Dashboard and data management suggestions that could be used to assist in the implementation and management of this marketing plan

Launched in 2020, Infinite is an independent Australian label that produces sustainable men's active and lounge wear. An online business, Infinite drives sales through its website and its app that has been developed to engage customers while making purchasing as easy as possible. Infinite is a design driven business that operates to provide men with a suitable alternative to major brands while still incorporating high performance technologies, being sustainable and providing protection with it's antibacterial and antimicrobial technologies. External Analysis Infinite is a part of the fitness and athletic clothing industry. The fitness and athletic clothing industry is forecast to have a revenue of $2.8B in 2021 with $1.5B of that attributed to sports apparel. This is expected to increase 2.2% by 2026 (Ibisworld 2020). Competition in the industry is high and participants compete on price, product range, marketing and reputation (Ibisworld 2020). While price is crucial at the lower end of the market consumers are generally willing to pay more at the higher end of the market for higher quality products that include features such as breathability and moisture wicking (Ibisworld 2020). Some challenges that face the market on a macro level are proximity to key markets with larger populations, ability to control stock and having a clear and consistent identity that people affiliate with (Ibisworld 2020).

What the analysis showed us is that the products on offer for men are very limited in the sustainable activewear space. The main players in this space are targeting woman and their men's ranges are a far second. There are very limited images of men on their websites or social media. The men's ranges that do exist are very basic with far less design influence than anything on offer in the woman's market, with the men's market mainly featuring greys, blues and blacks. Boody has received several instances of poor feedback due to their clothing being manufactured in China which a lot of their customers don't feel as though this aligns with their brand. The products for both Boody and DK active retail for around $50 for a t-shirt, singlet or shorts whereas The Upside is placing itself at the more premium end of the market with pieces around $100.

Based on the external analysis there is a market for men who want to purchase fashionable, sustainable activewear. The opportunities lie in having a range that allows the consumer to have choice and being confident in your manufacturing chain, so you can use it to sell your brand rather than hiding it. Some of the challenges that present are on the macro scale include the level of discretionary income available in the short term due to the impacts of COVID - 19, the growth of the sustainable market and ensuring supply chains can fulfil orders. The trend of elastic pricing is one instrument that could be used to combat these external factors.

Strategic Analysis Infinite's target customer base is one that is socially conscious, has influence in their community and has medium to high discretionary income. Since the geographic spread of the sports apparel industry is strongly correlated to the population (Ibisworld 2020) it is anticipated that a large majority of the customer base would live in capital cities where there is also a higher average income (Ibisworld 2020). We know through profiling of different segments of the activewear market that different age groups purchase for different reasons so based on the fact our product is high quality, long lasting, fashionable and sustainable we would predict our customers would be males ranging from 25-50 as this is what they align with.

A key point of difference is the development of the Infinite phone app that allows users to easily purchase product. Despite the great functionality for the customer it also allows Infinite to push notifications through to customers who have been inactive, allows us to gather data on our customer markets and allows us to display progression through loyalty programs to the users which will drive urgency for purchasing. For this reason, it is important to expand the app usage and a strategic goal of Infinite is to; Have 30% of all purchases completed through the app for FY 2022 measured through sales records. Infinite wants to be the premier brand in men's sustainable activewear. Currently brand awareness is low due to the immaturity of the business therefor Infinites social media footprint needs to expand and as such another strategic goal is to; Increase our social media presence by 25% year on year over the next three years with males ages 25-34 as measured by Instagram analytics. It is recommended that Infinite engages with social media influencers to build brand awareness and confidence in the brand as this is a cost-effective way of building product recognition and a mode of marketing that resonates with the target market. As per our PESTEL, the gym and fitness centre industry have a strong alignment with the sports apparel industry. Group training gyms also target 25 - 40 year old's (Cutcliffe 2017) so partnering with these facilities that share our beliefs and align correctly with our brand is another proposed direction for building brand awareness. Our marketing strategy needs to portray the fact that we are an accessible premium brand that people aspire to be seen in with our key message being our sustainable product. Infinite can position themselves against their competitors by using the fact it is a male only brand to make men feel more comfortable to purchase from Infinite compared with DK Active, Boody or The Upside. Infinite should also leverage their highly ethical manufacturing supply chain and ensure it becomes common knowledge that some competitors are not following suit. The success or failure of this business will rely upon whether we can engage with our target markets in the right way. Infinite should be confident in the fact they have a product that fills a niche however needs to be priced suitably and the image of the business needs to be consistent from the outset. It is important that as a business there is accountability to the goals set, which includes intercepting their customers in as many places as possible through an increased presence on social media and the use of influencers. Infinite needs to ensure that customers are nurtured and engaged with to build a following and promote referrals leading to incremental sales and increased market share.