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SLIDE ‘N JOY

Danielle Schneider, Ben Slupecki, Evan Leitch, Stacey Everton UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN May 5, 2017

Table of Contents Customer Profile....................................................................................................................3 Target Market Segment......................................................................................................................3

Initial Analysis of the Target Market Segment.......................................................................4 Size and Potential of the Market........................................................................................................4 Demographics....................................................................................................................................5

Behavior and Personality Traits.............................................................................................6 Work Outside the Office.....................................................................................................................6 Presenting to Clients..........................................................................................................................6 Working in the Office.........................................................................................................................6 Lifestyle Characteristics.....................................................................................................................7 Cultural Influences and Industry Trends...........................................................................................7

Positioning Statement.............................................................................................................8 Marketing Mix.......................................................................................................................8 Product Description...........................................................................................................................8 Features..............................................................................................................................................9 Benefits.............................................................................................................................................10 Packaging the Product......................................................................................................................12 Customer Support.............................................................................................................................13 Place................................................................................................................................................13 Online Focus.....................................................................................................................................13 Distribution Partnerships.................................................................................................................13 Price.................................................................................................................................................14 Promotion........................................................................................................................................17 Trade Shows......................................................................................................................................17 Magazine Advertisements..................................................................................................................18 Internet Radio Advertisements..........................................................................................................20

Executive Summary

Customer Profile Target Market Segment The target market segment for Slide ‘N Joy is traveling sales representatives. Traveling sales representatives are business professionals who are often on the road and travel to the client or potential client and sell the product or service to them. They have to prove that their product or service is better than the competition in an efficient and clear presentation. It is also necessary that traveling sales representatives know the product and service as well as all attributes, prices, warranties, and terms of the product or service (Studentscholarships, n.d.). Often there is pressure and determination to sell due to income and job security being tied to their sales numbers. Slide ‘N Joy can help all sales representatives that need to travel to the customer by giving them modern technology when presenting and explaining the product or service. About 78% of all sales representatives are 25 to 54 years old (StudentScholarships, n.d.) Within this wide age range, the younger group will adapt to new electronic attachments better and Slide ‘N Joy will be able to complement their cool and sophisticated image in order to sell more to their clients. Therefore, the target age for Slide ‘N Joy users is 25-30 years old. For a sales representative, Slide ‘N Joy fits well with the persona of the younger and more “hip” generation. The target market also likely lives in California, Texas, Florida, New York, or Illinois as those are the states where the most sales representative are employed. Another major area would be the Midwest, including Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Illinois as these states have a high average wage of sales representatives and Wisconsin even has a high concentration of sales representatives. Given these areas with either high density or high overall employment numbers

are great states for Slide N’ Joy to target. They have the biggest opportunity for success since that is where our target market lives (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2016).

[Figure 1]

Initial Analysis of the Target Market Segment Size and Potential of the Market The number of sales representatives is quite significant and creates a large market for this product. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2014, there were 1,800,900 sales representatives employed in the United States. This occupation also has a 7% expected growth rate from 2014-2024 which is the average for all professions (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2014). This means that in 2024, this market will be nearly 2,000,000 people. With this promising future and sizeable market, Slide 'N Joy can succeed by assisting sales representatives with explaining products, services, or other information by giving their single screen laptop an additional one or two screens.

Demographics Generally, travelling sales representatives have above average incomes. According to the BLS, in May 2015, the average annual salary of traveling sales representatives was $69,100. By comparison, the average annual earnings for all occupations is $48,320. Sales representatives for the tech industry had particularly high salaries, $89,170 on average (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2015). Because of their high incomes, traveling sales representatives would probably more willing to invest in a Slide 'N Joy monitor than the average consumer, especially since Slide 'N Joy would help them more efficiently conduct business while traveling. The most common location that sales representatives travel to domestically is Chicago. Abroad, the most common destination is London. China and Japan are also major destinations, accounting for 30% of total international business travel. 38% of business travel is done by airline, and 20% is done by train or subway (Kelly, 2012). Since a significant portion of travel is done using public transit, sales representatives won’t be able to carry heavy and bulky equipment. The lightweight and simplistic design of Slide 'N Joy makes it easy to carry around while on the go. Also, in a 2015 survey, 25% of respondents said they do some of their work on a plane while travelling. Slide 'N Joy’s compact design is ideal for staying productive while in a tight airplane cabin (Kelly, 2012). On average, the majority of traveling sales representatives have pursued higher education. 50.8% have a bachelor’s degree and 16.9% have a master’s (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2014). Overall, traveling sales representatives are more educated than the general population so they’re probably more comfortable at handling technology than the average American.

