How the Customers Influence Business Strategy - 1039 Words

How the Customer influences Business Strategy A business strategy describe how a particular business intends to success in its chosen market place against its competitors. It therefore represents the best attempt that the management can make at defining and securing the future of that business. A business strategy should provide clear answer to the questions: - What is the scope of the business to which this strategy applies? - What are the current and future needs of customers and potential customers of this business? - What are the distinctive capabilities or unique competence that will give us competitive advantages in meeting these needs now and in the future? - What in broad terms needs to be done to secure the future of our†¦show more content†¦Everybody of the customer experience is of central strategic value to the organization. The company which thinks that customer experiences is just a matter of improving a few select business process will always lag behind competitors who are making customer experience a core competency of the entire organization. Customer satisfaction is another important fact to be considered. It is widely accepted that delivering products and services of high quality leads to customer satisfaction and in turn to high profit. In order to improve their competitive position, many companies use form of customer satisfaction program in developing , monitoring and evaluating their products and services, formulate strategies to enhance satisfaction and compensate employees based on satisfaction rating. Companies, however, will allocate resources for improving customers satisfaction only if the effects are satisfying in financial terms. Numerous empirical studies could find a positive relationship between customer satisfaction and profitability. Customer satisfaction leads to repurchase. The continuously repurchase of a company’s product results in a stable relationship between customers and suppliers. A large stable customers based reduces the volatility of the cash flows. The lower volatility of the cash flows also leads to a lower cost of capital. Customers’ satisfaction also leads to cross-selling. EnhanceShow MoreRelatedOperational Strategies That Management May Use to Respond to Influences on Operations 1168 Words   |  5 Pagesoperations process is one of the key business functions and is a crucial component to business success. Like every business, Qantas is affected by many internal and external influences requiring it to have effective strategies to respond to these influences. Businesses that are able to adopt and utilise effective operational strategies are able to quickly adapt and either reduce or take advantage of these influences that impact the business. The effectiveness of these strategies can measured by Qantas’ performanceRead MoreExecutive Summary : Harvey Norman1530 Words   |  7 Pagesimplementation of marketing segmentation, how the product lifecycle impacts on the marketing mix which in turn plays a part in determining marketing strategies, and the necessity of regularly monitoring the effectiveness of the marketing plan. However, improvement is still necessary with implementation of certain strategies to maximise the potential of the marketing. Situational Analysis Market Analysis The situation in the market will strongly affect how successful the marketing plan will be. HereRead MoreStudy Guide for Intro to Marketing1384 Words   |  6 Pagesmarket. 2 Approach to Customers A business with a marketing orientation is essentially led by the needs of its customers. Marketing research outcomes determine how much of a product is produced--old products may be discontinued and new products invented based on the needs or desires of consumers. In contrast, a production-oriented company does not pay close attention to the needs of its customers and is focused primarily on making the maximum number of products. If customers are dissatisfied withRead MoreAldis Customer Choice Case Study1139 Words   |  5 Pagesthis report is to outline the main factors that influence ALDI’s customer choice, describe the marketing process used by ALDI and evaluate the main marketing strategies that are employed by ALDI. In addition, the consumerist market of ALDI places an importance on identifying and satisfying their customers by developing a sustainable marketing plan. 1. Outline the main factors that influence ALDI’s customer choice. The four key factors that influence consumer choice are psychological, socioculturalRead MoreUse the Stakeholder Model of Business Environments to Critically Examine the External Environment of Asda Wal-Mart as Outlined in the Case Study That Follows.1219 Words   |  5 PagesPart I. Use the stakeholder model of business environments to critically examine the external environment of Asda Wal-Mart as outlined in the case study that follows. Each organisation has a unique external and internal environment that has unique impacts on the organisation. A stakeholder’s analysis categorises that environment determining whether an organisation or a person has any low or high interest and power over the business. Based on The Asda Wal-Mart case study, stakeholders are consecutive: Read MoreRelationship Between Customer Loyalty And Marketing Strategy1662 Words   |  7 Pagesrelationship between Customer Loyalty and Marketing Strategy? Introduction In today’s business environment, the concept of customer loyalty is becoming a growing interest in the area of relationship marketing. Many marketers and researchers persist with loyalty strategies as they thought loyal customers create profitable rewards. However, a recent work done by Heiner Evanschitsky states the other side that this may not always be the case. The following assignment is investigating whether customer loyalty placesRead MoreThe Macro And Micro And Macro Factors Influence Marketing Decision Process Of Tesco1101 Words   |  5 Pagesthose business concerns and address them in order to remain competitive, and market force. Tesco has carried out an environmental scanning process for the business plan without doing such delineated process of scanning the environment, they would not be here today not being a multinational store. 1.1. Show the macro and micro and macro factors influence marketing decision process of Tesco. Macro environments (PESTEL) are important factors that business organisations analyse the influence on theirRead MoreService Strategies : A Successful Service Strategy1153 Words   |  5 PagesService Strategy A successful service strategy has to be implemented through executing thorough analysis, understanding customer demand, commitment from staff/management, intense dedication and a considerable financial amount allotted for spending. Policies and procedures should be outlined and must be customer service oriented. The work -flow should promote reliable service. A comprehensive contingency plan must be in place to ensure uninterrupted service to customers in case of an unforeseenRead MoreMicro and Macro environment factors1639 Words   |  7 PagesInternational Ltd. I will explain what are micro and macro environment factors and how do they affect his marketing decisions as well as consumer buying behaviour. I will propose him segmentation criteria, targeting and positioning for his products. Micro environment Micro environment consists of the different types of stakeholders outside the organisation. The constituents or stakeholders of the micro environment include customers, suppliers, creditors, distributors, dealers, etc. Although these constituentsRead MoreA Marketing Strategy For A Brand1410 Words   |  6 PagesEstablishing a strong brand is one of the most important marketing strategies for any business, allowing a company to attract the right customers that will connect with their products and services. (inc) Branding Significance A strong brand identity is one thing that no one can ever take away from a business. Great ideas and products can be improved, patents eventually expire, and technology is always changing- but a brand with loyal customers can continue to thrive, and can even be the most valuable part

