MMS715 Promotional Plan for North Melbourne Football Club - Assignment Help

Introduction

This promotional plan is focused on North Melbourne Football Club, that competes in the Australian Football League. The club was established in 1869 and is nicknamed as ‘The Kangaroos’ (North Melbourne, 2020 a)). The promotional plan is developed considering a scenario where the club is relocating to Tasmania. This promotional plan analyses the organisational environment to identify opportunities and then several strategies are suggested to capitalise on the opportunities. 

The promotion plan has three sections: The first section involves a situational analysis that involves an analysis of the product, competitor, market, consumer, and identification of promotional plans objectives. The second section involves the development of the promotional plan and identification of available IMC avenues with justification. This section will involve breakdown and evaluation of IMC elements, application of IMC with a promotional plan, and outlining how IMC elements can work in synergy to achieve the marketing aim. The third section involves the presentation of actions that must be taken by the organisation. This section will involve developing an action plan (bounded by timeline), integration of components, budget for the plan, and measurement of the components.

Situational Analysis 

Product Analysis

• There are three different membership packages: ‘Marvel Stadium’, ‘Blundstone Arena’, and ‘More Packages’. The club plays its matches in two stadiums and as a result, there are two different packages for each stadium. In the ‘Marvel Stadium’, there are three forms of membership: Reserved Seat, Reserved Bay, and General Admission. In the ‘Blundstone Arena’, there are three forms of membership: Premium Reserved, Reserved Seat, and General Admission. As part of ‘More Packages’, the club offers several membership options: AFLW (Women Team), Junior Membership, Long Distance, and Supporter Membership (North Melbourne, 2020 b)).
• The packages differ in terms of the seat location, hospitality features, and exclusive offers in merchandising. The premium seats are reserved as part of more expensive membership packages and can cost up to $89 per month (North Melbourne, 2020 b)). 

Competitor Analysis:

The competitor for the club can be divided into three categories: immediate competitors, secondary competitors, and indirect competitors. 

• The immediate competitors of North Melbourne are the other AFL teams as they offer the same product as North Melbourne. Among the 18 AFL team, North Melbourne ranks 15 in the number of memberships: In 2019, the club had over 42,000+ members, however, Richmond had over 103,000 members (Fox Sports, 2019). 

• The secondary competitors of North Melbourne United are other sporting events. While AFL is a domestic league competition, several other sporting events are played at global scale including Cricket, Soccer, and Hockey. OTG (2020) identified that besides AFL, some other popular sports in Australia include Netball, NRL, Cricket, Tennis, Basketball, Soccer, Cycling, and Swimming.  
• The indirect competitors include various forms entertainment including movies, drama, plays, and social media. 

Market Trends:

• The league has low visibility outside Australia and the league is trying to increase its audience base. The league organised an exhibition match in China between Melbourne and Brisbane in 2010 (AAP, 2010). 
• Till 2019, the membership for the league was increasing, as many clubs recorded membership growth in two digits. Of the total 18 clubs, 14 clubs demonstrated growth in membership in 2019 (FoxSports, 2019).
• However, in 2020, due to COVID-19, the prospects of the league are not encouraging as social distancing is being followed. In the initial days of the pandemic, the plans were to organise the league in empty stadiums, however, the plans were discarded and the league was suspended (GulfNews, 2020).