CQUniversity Unit Profile.

AI scale level
This assessment requires students to adhere to the guidelines on the use of artificial intelligence tools as specified in the Artificial Intelligence Assessment Scale (AIAS). Any misuse or lack of disclosure regarding the use of AI tools will be considered a breach of academic integrity. The designated AI scale level for this assessment is AI PLANNING. You may use AI for planning, idea development, and initial research, but your final submission must reflect your own analysis, judgement, and academic voice. You must disclose how AI was used in accordance with the assessment guidelines available on Moodle.

Overview

This is a Work-Integrated Learning unit. Throughout the term, you will develop a complete strategic marketing plan for a real Australian business or organisation. This will be accomplished in three stages: a project brief presentation (Assessment 1), a situation analysis report (Assessment 2), and a marketing plan (Assessment 3).

Before you begin, ensure that you understand the requirements for each assessment, as data gathered across all three will be integrated into your final marketing plan. Assessment 1 is the first of these three stages: a project brief pitch that establishes your chosen organisation and outlines your proposed plan.

Selecting a Suitable Business

Select an Australian-based small to medium enterprise (SME) or not-for-profit organisation with which you can regularly interact and access marketing information. The organisation must be primarily targeting the Australian domestic market and must have a physical presence. If the organisation has export ambitions, clearly state that the scope of your marketing plan is limited to the domestic market.

The following types of organisations are not suitable for this assessment:

·       Businesses that operate exclusively online, as the competitive environment would be global and therefore too broad to analyse meaningfully within the timeframe of this unit

·       Franchises or companies with an established marketing department, as these are generally too large and complex for a situation analysis to be completed within the scope of this unit

The organisation must have a minimum hypothetical marketing budget of $10,000 for the 12-month planning period (December 2026 to November 2027). You do not need access to the organisation's financial records, but you should be able to demonstrate its viability. For e.g., through its years of operation, asset base, or capacity to invest in marketing activity.

Examples of organisations students have used in the past include: honey producers and retailers, beauty therapy businesses, delicatessens, berry farms, stock agencies, cycle shops, real estate agencies, wine bars, micro-breweries, confectionery makers, chocolate factories, plumbers, garage repair shops, dental practices, physiotherapy clinics, butchers, tree nurseries, garden centres, and artisan cheese makers.

The following companies are excluded: Apple, Coca-Cola, McDonald's, Nike, PepsiCo, Samsung, Sony, and any other multinational company whose marketing plans are publicly available online or through published reports.

Alternatively, you may use an organisation in which you currently work, subject to the approval process described below.

Before You Approach Your Client

Before making contact with your chosen organisation, review Chapter 3 of Reed and Baird to familiarise yourself with the information you will need to gather, particularly for the Business Definition and Scope and Internal Capabilities sections of your situation analysis.

Important Note: Approval Required by the End of Week 2

You must obtain approval for your chosen organisation by the end of Week 2. Email your unit coordinator (or workshop leader) with a brief description of the organisation you intend to work with.

Your submission for this assessment is contingent on receipt of a signed authorisation letter on corporate letterhead from a senior manager of the selected organisation. A template will be provided on Moodle. The letter must confirm that management is aware of your involvement in obtaining information to develop a marketing plan, and that the work will not be used for any purpose other than fulfilling the learning requirements of this unit.

In special circumstances, the unit coordinator or workshop leader may accept a signed declaration from the student confirming that all information obtained will be used for academic purposes only and will not be disclosed to any third party without the consent of the owner or manager.

The unit coordinator or workshop leader reserves the right to contact your chosen organisation directly to confirm authorisation and that confidentiality requirements are understood.