The Lack Of Sufficient Gun Control Laws - 1595 Words

The United States of America has about 270 million privately held firearms, with about one gun per person (Fisher). This is more than 25% of the worlds registered firearms, and the population of the United States accounts for a meager 4 percent of the world. The reason for the staggering number of guns is because of the second amendment, which states, â€Å"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a Free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.† (U.S. Const. am. 2) Because of the vague nature of the wording, different people interpret it in different ways. Some say that â€Å"the right of people to keep and bear Arms† indicates individual ownership of guns, while others believe that the†¦show more content†¦If law-abiding gun owners cannot obtain rifle ammunition, or face substantial difficulty in finding ammunition available and at reasonable prices because government entities are banning such ammunition , then the Second Amendment is at risk† responds republican Chuck Grassley, the Senior United States Senator from Iowa to a move by the Obama administration to ban a type of ammunition that pierces police body armor. The rationale is that the type of ammunition that is sought to be banned is a popular type of ammo in the top-selling AR-15 rifle. Banning this specific ammo would deliberately stop gun owners from being able to use their own guns. What these gun-rights activists are failing to understand is that the second amendment indicates something different from what gun owners want it to say. In 1991, John Paul Stevens, a retired justice of the Supreme Court who served for over 30 years, remarked that the second amendment â€Å"has been the subject of one of the greatest pieces of fraud, I repeat the word fraud† in response to vigorous campaigns by the National Rifle Association (NRA) claiming that federal regulations severely invaded Americans’ Second Amendme nt rights. He recounts how â€Å"When I joined the court in 1975, that holding was generally understood as limiting the scope of the Second Amendment to uses of arms that were related to military activities. During the years when Warren Burger was chief justice, from 1969 to 1986, no judge or

