Canadian Business
Assignment No. 3
Due: Monday October 13th, 2014 at 6:00 PM

Simone Turner-Cummer
0218603

1. The product I have chosen is Acuvue contacts; the product of Acuvue contacts I wear is Acuvue Oasys contacts for dry eyes, which is a consumer product: products intended for household or family use. Contacts are considered a shopping product that is purchased after the consumer has compared competitive products and “shopped around.” Acuvue contacts are a brand of contacts that offer the sensation of having contacts. They are often purchased after the consumer has compared prices between different brands of contacts. Acuvue contacts are often purchased because they are sold at affordable prices for the consumer. Acuvue Oasys contacts are however a specialty product that generally require a bit of research and shopping effort by the consumer to decide if the contacts are suitable for them at an affordable price. I would classify Acuvue Oasys contacts as a specialty product because these contacts are intended for a specific target market. They are intended for consumers with dry eyes and lack the ability to maintain moisture within the eye for a comfortable lens fit.

2. The three-month Acuvue Oasys six-pack of contacts that I have always purchased in the past, has reached the decline stage in the product life cycle. As a result, there has been a dramatic decrease in sales of the six-pack Acuvue Oasys contacts. As a result, they are no longer being offered to consumers once supplies run out. Instead the product is being replaced with a six-month supply pack to hopefully increase sales, and ultimately profit. This is due to a study that was done that determined patients with larger pack sizes of contacts are more often to be compliant in replacing their lenses bi-weekly as recommended by their doctors.

3. A market is a group of people who have a need, purchasing power, and the desire and authority to spend money on goods, services, and ideas. The market strategy for Acuvue contacts would be a multisegment approach: a market segmentation approach whereby the marketer aims its efforts at two or more segments, developing a marketing strategy for each. I feel Acuvue contacts as a whole demonstrates this type of marketing strategy because the contacts are designed for multiple different segment groups, as for example, Acuvue Oasys contacts for dry eyes. The Acuvue Oasys contacts alone would demonstrate a concentration approach: a market segmentation approach whereby a company develops one marketing strategy for a single market segment. They would be considered this because they are targeted for consumers that have dry eyes and would like to benefit from the use of contacts.

4. A target market is a more specific group of consumers on whose needs and wants a company focuses its marketing efforts. The target market for Acuvue contacts would be anyone who is in need of corrective lenses, and would like to wear contact lenses instead of glasses. Acuvue Oasys contacts would be more specifically for those with dry eyes. Acuvue contacts are targeted toward both male and females of all races and ethnicity, primarily any age in which the contact lens wearer is comfortable touching their eyes to both put on and take off the lenses. Acuvue contacts try to reach out to average income families by offering frequent sales and promotions on the contacts. A big target market for Acuvue would be a consumer who participates in an active lifestyle, for example like sports. Contacts, whether for the avid wearer or for a dry eye wearer, are often more beneficial for sports than glasses, thus increasing the demand for contacts by athletes. Many people do not like wearing glasses either, which brings forth the motive to purchase contact lenses. Others simply purchase contacts because they are interested in trying them.

5. A marketing channel, or channel of distribution, is a group of organizations that moves