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 Market Research for Pig Rock Sausages163097731600A research report on sausages, sausage statistics, Pig Rock,its competitors, marketing techniques, and event marketing.October, 2016Created by: Deema AldakheelPig Rock Sausages Pig Rock is a company that was filed as a Domestic Limited Liability Company (LLC) on October 20, 2014. Its registered location is 52 Dyer Avenue, Milton,?MA?02186. On Facebook, their given location is135 Newmarket Sq., Boston, MA 02118 and their phone number is (781) 285-5902. Pig rock is a company that produces sausages that have chef & restaurant made quality. Below is the standard caption that Pig Rock uses to describe itself. The caption is used on its Facebook page and Chef Art Welch’s Linkedln’s page. It is also used through their event marketing when creating events with other companies. Pig Rock Sausages is the brainchild of longtime Boston chef Art Welch. After months of sampling various sausages for the restaurants he runs, Art felt there was a need in the restaurant market for a quality sausage that would satisfy not only diners but chefs as well. Sixteen months after the idea was sparked, Art fired up the grinder and the first batch of Pig Rock Sausages was made.The focus of Pig Rock Sausages is using fresh, quality ingredients to produce the highest quality line of sausages. There are no additives or preservatives. What is on our label is what is in our sausages.Pig Rock Sausages offers a growing line of gourmet sausages as well as the classic Sweet & Hot Italian. Current flavors include Chicken & Maple, Turkey & Cranberry (think Thanksgiving in a sausage), Bratwurst, Chipotle Chicken & Lime, Sweet & Hot Italian, Breakfast, Mexican Chorizo, Chicken & Apple and Merguez.A lot can be learned through the caption; to begin with, you learn that the sausages company belongs to an already established Chef in Boston . The company’s origin story also becomes evident, as the brand becomes inspired by the chef’s realization of the lack of high quality sausages that would please everyone. The target market for the company also becomes evident through the caption, as it is not only intended for general consumption by the public, but restaurateurs and chefs as well. The company’s sausages qualities are highlighted within the caption. These qualities are: “fresh, quality ingredients” and “no additives and preservatives”. This clarifies the sausage’s differentiation from other sausage companies, as many sausages that are out there in the market don’t have the same qualities. The fact that the company has a growing line of sausages is another thing to market. In addition to that, the sausages are locally made, and that is another unique method for the company to stand out against the other competitors in the market. In the company’s brochure, they also stated that they have “cleaner casings with fewer whiskers resulting in less “chew” to the casing” and that allows “the focus to be on the sausage, not the casing” Pig Rock’s sausages are mostly sold in Milton. They are available in Eagle Farms at Milton, Kennelly Meats at The Milton Marketplace, and Thatcher Farm Dairy at Milton. They are also sold in Lexington at Wilson Farm. Most of the company’s event marketing efforts happens in those two cities. Chef Art Welch When you look up the chef, the first thing that you would get is his LinkedIn page that doesn't have an actual picture of him. Instead of having his face in the profile picture, he posted a picture of his logo and some of the letters are cut out. The cover picture shows a simple picture of sausages in a grill. The picture doesn’t reveal originality. It shows no differentiation from other sausages and doesn’t identify the brand. Even though having a Linkdeln page that belongs to the brand specifically could be useful for the it, it does not mean that the chef himself should not have his own Facebook page. However, the fact that the Chef linked his name with the brand is a positive step, as consumers tend to favor brands that are professionally made and have a personal touch in their marketing effort.After further research on the chef himself, it becomes evident that the chef is known in the Fenway area and that he runs several restaurants. One way that was noticeable was through a webpage that asked him his opinion of a new menu addition to a restaurant in Fenway. ?A review of a bread pudding that he cooks for a restaurant in Boston is given. The review states that it is the best bread pudding in the city. This reveals that the chef is very good in his craft. The chef cooked for the Lansdowne Pub more than once and that was noticeable through various events where he cooked for them. These events can be found within the search results that came after looking his name up. An example of one of those events is a Samuel Adams beer event that the Lansdowne had. Another example of an event that he cooked for was the Wormtown Brewery’s Beer Dinner at Worcester. This reveals that the chef is well-known throughout the state as well. Chef Welch is considered a celebrity chef in Boston and that was revealed when he was included in a foodie event which had an article written about it on Grub Street on September 2009.Throughout my research, I was not able to find a clear biography of the chef that states all of the restaurants that he manages and cooks for. ?None of the