Strategic Marketing In a Company

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Assignment 1

Question : Review of Current Strategic Marketing Practice Within Marks & Spencer And Analysis of The Same in Order to Establish Potential Gaps in The Effectiveness of its Strategic Marketing

Being a multinational brand, Marks & Spencer needs to enhance its strategic marketing practices in order to obtain desired results in the market (Sahaf, 2019). Through this, the company will be able to achieve its broad marketing strategy and also stand out in the market. The analysis of 7 elements of the marketing mix of Marks & Spencer is done below -

• Product

Marks and Spencer is known for selling its products under 5 categories that serve as individual product lines. And all of these products are sold under the brand name of the company. The products of the company are available in a large variety which gives the customers a lot of products to choose from that satisfy their needs (Reynolds, 2019). The products are also highly differentiated with a wide range of features that are not offered by the competitors of the company. Thus, the products are considered to be innovative as well as unique. Besides being more than a hundred years old, the company has been able to maintain the standard high quality of its products and thus targets customers who belong to high class and are willing to pay premium for the products (Paley, 2017). This has served to be as a positive thing for the company. The company's products are famous for their traditional design and fine quality that are practical for the customers. Marks and Spencer offers products for women, men and kids in various sub categories like apparels, accessories, footwear, etc. The company has also faced negative impacts of being identified as an old brand by the customers. Also, the company has a lot of outlets that are not maintained in a proper manner, some stores are very small and others are so large that the customers find it difficult to locate various products in the store. The product portfolio of the company is very basic and does not have a lot of variety for the customers to choose from (Moutinho, and Vargas-Sanchez, eds., 2018). There have been cases where the organisation could not understand the expectations of its customers and thus not able to manufacture such products.

• Price

Marks and Spencer currently follows a competitive marketing strategy as the data regarding its various competitors are available as a lot of them are present in the market. The company also takes into account the costs while setting the price of its products. It also uses bundle pricing as well where various products are bundled together and then sold to the customers in the market at lower prices. Selling its products at a higher price has acted as an advantage for the organisation as the customers think that companies that sell their products at higher prices offer high quality products (Moutinho,and Vargas-Sanchez, eds., 2018). The company also charges a higher price for its products online on its website as well as other retail websites. But since the company does not make any changes in the prices of its products, channel members, wholesalers and retailers are forced to buy the products at lower prices and thus earn through lower margins. Marks and Spencer in some regions offers bundle pricing which has helped the company in building a brand image of selling good quality products at low and affordable prices. Although the brand uses bundle pricing in some regions of the world, it is still regarded as an expensive brand that sells top class products.

• Place

Marks and Spencer sells its products majorly through two marketing channels which include directly selling the products to the customers through its own website and selling products through wholesalers who further sell the products to various retailers across the region who then ultimately sell the products to the customers (Minchin, and Alpert, 2017). Marks and Spencer is a brand that has its products available worldwide to the customers and follows an intensive marketing strategy to include as many retailers on its list as possible to sell its products to the customers. This ensures that the products of the company are available to customers in various parts of the world. Partnering up with a number of delivery service providers has impacted positively on the overall functioning of the company as it is able to deliver products to its customers on time. Also, the company has an omni-channel system of distribution wherein the company has combined both its offline as well as online stores to provide an easy access of its products to the customers. Thus, the customers are able easily locate products that they need and purchase them accordingly. The company does not share a very sound relation with its suppliers due to which it lacks behind in introducing innovation and new attractive features to its products from time to time.

• Promotion

Marks and Spencer uses a number of media channels in order to promote its products in the market. The company uses traditional media channels like advertising through television and radio which have proved to be beneficial because of their wide reach and the ability to reach a wide base of customers across the world. The company also uses social media as a channel to advertise its products in the market and through this the company has been able to costs on advertising through billboards etc. as this is cheaper and beneficial due to the constant increase in the usage of internet globally. Various social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc. are effectively used by the company to promote its in the market. But, there are some regions that don't have a good network connectivity. Thus, the company cannot reach to these segments of customers and understand their needs as well as expectations. There are a large number of people who follow the brand on various social media platform, and due to frequent uploading of content by the brand, they may lose interest and thus stop following the brand which will lead to a decline in the overall customer base for the company. The company also has a large number of sales workforce that helps the customers in choosing the products and also assist them with any other concern. The staff is trained properly and this is one of the reasons why customers prefer visiting the company's offline outlets as compared to shopping online. Opting for various channels for promotion of its products, the company has been able to increase its overall reach to the customers and understanding their needs and matching their expectations.

