SITUATION ANALYSIS CHECK LIST

SITUATION ANALYSIS CHECK LIST To help you ensure your situation analysis is complete, here is a list of items the grader will look for when grading your papers. I highly recommend that you use this as a check list. Please note however, the mere presence of the topic in your paper is not enough to warrant a good grade. It is the quality of the coverage and the clarity of your work that matters. All the items shown on this checklist will be graded. COMPANY Maximum 2 pages; add charts & graphs to the appendixes Company description Mission and Goals SWOT Maximum 3 pages;add charts & graphs to the appendixes (SWOT table in body of the paper) SWOT Table (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) -Text in the tables could be single spaced SWOT Description COMPETITOR ANALYSIS Maximum 3 pages; add charts & graphs to the appendixes SWOT Table for at least 2 competitors -Text in the tables could be single spaced State your “educated” opinion regarding “gaps” in the market and trends at industry level CUSTOMER ANALYSIS Maximum 3 pages; add charts & graphs to the appendixes Define the segment(s) (be specific with your segmentation variables) Identify the Needs and Wants for the segment(s) MARKETING & PRODUCT OBJECTIVES Maximum 3 pages; add charts & graphs to the appendixes Current market and Target Markets (Be specific) New product/Service (Present your new/revised product(s)/Service(s) here) Positioning (Perceptual map required) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY (Write ES only after you have completed all sections of the paper) Maximum 2 pages Two-page, double space, executive summary is given at beginning Summarizes the whole document CLEARLY AND CONCISELY MKT304 – Prof. Sean Keyani Last Revised: 2/13/16 SA Checklist: Page 1 of 3 SITUATION ANALYSIS CHECK LIST Notes: Be consistent with your references. You may use any professionally accepted format (this is noted on your contract) as long as you use it consistently throughout the paper. I would highly recommend using the automatic “References\Citations and Bibliography – \Table of Contents” in MS Word (“Reference tools” for Macintosh computers). For web reference guidance for both MLA or APA format, you may look to: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/ For library resources; please use the following links: http://library.calstate.edu/northridge/databases/subject/business-economics http://library.csun.edu/ResearchAssistance/AskUs When using web sources, remember to reference the actual source of your data or information, not the search engine you used to get to the source. GOOGLE, for instance, is NOT a source, nor is library.csun.edu. They are the vehicles you used to find your source. Any web citations should include the full URL address as well as the date you received information from that URL address. Sources should also be CREDIBLE. For instance, Wikipedia should not be used as a source in your paper – it is not a credible source for information (this doesn’t mean that you can’t use it, you just need to go to the direct source to find the credible information). FORMAT OF THE PAPER Does not exceed the page limits (Max 16 pages excluding cover page, table of contents, executive summary, references page and appendixes) Pages have numbers (Page X of Y format) Appropriate 12 point font size, double-spaced, one-inch margins MUST CITE ALL INFORMATION (otherwise = plagiarism = F) Provide a reference section at the end of the paper in correct style/format Edit/proofread and use correct Spelling and Grammar Use tables/charts/graphs effectively to present information Use an appropriate tone and write clearly MKT304 – Prof. Sean Keyani Last Revised: 2/13/16 SA Checklist: Page 2 of 3 SITUATION ANALYSIS CHECK LIST Important Reminders: • Be sure to cover all the items on the SA checklist. You may want to use items of the checklist as a headings/sub-headings in your paper. • Refrain from adding definitions from your textbook to “fill” the paper. • Your feelings, perceptions and experiences as a consumer are not necessarily facts. This is a research-based paper so, it cannot be based on what you feel or assume is true. It MUST be based on research and facts. In other words, DO NOT ASSUME because you and/or your team have a certain perception about a product, market, company, etc. all consumers will have the same perceptions as you do. • Your paper MUST have in-text citations throughout the paper and a reference page at the end of the paper. • Be sure to follow the formatting guidelines listed on page 2 of the SA checklist. • Be sure NOT to copy and paste material from internet or other teams' work(s) into your paper. Please note that you will submit this paper on Turnitin too and note that “plagiarism=F" • Your paper does not have to be 16 pages, 16 is the maximum number of pages allowed for this paper. • If you have problems within your team, I expect you to be able to resolve any conflict as adults. It is important that you focus on the goal, work together and complete the paper in time. All students in this class will have a chance to review their teammates and provide a peer evaluation to me at the end of the semester. I take peer evaluations very seriously. • Tone of the paper: if you're not sure, you can assume that you are a consulting firm creating this SA for the company you're working on. • Please refer to syllabus for important information regarding late submissions. • Each team needs to submit ONE copy of the SA paper on Turnitin and ONE copy of the paper for grading. There are two separate links for these two on moodle and their deadlines are different. Only ONE person per team will upload the two copies of the paper into moodle. • Files MUST be in .doc or .docx format. • First upload, into Turnitin, must to be done by 11:00 p.m. the day before due date. • Second upload, for grading, must be done by on the due date (Please refer to syllabus for due dates) MKT304 – Prof. Sean Keyani Last Revised: 2/13/16 SA Checklist: Page 3 of 3