chef’s images can be found in the google image search results as well. ?There is another chef with the same family name as him, Tristan Welch, and he showed up in the first page of the results. This adds confusion to the search process. The family name Welch is a big family name, so that added to the confusion results since there many other non-related results. Sausages BACKGROUND A sausage is an old food product that was mentioned way back in The Odyssey by Homer. It was said to be one of the favorite foods of the Greek defines sausages as: “minced?pork,?beef,?or?other?meats,?often?combined,?together?with.various?added?ingredients?and?seasonings,?usually?stuffed?into?a prepared?intestine?or?other?casing?and?often?made?in?links.” Sausages are usually made of ground meat that is mixed with fats or fruits, seasonings, as well as preservatives and/or fillers. They may also include binders and extenders such as wheat flour and non-fat dry milk. During the production process, meat proteins can form a film that coagulates during heating. After producing a sausage, they are usually sold in casings; however, fresh sausages can be sold in loose like any ground meat or as patties. Sausages may also contain a small percentage of water. According to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council, sausages are a necessary staple of diets around the world. Within the US, it remains important in gatherings and celebrations since grilling is a common part of the culture. The sports culture also makes sausages important, as many people eat sausages around the time of or during sports games such as baseball and American football. Centuries ago, sausages developed through a salt-drying preservation technique. Not only does the salt add flavor to the sausages, it is also an essential functional part since it assists in the emulsifying capacity of meat proteins and aids in water binding. Nowadays, sausages can be considered as a form of culinary art at times. Other than its great taste, sausages are loved due to their convenience as they can be made quickly and easily and the variety that they provide. The three main type of sausages can be fresh, cooked, or cured. Sausages can also be smoked. Around the world, sausages have different names, as they’re is called Bratwurst in Germany, Chorizo in Mexico, Boerewor in South Africa, Salami in Italy, and Lop Chong in China, and the list goes on. Some of those names are based on the specific place where the sausage originated.The three basic ways of making sausages, fresh, cooked, and dry, are defined below. Smoked sausages are defined as well. It is not a type of sausage, rather a technique that is used while creating sausages. fresh sausages Fresh sausage are made from uncooked, uncured or unpreserved meats; therefore, they must be refrigerated of frozen at all times since ?The meats can be chopped, ground, or even pureed. Fresh sausages are not made from meat by-products such as kidneys and livers. When preparing them, they must be fully cooked. This form of sausage is very versatile and easy to make. cooked/ PRECOOKED SAUSAGES Pre-cooked Sausages are cooked sausages that tend to be made with smooth and pureed fillings. The sausage is cooked after filling it into the casing, and at times the fillings are partially cooked before placing them into the casing. Although it isn't really necessary to fully cook a pre-cooked sausage, it is recommended to heat it up to bring out its flavor. While heating it up, grilling it is one option. Other options are broiling or pan-searing. It can be cut to be served in dishes. This type of sausage is convenient for whoever wants a meal that is quick to make. It usually comes as patties or links.dry sausagesDry sausages are usually more meat concentrated and can be made of different types of ground meats including mixed meats. They are often smoked, can be cooked, and are usually ready to eat. Dry sausages are seasoned with spices and mixed with curing ingredients (preserving ingredients), after being packed into a casing they are left in a controlled and continuous air-drying process where salt is added for preservation purposes as well. When being left to dry, they go through a fermentation process that leads to the development of a tangy flavor. smoked sausages Both cooked and uncooked sausages can be smoked. Smoked sausages are made by hanging them in a smoke house or in a smoker. Smoke houses use a cool fire to slowly burn the sausage, which leads to the production of an ample amount of smoke; that not only cooks the sausage but also preserves it and ads flavor to it as well. When serving the sausage, it can be eaten as is while others heat it up. Some cut it up to use in other dishes. Just like the pre-cooked sausages, smoked sausages are an essential part of sandwich places and deli-counters. Making sausages is a traditional way of preserving meats. It is believed to be a good way to serve the notorious parts of meats that don’t look good served as is. Sausages are sometimes labeled as processed meats; that case is true with some brands but it’s not applicable to all sausage types. The problem of the processed sausages is not the meats itself, but the additives that are added later on. There are many types of sausages such as blood and tongue sausages, the origin of that type is unknown. Those sausages can combine lamb, actual blood, tongue, gelatin producing