• People

Marks and Spencer has a lot of people working as a part of various teams like sales, customer service, finance, marketing, research and development etc. who play an essential role in delivering a maximized output. The people or employees of the company are trained to provide high quality services to the customers and show respect to them by taking their preferences and choices as primary considerations. Having a lot of employees has both positive as well as negative effects as on one side the company has been able build a strong network among its employees in order to address any feedbacks or complaints by the employees, but on the other side, it has to invest a lot of money to train and develop these employees. Thus, ther5e is a lot of cost as well as time involved in training them to generate the desired output. Although, the employees of the company have also positively impacted the working of the company in making all the business operations work in a smooth manner because there are different people who work in different departments like with the suppliers, in assisting customers etc. For example- the company has people working with suppliers to obtain raw materials, people working at the retail store who have to assist customers during shopping by helping them in deciding what they want to purchase. There have been cases where the customers were not able to understand the layout of the website and navigate through the same which resulted in a decline in the number of people shopping online from the company's website.

• Process

Marks and Spencer always makes sure that its products and services are available to the customers in the retail stores. The company also has various systems installed in the retail stores through which the retailers can notify when the inventory levels of the products are low. Thus, through this, the company is able to deliver the required amount of products to the stores which ensures that products are always readily available to the customers. The respective company also has a system of delivering its products online wherein the orders that are placed by the customers are received by a computer system and based on this the appropriate product is shipped to the customers from the inventory. The company also actively conducts market research activities in order to identify various opportunities that are available in the market which in turn acts as an advantage for the company as it is then able to understand the needs as well as expectations of its customers. This is done through analysing the customer feedbacks, addressing their complains and considering their suggestions though comments on their various social media platforms or otherwise. Besides having a lot of positive points, the company lacks the system of fast delivery. The customers have to wait for long time to receive their orders. Thus, due to this, the customers shift to buying products from other online brands and lose their loyalty towards Marks and Spencer and this can lead to a decline in the customer base of the company.

• Physical Evidence

The respective company is known for selling its products in a different colour packaging that can be easily identified by the customers while shopping (McDONALD, 2016). The products are placed on special kinds of shelves that are placed in the stores and are provided by the brand itself and have a unique design as well as colour. This makes it easier for the customers to locate the shelves in busy retail stores. The company also has an online website that has all its products listed and are also available for purchase by the customers. Though, the respective company has its own website, the were a few times when the customers had complaints that they were not able to understand the layout of the website and browse through the same. Also, pictures of some products were blur and thus were not clear to understand. Therefore, such things can lead to a decline in the interest of customers to buy the company's products and not purchase them online. But on the other hand, the Marks and Spencer has retail stores that are put together very well and thus attract attract customers to visit them and purchase products (Liebl, 2018). The company also has a large number of offline retail outlets due to which customers can visit their nearby stores and shop for the products. The customers receive a positive and friendly environment as the staff is highly courteous and trained as to how to treat the customers in an effective and polite manner. This is among one of the reasons why customers like visiting the retail stores of the company. Big brands like Marks and Spencer can afford to spent time and effort on working on a marketing campaign that fails. There are opportunities with these companies to regroup the resources. The return on investment for marketing campaign is high within M&S and thus they can work effectively for attaining the organisational goals. This company focuses a lot in developing marketing campaigns as this helps in managing the work in effective manner. The strategic management is helpful for increasing the sales and profits earned by the company.

Potential Gaps of Marks and Spencer

• Product 

The company should offer additional benefits to its customers as its various competitors like Zara offer discounts, warranties, after-sales service, 24x7 customer service etc. in order to increase its customer base and fulfil the needs and expectations of its existing customers. Also, the company should manufacture products that are in line with the latest trends of the market and also identify various opportunities that are available in the market and introduce products (Kumar, Sharma, and Gupta, 2017 ). The company should also opt for widening its product portfolio which will not only help it in attracting more customers but cater to fulfilling their needs as well. Being a retail giant, the company must test all of its new products before launching them into the market and making them available to the customers. Brands like Aldi, Tesco, Waitrose are known for reviving their product packaging at regular time periods, thus Marks and Spencer should also concentrate on improving the packaging of its products and making it more attractive and unique.

