Prince Sports Case Study Essay

This case study explores different marketing techniques utilized by Prince sports. Research is conducted by utilizing marketing concepts retrieved from various publications as well as Prince sports website. Evolution in technology, joint ventures and adoption of different marketing techniques proved to be successful for Prince sports. There was an evolution of marketing all together at the height of Prince sports success with the introduction and adoption of social media in the marketplace. Prince sports ability to adapt and make changes based on consumer feedback

Nike may be typically known for focusing a lot of gear solely on athletes; yet, it is not just for them. Nike’s objective

Fast changes in environmental market place such as social development (globalization and development of social networks), economic unsteadiness (crises), technological progress, fast growing competitive world and strict marketing regulatory directly affect work of most of marketing companies or marketing and brand image divisions of the companies. I order to implement a successful campaign or increase sale and consumer awareness companies have to stay in pace with recent marketing environment and take into consideration every possible detail that might help or ruin image of a company or product.

The scenario that I am writing on is Prince Sports and how they market to their

Socially, what is working for Prince Sports is that the interest in the sport is increasing. As more and more people look to physical activities to improve their health, tennis is an affordable option. The social downside Prince Sports is facing is some of the preconceived notions regarding tennis. Some view tennis as being a challenge to learn and that is only a fad, where interest will fade and be replaced with the next newer fad. Two economic pluses for Prince Sports is the affordability when compared to other individual sports such as golf and the availability of public and club tennis courts. The economic downside is competition entering the market and recessionary spending may limit the ability to purchase more expensive tennis equipment. Technologically speaking, Prince Sports is very innovative when it comes to their equipment, the downside is that the average tennis enthusiast may not appreciate or understand the innovation and fail to make related purchases. Prince Sports, while an industry leader, faces competition from other equipment providers as well as other individual recreation sports, such as golf. The last environmental force facing Prince Sports is the regulatory impact. While Prince Sports works to protect their

Customers make purchasing decisions based on the information they have among products and the values of goods a company offers. For that reason, companies have to promote their products to increase products awareness. In order to achieve organizational goals, companies must understand the market’s needs to ensure the success of their businesses. Such information can be gained through research. The industry that will form the basis of this paper is Western Canadian Shoe Association. The three brands under study are Reebok, Adidas, and Nike.

1. Cultivating Technology to meet player’s needs. Prince Sports, Inc implemented a new technology progress in order to solve the main problem that most of tennis racquets had: contradiction between racquet speed and sweet spot. This new concept became essential after a meticulous work in gathering information about general consumer’s needs. Marketing team has reached out to a younger generation though different channels of social media and social network such as Facebook, be it Twitter, MySpace and then internationally, High Five and Orchid (Video Case 9) to understand what type of technological breakthrough will satisfy potential customers’ need. Prince Sports, Inc Marketing team work directly with R&D team to combine and collaborate marketing knowledge and technological ability. Together these two teams have created an evolutionary O3 technology with a 24 percent faster swing speed than traditional frames. The explanation of why their technology works better than other brands is pretty simple: “The secret is in the holes”. Like all world-changing innovations, O3 technology is based on an ingeniously simple idea. By replacing traditional pin sized string holes with massive O-ports, Prince Sports created a class of racquets that move through the air faster for increase power and greater control. (Tennis Express, Online Store, http://www.tennisexpress.com).

New employees in the career of sports marketing lead by example from some of the most successful products such as the Red Bull energy drink and Skullcandy products. The most efficient way to be successful is to promote products with several sponsors. For example, everyone knows what Red Bull is, a sports drink known for its burst of energy right when we need it. The company has had great success taking a new approach on sponsorship. Conway argues in his article “A Sports Marketing Success Story” that “Red Bull wants to own teams and events. The company has a huge focus on brand management and ownership allows it to completely control how its brand

Any competitor can see that the grass root approach to introducing, researching, collaborating, and a well-executed marketing plan can easily remove Prince as a Juggernaut in the tennis arena. Prince left the back door open in another arena as well. Social media is not a proprietary component and can cease to exist overnight if the public is no longer interested in it. This is where I think Prince left the door open and could be the second reason they fail to maintain growth. Having access to the needs and wants of a customer is the winning factor that all companies seek to gorge themselves on.

Over the past twenty-five years we have had to reinvent ourselves many times. The first surge was with the Waffle Trainer and the running craze. When that slowed, we thought we ran out of market. We had another surge with basketball behind Michael Jordan, and cross-training with Bo Jackson. Then again, we Thought our growth was dead. Another surge came in 1995, when Nike became fashionable and athletic urban wear became king. But,that too ended in early 2008, as did the health of the Asian economy. There we were, with an over-extended brand. Each time we reinvented our company. In 1995, when we reached $3 billion in sales, we said $5 billion was the absolute limit. Three years later we were closing in on $10 billion. Each time we did succeed it was due, in part, to

Through market research, Nike found the most impressionable consumers were these Football Obsessed Teens. Generally, these teens were around 17 years in age, Nike’s target age. Nike felt that the “17-year-od consumers were more independent, more driven in their football goals, could choose their own brand, buy their own products and form brand loyalty.” However, Nike recognized that this change would require an adjustment in their marketing efforts. Primarily, these consumers were not just “aspirational” but rather “inspirational,” a type of consumer that will want the tools to become the best possible player.

Lucozade Sport uses a strategy which is specific to sportsmen and sportswomen in order to sell their product. I will be analysing the segmentation, targeting and positioning strategy that Lucozade Sport adopt while also talking about how Lucozade Sport’s marketing mix which ensures it stands out from other competitors. The information gathered has been collected from various websites and articles to do with Lucozade Sport.

(iii) Social-cultural (iv) Natural (v) Technological (vi) Political-legal 4) What recommendations would you make to senior marketing executives going forward? a. Understand people’s views of themselves, others, organizations, society, nature, and the universe as it pertains to sports. 5) What should they be sure to do with their marketing? a. Work closely with local and national governments, pressure groups and other environmental arenas to position the company as being socially responsible to the concerns about shoe manufacturing. Continue to present their advertising showing “fun” in sports and the use of their products

A comprehensive analysis, using market data and market research, allows us to assess all areas affecting Nike’s strategic direction:

Nike, Inc. has been the world’s leading innovator and provider in athletic footwear, apparel, equipment and accessories for 50 years. Their mission has been to bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world; if you have a body, you are an athlete. Arguably one of the most innovative companies in the world, Nike has built its brand into an iconic world-class powerhouse that continues to dominate the market with no signs of slowing up. Nike’s marketing and advertising have been breakthrough, aspirational, and legendary over the years, featuring high-profile athletes and heroes.