materials, and pork snouts. In France, people use intestines and stomach to create a traditional sausage known as the Andouille, they are usually smoked. Traditionally, Andouilles are usually heavily seasoned .They are either eaten as is or with a bun and are served fresh or precooked. In Italy, their sausages are cooked and smoked. They can be served in various formats such as rings, slices, or rolls that come in different diameters. Their sausages are usually made of cured beef and pork that is finely ground and have seasonings added to them. ? When it comes to Italian sausages, there are many types; however, most of them are not like the ones that are commonly referred to as Italian sausages in the US. The ones that are marketed as Italian in the US are usually hot and sweet. Some areas in the US provide mild sausages instead of having very spicy ones. Both types are mostly the same except for the red pepper flakes that are added to the spice mix. They can be fresh, cooked or dry. ?In the US sausages are usually made of pork, garlic, pepper, onions, and seasonings. They are also usually associated with Cajun cooking and are coarse-grained and smoked. Within the US market, Chorizo, Bratwurst, and Kielbasa are common sausage flavors, as well as Italian Sausages. Kielbasas are Polish sausages and they're highly seasoned with garlic. They're cooked and smoked and are made of coarsely ground lean pork and beef is added to it as well. Chorizos, are usually highly spiced and are made from meat that is coarsely cut and smoked. Sometimes, Chorizos are just used as a term to refer to any Spanish style sausages. They are usually fresh, cooked or dry/semi-dry. Pork or a pork and veal mixture is used to create the German Bratwurst. This type of sausage is made in links and is also highly seasoned. Pepper, sage, and nutmeg are added to give this type of sausage its unique flavor. ?It is available fresh and fully cooked and is also smoked.Sausage Data & Statistics sausage consumption in the U.SOn September 2016, a poll created for the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council (NHDSC) by the Harris Poll revealed that most Americans favor sausages. ?Eighty five percent of the survey’s respondents claimed that they enjoy eating sausages. In terms of the sexes, 93% were men, while 85% were women. As for the type of sausages that were preferred, Italian and patties were tied at 20% each. Breakfast links received 15%, while Bratwurst got %12. The aforementioned preferences were not set across the US. For instance, 33% of people from the Northwest revealed that Italian sausages are their favorite. While 26% of people from the Southwest revealed that they enjoyed breakfast sausages the most. As to people from the Midwest, 19% of them revealed that they prefer Bratwurst.In terms of states in the U.S, the top three consumers of sausages was Los Angeles ($110 million), followed by New York ($102 million), and then Chicago ($83.6 million). Data revealed that there was a 0.9 increase in the sales of sausages when compared to the previous year. More than $3.75 billion was spent on sausages that year. A large part of those sales were ham sales as well as breakfast sausages. For that category, sales went up to 2.1% at 581.3 million. is avery clear unprecedented sales for sausages in the US market, which is helped by the constant addition of flavors. The popularity of high protein foods is a trend that helps in that growth as well as people’s interest in organic or natural products. Many companies responded to that by offering more health alternatives.When it comes to restaurants, there is a steady growth in sausage consumption. That growth was prevalent within multiple menu categories at top 500 restaurant chains. Menurama reported that in a survey of 115 menus, sausages feature in 1,415 dishes. The graph displayed above reveals data from Statista that show the number of sausage consumption in the US, the graph also shows how it is predicted, based on past figures, that 260.49 million Americans will consume sausages in the year 2020, which is an increase from the current consumption marked at 251.1 million. There is a very noticeable steady rise of sausage sales from 2011, as it started from 231.88 million. There are seasons were sausages are consumed more. The summer is one of those seasons, as dinner sausages’ sales peak during that time. The dollar sales of those sausages account for almost a third of annual sausage sales. Sausages are highly consumed during Memorial Day Weekend and Labor Day Weekend. As for breakfast sausages, their sales are usually higher from November to January, which are the holiday months. Before that, National Sausage month takes place during October. So, sausage sales in general could happen as well, for whoever is aware of the occasion.family demographics Dinner sausages were common amongst families of all income levels. However, it was revealed that low income families consume the most breakfast sausage. In terms of family size and age larger and younger families tended to eat most of both breakfast and dinner sausages. The consumption of senior citizens was leveled-off. When it comes to refrigerated packed meat products, consumers with large households and older children in the south and Midwest were the highest consumers. There are people that don’t cook or can’t eat sausages include people such as vegetarians and the ones