Assessment Task 1 – Project Brief Presentation

Prepare and record a 5-minute audio-narrated PowerPoint presentation addressing the following seven criteria:

• Title slide: Project title, your name, organisation name, and logos where applicable.
• Introduction slide: A brief overview of the organisation, the aims of the presentation, and its structure.
• Company background: A brief history of the organisation, its mission statement, corporate objectives (where available), brand identity, and an overview of its products or services.
• The pitch: Outline the scope of your proposed marketing plan. Indicate whether you are developing a plan for the organisation as a whole (e.g., a marketing plan for the Rockhampton Zoo), for a specific product or service within it (e.g., a marketing plan for the coffee shop within the Rockhampton Zoo), or to address a specific business issue (e.g., a plan to launch a new exhibit at the Rockhampton Zoo to increase visitor numbers and rebuild its image following a natural disaster). Include an outline of the key sections of the marketing plan, focusing on the principal data-gathering requirements and the outcomes the client can expect.
• Conclusion slide: Three key benefits the organisation will gain from having a tailored marketing plan developed for it.
• Signed authorisation letter: Attached as the second-last slide.
• Reference list: A minimum of five references in APA 7th edition format, presented as the final slide. You do not need to read these aloud.

Instructions

• This is an individual assessment. Group submissions are not permitted.
• Prepare a single PowerPoint file in .pptx or .ppt format. Do not submit video files (MP4, MOV, AVI, or similar).
• Record an audio voiceover directly within PowerPoint, addressing all seven criteria above.
• The voiceover must not exceed 5 minutes in duration.
• A written script must be included in the notes section of each slide.
• Submit your file through the Assessment tile on the unit Moodle site.

• Title slide, introduction, and company background - 3 marks
• Pitch and conclusion slides - 3 marks
• Voiceover: clarity, fluency, and professionalism - 1.5 marks
• Evidence of research and referencing (min. 5 references, APA 7th) - 1.5 marks
• Signed authorisation letter included - 1 mark
  Total - 10 marks

AI scale level 

This assessment requires students to adhere to the guidelines on the use of artificial intelligence tools as specified in the Artificial Intelligence Assessment Scale (AIAS). Any misuse or lack of disclosure regarding the use of AI tools will be considered a breach of academic integrity. The designated AI scale level for this assessment is AI PLANNING. You may use AI for planning, idea development, and initial research, but your final submission must reflect your own analysis, judgement, and academic voice. You must disclose how AI was used in accordance with the assessment guidelines available on Moodle.

Overview

Building on your approved project brief (Assessment 1), your task is to conduct and write up a comprehensive situation analysis for your chosen organisation. This report forms the analytical foundation for your final marketing plan (Assessment 3). The purpose of a situation analysis is not simply to describe the organisation, rather, it is to identify the strategic implications of what you find: the problems, opportunities, and conditions that will inform your marketing objectives and strategies.

Think carefully about how you present your information. Tables, matrices, and visual summaries are often more effective than extended prose. Be selective and analytical, not exhaustive.

Task Description

Undertaking a situation analysis requires the gathering of pertinent information from a wide range of sources and demands time, diligence, and selective judgement. The purpose of a situation analysis is to enable you to identify problems and opportunities, formulate sound objectives, and select appropriate strategies. Use the Reed & Baird Strategic Marketing Plan template (available on Moodle) as your structural guide throughout.

This assessment assumes you have already selected an organisation and a specific product or service for which you intend to develop a marketing plan. If you have not yet done so, contact your unit coordinator immediately.

Your report must address the following sections:

