Write a report to Airbnb’s Marketing Manager.
Airbnb’s Marketing Manager has contracted you to write a report to compare and contrast marketing strategies for new and growth markets relevant to the organisation. You would like to impress the Marketing Manager by also making suggestions around marketing strategies for later stages in the product life cycle for hostile (mature) and declining markets. You can use case samples from the industry to support your suggestions. Discuss the nature and scope of marketing strategy as well as the key principles of marketing strategy development in the introduction to your report.
You are required to draw on essential literature and theory about strategy development, strategy tools and concepts and be able to discuss them intelligently in order to successfully complete this assignment.
Your report should cover:
- Discussion of the nature and scope of marketing strategy, its relationship to corporate strategy and relevance to business success.
- Critical discussion of the key principles of marketing strategy development.
- A comparison of suitable strategies for Airbnb for new and growth markets and what differentiates these from each other.
- Suggestions for suitable strategies for Airbnb for hostile and declining markets.
- References to key concepts in strategy development throughout the report.
Make sure you reference all of your sources using the correct APA referencing conventions.
Make sure you read the Marking Schedule below carefully before embarking on the assignment. It will give you clear idea of what we are looking for in the submission!
Collaboration:
You might at times feel isolated and feel the need to run ideas by your fellow students. Make sure you use the Discussion Board to communicate with your peers and exchange resources and ideas. There is a Forum available just for that purpose. Please use it. If you have questions which you want to address to your facilitator, don’t hesitate to contact them. You will find their contact details on the announcement page.
The report of course will have to be your own work but collaboration at the planning stages and sharing of resources is encouraged.
MGT304 Strategic Marketing Management, Level 7, Credits 15, Version 1 © Southern Institute of Technology 2015
Marking schedule
Criteria E (0-39) D (40-49) C (50-64) B (65-79) A (80-100)
Nature and scope of marketing strategy
Weighting 15%
Flawed discussion of scope of marketing strategy. Clear lack of understanding of strategy and its relevance.
No references to theory.
Partial and somewhat flawed discussion. Clearly lacks depth and clout.
Little or no references to relevant contemporary theory.
Reasonable discussion of marketing strategy. Would benefit from more depth and authority.
Some (2-3) references to essential and relevant contemporary theory.
Sound discussion of nature and scope of marketing strategy and its relevance.
More than 3 references to essential and relevant contemporary theory.
Excellent discussion of nature and scope of marketing strategy and its relevance.
Inspired adaptation / evaluation of relevant contemporary theory. More than 5 references to theory.
Key principles of strategy development
Weighting 15%
SBU, PLC mentioned but showing lack of understanding
Key principles additional to SBU and PLC introduced, but little or flawed discussion
Key principles and models additional to SBU and PLC successfully introduced and critically discussed. Discussion lacks depth
Sound discussion of key principles and models additional to SBU and PLC.
Excellent, in-depth discussion of key principles and models additional to SBU and PLC.
Compare strategy for new and growth markets
Weighting 15%
Clear evidence of lack of understanding, fails to identify strategy for new and growth markets.
No referencing to contemporary theory.
Fails to identify strategy for either new or growth markets, comparison is flawed.
Little or no referencing to contemporary theory.
Identifies strategies correctly and good understanding of strategies for different market situations. Comparison could be more pronounced by portraying differences in more detail. Good referencing to contemporary theory.
Comprehensive comparison of relevant strategies with good referencing to essential contemporary theory.
Exceptional, insightful and comprehensive comparison highly relevant to Airbnb’s situation. Excellent adaptation / evaluation of relevant contemporary theory.
Suggest strategies for hostile and declining markets
Weighting 15%
Clear evidence of lack of understanding, fails to identify strategies for hostile and declining markets.
No referencing to theory.
Fails to identify strategy for either hostile or declining markets.
Little or no referencing to contemporary theory.
Identifies strategies correctly and demonstrates good understanding of strategies for different market situations. Would benefit from more detail or relevance. Good referencing to contemporary theory.
Sound suggestions for relevant strategies with good referencing of contemporary theory.
Exceptional, insightful and comprehensive suggestions highly relevant to Airbnb’s situation. Excellent adaptation / evaluation of relevant contemporary theory.
Organisation/ logic.
Weighting 5%
No flow
No argument.
Poorly organised and difficult to read. Does not flow logically from one part to another. The argument is not clear.
Generally well organised although the flow of the argument is not always logical. Argument is clear and mostly sound.
Coherently organised and logical formation of sound argument.
Exceptionally well structured. Logic is easy to follow. Arguments are sound and convincing.
Writing.
Weighting 5%
No consideration for presentation.
Little evidence of clear writing or structure, very difficult to follow.
Acceptable presentation.
Some evidence of clear or structured writing.
Tidy presentation.
Mostly clear writing that shows acceptable organisation and structure.
Good presentation.
Clear writing mainly to the point. Mostly well organised and structured writing.
Polished presentation.
Clear, concise and well-structured writing throughout.
All arguments are sound and convincing
MGT304 Strategic Marketing Management, Level 7, Credits 15, Version 1 © Southern Institute of Technology 2015
Argument very unsound or weak.
Numerous spelling and/or grammatical errors that have a significant impact on readability.
Argument weak or unconvincing.
Some grammatical and/or spelling errors that impact noticeably on readability.
Argument is generally clear.
Few issues around grammar and/or spelling, some of which have a minor impact on readability.
Most arguments are sound and convincing.
Good spelling and grammar with only minor oversights that do not impact on readability.
Excellent spelling and grammar, correct in all aspects.
Literature/The ory/Research
Weighting 25%
No scholarly sources, no evidence of research or not relevant for the task.
Very limited understanding.
The research has not been linked to the main text.
Less than 3 scholarly sources or sources are not relevant for the task.
Limited understanding.
Little evidence of meaningful integration of the research with the main text.
3-4 scholarly sources. Some sources lack relevance or authority but are still appropriate for the task.
Adequate understanding.
The research could be incorporated with the main text more consistently.
5-6 scholarly sources. Sources are mostly wellchosen, authoritative and appropriate for the task.
Good understanding.
The research is integrated with the main text.
Sample Solution