that can’t eat it due to religious or health reasons. An example of that is muslims and jews that can't eat pork or hindus that can’t eat meat. So these types of people are usually excluded when considering sausage marketing.sausage consumption in ballparksWhen it comes to sausage consumption in ballparks, the Boston Red Sox consumed 327,500 sausages in 2016. They were ranked the third place in the U.S, after the San Francisco Giants, which consumed 475,000 sausages and the St. Louis Cardinals, which consumed 400,000 sausages. In total, more than 4.3 million sausages were consumed by baseball fans in the U.S. Marketing Techniques Below is a list of marketing techniques that companies use to market for their brand. Knowing them would be useful when looking for a marketing technique for Pig Rock itself. It will also be useful if Pig Rock were to compare their current marketing efforts to the marketing efforts of their competitors. Supporting a Cause or Charity: Having events or promotions that support a causes or charity is a common thing that companies hold. It acts as an indirect way to market for the company, while also benefiting a cause or charity as part of the events funds goes to it. Event Sponsorship: It is when a company provides support, usually financial, in return for the right to display a brand name, logo or advertising message. It also promotes a company’s corporate social responsibility. Through sponsorships a brand is aligned with an event or other company in general in order to exploit the associative and commercial potential created by the alignment. This would help meet specific brand objectives that positively improve a brand image.Press Conferences/ Releases: Holding a press conferences can be considered somewhat of a marketing event as well. Even though this event’s primary purpose is to inform shareholders and publics about the company’s current state, it can help launch new products or marketing campaigns and promotions. When the media reports the press conference or writes a press release, the report itself is considered a form of marketing. Although press releases are not necessarily published by the company, a company can reach out to news companies and agencies to report new things in the company that would promote the brand name in the process.That form of request is not easy to achieve, but it is great for a company if it was because at most times it is a free form of advertising for the company. Virtual events: Having virtual or hybrid events are other event options. A virtual event is an event that connects a group of people in one virtual environment through the use of the internet and computer technology. The event does not require physical attendance, tends to be highly interactive, and resemble real life events. A hybrid event combines elements of both a virtual and real-life event, it allows people in a live event and the ones that are present online to be able to be part of the event at the same time.Contests: According to the website Chron, contests are frequently used promotional strategies and provide a useful way of getting a brand image out in the public without the need for people to make a purchase. They stated that contests puts the name and logo of a brand out to the public. Festivals: Participating in festivals is a good way to introduce your company to the community and makes people more aware of it. It is also a good way to reach certain demographics since festivals tend to have certain themes that attracts a certain group of people. Field Marketing/ Brand Specific Event: Field marketing entails the organization creating an event that is exclusive for the organization. This type of event is useful as it attract the company’s customers and makes the sole focus of the event on them, leaving the audience with no other companies to distract them. Despite its benefits, this event puts pressure on the organizations to ensure the customer’s attendance. However, that pressure can be taken away from the company by hiring an outside company to help drive traffic to the event. It was shown in a market survey that was conducted by Convene meetings this year that companies outsource various event related services and that 21% outsource marketing and promotion. Geographic targeting is also recommended to ensure the success of a field event. Filed events tends to attract more locals, unlike trade events, which could attract people from different places around the globe and state. A company creating its own event can help the company to get into contact with key customers. One example of a brand specific event is having a product launch event. During events, giving branded promotional gifts is useful as it acts as a long lasting way for promoting the brand to everyone that sees the gift later on but doesn't know about the company. It also reminds the person that is using or seeing the gift after the event about the company and its products. A customer appreciation event is also another form of a brand specific event. Having workshops and seminars is also another useful way to indirectly market for a brand as well as summits and roundtables.Even though a company creating its own event is a good idea, partnering up with other companies to create one event is a good marketing technique as well. Through that, the event planning pressure and resources are shared. Less money could be spent on the event if the