Marketing Research For Augustine Medical
This report references exhibits and appendices not included within the document
Executive summary
By early 1988, Augustine Medical executives were actively engaged in finalizing and marketing the program for the patient warming system named Bair Hugger Patient Warming System. The principal question yet to be resolved was how to price this system. Several considerations are required in terms of organizational objectives, demand for the product, customer value perception, buyer price sensitivity, the price of competitive offering, and direct variable costs. The company has two alternatives to price this system, either the skimming pricing strategy or the penetration pricing strategy.
The Bair Hugger system, which consist of a heater/blower unit and a separate inflatable plastic/paper blanket, is an air-circulation product and provides hypothermia patients surface warming. Although using the skimming pricing strategy has greater return in the short run, the danger is the company can not have a greater market share as well as a long run profit. Also, this market is price-sensitive to alternative methods. On the other hand, since the demand is known, the estimate of the total potential market for this system is about 2737 units, and 1000 units of blankets for each blower unit per year, and there are many substitutes existing, we strongly recommend that the company should employ penetration pricing strategy to market this system. In conclusion, the company can get into the market quickly and gain favorable market shares as soon as possible if it offers a low-priced blower unit. Also, the company could have long-term profits by selling lots of blankets only if they have greater market shares.
Problem Definition
In July 1987, Augustine Medical was incorporated as a Minnesota corporation to develop and market products for hospital operating rooms and postoperative recovery rooms. One of two products the company planned to produce and sell was the Bair Hugger Patient Warming System designed to treat postoperative hypothermia in the recovery room. Postoperative hypothermia (a condition defined as a body temperature of less than 36 degrees Centigrade or 96 degrees Fahrenheit) occurs in 60-80 percent of all postoperative patients.
Many competing technologies are available for the prevention and treatment of h...
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...oducts, and their price should go together. But based on our analysis, we decided to price the blower unit at a low price, whereas the blanket has a high price. The reason is not only does the blanket have patented protection but also the blanket can continue to create profits. Also, the price of the blower unit will influence the market share because this is a price-sensitive market. Indeed, pricing decisions determine the type of customers and competitors an organization will attract.
We are wondering why this market did not become dominated by technology, whereas the warmed hospital blankets are the most commonly used because of low cost. If this market prefers technological products, the skimming pricing strategy may have more advantages for this company. Unfortunately, the factor of price sensitivity still dominates our price decision.
In conclusion, when a company introduces a new product into the price-sensitive market, the competitors are expected to move in the market quickly. It is better for the company to apply penetration-pricing strategy, in order to obtain a large market share in a short period and also discourage competitors who plan on entering the market.
Maintaining normal core body temperature (normothermia) in patients within perioperative environments is both a challenging and important aspect to ensure patient safety, comfort and positive surgical outcomes (Tanner, 2011; Wu, 2013; Lynch, Dixon & Leary, 2010). Normorthermia is defined as temperatures from 36C to 38C, and is maintained through thermoregulation which is the balance between heat loss and heat gain (Paulikas, 2008). When normothermia is not maintained within the perioperative environments, and the patient’s core body temperature drops below 36C, they are at risk of developing various adverse consequences due to perioperative hypothermia (Wagner, 2010). Perioperative hypothermia is classified into three
A couple of Squares has a limited capacity for which to produce their products and smaller companies tend to have larger fixed costs than bigger companies. Therefore, A Couple of Squares must maximize profits in order to ensure that they will stay in business. A profit-oriented pricing objective is also useful because of A Couple of Squares’ increased sales goals. A Couple of Squares increased their sales goals due to recent financial troubles. Maximizing profits is the easiest way to meet these sales goals due to the fact that A Couple of Squares has limited production capacity. The last key consideration favors a profit-oriented pricing objective because A Couple of Squares offers a specialty product. A specialty product often has limited competition, therefore can be priced on customer value. Pricing at customer value will maximize profits as well as customer satisfaction. A Couple of Squares’ lack of production capacity, increased sales goals, and specialty product favor a profit-oriented pricing
Setting prices too high would discourage purchasing and setting prices too low negatively affects revenue. While several pricing strategies exist, the use of a value-based pricing system, as implemented at Cabela’s, offers an optimal strategy that meet both customer expectations and company requirements.
If the firm decides to pursue alternative two, Burroughs and Wellcome must construct a new pricing strategy. Some of the firm’s uncertainties consist of the public perception of the company, the implication of the current pricing strategy to revenues, the effect to the bottom line because of the reduction in price, the impact of an introduction of a new product from other competitors in the future, and the unclear outcome on profits due to regulatory constraints.
