Running head: WEEK 4 ASSIGNMENT PRODUCT ASSESSMENT

Week 4 Assignment Product Assessment

Marketing 100
July 30, 2013

Introduction
Many people enjoy listening to music nowadays for relaxation or to become more energetic. For whatever reasons a person enjoy music, it becomes an essential part of their lives. In a world where technology continues to grow the once popular music medium known as compact disc are now marked obsolete.
Current Target Market
In the last four years in a row, cd‘s sales have dropped nearly 20% mainly caused by digital downloads (Christman, 2013). The target markets for compact disc include all people –including different races and incomes. Teens, young adult and older people between the ages of 15-64 which makes up an estimated 61.3% of the population are the main factor for the target market (ACS Demographic and Housing Estimate, 2013). Only 15.9 percent of the U.S household population lives below the poverty level in 2010-2011 (Selected Population Profile in the United States, 2013). The demographic groups selected mean that half of the target market could afford to spend money on non-essential items.
Compact Disc Declining in Popularity
There are many factors that cause the lack of popularity of music compact disc like social, demographic, the ethnic market, economic, technology, and legal as well as the competitive market. Social factors are the product and the price a consumer will pay for a compact discs. Consumers are also influenced by the value of the product. As the compact discs loses value the sales and the consumer user appeal will goes down as well. The changes in a consumer lifestyle also influence the consumer buying habit, for example carrying many cds and a cd player is not convenient for them anymore. The consumer will purchase a new piece of technology digital media device like an mp3 player or an Apple IPod and download a large music collection.

One reason why demographic factors affect the popularity of compact disc is the different generation from old age to the new age. The older generations are not buying music compact disc anymore because they have already transferred their music collection from record or cassettes to compact disc (Segall, 2013). The teen’s generation makes up 25 million people in the U.S. population and they spend at least 72 hours a week on devices like T.V., cell phones, internet, iPod and mp3 player (Lamb, 2013)In addition to 82.3 percent of the U.S. teens spending their time online according to the Census report (Computer and Internet use in the United States, 2013). Teens spending that amount of time on the internet and other electronic devices ,Apple target the specific group by making the iPod a convenient and modern way to listen to music (Teens , 2013). Digital downloads are more appealing to them and easily access as well.as the price is cheaper to buy them.
The economic factors that caused music compact disc sales to decrease and compact disc to lose appeal is partly blamed on the recession status of the country. The average cd price is 13-25.00 dollars. The consumer with low income and with 15.9 percent of the population that lives below the poverty level is not likely to purchase music compact disc over their daily essential needs items. Consumer income is a key factor on consumer buying habits as well as the “willingness” and the ability to buy (Lamb H. M., 2013). Another economic factor that affected the consumers of appeal on compact disc was when the internet released the free P2P file sharing network like Naptser and LimeWire, it started an epic of free music downloads. Consumer`s mind were set why pay for them when you can get it free. Those sites created a legal factor in which consumers were violating copyright laws and were illegal downloading songs.
Right in the middle of a down economy a big digit technology shift happed, Mp3 players were created and compact discs started to lose appeal because it was the beginning of the digital download era. Apple introduced iPods and soon after releases the iTunes store song, were .99cent and more. Then cell phones came to market that had apps to download for paid songs.
Marketers of the product or service you selected could take to address the product’s declining appeal to consumers.
One possible recommendation for a marketer could take to address the decline in appeal consumers have on compact disc are to remarket it to a different generation since everything based on new technology. Targeting the preteen market would be possibly lower the price for consumer to purchase. Lower prices will also gain the interest to low income consumers which will influence the ability to purchase the compact discs. Another recommendation for a marketer to address the declining popularity is possibly developing an app that consumer could sync their already purchase favorite song and transfer them to a compact disc which then will be shipped to the consumer. Then consumer could play their new CDs in a car where the iPod or mp3 hook up may not accessible. In addition, another recommendation would a marketer could work with the CD player manufacture to develop a new CD player that would play both compact discs and downloadable music. Marketer could advertise it to the older generation with big music collection so the older generation would not have to transfer their collection again to digital music.
The best foreign country in which to market this product
The best country foreign country in which to market compact disc is The Republic of Austria (Germany). Austria, according to the International Monetary Fund is the 12th richest country in the world based on the GDP (gross domestic product) per capita (International Montery Fund, 2013). Austria has a good social market economy and high standard of living (World Factbook/Gini Index, 2013). The target market in Austria would be between the age of 15-54 which is 67.4 percent of the population (People & Society World Factbook, 2013) Austria’s compact disc sales in U.S. currency were 96 million, 65 percent of the sales are the physical record, according to the Record Industry Assoc. in Japan (Top 20 Market-Glodal Record Music Sales, 2013). The competitor to physical compact disc music is digital records that make up 21% percent of the sales.
Product segmentation and positioning ideas for this product in its debut in the new country.
The product segmentation of compact disc in the country of Austria, Based on the different type of music the consumer listen to, will be the target market. For example, if someone who likes the genres rap, the target market would be the younger generations where to classic rock would be mostly the target market of the baby boomer generation both male and female. The geographic location of the target market is really not in sense important as for music is listened to around the world. The psychographic segmentation with music compact disc is influenced by value for example; religious music is directed toward the Christian. Behavioral segmentation music is based on what a person enjoys listening too. I think if someone wants to buy a music compact disc, mostly likely the consumer will buy it.
Creating a marketing mix to satisfy the consumer, Based on the need and wants of the consumer with price and quality of the cd. Identifying the selected target market may not be a specific part of the market segmentation because it based on the marketing mix. The marketing mix is product, price, promotion and place. CDs are all the same, round plastics disc with different music stored on them. Compact disc prices are usually around the same price, with the lack of popularity of the CDs because of digital download. The cd manufactures and artist really no other option but to lower prices. The price will not affect the value of the product. Promotion artists may release limited collection pack, or a new single. Place would a cd store where consumer could make a purchase or even on a direct website.
Positioning is the consumers overall perception of the brand and product line. There really not product differentiations for positioning a compact disc, other than the digital download. Different types of music on the compact disc, also the country native languages, the country culture and value. The choice is of the consumer to what type he or she may like either rap or folk and other genres.
Conclusion
Overall, I think that compact disc are losing their popularity due to the new technology of digital downloads. As the generations continue to change more people are becoming tech savvy, which is reducing the supply and demand of the physical compact disc.

