Marketing Plan

Introduction

The study from Karanja and Nyoro (unknown) showed that in the

recent past, several market niches where specifies in gourmet or specialty coffees, organic or other health and environmentally friendly coffees, and FT coffees have existed and continues to expand in Europe, USA and Canada. Exhibit 1 also shows that the rapidly growth in volume of fair trade certified products sold in Canada from 663,770 (in 2001) to 3,654,521 (in 2007), and the increase of 115 new Transfair licences issued in 2007 compared to year 2004. These could fairly critique that the FT market still in growing and JU could explore this opportunity, via launching a new product (ie non-coffee drinks) or increase its market share.

Given the coffee markets are move towards customers oriented nowadays. Due to the numbers of new coffee shops appear in Nova Scotia, they are lack of differentiation in coffee choices. This has created an intense competition between coffee markets, simultaneously, lead to the customers become more informed and more demanding than before. Good news is the customers today are more ethically conscious, they are willing to pay a premium on purchase for ethical product instead.

However, the lack of effective, efficiency and innovative marketing program in JU which only focus on printed media, local advertising and some public relationship events are hardly to reach the target customers and create awareness about the essence of “fair-trade”. The emergence of the social-media such as Facebook, Twitter, or Blogger, is a popular and effective marketing tool which is defined as easy, fast and free.