SaskTel

Problem Statement: Leafiest, developed by Castle, Is a device that serves the purpose of fulfilling the communication gap between patients and their caregivers. It allows Kettle’s clients to examine their own blood pressure, glucose levels, and heart rate levels without having to physically go to the hospital. The information gathered by the client is then transmitted to Kettle’s data center where a professional caregiver or physician is able to monitor the client’s personal health at anytime of the day. Kettle’s executive committee recently approved a proposal to launch Leafiest into the Canadian latherer market place.

Pat Outlook, senior director of marketing for Castle, was given the task of developing a marketing plan for this new health-monitoring device.

Outlook was presented with a difficult challenge. She had to develop this plan within two weeks after the proposal was approved and then present her marketing plan it to the executive committee for review. The overall problem she is faced with is to decided on how Castle will manage its distribution and promotional decisions as well as conducting financial analysis to visualize the product’s profit potential. 2. Situational Analysis a.

Strengths: Expertise in Communication: Castle has been operating for roughly 100 years specializing in the telecommunications industry, providing their customers with voice, data and dial-up high-speed Internet, web hosting, text messaging, cellular, wireless, etc.

If Castle were to utilize their prior knowledge about telecommunications, they would be able to gain a competitive advantage In the up and coming market for telekinetic. Popularity/Familiarity with Consumers: Castle is already offering a wide range of telecommunication support for Saskatchewan tizzies.

The Saskatchewan people have already built a strong trust towards this company and so they are more likely to receive services from Castle than from a new entrant. Provincial Protection: Since Castle Is a Crown corporation; they are able to maintain a mutually beneficial relationship with the Saskatchewan government. Being a crown corporation, Castle Is exempt from paying any Income taxes.

In exchange, the product Leafiest facilitates the provincial government with their preventative approach to better control costs. Acclaimed Product: The Diabetes

Association of Canada supports Leafiest for being an effective tool in self-monitoring and prevention. B. Weaknesses: Low R Priority: Castle Is not focusing Its resources towards the research and development process In Its role as a telecommunications provider. Inexperience with Medical Technology: Castle is brand new to the telekinetic market and has very little experience with medical technology. Not being able to understand the process of providing in home healthcare could possibly result in failure to deliver the “entire product” experience to its clients.

Poor International Brand Equity: Castle is a major provider of telecommunications services for the providence of Saskatchewan and Is not well known outside of that providence. Patent Status: Currently, the technology to expand into new geographical markets. C. Opportunities: Growing Sick Population: As the baby boomers grow older, the number of potential customers in the market will rise significantly. Other health issues could also increase the rate at which Canadians suffer from diabetes and hypertension.

Increasing Focus on Preventative Care: The funding gap for healthcare is causing overspent an increasing amount of difficulties.

Many governments are focusing more on preventative healthcare and so the market for Leafiest will increase significantly. Relationship with Province(s): As said earlier, Castle is a Crown corporation and Leafiest could potentially be protected from direct competition in Saskatchewan. Other provinces may decide to become licensees and distribute Leafiest. Distribution: With the growth of medical IT, retailers need to include telekinetic products to keep up with consumer demand.

Strong national strictures like Shoppers and London Drug have already established themselves as trustworthy suppliers of healthcare products and give strong brand equity to the products they stock.

Rural Population: Since the citizens of Saskatchewan are mostly located in rural geographical areas. They are looking for products that will provide them with excellent healthcare in the inconvenient location of where they live. D. Threats: Substitutes: As the growth of this market develops, other firms will attempt to create more efficient and effective technologies for the consumers’ problems.

With telekinetic becoming more and more popular other firms could develop new products at a cheaper price, thereby minimizing the inconvenience and cost of switching services.

Strong Competition: Technology for telekinetic is starting to attract attention from major companies that currently have medical technology divisions. This these major companies growing interest, large research and design budgets could advance the telekinetic technology at a rapid pace making older technologies outdated. Distribution: Retailers that want to carry Leafiest in their tortes are able to demand high commission rates.

The reason why they demand such high rates is because there are few retailers in the market and the market rivalry is high. Retailers always want the best product in their stores to create brand recognition over the objective criteria.

As said earlier, Castle in not well know outside of Saskatchewan and new potential customers may be hesitant to trust an unknown firm with healthcare services. 3. Recommendation and Implementation My recommendation for Castle is to start off by focusing its target market on the

Saskatchewan diabetes sufferers. Because Castle is attempting to “cross the chasm” into a new industry, it is important that they identify a small niche market that they can focus resources to dominate. Considering the large growth rate and larger size of hypertension sufferers, Castle ignore that market segment for the time being because more situational factors exist within the diabetes sufferers segment.

These situational factors will allow Castle to successfully and easily enter that market segment.

Castle also already has support from the Diabetes Association of Canada, which will facilitate the diffusion of this product through the target market. Channel retailers, like Safely, who already specialize in diabetes care and a preventative approach to personal health. This subsidizes the firm’s ability to provide the “entire product” experience with distributors as allies. After Castle is able to successfully dominate the diabetes market segment, they will be able to further their expertise in in-home diabetes care and broaden leverage special interest partnerships into new Canadian provincial markets.