Marketing Plan for Illy’s Expansion in the US: Targeting the Coffee Connoisseurs

You will develop a marketing plan for Illy’s expansion in the US.  Your plan will include the following components:
• Market Research:  you will need to identify the competitive landscape for coffee in the US market (considering regional players), and gain an understanding of the consumer preferences and demand for coffee in the US.
• SWOT Analysis:  Identifying the key competitors, you will perform a SWOT (strengths, weakness, opportunities, and threats) analysis to understand how Illy compares to competitors and the market opportunities that are best suited for them to pursue.  This should be considered for each of the three potential distributions channels.
• Segmentation:  Segment the coffee market in the US to identify distinct target markets and identifying the best market for Illy to pursue.  Target markets will consist of a group of similar buyers – these can be end consumers or they can be other organizations.
• Product:  Using the insights from your market research and SWOT analysis, identify the product that will be sold to your selected target market.
• Distribution:  Identify the methods you will use to distribute your product.
• Pricing:  Discuss the pricing strategies you will use to sell your product
• Promotion and Brand Awareness:  Discuss the various promotion activities you will use to develop target market awareness of your product and build your brand image.