costs were split. When it comes to the event’s promotion, the other company could help and it could attract customers that are loyal to their brand but become loyal to the other company’s brand as well. The events could end up being more entertaining as well, as the company could provide entertainment ideas and more things to do and/or serve. Trade Shows/ Events: Trade shows are exhibitions where companies can present and demonstrate their products. Having a professional presentation during those shows is essential, for instance having a well-organized and professional looking display is important. This type of event is useful when promoting to other companies; however, it could be more challenging to attract people since there any many other options and vendors available. Some people view that as an advantage since the ability to see all of the options available in one location is ideal. However, for a company, it puts extra pressure on them to perform better or try to stand out from the other vendors, especially the ones offering the same product or service. Within trade shows point-of-sale promotion can be applied. Even though it is a strategy that promotes convenience and impulse buying.Having someone buy a product or service out of convenience can lead to them brand switching or becoming new consumers of the product that are brand loyal. Marketing Efforts Analysis competing sausage brands There are many sausage brands that can be considered as competition for the company. For this report, I chose three brands: Aidell’s, Johnsonville, and Alfresco. All of these three brands were sold in 3 out of the 4 supermarkets or grocery stores that I looked into. Alfresco is a chicken based sausage company that has competitive advantage because people that can’t eat pork for religious reasons or don’t like eating unhealthy things, pork, beef, or any other fat filled sausage would use their sausages instead since they are marketed as the healthy alternative to other sausages. As for Aidell’s, I picked it because its origin story resembles that of Pig Rock since it started through a chef’s dissatisfaction within the existing sausage market. Johnsonville was a brand that stood out during my market research because it was sold in many supermarkets and it had the longest list of flavors. Pig Rock’s Marketing & promotionCompared to its other competitors, Pig Rock is considerably a new company. The company’s promotional efforts include social media posts, creating an event in Loretta’s Last Call, and grilling and providing free samples in the places where the sausages are sold (ex. Wilsons Farm). In addition to that, the company participated in Thatcher’s Farm in Milton twice. In fact, their first marketing event took place there and it was a healthy event. One blog called “Eating &…”wrote about the company. A blogpost and review was also written about them in Katsblog and the sausages ended up being sold online there as well. Pig Rock also sponsored the Milton Little League as another promotional effort. In the event that they created in Loretta’s Last Call, they partnered with Harpoon brewery and had a special sausage menu. Within the event, give ways and gift cards were given. A summer Pig Rock package was created. The entertainment included live bluegrass music and a horseshoe competition. Below is a sample picture of the event’s poster. The event’s name was creative and the poster was well-designed. When looking at the way that Pig Rock advertised many of their promotional efforts, it becomes evident that many improvements in picture quality and design is needed.Many of the pictures posted on their FB page were dull, repetitive,and unclear. 3879850615128Aidell’s marketing & promotionIntroduction: The company was established in 1983 by Chef Bruce Aidell, a chef that “couldn't find the flavors he wanted in a sausage” (Aidell’, Our Story). Aidell was inspired by a French sausage that used apples and pheasant, a type of bird, in the creation of his first sausage which was a hand-made chicken and apple sausage. After creating the sausage recipe, he started selling them door-to-door and to restaurants in Brookline, California. That area of California was famously known for being the Gourmet Ghetto district of California. Aidell’s sausages were all made in small batches and claimed to use the finest, all natural ingredients. Eventually the sausages become famous to the point that he started selling them directly to grocers and people in local farmer’s markets. The company is now running as a continuation of the chef’s legacy; the chef became the first person to introduce Chicken based sausages to America. In addition to sausages, the company now sells meatballs and burgers Aidell’s sausages today has many unique flavors. With that, the company created a cookbook that compromises a collection of their recipes, and the book can also be purchased. Someone reading the book or buying it, and liking the recipes would probably make them a loyal customer. Just the news of publishing the book can also act as a marketing effort. To help the company portray the image that they want to be associated with them, which is hand-crafted products, commitment to exceptional quality, and extraordinary taste, the company hired Story House creative, a copy writing and branding firm in San Francisco. The company helped them with their website’s development , packaging, newsletters, and