ting mix need improvement should outweigh the costs of distributing and analyzing the data. These surveys should include the customer’s demographic information, i.e. age, race, gender, family income, etc. The surveys must also try to assimilate what attributes are valued in the industry. These attributes should include but not be limited to: variety of merchandise selection, quality of merchandise, level of customer service, timeliness of delivery, price, company reputation, etc. Then they should rate each of these attributes on a scale of 1 to 10 in increasing level of utility, weight, or importance. Surveys and focus groups will also be used to determine which products will be offered.2. Personnel A marketing manager position will be implemented to oversee all facets of marketing. He will assume supervision over the following areas, catalog production and distribution, merchandising, customer service, as well as research and development. This will lead to a new organizational hierarchy (See Exhibit 3). Also, more permanent telephone operators will be hired to account for increased sales.3. Financing In order to support expansion in our mail order division, we will have to find additional capital. And, although Faith Mountain did make a profit in 1991, the company seems to be a risky investment for a bank. Therefore, we suggest financing from the Small Business Association again, which would be more likely to assist Faith Mountain again after the company has already shown its ability to grow. However, a contingency plan would be to obtain financing from issuing more shares of common stock.IV. ConclusionsThe Faith Mountain Company has a definite competitive advantage in the mail order industry. This is achieved by offering high quality merchandise and providing superior customer service. By expanding their customer reach and focusing on marketing strategy implementation, the Faith Mountai...
