Introduction to Marketing- Term 2, 2015

Group Case Study

3M Australia
You are now employed as a team of 3 - 4 (max.) marketing consultants to help design a
Marketing Plan for 3M Australia. However you will need to firstly understand the brand by
performing a Situation analysis (Macro/Micro/Internal environment Analysis) and set up
objectives & Goals(next 12 months), then designing the Marketing Mix (4Ps). It is very
important that you are able to foresee or predict potential problems you might have with
launching the product. As a team, you are required to pitch your marketing plan to your senor
Marketing Managers. 3M Australia is looking for a creative, practical and fun marketing
plan!
Objective of the Marketing Plan:

Launching a new marketing plan for a product.

3M Australia marketing department allocated $200K to $400K for launching a new
marketing plan for one product each category;
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Health Care
Transportation Industrial
Manufacturing and Industry
Home and Leisure
Office
Display and Graphics
Electronics, Electrical and Tele Communications
Safety, Security and Protection Services

As a marketing team, you choose a best potential product from existing products by
researching a market/industry for 3M, should develop a marketing plan for the product. You
need to pitch your plan to 3M senior marketing managers to secure a budget. We will
compete with other marketing teams for the budget. Only one plan per each category will be
selected for the budget allocation and the team will be honoured to implement the plan.

Your team can decide on the marketing mix strategy by looking at the various
marketing theories taught this term. The challenge is to think outside the box and create
a plan that is feasible for the brand!
Your report MUST prove why your product is the best potential for 3M in a situation
analysis. You can also bring a sample to your class for demonstration.
Word count: 2000 (+/- 10%) words. Not including Cover Page, Table of contents, Reference,
Appendix
Mandatory
1) Application of theory: You will need to apply marketing theories for this assignment.
You can refer to your textbook, lecture slides to help you to write the Marketing Plan.
For specific guides on writing the marketing plan please refer to Appendix, Marketing
Plan of your textbook.
2) Presentation: You are required to present your Marketing Plan within your tutorial
class to your tutor and peers.
3) Template: A report template has been provided on Moodle for this assignment.
Please refer to Group Project Progress Report in a directory Assessment 2. You
will need to follow the template and discuss your marketing plan accordingly.
However, if you need to add additional information, you can put it in Appendix. Do
download and use accordingly.
4) Referencing: You are expected to refer to external resources for theories, ideas or
current trends. However, you will need to apply theories to your statements/claims.
These will need to be justified and supported by theory. Therefore, you will NEED to
have at least 5 academic references for this assignment. Textbooks are not considered
an academic reference, and it is expected that you would refer to it. You will need to
reference it if you use your textbook. You should use resources from databases such as
EBSCO, ProQuest, Emerald Insight, and so on.
5) Formatting: 12pt, 1.0 spacing.
6) Images: You can include images to help you illustrate your ideas with a proper
reference. If there is insufficient space in the report, you can include in your
Appendix.
Optional
1) Appendix: You may choose to include an Appendix section.
Appendix includes tables, graphs, images, budget related quotes etc.
Submission
A softcopy MUST be submitted via Moodle by a leader or only one member of group with a
list of group member details on the cover page.
Deadline
Progress Report Due Week 7
Report Due - Week 10 or Week 11. Penalties apply for late submissions

The brief 3M

3M Company was founded in 1902 as a small manufacturer of abrasives. It has since grown into a
transnational corporation with operations in more than 60 countries and serves customers in nearly
200 countries, employing more than 74,000 employees worldwide and achieving global sales in 2009
of US$23.1 billion. Few companies match 3Ms product diversity, its storehouse of technologies and
its pursuit of innovation. The companys growth springs from a corporate culture that emphasizes
anticipating and exceeding customer expectations with leading positions in consumer and office;
display and graphics; healthcare; industrial; safety, security and protection services; transportation
and other businesses.
3M is fundamentally a science-based company, producing thousands of imaginative products, and
leaders in scores of markets - from health care and highway safety to office products and abrasives
and adhesives. (3M, 2015)
3M Australia was founded in 1951 and is a wholly owned subsidiary of 3M USA and the first of 3Ms
overseas manufacturing subsidiaries. Today, 3M Australia has over 750 employees and sales to the
consumer retail market of $72 million (15% of total sale). 3M Australia is a unique and diversified
company, which invents and markets a broad range of high-quality products.
It was one of the first companies in Australia to achieve an AS 3902/ISO 9002 Quality Systems
Standard in 1990. This standard acts as the customer's assurance that their supplier is meeting their
requirements. It also reaffirms 3M's commitment to exceed the expectations of its customers through
a process of continuous improvement.(3M, 2015)
The followings are 3M values, 3M at a Glance and 3M Australia. (3M, 2015)

3M Values

Act with uncompromising honesty and integrity in everything we do

Satisfy our customers with innovative technology and superior quality, value and service

Provide our investors an attractive return through sustainable, global growth

Respect our social and physical environment around the world

Value and develop our employees' diverse talents, initiative and leadership

Earn the admiration of all those associated with 3M worldwide

3M at a Glance (Year end 2014)

Global sales: $30.8 billion.

International (non-US) sales: $19.7 billion (64 percent of company's total).

Operations in more than 70 countries.

3M products sold in nearly 200 countries.

88,667 employees globally.

2013 3M gives cash and product donations totaled $60.2 million.

3M in Australia

2013 sales in excess of $500 million

650+ employees

11 locations including 4 manufacturing sites

Products manufactured in Australia are liquid filtration products, car repair products,
automotive products and microbiology products.
Head office in North Ryde, NSW

To find out 3M products choose from, visit

http://solutions.3m.com.au/wps/portal/3M/en_AU/Products/ProdServ/. The following is an
example of one popular product of 3M.

POST-it
Post-it Big Pad - Evernote Collection, 279 mm x 279 mm, Limeade, 30
sheets per pad

Includes a free, 1-month subscription to

Evernote Premium (limit 1, one-month
subscription per twelve-month period)

Capture and save your Post-it Notes using

Evernote to make all of your information
available wherever you go

30 self-stick, 279 mm x 279 mm Limeade

sheets and a rigid backing for portability

Think Big! Ignited your creativity with Postit Big Pads

Post-it Big Pads help you visualize your

ideas and display on smooth, vertical surfaces

Large in size, yet easily portable

Use with Post-it Notes and Post-it Rolls
to bring your big ideas to life

Reference
3M Australia, 2015, Who we are, [online] Available at
http://solutions.3m.com.au/wps/portal/3M/en_AU/about-3M/information/about/us/

[Accessed 14

June 2015]
3M Australia, 2015, Australian Packaging Covenant ACTION PLAN 2010-2015, [online] Available
at
http://www.packagingcovenant.org.au/data/ActionPlans/3M_Australia_Pty_Limited_AP.pdf/

[Accessed 14 June 2015]