Behavior and Personality Traits Work Outside the Office What makes the traveling sales representative the target market for Slide 'N Joy is the fact that many of the behaviors and actions the traveling sales representative undertakes can be make easier using the Slide 'N Joy. One function of the Slide 'N Joy is it allows you to do your work outside of the office, an obvious need for the traveling sales representative. This is seen through the following chart (Figure 1). An increasing number of business travelers do work outside of their office. What Slide 'N Joy allows business travelers to do is work as efficiently as they do at their office where they have their dual or triple monitor computers.

Presenting to Clients Another area where a traveling sales representative could benefit through the dual/triple screen is in presenting their product to the customers. Sales representatives obvious goal is to sell the product. Often times, a PowerPoint is not the most effective as it lacks the face to face interaction you get from sitting at a table. It is also not cost effective or reasonable to print out or bring an electronic device of your product to the client. This problem could be solved using Slide 'N Joy. Observe the multiple uses seen in figure two. While the client is giving the presentation, he can be face to face at the table of the client while the company’s product is on full display. Where the client to have a question on the product you can quickly expand on it verbally or using your connected device. The Slide 'N Joy gives much more flexibility to Sales Representatives on the go looking to give the strongest presentations they can.

Working in the Office According to a 2016 survey of millennial travelers, most common purpose for business travel among our target age range is meeting with coworkers in other offices (Ghosh). Slide 'N

Joy’s dual screens allow for a sales representative to easily collaborate with other workers without the hassle of having to transfer all of their data to another computer.

Lifestyle Characteristics The lifestyles of this target market are different from those who came before them. Specifically, our target market falls in the millennial category (born in 1977 -1996). According to VALS article, “the majority of young adults enter in the VALS framework as experiencers - selfexpressive, sociable, and spontaneous” (Breman). As they gain experience they turn to be Achievers. In fact, according to the same article, 43% of all millennials are primary or secondary Achievers. This means as millennials reach the specific age of our target market, they will follow the traditional path of life. They will begin to settle down, get a steady job, buy a house, have kids, etc. However, it is taking this generation longer to form households due to college debt and lower waged jobs. Additionally, our target market spends a majority of their leisure time online. They use the internet for a mix of productivity and fun activities. From checking emails to posting memes, our target market falls in the middle of the internet usage spectrum between baby boomers and the igeneration (Macke). This means, are target market is knowledgeable about technology and will be able to quickly adapt to the Slide 'N Joy.

Cultural Influences and Industry Trends The traveling sales representative position is changing quickly due to the advancements in technology. Compared to the baby boomers, the upcoming generations utilize technology in the workplace much more. For example, “around a third of young people use their smartphones to make a booking, while for business travellers over the age of 45 this figure is just 12%” (Young et. al.). This not only shows the difference in technological advances, it also shows that

young professional sales representatives are more involved in the decision-making process when it comes to their travels. Giving them more authority and power in the workplace. Due to their greater authority in planning their trips, young professionals are using their time to travel outside of their working hours. The mix between business and leisure has been increasing due to technology and the ability to work on the go. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, as for the industry as a whole, it is expected to grow 7% from 2014 to 2024, the average pace of all occupations in the U.S. (2015).

Positioning Statement To sales representatives, the Slide 'N Joy gives you the benefits of working with dual monitors with the flexibility of working on the go. We chose this positioning statement to encompass the core benefits of Slide ‘N Joy for our target market. From its lightweight and durable design to its ability to save time and portability, Slide ‘N Joy is currently the leader in dual screens for laptops. This positioning statement emphasizes the freedom sales representatives could have if they took advantage of Slide ‘N Joy’s product offering.

Marketing Mix Product Description Slide 'N Joy is an additional screen for your portable laptops (Macbook and PC) that enables users to work more efficiently and give more effective presentations. This product gives professionals who aren’t able to have multiple desktop monitors the ability to have multiple screens wherever they are. This is an attachment that is customized for the size of the owner’s laptop computer and adds up to 2 screens to give the user a variety of benefits. With two or even three computer screens, productivity, sales, efficiency, and convenience are all improved. With

the ability to carry multiple screens wherever business may take the user, Slide 'N Joy gives them the opportunity to work just like they are at their own desk on their desktop computer with multiple monitors. It’s not only easy to set up, it’s customizable, too. Overall, it’s a product with many benefits.