• Price 

It is very essential for an organisation to set price of products and services after examining the requirements, needs, income level and lifestyle of individuals living within the country. It is considered as one of the most effective are where managers of an organisation need to be play very carefully so that they can target more and more customers towards their organisation who are willing to pay the money in order to buy the product. In the present context of Marks & Spencer, it has been said that the products and services offered by the company is high in quality which requires premium pricing strategy as it will assist them in order to generate more and more profits at the competitive marketplace (Kreutzer, 2019). It has also been said that for retaining their loyal customers for a longer period of time it is required by the management team of the company to provide them discount, offers, vouchers and many more. It is very important for the management team of the company to provide seasonal and occasional discounts to their regular customers so that they can remain loyal towards the company. It has also been said that Marks & Spencer adopts dynamic pricing strategy and at the time of off seasons & festival time company offer different incentives & discounts to the customers so that they can stay with the organisation for a longer duration of time. It has also been identified that with the help of this, two way benefits is generated where both company and individual get favourable results. Furthermore, in some case it has also been examined that prices of products and services are convenient but still customers do not buy them as they introduce or launch quite late as compared to other companies. Wal-mart, Carrefour, Indeed are the companies or organisation which offer similar kind of products at the marketplace before Marks & Spencer which affect the overall profitability of the company in a negative manner. Therefore, it is essential for them to produce innovative goods and services quite early as compare to the rival companies so that they will be able to enhance their revenue at the competitive marketplace (Kirova, 2017). With the help of effective place for doing business functions, company will be able to grow at the competitive marketplace in a positive manner.

• Place 

It has been said that when entering into a new and competitive marketplace, one of the most crucial decision which has to be taken by the management team of the company is to choose the right location. This is the factor which highly influence the success of the company in both positive as well as negative manner (Josephson, Johnson, and Mariadoss, 2016). Marks & Spencer is an international brand which have more than 1000 stores performing there business functions in around 50 countries. There are various countries where M&S operates there business functions which includes Spain, Turkey, Ireland, France, Finland, Hungary and many more. It has also been said that company offer its products and services to the customers through physical outlets which help in enhancing the brand image of the company at the competitive marketplace in an effective manner. Along with the physical stores, company also perform their business functions through online shopping which attract large number of customers towards the business organisation across the whole wide world. It has also been said that before establishing the business, it is required by the management team to identify the needs and wants of customers living within the location (Hunt, 2017). If there needs does not match with the products offered by company then they have to face failure within some time period. Therefore, it is very essential for the managers to conduct a market analysis so that they can effectively identify the needs and wants of customers and then take decisions whether they have to establish there outlet in the market or not.

• Promotion

It is very important for every organisation to promote their products and services at the competitive marketplace in an effective manner so that they can attract large number of customers towards their organisation. By using effective promoting strategies, company will be able to enhance there brand image and profitability of the company at the marketplace. In the present context of Marks & Spencer, company use print media, social media campaign, mobile advertisement, Television promotion and many more. With the help of these methods of promoting goods and services at the marketplace, company will be able to generate more revenue and beat the level of competition available at the market. In addition to this, it has also been identified that company have their own websites so that large number of people will be able to take fashion tips from their blogs (Hollebeek, Conduit, and Brodie, 2016 ). It has been said that with the help of effective promotion technique, Marks & Spencer will be able to attract large number of customers towards the organisation so that they can enhance their revenue and market share in an effective manner. Information of the product, promotional activities and all the required information are going to be uploaded on the website of the company so that all the individual person will be able to know about the products and services. Along with this, promotion techniques are changes on a regular basis of time with the help of which, company will be able to attract large number of individual people towards the company and help them in order to retain their potential customers for a longer period of time (Adhikari, and Roy, eds., 2017). It has also been said that in today's competitive world, company changes their marketing strategies on a day to day basis so that they can grow more at the competitive marketplace (George, 2017). Social media is the current technique used by Marks & Spencer in order to promote their goods and services in an effective manner. This as a result, help them in maintaining their brand image at the marketplace and enhance the growth rate as well as revenue of the company in a positive manner.