other projects. Aidell’s website ended up being very well-designed and interesting. They also have good social media pages with high quality pictures, videos, and recipes. Hiring an external marketing company to help improve digital content and presence as well as other efforts is one way that a company can boost their general marketing and promotions. Publix, a place where Aidell’s are sold , once had an in-store promotion for the sausage. Through the promotion, customers got to save almost $2 or $4.This was one smart promotional technique that was done for the company’s product through the retailer selling it but ultimately, it benefits the company whenever a customer ends up buying an Aidell’s sausage because of the offer and ends up liking it. Another way the company promoted itself was through the chef’s participation in a talk for Startup Grind, which was powered by Google for Entrepreneurs. An online media brand that writes food reviews wrote an article about Aidell’s sausages. The article’s title was “The Most Interesting Sausage in the World” and it features Aidell’s sausage story. The article stated that Bruce Aidell won titles such as the “sausage king” and the “sausage master”. Due to his first sausage creation, Aidell’s has a poultry focus and it created many chicken-based creations. The aforementioned article can be considered as a form of marketing for the company. Even though that marketing technique isn’t primarily created by the company itself, maintaining press relations can help companies receive that form of marketing or promotion.Alfresco’s marketing & promotionIntroduction:Alfresco is a chicken sausage company which is marketed as the healthy alternative to beef sausages. They claim to use fresh products that are fully cooked. They also sell chicken based burgers, meatballs, and turkey breast. Despite being healthy sausages, they market their sausages as flavorful and delicious. That was supported through a review that was written about it online, the review was written by someone that was given free sample, which is a promotional techniques that many companies use. The website The Scene, Nashville, featured that product review in their food and drink section. The author that received a free sample stated the following in her review: “another easy all-natural option that offers 14 varieties of chicken sausages with 70 percent less fat than pork sausage, without nitrates, preservatives and artificial ingredients”. This comment introduced the company to the readers and then the author writes about the good characteristics of their sausages, thus making the article a form of promotion. I believe that having the review was useful as customers tend to find customer testimonials more reliable than company claims, since the company could falsely market something just to ensure profit.The company has a good social media presence, with an Instagram page that has 4,428 followers and 583 posts. As to their Facebook page, they have 279,415 followers. The post on their social media pages are very colorful and well-designed. Just like the other sausage companies are examined, they have recipes on their website. Through their Instagram caption a new competition or audience targeted activity that ultimately markets for the product becomes evident. It is called the #Chickenswapchallenge and it encourages people to swap chicken for their sausages in their cooking and to share pictures of their recipes on social media. One technique that the company used as a promotional effort was using a social cause, Breast Cancer, to promote for their brand. The following promotion is going on right now, during the month of October. The picture advertised for the promotion in a very creative way. For the great cancer initiative, they partnered with the Ellie Fund, which is an organization that funds cancer care. The company helped the organization by donating over 3,000 meals to families facing treatment. The organization was also part of a walk that supports the cause. The walk was known as the American Caner Society’s Making Strides of Boston Walk and Alfresco sponsored it. The organization also stated the following through their website:?“?Annually al fresco donates over $35,000 to support breast cancer research and patients undergoing breast cancer treatment.”? The organization’s logo on their social media pages also has the Pink Ribbon on the top corner of the logo. The fact that the company has a specific tab for promotions in their website reveals that promotions is a thing that they value and probably have on a regular basis.Below is picture of a poster that was displayed on their website.1172788243805 Through the poster, it becomes evident that the company used competitions as a promotional strategy as well as social media. On the top of the web page there are small social media tabs that customers could use to save the picture or poster on Pinterest, like it on FB, or event tweet about it. This was a smart addition as customer’s involvement on social media can act as a free promotional technique for the company. Another similar competition that they had partnered with minute maid, as the customers were asked to create a food recipe that uses both company’s products as part of the competition.JOHNSONVILE’s marketing & promotionIntroduction:Johnsonville is the world’s top sausage manufacturer and their annual sales generate almost one