This document provides an overview of a marketing simulation game called Marketplace. It discusses how the game works, the learning objectives, and the process. Key points:
- The game simulates running a marketing division and competing against other teams. Players make decisions around branding, pricing, advertising, sales, and more.
- It aims to teach marketing concepts in a hands-on way. Players learn by starting a new product line and making strategic and tactical decisions each quarter.
- The game unfolds over multiple quarters. Players receive feedback on decisions and adjust their strategy based on market response and financial results. Performance is evaluated using metrics like profits, market share, and customer satisfaction.
21. Learning Strategy Marketing simulations are a form of combative training where you pit your marketing skills against those of formidable opponents under the watchful eye of a training coach.
22. When we work strictly in our functional silos, we are like blind people trying to understand what an elephant is. Please tell me what it is? It’s a snake. It’s a tree trunk. It’s a sheet of rawhide. It’s a steel tube.
23. With marketing simulations, you can crawl all over and under the marketing organization to see and understand the whole thing. It is a marketing organization! Brands Distribution Research Pricing Advertising
35. How far do you go in giving the customers what they say they want? Is more speed, software applications, memory, keys on the keyboard, etc. always valued? Let’s take a look at this question in another industry – candy bars. Could “more of some feature” even make a customer unhappy?
36. What is the elasticity of the peanut? Searching for the Market’s Response Function
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40. What does your response function look like for peanuts? Is more always better? Is there a limit? Would your happiness increase with every new peanut we added to the candy bar?
41. Influence of quantity of peanuts on candy bar enjoyment Number of Peanuts None few many whole bunch Delicious Disgusting Enjoyment
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43. Here are a number of response functions. Which one applies to peanuts, chocolate, coconut, etc? Hot Cold Less More More is good to a point and then ceases to add excitement Hot Cold Less More More is always better
44. Response Functions Hot Cold Less More A little is just right, more only takes away value Hot Cold Less More More adds value to a point & then takes away value
45. Response Functions Little interest until threshold is crossed Hot Cold Less More Any amount is bad Hot Cold Less More
46. Response Functions No reaction. Indifference to having the feature Hot Cold Less More
51. Q3: Go to Test Market The Goal is to Maximize Learning and Not Profits
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56. No early profits Money 0 Time Costs to setup & grow the business +
57. Revenues will fall below costs at the outset of a new business Revenue Money 0 Time Costs to setup & grow the business +
58. Profits will come later Profits come latter. You are here. Profit Pro fits 0 Time Costs to setup & grow the business Revenue + -
59. Your goal is to speed up the adoption rate Demand Time Introduction Growth Maturity Decline You are here (High costs-low demand)
60. What Will the Market Bear? You must discover the market response function regarding price.
61. What is the market’s price response function? Your Demand Your Price Elastic (demand drops fast with increasing prices) Inelastic (price is not a big factor)
62. Maybe it looks like this? Your Demand Your Price Demand drops slowly with small price increases and then drops dramatically with larger price increases
63. How will the market respond to competitor prices? Your Demand Competitor’s Price Low competitor prices will kill your demand
64. How to Create Ads? Order of priority tells the ad agency what to stress in the ad and implies importance of message to customer. Low price Easy to use More productive Fast Office applications Picture office workers Your Ad Most Important Least Important
65. How much to say in an ad? (Number of benefits?) Which response function is at work? More is good to a point and then ceases to add excitement Hot Cold Less More Hot Cold Less More More adds value to a point & then takes away value
66. How often do you advertise? Your Demand Number of Ads Diminishing returns Too little
67. But it also depends on what your competitors do. Your Demand Competitor’s Advertising Strong competitor advertising will steal away your customers
68. How many sales people? Your Demand Number of Sales People Too many Diminishing returns Too few
69. The response function is dynamic! Shift the response function upwards with better brands, prices, advertising, web tactics, sales force placement and compensation Your Demand Number of Sales People
76. Goal of Monitoring Customer Satisfaction Give the customer what they want and do so better than the competition.
77. Deduce the market’s many response functions Hot Cold Less More Hot Cold Less More Hot Cold Less More Hot Cold Less More Hot Cold Less More Hot Cold Less More
86. The Balanced Scorecard The Final Score is a single number which combines all of these factors. Quarter 8 results will be used to compute the final score.
93. A Strategy is a Plan of Action A strategy is a series of interconnected tactics purposely organized to be executed in a particular order in time and space for the purpose of achieving specific goals.
112. When we work strictly in our functional silos, we are like blind people trying to understand what an elephant is. Please tell me what it is? It’s a snake. It’s a tree trunk. It’s a sheet of rawhide. It’s a steel tube.
113. With marketing simulations, you can crawl all over and under the marketing organization to see and understand the whole thing. It is a marketing organization! Brands Distribution Research Pricing Advertising
![Marketplace is a fun way to learn about marketing! ,[object Object],[object Object],[object Object],[object Object]](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)