Mining the Past for Futuristic Ideas free essay sample

A discussion on the technological challenges in developing a hot air balloon. This paper reviews an article about overcoming technological difficulties in the field of hot-air ballooning. The solution hit upon by designers and had its roots in the worlds first air disaster, a good idea poorly executed. The implication for the future is that we should look backwards as well as forward when solving difficult problems. People are flying around the world for the fun of it. They are described as sportsmen and adventurers, but at least in one way they have also been visionaries. Perhaps in other endeavors we should continue to look forward as well as back, and examine ideas that didnt work and were perhaps discarded. There may be some excellent ideas that when reworked can move modern technology ahead. What we think of as a bad idea may have some useful ideas within it. We will write a custom essay sample on Mining the Past for Futuristic Ideas or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page

Tribute Speech to Steve Jobs free essay sample

Steve Jobs was like the Thomas Edison, Alexander Graham Bell and the Albert Einstein of our time. He not only innovated personal computing, but personal media and communication, iTunes which became one of the most popular music and video retailers and Pixar which was one of his side projects had become one of the greatest animation digital movie creators and software. But all that is a just part of the list of his legacy, because in the end he still left behind Apple which is world’s most valuable company, which is valued at $350 Billion Dollars. Without Steve Jobs great mind and hands in the technologic revolution we would have never had the opportunity to see technology the way we do today and how much of an impact he has made for our future to come. Many of you sitting down today have used some type of technology today whether it was using your cell phones to make a call, text, get on the internet, or simply just to look at the time, many others used a computer to prepare for today’s speech and have used some type of technology whether it was your desktop, laptop, or even tablet to obtain resources and information. We will write a custom essay sample on Tribute Speech to Steve Jobs or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page None of these belongings would even be around if it was not for Steve Jobs making the first bold move to innovate the world and form it to how we know it today. (Change Slide) Steve Paul Jobs was born on February 24, 1995 in San Francisco, California. But he was put up for adoption by his biological parents Joanne Schieble and Abdulfattah Jandali and adopted by Paul and Clara Jobs, who were a lower middle class couple. Where Steve grew up was The Santa Clara County which was a neighborhood of engineers working on electronics and other gizmos in their garages on weekends. When Steve was 13 he met one of the most significant person that would impact his life and that person was Stephen Wozniak who was an electronics whiz kid. When Steve was 18 he had the dream of attending Reed College which was an expensive liberal arts college in Oregon, and since one of the conditions upon his adoptions was that he would go to college his parents found a way to get pay for it. But like every great successor of our technological world Jobs dropped out one semester into his College education and found he was more interested in eastern philosophy and fruitarian diets than in the classes he was taking. So he moved into a hippie community where his main activity was cultivating apples. After a couple months passed Steve returned to California to look for a job and was hired by the video game maker Atari. (Change Slide) The knowledge that Wozniak had gathered  allowed him to build his own computer board, simply because he wanted a personal computer for himself. Jobs took interest, and he quickly understood that his friends brilliant invention could be sold, so  Jobs convinced Wozniak to start a company for the purpose of selling them and so the Apple Computer was born on April 1, 1976. Change Slide) Apple introduced the Macintosh in 1984, when designing the model, Jobs apparently paid more attention to appearances than function. Lacking these features, the Macintosh did not sell well to businesses. (Change Slide) The failure of the Macintosh signaled the beginning of Job’s downfall at Apple Computer Company. In 1985 Jobs resigned from the company he had founded due to an a rgument between him and John Sculley former CEO of Apple, though he retained his title as chairman of its board of directors. It was not long before Steve Jobs resurfaced. Change Slide) Soon after leaving Apple, he hired some of his former employees to begin a new computer company. The company was called NeXT, and Jobs invested $7 million of his own money