billion US dollars. It is a family owned business and they now sell sauces, chicken breast, meatballs, a small griller, and brats. The website South China Morning Post wrote an article about them “setting global innovation standards” and being a leader in food science. This shows how they have a favorable reputation in places outside the U.S. Cision PR newswire wrote a press release about them in the past as well as many other websites such as BizTimes, the Milwaukee Business News, where they reported on the company expanding their headquarters. Other companies, organizations, or websites announcing news related to your company is yet another marketing technique.Johnsonville has a yearly sausage festival that they advertised for through a Facebook page. The festivals was hosted by Copper Box, a music band in Wisconsin. Having a festival is like having a customer appreciation event, as the people that love the brand go to enjoy themselves through an event that the company created. Another example of a festival that they had was the Johnsonville World’s Largest Brat Festival, on the page where they advertised for that on their website, they had a number that stated the number of people that they served in the previous year and how they aspired to beat the number through the festival. This event was held on Memorial Day weekend for the whole weekend as well as Monday and for a really long time, which is from 10 am to 9pm. This was a great technique as it allows everyone to visit based on whichever time suits them. The event basically measures the length of brats based on the consumer number within the year, and the event’s name is inspired from that. Pictures of the event were given through the website, and they were professional and diverse. Many things took place through the event such as having a climbing wall, huge slides, more than 80 bands performing, amusement rides, grilling, celebrity cashers, and free entertainment. The event helped charities raise$2.5 million ever since it was introduced in 1995. Another marketing technique that they have is using a huge truck with an attractive design that includes their logo go on an annual tour. The truck has been going on tour every year ever since 1955 and the tradition started as a way to celebrate their 50th anniversary. The truck advertises for their grill known as “The Big Taste Grill”. This marketing effort was revealed through a PR newswire reported the start on the company’s 18th tour on 2012. The tour continues till this day and it also promotes social causes. For instance, the money that they raised at one point was used to feed families in Burma. Everyone that sees the huge, noticeable truck on the road would become aware of the company and the grill. The company has a website with a news section that advertises their promos and special events and it includes recipes as well, this is a good way to attract consumers by making them come back to check their news and new recipes. In addition to that, the company used Sponsorship as a promotional technique. For instance, they served as a title sponsor for NASCAR Xfinity series on March this year. The company also used customer testimonials within their website. They have an enthusiast club that people can sign up for. It is interactive and allows people to meet other people. It also allows other people to share their own recipes.They company also use tailgating within their website and social media page a lot, as they provide tips for it such as grill cleaning tips. Within their website, they also have a tab called the Johnsonville way and it has a message from the owner, his picture, and other statements given by him. Within that tab there is a behind the scenes section and a link to their blog. The Johnsonville Way turns out to be a campaign that they created and they incorporated the brand’s customers within it. As part of the campaign, they created a competition where their customers get to create advertisements for the company. The links for the winning ads were all featured within the page. Each video includes an interview with the ad’s creator. All of the ads ended up being diverse, funny, and creative that even a person that isn’t interested in sausages would want to watch it. This marketing technique was very successful that Ad Week, a weekly American advertising trade publication, reported on it. Another thing that ad week reported on was a sausage themed reality TV show that Johnsonville created in partnership with Droga5; the show was a 3-part series called Sausage Dome. The idea of the show resembled that of competition shows seen on channels such as the Food Network. For the show, the contestants were asked to make recipes using Johnsonville sausages that are game-day appropriate. Each episode would have 3 people and 1 winner. The winner would receive a year’s supply of sausages. In addition to that, the winner’s recipe would be included in Johnsonville’s future campaigns and a recipe book that the company makes. The judging panel is called The Sausage Six and it actually features six type of employees of the company. For instance one of the judges was a receptionist in the company, another one worked in the sanitation department, while another worked as a smoke house operator. It then becomes evident that competition is a marketing technique that they use a lot. In 2011, the company created a contest called “No Ordinary