Introduction
Implementing a marketing plan is essential for a company striving to maximize its market presence and competitive advantage. Chester Zoo performs in the challenging sector of the recreational economy, where multiple factors predetermine its marketing opportunities. When developing a marketing plan, Chester Zoo should consider risks associated with the economic crisis, competition in the sector, improper social responsibility, insufficiency of resources to implement the marketing strategy, and consumer behavior.
Risks to the Marketing Plan Faced by the Marketing Team
The recognition of the main risks allows the team to solidify its strengths and opportunities to overcome threats. The first of the risks that the Chester Zoo marketing team might encounter is a decline in sales potential due to the economic crisis (Dibb et al., 2019a). Second, since there are other large zoos in the area, as evidenced by the case study material, the high level of competition might impose significant losses for the company (Morgan et al., 2019). Third, social responsibility within the context of nature-related businesses like Chester Zoo should be properly aligned with environmental law (Dibb et al., 2019b). Therefore, the disruption in social responsibility strategies might impose additional costs and market presence losses for the zoo.
Fourth, the lack of means to implement the strategy imposes a risk of a poor marketing plan and financial losses in the long run. Indeed, according to Kelly and Skibins (2020), some technology-based attractions expected by contemporary customers of recreational services are costly. Finally, the fluidity of consumer behavior might be a significant risk for Chester Zoo’s marketing plan due to the inconsistency between supply and demand. Abbas et al. (2021) claim that attendance at leisure sites has dropped under the influence of the pandemic. Among the presented risks, economic crisis, scarcity of resources, and consumer behavior are considered the most pressing and harmful. They might threaten the implementation of the marketing plan and lead to increased financial losses and a decline in the zoo’s market share.
Conclusion
In summation, the case study analysis revealed an array of risks that the marketing team at Chester Zoo might face. They are related to economic processes, customer purchasing behavior, resource scarcity, social responsibility demands, and competition. Overall, the team should address the issues with the economic situation, resource scarcity, and zoo attendance immediately to make sure that the organization implements its marketing strategy to its fullest advantage.
References
Abbas, J. et al. (2021) ‘Exploring the impact of COVID-19 on tourism: transformational potential and implications for a sustainable recovery of the travel and leisure industry’, Current Research in Behavioral Sciences, 2, pp. 1-11.
Dibb, S. et al. (2019a) ‘Marketing planning and forecasting sales potential’, in Marketing concepts and strategies. 8th edn. Andover: Cengage Learning, pp. 657-724.
Dibb, S. et al. (2019b) ‘Responsible marketing’, in Marketing concepts and strategies. 8th edn. Andover: Cengage Learning, pp. 724-755.
Kelly, A. and Skibins, J.C. (2020) ‘Inspiring wildlife conservation behaviors through innovations in zoo exhibit design’, Visitor Studies, 24(1), pp. 79-99.
Morgan, N.A. et al. (2019) ‘Research in marketing strategy, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 47(1), pp. 4-29.