggling sales of their innovative Quartz Shower has led managers to believe that they may be trying to sell a niche product. The company will increase sales of the product by increasing its presence in showrooms and focusing its efforts to win preference of the plumbers who are market influencers. Showrooms have been a proven seller for the Quartz shower early in the sales process. Plumbers are influencers in the shower market and stand to gain many benefits by adopting the Quartz product quickly.
Strategy
Technology and innovation is meant be experienced. Businesses must see the benefits to their company and consumers must see how this will improve their everyday life. Rather than focusing on advertising and media spend, Aqualisa will move forward by making it possible for users to experience the product before use. Half of last years marketing budget will be used to distribute the Quartz product into showrooms and to plumbers as a way to generate increasing sales. By focusing on market influencers (plumbers) and increasing the company’s presence in showrooms we believe we will be able to meet sales goals and become the leader in the shower market.
Focusing on Influencers
According to research done on how consumers selected their shower, 73% said a plumber either influenced their selection or selected the shower for them. They are also the primary customers of trade shops, which account for the largest percentage of shower sales in the market. Aqualisa needs to focus their marketing efforts on helping plumbers adopt their product. Plumbers are largely averse to new technology. They find it either too difficult to install or not reliable. If the installation breaks down it often requires a second visit by the plumber out of his or her own pocket. To help plumbers view the benefits of adopting the Quartz shower, Aqualisa must change its value proposition to focus on business benefits rather than technological features. The company must create a “what’s in it for me” message to the plumbers that focuses on ease of installation, time saved, and return on investment. Aqualisa’s most recent advertisement (shown in exhibit 9 of the case) is full of features that the consumer would be interested in. This messaging misses the influencers of the market completely; the individuals who are actually recommending and installing showers. Not only does the messaging to the plumbers need to be changed, but the slow adoption rate needs to overcome meet the sales goals for the Quartz showers. To speed adoption rate Aqualisa will put one quarter of its marketing budget into free product for plumbers to try. This gives Aqualisa either 3,891 Standard Quartz units or 2,961 Pumped Quartz units to help speed adoption of the product. Adoption rate is expected to be 35% of the plumbers contacted in the first year. The goal is for plumbers to see the business benefits of the product by having a
Show More

Related Documents: Marketing and Plumbers Essay

Case Study Aqualisa

Valerie Klim Marketing – Quartz Case From the information presented it is evident that Aqualisa Quartz is a niche product. Depending on the segment of the market, I would propose different strategies for marketing. Plumbers are understood to only recommend products that they know well. It is also the case that the community of plumbers is very tight knit and information spreads quickly amoungst them. For this reason the best strategy targeted at plumbers would be to captivate their attention with…

Words 317 - Pages 2

Aaron Vessel Essay

because he needs to recover his R&D costs as fast as possible. In order to make Quartz a success, changes in Aqualisa’s marketing must happen soon. Aqualisa no doubt has invented a revolutionary new shower, but has done a poor job conveying this to the right people. The company has created more value for the customer (and the price reflects it), but is at the mercy of plumbers, who are stubborn to accept new technology. Immediately, this is a problem. Aqualisa has won trade awards and has made…

Words 930 - Pages 4

Essay on Aqualisa Quartz: Case Study

Quartz: Case Study 1. What is the Quartz value proposition to plumbers? What is Aqualisa Quartz value proposition to consumers? The value proposition of Aqualisa Quartz to plumbers is that it is easy to install; it is more profitable because they are able to do more installations. Because the installation process is less complicated, it takes less time to install (only half a day compared to 2 days previously). This gives plumbers the opportunity to install more units and capture some of the historical…

Words 2176 - Pages 9

Marketing - Aqualisa Case Essay

from consumers and the reluctance from plumbers about adopting this shower. In order to cope that, the best solution is to develop Aqualisa’s advertising campaign. Current situation: In May 2001, Aqualisa launched its new shower called Quartz shower. According to Harry Rawlinson, the managing director of the company, the…

Words 1114 - Pages 5

Cherries: Maslow ' s Hierarchy of Needs and Plumbers Essay examples

is often too high for developers. While the developers are an important market segment, we must also focus on the general market and the plumbers. Currently, the U.K. has 10,000 plumbers, all of which are in high demand. These plumbers typically install 40 to 50 showers a year, totaling in 400,000 to 500,000 showers a year, respectively. Since plumbers recommend products to their customers, this is a great way to boost sales, and additionally, product/brand awareness. Since this is a low-involvement…

Words 882 - Pages 4

Aqualisa Case Study

Preparation Questions: 1. What is the Quartz value proposition to plumbers? To Consumers? To plumbers: a. Very easy to install - 'push-fit-connect-you're done' b. More profitable – i. ½ day work (25% of previous time), apprentices can do work also – opportunity to install more and capture some of historical 6-mo. wait list ii. on average, plumbers do 40 to 50 a year (generally 2-day job), but generally without reducing profit, will be able to do many more To consumers: c. Efficient and…

Words 922 - Pages 4

Essay on Aqualisa Quartz Case Analysis

its channel strategy (which channel to choose from trade shops, showrooms, DIY sheds, or plumbers to increase sales), product promotion strategy (how to promote new product), and product positioning strategy (how to position products in a segment). 2. Most of the plumbers are conservative and historically hesitant to any electronic devices in showers. So how should Aqualisa convince and make these plumbers accept Quartz showers? 3. Whether it should target “do-it-yourself” market since installation…

Words 1483 - Pages 6

Essay on Marketing Plan

professionalism and trim quality by properly training all employees and impress all of the customers who are used to the lackadaisical attitude of most plumbers. Cutting Tool Sales has a total of four employees. II. Situation Analysis Cutting Tool Sales is entering its ninth year of operation. As an organization, CTS must have a concerted marketing effort to ensure success and future profitability. Cutting Tool Sales offers the market the market the latest technology for metalworking. CTS’s level…

Words 829 - Pages 4

Essay Black & Decker Case Analysis

Case Analysis: The Black & Decker Corporation Synopsis Black & Decker Corporation is a corporation based in Towson, Maryland, United States, that designs and imports power tools and accessories, hardware and home improvement products, and technology based fastening systems. Recent research studies showed that B&D is one of the powerful brand names in the world because of its professional tools that has high quality in the industry. During the early 1980's; sales started to decline and it posted…

Words 911 - Pages 4

Case Study Analysis Essay

Table of Contents Introduction 2 Situation Analysis 2 Mountain Hardwear: the Brand 4 Identification of Issues 4 Alternative 1: to distribute through REI 4 Possible Short Term Issues: 4 Possible long term issues: 5 Implications for the brand: 5 Alternative 2: to not sell through REI 6 Possible issues: 6 Implications for the brand: 7 Recommendations 7 Addressing brand dilution 7 Addressing relative retailer power 8 Implementation 8 Resources Required: 8 Time frame: 8 Performance measurement:…

Words 2366 - Pages 10