• Physical Evidence 

 It is tangible thing about the product of the organisation such as brand image on product, various stores in the market. Product are available in different packages with label of brand image easily provided in the market in all size and shape (Felix, Rauschnabel, and Hinsch, 2017). In the context of Marks&spender,it has a more than thousand stores in overall fifty-five countries in the world. This brand sell wide range of product from kids wear to adult wear a cross global. M&S can make packing the product with the label on the item will increase the change of getting notices in the market. Company make sure sure that there are able to reach the stores at any time as it has good in the market. Product are advertise in offline as well as online sources to research out to lager audience in the competitive company (David, and David, 2017). They can also make delivery of product as plus point in developing the company image in the market. Physical appreciation is important in the market as people who are not aware about the product also notices the product and purchase the product and enjoy the services provided by them in the market. They can use the new packages for the product and they can increase the stores numbers and provide various clothes, home appliance. Company tires to reach out to more number of costumer by providing good quality of product and services in the market (Alsem, 2019). People are more focused in the organisation to achieve the target on time and in efficient ways.

• People

 The employees working in Marks and Spencer are skilled and they have to work effectively in order to achieve organisational goals and objectives. Marks and Spencer employs approximately 90,000 individuals in an year. The individuals working in the company bring values to life. The long term growth of Marks and Spencer is due to the talent, commitment to the customers and pride (Chernev, 2018). The principle of people working in this company include commitment towards driving a sustainable business which is commercially successful and socially environmentally responsible. This company treats all employees equally with respect and dignity regardless of their culture or which country they belong to. The employers of M&S are responsible for being caring employers and establishing minimum standards for reward, recruitment, employee engagement, employee relations, etc (Biswas, 2018). the employees working in Marks and Spencer are committed towards direct employee engagement and participation by democratically elected Business involvement groups. The different ethics followed within this company includes anti bribery policy, diversity and equality, health and safety policy, etc. Some of the improvement which can be done in M&S include providing attractive rewards and bonuses to employees working in this company.

A Piece of Self-Reflective Writing That Critically Appraises The Marketing Activity / Case Study

While doing this assignment, I learnt various things like how to do give citations in the paragraphs, how to conclude discussions. I also learnt about the meaning of strategic planning and marketing of Marks and Spencer. After doing this assignment, I got to know that I have to work more on my writing and make my assignment concisely. Sometimes I am vague or unclear and this makes assignment weaker and unclear. In this manner, my assignment is not that much impactful. It is not easy for me to get out of this assignment stress as I tend to think about the work used in this assignment and what I have wrote on the paper. Also, from now onwards I will make sure that I am re reading my assignment work as they will improve my writing and make my assignment more clear. I constantly ask myself a lot of questions regarding my focus on the assignment (Abratt, and Bendixen, 2018). I ensure that all the sentences which I have written are clear and people reading it are understanding the concept in an effective manner (Anfer, and Wamba, 2019). My knowledge related to marketing strategies of Marks and Spencer have increased and now I get to know what are the different ideas that managers of this company use for making their marketing more strong and effective. While doing this assignment, I got clarity for what I was writing and trying to figure out what are the various marketing strategies and plans that are used by Marks and Spencer. According to the Kolb's learning theory which was published in the year 1984. as per Kolb, learning consists of acquisition of abstract concepts which can be applied for flexibility in different situations. In this theory, the impetus in order to development of new ideas and concepts is given by new experiences. I have analysed my learning through Kolb's experimental learning style theory. There are basically four types of learning theories and these depend upon four stage learning cycle. Also I used the Gibbs model for analysing my strength and weakness while doing the assignment. This model is applied in various academic disciplines and it is adapted so that stages incorporate various reflective activities. The Gibbs model of reflective cycle helped me to evaluate my work in effective manner. The Gibbs cycle id mots interpreted and misinterpreted sometimes. The several stages that I analysed are shown in the following diagram.

The Gibb's reflective cycle stages are mentioned below. This cycle was developed by Graham Gibbs. It offers a framework for evaluating the experiences, and giving cyclic nature to the work performed during assignment. This helps in learning and planning from the various things that went well while I was doing this assignment. The six different stages that I faced while working on this assignment include description of the experience, feelings and thoughts regarding the assignment completion, evaluation of the experience, analysis for making sense out of the situation, conclusion about the project and at last the action plan for how an individual can deal with the situations occurred while doing the assignment. I think this model is a good way for working through an experience. This is a stand alone experience and situation that I went through frequently.

• Description 

The assignment I did was based upon the marketing strategies of Marks and Spencer. When this assignment was given, I have less knowledge about the marketing strategies of M&S. But after doing this assignment, I got to know how marketing of products offered by this company is done. Now I got to know what are the factors of marketing mix in which this company lacks. I get information about various opportunities that this company is having within marketplace. I also helped my friends in understanding the concept of marketing strategies and knowing what are the factors that help in managing marketing activities and tasks performed by Marks and Spencer. In this step, I analysed that I have increased my knowledge related to the topics that were associated with the marketing and promoting of Marks and Spencer at global level. Also I have acknowledged the different ways for improving the sales and profits of the company by working upon the marketing techniques.

