Strategic Marketing Case Preparation
Cumberland Metal Industries
Description:
Cumberland Metal Industries has developed a new product to help contractors drive piles faster. They are trying to decide how to price it. Provides substantial information on the industry, competition, etc. Students must decide what factors are relevant in making an industrial pricing decision. Decisions must also be made about promotion and distribution channels.
Subjects Covered:
Competition, Distribution channels, Industrial goods, Industrial markets, Industry analysis, Market entry, New product marketing, Pricing strategy, Product management.
Setting:
United States; Construction industry; small; $18 million sales; 1980
Case: Cumberland Metal Industries
1. What¡¯s your price for the curled metal pads? Why?
2. How big is this market? What kind of opportunity is this for Cumberland Metals?
3. Does your price affect how much of the market you¡¯ll get? How big the market is?
4. How are you going to market these pads?
Case Analysis
Overview
Cumberland Metal Industries (CMI) is one of the largest metal manufacturers in the world. The company evolved from selling metal as a finished product to one that used it as a raw material, increasing sales from $250,000 in 1963 to over $18,500,000 in 1979. Currently, CMI relies heavily on SlipSeal, which is used as a high-temperature sealant in automobiles. Although CMI dominates the market for this product, corporate sales figures decreased over the last year. As a result, the management at CMI realized the importance of diversifying its product-line so that the company does not rely as heavily on SlipSeal or the automobile industry. With this in mind, CMI management was very interes ...