Introduction
The key objective of E-Intelligent Solutions Company (EIS) is to use a marketing approach that is society-based with the intent of creating a sustainable environment for both the consumer and society. The main purpose of the e-products is to improve the welfare of both society and the clients. The name to be used for the e-cigar is Smokeless Power Cigar.
Marketing in the Middle East
The Middle East region is one of the marginalized areas because of culture, strong adherence to religion and monarchical political system. For a product to be introduced to the Middle East, one has to penetrate through all levels of rule that is the monarchy and religion. Although the people of the Middle East are strong adherents to a religion, they have their own ways of enjoying leisure time, tobacco smoking being one of them. The population has a high purchasing power due to oil money so buying e-cigarette will not be an economical challenge.
In the marketing of the e-cigarette, the large market has to be segmented into smaller units. The market that the e-cigarette marketers should target is the male market. This is composed of men who range between 18- 90. This target market is the best because the rules in the Middle East do not allow women many luxuries like smoking which is considered a “man thing”. However, this does not mean that there are no women who will purchase this product.
In terms of the measurability of the group, there are many men in the region. Most of these men are economically stable and work considering the fact that women are responsible for taking care of their families and most of them do not work. Also, men are the ones who flock into entertainment joints freely as the women are tied to nurturing families. Since it is the men who earn, it is also important to know that there are the ones who will purchase goods for the household. Therefore they will be more exposed to access the new products on the market shelves. Another factor is that in this region, men are more learned than women and therefore are more likely to make informed and timely decisions, unlike women and teenagers.
The main social factors that will affect the marketing of this product are literacy levels, customs and tradition. As stated before very few women in the Middle East go to school and also men. This means that the language the marketers should use should be very simple (Kotler 2001). The other factor is their customs and traditional beliefs. It is also important to understand their beliefs so that one can avoid going against them so that one can avoid using language which can offend the Arabs.
The two main competitors that the e-cigarette is bound to face are Marlboro and Camel. However, these involve the traditional means of smoking “lighting with a matchbox or lighter and emission of smoke fumes as one puff”. The e-cigarette will go above this conventional means of smoking because it will be smokeless therefore environmentally friendly.
The ethical issue which is bound to affect our business is that it is bound to monopolize the market. In conventional smoking, one has to buy cigarettes, a lighter and worse still look for a place to smoke because some public and private places prohibit smoking. Also, this means of smoking or “puffing fumes” harms the health of the people who surround the consumer. In terms of monopolizing the market, many consumers of the cigarettes Marlboro and Camel are bound to abandon them to take up the e-cigarette because it does not need privacy, is portable and is environmentally friendly. Being a first of its kind in the Middle East market, it is set to command the market.
Pricing Strategy
In pricing, the strategy that will be used is customer-based pricing. This pricing is based on how much money the customer will be willing to pay for the e-cigarette. The target market: men have pride in what they have and use. They do not like bargaining especially the males of the Middle East. This product will be priced in such a way that it will reflect the prestige and class of the consumer and at the same time simplicity since it will not need many operational procedures. The prices will be somewhat higher because the men in this region always tend to associate the quality and value of a product with its price.
The price has to carry with it the image of the product: exclusive and the first of its won kind in the market (Weinrich 1999). The price will not be a big deterrent in the purchase of this product because the targeted market forms two-thirds of the working population and at the same time control the purchases of households.
Promotional Mix
The best promotional mix to use in this region is that of advertising and sales promotion. The advertisements should be carried both in Arabic and English language. The latter is used because there are expatriates who are living there. The sales promotion will be targeting buyers from all sections with the purpose of informing them that there is a new product in the market. Advertising will use the local television stations, billboards and print media in the local dailies that are popular. The main aim of the sales promotion will be informing the consumer that there is a new and unique product in town.
The societal marketing concept’s aim is to give products that are of high quality and value to the customer while focusing on the betterment of society at large. During the launch of the e-cigarette, this concept has to be applied greatly. One of the key areas that will need to be stressed on is the strengths and opportunities of this product over the conventional cigarette. The strengths of the product have to be exposed like having a “smokeless” cigarette that will care for the welfare of everyone in society (Gobe 2010). This concept will make the product, consumer, retailer and distributor link with the society and promote the wellbeing of the latter.
Conclusion
The Smokeless Power Cigar should be launched in the Middle East. Considering that everyone is thinking about safeguarding the environment while taking care of the public space at the same time, it is a worthy try. The other reason why this product should be introduced is that it is the first of its own kind and will replace conventional smoking which is always perceived negatively. Therefore it is bound to make smoking a private and more natural act without interfering with anyone’s public space (Bradley 1995).
Reference List
Bradley, F., 1995, Marketing Management, London: Prentice Hall.
Gobe, M., 2010, Emotional Branding: The New Paradigm for Connecting Brands to People, New York: Allworth Press.
Kotler, P. & Armstrong G., 2001, Principles of Marketing, 9th edition. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Weinrich, N.K., 1999, Hands-on Social Marketing, Sage Publications, Thousand Oaks, CA.