• Feelings

According to this step, I analysed different feelings of mine while completing this project work. This includes feelings I had during the situation and after the situation. I was motivated throughout the completion of assignment. I thought that I acted smartly while searching for materials related to marketing of M&S. At the initial stage, I was scared as I do not have prior knowledge regarding this topic. But I did not lose confidence and started to find material on this topic. My motivation and positive approach helped in bringing this assignment to be one of the best work I have done. Since the day I was given this assignment I worked whole heartedly for accomplishing this project. I had to cancel my weekend plans and work upon this assignment in effective manner. I worked hard for doing this project efficiently. I ensured that this assignment included all the relevant data associated with marketing strategies that this retailing company is using.

• Evaluation 

 After the accomplishment of this assignment, I got to know that this project was done appropriately. There were both positive as well as negative circumstances in which I had to work upon. The initial stages of the project/assignment were not so bright but after grabbing some knowledge about marketing of M&S, it was easy for me to enhance my knowledge associated with the strategies in an effective manner. When I was doing this assignment, it was not easy for me to instantly enhance my knowledge. I developed enthusiasm and confidence within myself while making the assignment. I felt that I chose correct path for doing the file effectively. Also I have to manage all tasks included in the project completion. I have evaluated that while doing the assignment, I developed various skills and abilities.

• Analysis

 This step includes the analysis of how well the work is done and is the project was completed in effective manner or not. I divided my assignment into several tasks as this will help in simplifying work. As per my analysis, it is concluded that I am able to analyse the various factors which contributes in developing the assignment perfectly. I have analysed the marketing strategies and how they are placed within marketplace for achieving the goals and objectives of the company. Main motive of any company is to make profits and this is done only if the marketing is done in an effective manner. I was really excited regarding this assignment and it has helped me in enhancing my knowledge (Sekarwinahyu, Rustaman, Widodo, and Riandi, 2019). This development will help in doing future projects effectively. I am able to understand the different areas where I lack.

• Conclusion

 This step includes the making of conclusion after doing the assignment effectively. At this step I have to analyse myself from interpreting the conclusions about the topic of assignment. This is a natural response to the way in which this assignment is done. While doing this assignment, I learnt how to do work in groups effectively. It is my responsibility to plan the whole task before interpreting any conclusions for the assignment. I have both strength and weakness that will affect me in accomplishing different tasks and assignments. Also I developed my skills for working in teams and managing different members effectively. There are some hurdles and challenges that I face while making decisions for evaluating what things must be considered while doing the project.

Also Read :- Scope And Key Elements of International Market

• Action Plan

 I have planned the project in effective manner and it is ensured that all project work is done efficiently. As per this step, I plan for what I will do differently or in a similar manner in future. When I will do any assignment related to marketing techniques and strategies of M&S, it will be helpful for me to do the future project effectively. I have developed various skills and abilities. My reading and interpreting skills have developed a lot as it is directly linked with my career opportunities. My growth and development will be enhanced by analysing the career opportunities and doing such projects effectively.

CONCLUSION

From the above discussion, it is analysed that marketing strategies are related to the various methods that are implemented for promoting the products and services to the target customers. The strategic marketing is helpful in business growth, expansion and long term success of the company. Company cannot sell it's products or services without appealing to the people. It is essential for the company to promote the product to the target audience so that it will impact these customers for buying the new product and service offered by the company. Marketing strategy is not only about boosting leads and converting them into buyers. This also includes expressing the values, cultures and purposes of the business. The process for communicating the vision to target audience is very essential for branding of the product. The marketing strategy of Marks and Spencer is same since years and the main attraction that this company is having is it's longevity within market. This company is serving to people since many years and this company is increasing it's sales by providing new and innovative products to the company. Big brands like Marks and Spencer can afford to spent time and effort on working on a marketing campaign that fails. There are opportunities with these companies to regroup the resources. The return on investment for marketing campaign is high within M&S and thus they can work effectively for attaining the organisational goals. This company focuses a lot in developing marketing campaigns as this helps in managing the work in effective manner. The strategic management is helpful for increasing the sales and profits earned by the company.

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