Internal Company Report.

Understanding the client before strategy. Your group works as an internal consulting team and explains who a company is, how it operates, and where it stands today, using evidence.

Why This Assignment Matters01

Strong marketing decisions come from clear understanding, not creativity alone. Before you propose any strategy you have to understand who a company is, how it operates, and where it stands today. Your group acts as an internal consulting team and analyses a real company using evidence. This work becomes the foundation for your final pitch and written proposal later in the term.

If You Remember One ThingIf the understanding here is weak, the strategy work that follows is weak. If it is clear and evidence based, everything after it gets easier.

What You Will Produce02

A professional internal report explaining the company's past performance and current situation. Do not include future recommendations at this stage. Use clear headings, short sections, and plain language. Cover, with real evidence:

Company background and key milestones
Business model, and how the company makes money
Brand identity and current digital presence
Company culture and internal structure
Innovation and technology practices where relevant
Customer and market research approaches
Key performance indicators
Market and competitive context
A situational analysis, including a SWOT, of where the company stands today

Then Present ItIn the following class your group delivers a ten minute focus group style presentation as a consulting team. Be ready to defend any section. Do not present future strategies yet.

Choosing Your Company03

If a company is already at the top there is little room for meaningful analysis. Pick a company an agency would actually be hired to help. If you are unsure whether your company fits, ask before proceeding.

AvoidGlobal mega brands, category leaders, and companies already known for best in class digital strategy.

ChooseSmaller, emerging, regional, or less visible brands that could realistically benefit from support.

Show It, Do Not Just Tell It04

This is not only a writing task. Show the company clearly with specific, labelled evidence: product examples (packaging, menus, SKUs, price points), website and app screens, past versus present comparisons of branding or messaging, competitor comparisons, and real performance indicators such as review volume, traffic estimates, or store counts.

The Standard For Every VisualLabel each one with what it is, the source, and the date, then write one line on what it proves. A visual with no analytical point does not belong in the report.

How To Approach It05

1Pick and clear the company. Confirm it fits the brief before you invest time.

2Split the work and open a shared source sheet. Assign the research areas across the team on day one.

3Gather evidence and visuals as you go. Log every link and date the moment you find it.

4Draft each section in plain language. Place each labelled visual beside the point it proves.

5Build the SWOT from the evidence. Let the situational analysis fall out of what you found, not opinion.

6Rehearse the focus group. Every member should be able to explain any section.

Where To Find Your Evidence06

Investor and about pages. Annual reports, milestones, official numbers.

Crunchbase and filings. Funding, growth, ownership.

Statista, Mintel, Euromonitor. Category size and trends.

Google Trends. Interest and seasonality over time.

Similarweb. Traffic estimates and channel mix.

App stores and review sites. Ratings, volume, complaints.

LinkedIn and Glassdoor. Structure, headcount, culture.

Trade press and credible news. Context and recent moves.

Track Sources From Day OneTreat evidence as a shared group asset. Cite every fact, number, and image with a working URL. AI tools may support your process, but AI generated summaries are not acceptable as core evidence.

Common Pitfalls07

Lose Marks HereChoosing a famous mega brand. Visuals dropped in with no analysis. Assumptions written as facts. Only the present, with no past versus present. A report that reads as one person's work rather than a team's.

Raise Your Grade08

From Complete To ExcellentPut one short so what line under every visual. Quantify each claim with a real number. Compare the company against two real competitors in a single table. Finish with a one page situational summary a manager could read in a minute. Strong reports persuade because every claim is traceable.

How You Will Be Graded09

Criterion	Points
Comprehensiveness of research. All required areas: history, business model, strategy, brand identity, vision, culture, innovation, research methods, KPIs, and marketing mix.	25
Quality of analysis of past and present. Clear, insightful analysis with a detailed and relevant SWOT.	25
Organisation and formatting. Well structured, logical, professional, with clearly labelled sections.	25
Use of visual aids. Key images and graphs that strengthen the analysis.	25
Total	100

Before You Submit10

Company fits the brief, not a mega brand or category leader.

All nine required areas covered with evidence; SWOT and situational analysis included.

Labelled visuals, each tied to an analytical point; past versus present and competitor comparisons.

Every claim cited with a working URL; shared source list complete.

No future recommendations yet; one file, PDF or Word; all members can defend any section.

Where This LeadsThis is the foundation of everything that follows. What you learn here about the company, how it works, where it stands, what it is up against, becomes the base for your personas, your journey maps, and ultimately your final proposal, campaign project, and pitch presentation. Get the company right and every later decision has real evidence behind it.

AI use: AI tools may support your process, research, drafting, and feedback, but AI generated text, images, or summaries are not acceptable as core submitted content. Verify and cite everything you use. · Submit: upload on the course LMS, learning.hanyang.ac.kr.

Multimedia Marketing and Content Design · Hanyang University · Early Assignment Series · Matthew Clement