1. Structural components: Title page, table of contents, table of figures and tables, reference list (APA 7th ed.), and appendices where appropriate.
2. Introduction: State the purpose of the report, provide a brief background of the organisation and the strategic planning unit, and describe the environmental context in which the analysis was conducted (refer to Chapter 3 of Reed & Baird for guidance).
3. Business definition and scope (refer to the template): Mission statement, market definition, product definition, competitors, and strategic scope and timeframe.
4. External environment – remote (refer to the template): For each of the five environmental forces below, provide a scenario description and identify rated opportunities and threats using the double-digit, 5-point rating scale provided in the template (significance × probability of occurrence):
   1. Economic forces
   2. Sociocultural forces
   3. Political-legal forces
   4. Technological forces
   5. Natural environment forces
5. Near environment analysis (refer to the template): Provide a scenario description and rated opportunities and threats for the following two sub-sections:
   1. Competitive review: identify direct and indirect competitors, estimate relative market share, and identify the basis of competition.
   2. End-user customers: profile the organisation's target customers, including demographics, psychographics, buying behaviour, basis of transactions, and any trends with strategic implications.
6. Determination of Critical Success Factors (CSFs)/Key Success Factors (KSFs): Skills and resources that do the most to either lower costs or create superior customer value.
7. Internal capabilities (refer to the template): for each of the two capability areas below, provide a review and identify rated strengths and weaknesses using the single-digit, 5-point rating scale provided in the template:
   1. Organisation-wide capabilities: Financial position, organisational effectiveness, structure, strategy, systems, style, staff, skills, and shared values.
   2. Marketing capabilities: Marketing management, market intelligence, planning, control processes, strategies, and performance.
8. Summary of opportunities and threats: Consolidate the findings from Sections 5 and 6 into the opportunity and threat summary matrices, plotting each item by significance (high/low) and probability of occurrence (high/low), as per the template.
9. Conclusion: Summarise the main strategic findings and their implications for the organisation. Introduce no new content.
10. Reference list: A minimum of 10 references, cited and listed in APA 7th edition format.

Instructions

• This is an individual assessment. Group submissions will not be permitted.
• Submit as a single Microsoft Word document (.docx). PDF submissions will not be accepted.
• Use Times New Roman, 12pt font, double-line spacing.
• Word limit: Maximum 2000 words excluding the title page, table of contents, tables, figures, and reference list. Note that content presented in tables, rated matrices, and scenario grids does not count toward the word limit.
• Referencing style: APA 7th edition.
• Late submission penalty: 5% mark deduction per day unless an approved extension has been granted.
• Word limit penalty: 1% mark deduction for every 100 words exceeding 2,000 words.

• Introduction, business definition and scope (mission, market/product definition, scope etc.) – 6 marks
• External remote environment – 10 marks
• Near environment analysis (competitive review, end-user customer etc.) – 7 marks
• Critical Success Factors and Internal capabilities (organisation wide and marketing) – 7 marks
• Summary of opportunities and threats – 5 marks
• Report structure and referencing (professional report layout, title page, table of contents, appropriate headings and subheadings etc.) – 5 marks

Total - 40 marks

AI scale level 

This assessment requires students to adhere to the guidelines on the use of artificial intelligence tools as specified in the Artificial Intelligence Assessment Scale (AIAS). Any misuse or lack of disclosure regarding the use of AI tools will be considered a breach of academic integrity. The designated AI scale level for this assessment is AI PLANNING. You may use AI for planning, idea development, and initial research, but your final submission must reflect your own analysis, judgement, and academic voice. You must disclose how AI was used in accordance with the assessment guidelines available on Moodle.

Overview

This is the capstone deliverable of the unit. Building on your situation analysis (Assessment 2), you will produce a complete, actionable strategic marketing plan for your chosen organisation. The plan should be written as a formal business document addressed to a senior decision-maker such as a general manager, owner, or board member who will decide whether to provide the financial support needed to implement your proposed strategies.

Write with that reader in mind. Your plan must be rigorous and analytical, but also practical and persuasive. You may revise and improve your situation analysis based on feedback received on Assessment 2 before incorporating it into this final document. The final plan should read as one complete, coherent document.

Use the Reed & Baird Strategic Marketing Plan template (available on Moodle) as your structural guide throughout. Your marketing plan should be 4,000-4,500 words. Note that your revised situation analysis will form the first half of the completed plan and should be no more than 2,000 words, leaving 2,000-2,500 words for the strategic recommendations sections.

