Skill Building:

You are also completing this project to help you develop the skills of research, writing and developing a report.  Writing is critical because in business it is important to convey information clearly and concisely and to develop a personal brand.  Developing a personal brand is important because it is the ongoing process of establishing an image or impression in the minds of others especially those in positions above you.  Having a strong personal brand can lead to opportunities that include promotions.

Skills:  Research, Writing, Developing a Personal Brand. 

Outcomes Met With This Project:

• identify the critical business functions and how they interact in order to position the organization to be effective in the current business environment
• describe the ethical and social responsibilities that confront a business

Instructions:

Step 1:  Research the three companies

• Students will visit the websites of the three companies listed below and examine the websites.
  • Culver’s
  • Whataburger
  • In-N-Out Burger
• Complete the Marketing Mix Worksheet. Do not leave any element empty.

Step 2:  Analysis

To complete the analysis, all conclusions drawn in the discussion of every element must be supported by the class material, website facts, and any additional research conducted.

Introduction

Provide the proper name of the three companies and briefly describe the products you reviewed along with any relevant history about these products/brands.

Four Ps of Marketing

Describe the key marketing strategies of the selected companies.  You should base your evaluation on what you observe on the three websites about how the four Ps are applied to the products.  Be specific in discussing design, promotional activities and other information provided on each website.

Identify and discuss the target market each company is trying to reach.

Conclusion 

In this section you should draw conclusions about the proven or possible success of the products for the three companies based on the strengths and weaknesses of each website.   Using the strengths and weaknesses of each website, explain how each company uses the four marketing Ps to ensure the success of its product?

Step 3:  Review the Analysis

Read the paper to ensure all required elements are present.  Use the grading rubric to ensure that you gain the most points possible for this assignment.

Proofread the paper for spelling and grammatical issues, and third person writing.

• Read the paper aloud as a first measure;
• Use the spell and grammar check in Word as a second measure;
• Have someone who has excellent English skills to proof the paper;
• Consider submitting the paper to the Effective Writing Center (EWC).  The EWC will provide 4-6 areas that may need improvement.

Step 4:  Submit the paper in the Assignment Folder (The assignment submitted to the Assignment Folder will be considered the student’s final product and therefore ready for grading by the instructor.  It is incumbent upon the student to verify the assignment is the correct submission.  No exceptions will be considered by the instructor).

How to Set Up the Paper

Create a Word or Rich Text Format (RTF) document that is double-spaced.  Use 12-point font.  The narrative of the paper should be between 3 and 4 pages long.

Add the Worksheet to the end of the document.

Use a title page with your name, Course number and name, instructor name and date.

Requirements to Follow

• Use the grading rubric while completing the project to ensure all requirements are met that will lead to the highest possible grade.
• Third person writing is required.  Third person means that there are no words such as “I, me, my, we, or us” (first person writing), nor is there use of “you or your” (second person writing).
• Contractions are not used in business writing, so do not use them.
• For all other source material used in the analysis, you will not use direct quotation marks but will instead paraphrase.  What this means is that you will put the ideas of an author or article into your own words rather than lifting directly from a source document.  You may not use more than four consecutive words from a source document, as doing so would require direct quotation marks.  This requirement include facts from the case scenario.  Changing words from a passage does not exclude the passage from having quotation marks.
• Use in-text citations and provide a reference list that contains the reference associated with each in-text citation.
• You may not use books in completing this project.
• Provide the page or paragraph number in every in-text citation presented.  When using an eBook from the classroom, you will see that there are no page numbers so you will provide the Chapter Name and Section Title.