When entering a foreign market, several strategies need to be considered. This paper aims at exploring the marketing communications and promotions, which can market lulu lemon’s products (lulu lemon yoga line) in China.
The choice of China, as the export market, is exceptionally strategic since there is a strong buying power. Second, there are currently no brands which cater for the demand in the yoga market. Moreover, the Chinese customers have a keen taste for tai- chi and yoga. Therefore, the Chinese have been selected as the target market.
Entry mode
According to Keegan (43), there are various strategies for entering a foreign market. Lulu lemon will use licensing since it involves limited risk. The company will identify prominent and trustworthy licensee, to which the copyrights, trademark rights, patent rights, processes, and products will be revealed. The licensee will have the responsibility of marketing lulu lemon’s products, and submitting the agreed portion of profits depending on sales volume.
Lulu lemon will also use joint ventures to enter the foreign market. Therefore, the company will possess a similar position and management voice as the partner companies identified in China. Through this, lulu lemon will be able to control the operations in a better way and gain knowledge about the local market.
Personal Selling Mix
Lulu lemon will employ salespeople to market their products to the customers. The salespeople will use personal referrals, social networking, emails, and phone calls to identify and find customers. Moreover, the salespeople will use various strategies when closing deals.
These strategies include the summary, assumptive, alternative, and special- offer close (Terpstra and Sarathy 24). Lulu lemon products are extremely vital for people who practice yoga. However, most people do not know that they require them. Salespeople will demonstrate how to use the product, which will result to increased sales.
Sales Promotion Techniques
Lulu lemon will use various incentives to entice customers into purchasing the products. These incentives include premiums, contests, and coupons, rebates, discounts, and exceptional displays. This will ensure successful entry into the Chinese market. The techniques are effective communication medium and will lead to increased sales. In essence, it is anticipated that these techniques will increase the sale of lulu lemon’s products in China. Potential supermarkets will be identified, through which coupons will reach the customers.
Publicity
Lulu lemon focuses on creating a positive public image. The company will organize and participate in events, which are likely to attract attention from the media. The company has identified various strategies for promoting its publicity. Lulu lemon will participate in event sponsorship, exhibitions, organising tours and presentations to the targeted institutions, staging a debate, and surveys (Terpstra and Sarathy 92).
Advertising
Through advertising, lulu lemon will be able to communicate to vast masses of people (Keegan 57). Formulation of highly effective advertisements will require the company to first identify the target market. Consequently, strategies for reaching the target market will be formulated.
The target market will be yoga companies and institutions, where yoga practices are mostly common. A key message will be formulated, and repeated several times over the media. The company will, therefore, be able to use fewer costs but reach potential buyers who are geographically dispersed. The advertisement media to be used is the television, billboards, internet, and radio. The advertisement messages will be directed to the target market.
Works Cited
Keegan, Wale. Global Marketing Management (4th ed.) Prentice Hall International Editions, 1989. Print.
Terpstra, Valerie and Sarathy Ronny. International Marketing (8th edn). Chicago IL, Dryden Press, 2001. Print.