When promoting primary health care services, there are many factors that must be considered when developing an effective marketing plan. Primary care providers are the gatekeepers of health care in the United States; many patients have to visit them before being referred to specialist providers (Bodenheimer, 2003). They are also being tasked with ensuring patients are receiving preventative services and managing more complex chronic diseases (Akinci & Healey, 2004). Recruitment of primary care physicians is challenging because they are expected to do more and are not being reimbursed proportionally for the added workload (Bodenheimer, 2003). In this paper, a group of primary care physicians in Washington D.C. is looking to research their consumer population base in order to provide them better services and recruit new primary care physicians to their practice (Colorado State University-Global Campus, 2013). A successful primary care marketing plan will recruit quality health care providers while improving consumer accessibility to their services, customer satisfaction rates, and patients’ continuity of care with their health care provider.
In this unit, we will be discussing real-life healthcare organizations, the 5 P’s of healthcare marketing, and evaluation strategies that may be used to determine marketing potential.
Rivalry among established firms is fierce. There are several factors that illustrate this: established market players (6.1). The product is highly standardized and the switching costs of the customers are low. Players are aggressive (6.2)
Pricing is an important aspect of every business. Chief Financial Officer’s (CFO) use pricing to create financial projections, establish a break-even point, and calculate profit and loss margins (Power Point, 2005). It is the only element in the marketing mix that produces revenue. Price is also one of the most flexible elements of the marketing mix as it can be changed very quickly. This is usually done to beat competitor prices in an attempt to fix the product’s market value position very low (Anderson & Bailey, 1998). After all, high prices make it difficult to become the market share leader. The leading US retailer, Wal-Mart, is an expert at low product pricing as evident in 2004 with $250 billion dollars in sales to their 138 million weekly shoppers. However, they are also responsible for reducing prices so low that it drives specialty stores out of business. This is the effect Wal-mart has had on many toy stores and has almost closed the doors of the famous toy store Toys “R” Us Inc.
The pricing strategy will start out rather high for this product upon its release in order to draw a more selective crowd such as the upper class members of the urban society. Once the product has succeeded within this market there will be a development of additional variations of the product which will allow for certain models, with less features, to be sold at a lower price point in order to attract the members of society who are less willing to pay the high asking price for the top of the line version of the
The second market structure is a monopolistic competition. The conditions of this market are similar as for perfect competition except the product is not homogenous it is differentiated; thus having control over its price. (Nellis and Parker, 1997). There are many firms and freedom of entry into the industry, firms are price makers and are faced with a downward sloping demand curve as well as profit maximizers. Examples include; restaurant businesses, hotels and pubs, specialist retailing (builders) and consumer services (Sloman, 2013).
Intuitively, a cost-plus approach sets a lower boundary for the selling price. Yet to pitch a competitive price on the market, it takes more than that. The demand forecast advocates opting for the lowest selling price which yields the highest return. A market penetration strategy necessitates thorough knowledge of the selling prices of the nearest competitors and their retaliation potential. Ideally, the lowest price in the market of £10,400 dictates the upper ceiling of AUDI’s price discretion. However, setting initially a too low price in the hope for increasing it subsequently is not a viable option, as prices are somewhat inflexible upward. Instead, costs have to sink in the long run. Nevertheless, claiming a larger market share will allow AUDI to deftly climb the steep learning curve, lower its costs and further mobilize against market followers. A high price elasticity of demand insinuates that profit margins will continue to soar, if selling prices are reduced any further. As the point of maximum profit is apparently not yet reached, the company is advised to extend the range of the forecast. But is the highest profit naturally the best profit?
This complex environment together with a global market where input and product prices are continuing to fluctuate and remain volatile. Such changing environments creates a pressing need
With clear core values towards providing quality coffee, the best service, and atmosphere, Starbucks has enjoyed great success since it was founded 30 years ago. The company has being doing very well for last 11 years with 5% or more store sales increase, even with the rest economy still reeling from the post-9/11 recession. However recent research, conducted to Starbucks, have showed some concerns regarding company’s problem meeting customers’ expectations.
...n the companies will have to decrease the price otherwise the product will not be sold at higher prices and the revenue would not be as large as companies would like to.
When I saw this discussion, I couldn’t help but think of Starbucks and the impact they’ve made throughout their 45 years of establishment. I worked with them for about 7 years and saw how unique they were from your everyday coffee and latte spots. A retail company with thousands of coffee shops in the US as well as in other countries, this particular retailer has been able to catch the eyes of all ages as well as locations throughout the world. For example, today college students utilize Starbucks locations to study rather than go to a nearby library. Starbucks is also known for its best coffee and espresso drinks (Latte or Frappuccino) and with one of its delicious espresso 's any student or just a person stopping in to enjoy its lounge area where there is free Wi-Fi is awesome! Starbucks lifecycle has made a 360 turn around and been revamped twice to accommodated the growing market. Customizing their brand to fit more in with everything and not just one thing. By doing this they’ve created multiple product lifecycles within their own lifecycle as a corporate company.