Burger!” The contest was open to all residents in the US that were amateur home cooks. It was a cooking competition that had criteria that were judged by panel members. The competition had different recipe categories and a Johnsonville sausage had to be used for it. Within supermarket, the company used point of purchase displays. They provide coupons at times, as they provided $1 coupons off chicken sausages in the past. The coupon was released by them and not the retailer at which the product was being sold. Event Marketing for Pig RockIn the book Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communications Perspective, Event Marketing is defined as “a type of promotion where a company or brand is linked to an event or where a themed activity is developed for the purposes of creating experiences for consumers and promoting a product or service.” (pg. 561) The book also states that “marketers often do event marketing by associating their product with some popular activity such as sporting event, concert, fair, or festivals”, and ?that they can also create their own promotional events. For the three events that Pig Rock could have, I believe that participating in a trade show or festival could be good options, as well as the company creating its own field marketing event.A marketing event is an essential step for Pig Rock in order for them to increase their brand exposure and awareness. This would ultimately lead to more money for the company that could also be used to improve the business in various ways such as hiring a graphic designer and photographer that would create better content for their social media pages. After examining the company’s social media pages, especially Facebook, it becomes evident that improving the company’s social media content is very much needed. Even though money could be put into that, it would still be a continued marketing effort since better social media content is considered a marketing strategy in itself. Option 1 To participate in a festival is a good way of marketing the company to the community. Different types of people of all ages usually come to these festivals. Since the company is still small, trying to just spread out the Pig Rock name to the public will be good as it could lead to an increase in sales in the places where the sausages are already being sold. With more sales, profits would be generated, allowing the company to hire new machines and buy new equipment in order to develop the company and its selling capacity. Option 2Since one of Chef Art Welch’s goals is to create a sausage that would attract to professional chefs, participating in a trade show will be useful. Even though a trade show is expensive, it would introduce the brand to chefs, restaurant owners, as well as people that sell in retail such as specialty meat stores and supermarkets. The company could share a table with a company that is already registered. This would be useful for the company, especially financially, since it would lower the price of participation.Option 3 Pig Rock can create its own event, whether it is something that involved partnering with another brand or creating its own event. Since the company already tried an event where they partnered with some other company, the company could diversify its marketing efforts by creating an event. Despite having to diversify their marketing efforts, giving out free sample of the sausages will still be essential as the customers need to know what the sausages tastes like in order for them to become possible consumers of the product. best event choiceAfter considering 3 event marketing options and analyzing each option, I believe that Pig Rock creating its own event would be the most suitable option because through having its own event, the company can reach out to different types of people and tailor the event’s attendees to people that could actually come to the even and become consumers of the company’s products. For instance, through Chef Art’s connections, he could invite other chefs and restaurant owners that he knowns. He can also invite celebrities to attend the event. Many of those people are usually really busy and important people, so having an event that is smaller than a huge public event or industry event would make it more likely for them to attend. Through the event, having members of the general public would also be possible and useful; however, being able to pick them is more useful as it would allow the company to exclude people that don’t eat pork or any animal meats. This is essential at this point since all of the company’s products use pork within its products. Currently, Pig Rock’s sausages are only sold in Lexington and Milton. Most of the company’s marketing efforts happens in those two cities, so the company must expand beyond those areas since they are very far for anyone living in other states. With more people from different cities knowing about the brand, they are more likely to purchase the product, especially through the online purchase option.I believe that in the company’s marketing plan, Boston should be the primary location for the event In my opinion, Boston is a great starting point because it is the capital of Massachusetts and it has the highest population as well. Many people that don’t live in Boston also tend to visit Boston a lot due to its popularity. Websites used: ?

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