[Figure 2]

Features Slide 'N Joy simply attaches to the back of any monitor by adhesive magnets that secure the Slide 'N Joy attachment to any computer. In an article by Michael Franco on CNET, he shares how this Slide 'N Joy attachment works. After Slide 'N Joy is attached, the panels directly slide out to the left and right or the laptop and have aluminum hinges that allow the screens to move 180 degrees. The screens are connected and powered by either one USB 3.0 or two USB 2.0. It is an easy device to connect to any laptop. The sizes range from 13 to 17 inches and at most weigh just under half of a pound (2015). Whether you are using a Macintosh or Windows operating system, Slide 'N Joy will work flawlessly. In summary, Slide 'N Joy provides multiple screens for laptop users who travel often. The screens are thin (19 mm thin to be exact), lightweight, strong with aluminum hinges, and display in high-definition (Yourslide.com, n.d.). The features that

Slide 'N Joy provide have useful characteristics for any business professional. It’s a device that has so many perks at a price that makes it a realistic purchase.

[Figure 3] Benefits The benefits of having Slide 'N Joy on your monitor are lengthy. To start off, the 180 degree swiveling screen make presentations and sales calls a breeze. Whether it is in-front of a group of people or only a client or two, the additional display screens let you show the client/customer only what you want to display. Slide N’ Joy even looks professional with a large variety of casings to show that it is a higher-end product. The screen casings come in a variety of colors and have premium models that include wood grain, leather, and even a carbon material to

give the most substantial and quality product. A visual presentation displayed on futuristic technology will help amaze the customer and help them understand the benefits of buying your product or service. A 2012 article in PR Newswire even talks about how the use of visuals helps sales representatives deliver messages and presentations in a more engaging way. For example, if a user has charts, graphs, or any other information to convey to a group of individuals, Slide N’

Joy can display the presentation regardless of the setting or location.

[Figure 4]

For those users that are constantly on the road and working in places where a desktop with multiple monitors isn’t realistic, Slide 'N Joy provides them with all the features that are had when working on a large desk with multiple monitors wherever their business travels take them. As there are many different ways to set up Slide 'N Joy, business meetings can be done in ways like never before. When working on your own, the multiple screens greatly help the business professional be productive and efficient with their time. As Dave Molnar states in an article on Daves Computers, “At the beginning of this century, there was a landmark study performed in Utah that found that multiple screens increase productivity”. Dave also discusses how multiple

screens lets users open multiple programs at once instead of having multiple tabs or programs running just in the background that you can’t see. Each individual screen can be dedicated to a certain task or program (2016). As we live in a society that experiences a time-crunch in everyday life, having multiple screens allows users to work like they are on their own desktop computer and can have a variety of screens in use at one time. With three screens, it is easy to always have email up on one screen and other data on others to compare numbers, statistics, or other information while being able to be very responsive as new emails come in. Instead of having to switch between screens, Slide 'N Joy provides the means to avoid this issue and having multiple screens. The screen casings come in a variety of colors and have premium models that have wood grains, leather, and even a carbon material to give the most substantial and quality product. Packaging the Product Packaging this product is critical. As shipping can damage goods and screens can be a fragile product if not packaged correctly, packaging the product is critical for reputation. This is why securely packing Slide 'N Joy in a safe and visually appealing package is very important for success. The package would be a flat, cardboard box that is white with the Slide 'N Joy logo on top. Inside the box, you would find foam cushioning that protects the Slide 'N Joy during shipment and lets the consumer know that this product was safely packaged and should not expect a defect. The consumer needs to know that Slide 'N Joys will consistently be a reliable product. If, for some reason, the Slide 'N Joy is a defect or the consumer has questions about setup, Slide 'N Joy will provide a customer service department like none other. Customer Support After a Slide 'N Joy is sold to the customer, there will be very little contact with them. However, one of the most likely forms of contact will be with the customer service department

either helping with setup, about a Slide 'N Joy that isn’t performing like it should, or any other questions and concerns. Slide 'N Joy will provide an online chat with a live customer service representative on their website as well as a way to contact representatives by phone. The customer service representative will focus on the consumer. By doing this, it may hurt short-term profits by sending replacement product or having extra customer service employees, but in the long-term, this will increase the reputation and give the user confidence and assurance that Slide 'N Joy will be there when they need it.

Place Online Focus Slide ‘N Joy will exclusively be sold online. There are two reasons for this distribution choice. First, Slide ‘N Joy is new to...