Task Description

Your report must address the following sections in order:

1. Structural components: Title page (including company logo), table of contents, table of figures and tables, reference list (APA 7th ed.), and appendices where appropriate.
2. Executive summary: Write this after you have completed all other sections. Highlight the most significant findings from the strategic analysis, the key strategic challenges facing the organisation and its capabilities to meet them, the main strategic recommendations, and a brief outline of implementation and evaluation. (Refer to the template guidance.)
3. Introduction: State the purpose of the report, provide a brief background of the organisation and the strategic planning unit, and describe the environmental context in which the analysis was conducted. Include a statement of the organisation's strategic style (refer to Chapter 3 of Reed & Baird for guidance).
4. Revised situation analysis: An improved and corrected version of your Assessment 2 report, incorporating feedback received. This section must follow the same structure as Assessment 2: business definition and scope, external remote environment (PESTN), external near environment (competitive review and end-user customers), critical success factors, internal capabilities, and summary of opportunities and threats. It forms the analytical foundation of the complete marketing plan and should not exceed 2,000 words.
5. Problems and opportunities statement (refer to the template and Chapter 3 of Reed & Baird): Address all of the following components: a. The organisation's capabilities in relation to critical success factors (use the template table). b. Opportunities the organisation can exploit with its existing capabilities. c. Opportunities the organisation can exploit with improved capabilities. d. Threats that must be addressed. e. Strategic implications — what do the above findings mean for the strategic direction of the marketing plan?
6. Marketing objectives (refer to the template, Worksheet 1, and Chapter 4 of Reed & Baird): State three marketing objectives for the organisation. For each objective, provide a clear rationale explaining how it was derived from your situational analysis and problems and opportunities statement.
7. Segmentation, targeting and positioning strategies (refer to Chapter 5 of Reed & Baird): Address the following: a) How is the market the organisation competes in segmented? b) What segments are currently targeted? c) What new market segments could be targeted? d) What are the organisation's current brand positioning strategies? e) Do you recommend a shift in positioning strategy? Justify your answer.
8. Customer value creation mix (refer to Chapter 6 of Reed & Baird): Develop strategies to create, communicate, and deliver customer value. Each strategy should identify a target market segment and a customised marketing mix for that segment. Address the following: a) What is the organisation's current value creation mix? b) What changes do you recommend, and why? c) What specific strategies do you recommend to create, communicate, and deliver customer value? Digital and platform strategy considerations must be incorporated where relevant.
9. Framework of marketing metrics: For each of your recommended strategies, identify how success will be measured and how outcomes will be controlled to ensure your objectives are achieved.
10. Conclusion: A concise summary of the main findings and strategic recommendations, linked back to the introduction. No new content should be introduced here.
11. Reference list: A minimum of 10 references, cited and listed in APA 7th edition format.
12. Include (attach) the signed (original) authorisation letter from senior management or signed declaration as required.
13. Appendices (if required)

Instructions

• This is an individual assessment. Group submissions are not permitted.
• Submit as a single Microsoft Word document (.docx). PDF submissions will not be accepted.
• Use Times New Roman, 12pt font size, double-line spacing
• Word limit: 4,000-4,500 words, excluding the title page, table of contents, tables, figures, and reference list. The revised situation analysis (Section 4) should not exceed 2,000 words of this total.
• Referencing style: APA 7th edition.
• Late submission penalty: 5% mark deduction per day unless an approved extension has been granted.
• Word limit penalty: 1% mark deduction for every 100 words exceeding 4,500 words.

• Executive summary and introduction – 5 marks
• Revised and improved situation analysis – 2.5 marks
• Problems and opportunities statement – 7.5 marks
• Marketing objectives, segmentation, targeting, and positioning – 12.5 marks
• Customer value creation mix and marketing metrics – 12.5 marks
• Conclusion – 5 marks
• Report structure and referencing (professional report layout, title page, table of contents, appropriate headings and subheadings etc.) – 5 marks

Total - 50 marks