References
(2013). Teens . In H. Lamb, MKTG 6 (p. 49). Mason, Ohio: Cengage Learning.
(2013). Consumer Incomes . In H. M. Lamb, Mktg 6 (p. 53). Mason: Cengage Learning.
ACS Demographic and Housing Estimate. (2013, July 29). Retrieved from U.S. Census American FactFinder: http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_11_1YR_DP05&prodType=table
Christman, E. (2013, July). Retrieved from Billboard.com: http://www.billboard.com/biz/articles/news/retail/1179800/us-album-sales-dropped-128-last-year-digital-tracks-post-small-gain
Computer and Internet use in the United States. (2013, July 30). Retrieved from U.S. Census: http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/p20-569.pdf
International Montery Fund. (2013, July 29). Retrieved from http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2013/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?sy=2012&ey=2012&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=122&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC&grp=0&a=&pr.x=74&pr.y=5
People & Society World Factbook. (2013, July 29). Retrieved from World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/au.html
Selected Population Profile in the United States. (2013, July 29). Retrieved from U.S.Census: http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_11_1YR_S0201&prodType=table
Segall, L. (2013, July 29). Digital Music Sales Top Physical Sales. Retrieved from money.cnn.com: http://money.cnn.com/2012/01/05/technology/digital_music_sales/index.htm
Top 20 Market-Glodal Record Music Sales. (2013, July). Retrieved July 2013, from Record Industry Assoc. Japan: http://www.riaj.or.jp/e/issue/pdf/RIAJ2013E.pdf
World Factbook/Gini Index. (2013, July 29). Retrieved from World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2172.html