Case 1. Trap-Ease America: The big cheese mousetrap.

Prepared by Akmaral Shotbayeva, Finance

1. In order to evaluate their once-in-a-lifetime opportunity the investors need the information if
there’s another more sophisticated tool of fighting against mice. If there are - their
opportunities are not so high. But if another tool haven’t been invented yet and the Trap-Ease
is the only innovative mousetrap on the market, Martha and investors are able to use this
opportunity.
Group would write mission strategy like “we are making innovative mousetrap that traps mice
easily”.
I suggest writing it as: “to get rid of mice in the easiest, cleanest and safest way – you can
achieve it with the Trap-Ease mousetraps”.
2. I also think that the best target is women, as mostly women are doing housekeeping. The other
consumer target can be vessel-owners or docks because in ships there are usually problems
with mice and rats. Moreover, docks will buy traps in large amounts improving the sales of the
company.
3. The company’s positioning is that the Trape-Ease “traps mice easily”. I think that this
positioning is too broad and not catchy. I would rather position it as “the Trap-Ease traps mice
creating no clean-up problems”, or “traps mice leaving your hands clean”.
4. Product: - Innovative mousetrap – the Trap-Ease.
Price: - $2.49 per 2 units
Place: - National grocery, hardware, and drug chains such as Safeway, Kmart,
Hechingers and CB Drug.
Promotion: - $10,000 on advertising in Good Housekeeping and other “home and shelter”
magazines.
- $50,000 for travel costs to visit trade shows and to make sales calls on retailers

Considering the Place, I think, Trap-Ease can be also distributed through supermarkets (like
Wal-Mart and others), because housewives often visit these kinds of supermarkets. Other items
of marketing mix, in my opinion, can be remained the same.
5. The Trap-Ease America’s competition is the producer of traditional, spring-loaded trap as its
price is cheaper than Trap-Ease’s and it is the perfect substitute of the Trap-Ease.
6. The company is facing marketing myopia and its marketing strategy is too product-oriented but
not customer-oriented. Martha cares about how to sell expected units of traps rather than caring
about how to meet customer needs and create value for them. I would change the marketing
strategy in the following way:
Case 1. Trap-Ease America: The big cheese mousetrap. Prepared by Akmaral Shotbayeva, Finance

The Trap-Ease America’s marketing strategy is based on product differentiation and widening the
target. Primary consumer target is women, esp. housewives. Secondary Consumer target is docks
and ship-owners.
Product Strategy. The Trap-Ease America will introduce new tool fighting against mice (for example,
the spray which smell frightens mice off so that they wouldn’t like to “enter” the house) or improve the
Trap-Ease. (For example, the plastic tube can be blacked out (toned) so that a mouse inside the trap is
not seen as women are afraid of mice and would prefer not to see them at all).
Distribution Strategy. The Trap-Ease will be distributed in national grocery, hardware, drug chains,
and supermarkets as well. Orders will be delivered strictly on time.
Control. The Trap-Ease America will strictly monitor customer service satisfaction and control the
time of delivering the orders to retailers, especially to docks. The company will also control that
sample mousetraps are used by retailers to demonstrate them to consumers.