to get it started. For three years, Jobs and his employees worked to produce the first NeXT computer, which was aimed at the educational market. Late in 1988, the NeXT computer was introduced at a large  social event  in San Francisco. Initial reactions were generally good; the product was user-friendly, with very fast processing speed, excellent graphics displays, and an outstanding sound system. Other innovations included an optical disk drive instead of floppy disks, and a special sound chip to provide the fidelity of a compact disc. Judging from initial reactions, many critics were convinced that Steve Jobs had brought another revolutionary product to American consumers. Despite the warm reception, however, the NeXT machine never caught on. It was too costly, had a black-and-white screen, and couldnt be linked to other computers or run common software. So therefore it failed. NeXT was not, however, the end of Steve Jobs. Change Slide) In 1986, Jobs paid filmmaker George Lucas $10 million for a small firm called Pixar that specialized in computer animation. Over the next six years Jobs poured another $40 million of his own money into the company. That film was  Toy Story,  a huge box office hit. The share price climbed dramatically, and Job’s 80 percent stock in Pixar suddenly was worth $1 billion. (Just a little better than the power balls don’t you think ). In December of 1996, Apple announced that it was purchasing Next Software for over $400 million. (Change Slide) Jobs returned to Apple as a part-time consultant to CEO Gilbert Amelio. Second, he announced he had accepted the Apple boards offer, and became the companys CEO, dropping the interim from his title. It was not an obvious choice because he remained CEO of Pixar, too. (Change Slide) In March 2001(This is where we get into our more familiar products), Steve Jobs started a crash development program to develop an Apple-branded MP3 player before that years holiday season: the iPod was born on October 23, 2001. With the presentation of the iPod Job’s went to all record labels to negotiate landmark deals that would lead to the introduction of the iTunes Music Store in April 2003. Apple didnt rest on its laurels. (Change Slide) . In January 2004, it introduced the iPod mini, a more compact version of iPod. Since Apple introduced the $99 iPod shuffle and the impossibly small iPod Nano in 2005, and the iPod video in 2006. IPod also played an indirect role in shaping the future of Steves other company, Pixar. (Change Slide) After having released hit after hit (A Bugs Life (1998), Toy Story 2 (1999), Monsters Inc. 2001) and Finding Nemo (2003)), the animation studio had decided to let go of its distribution deal with Disney, (Change Slide) in June 2005, at WWDC, Jobs made a surprise announcement that after over a decade using the PowerPC microprocessor architecture in Macs, Apple would start using the more power-efficient Intel platform. (Change Slide) Around 2003, he started a secret project to develop a tablet. But in 2004-2005, he realized that the technology that this group had developed, including a revolutionary touch-screen technology, iPhone was introduced at Macworld on January 9, 2007. But sales really started to skyrocket in 2008, after Apple introduced the cheaper iPhone 3G (at a subsidized $199 price) and the App Store. Even though the iPad was welcomed by mixed reviews when it was introduced in January 2010 it still revolutionized the tablet. The final presentation Jobs gave was the introduction of iPad 2 in March 2011, and the second one was in June 2011, where he introduced iCloud. (Present Video and Explain Significance)Steve Jobs not only revolutionized the way technology was designed but he changed the way we lived. Apple products have completely revolutionized the way that we complete daily task, both for ourselves and others. The simple, clean design and stunning interfaces made it a world-class technology accessible to the everyday person. Five years ago, technology slowed us down, but with Apple, technology improved our lives. Jobs was a true hero of technology and innovation. It was. It was his drive for excellence in the business and consumer marketplace that continues to inspire me to always be determined to achieve my goal. His products spoke for themselves. The introduction of the iPad revolutionized computing as we knew it. Jobs work is revolutionary because he thought beyond the devices to their day-to-day application. He took the tech out of technology,  creating user-friendly products that were compatible and easy to use. And my favorite part of Jobs work is he showed that the latest, greatest piece of machinery could be beautiful and visually stunning. Jobs has also help the environment a lot believe or not because thanks to Ipads he has reduced the need of paper in offices, schools, and businesses. It has provided for a more powerful presentation than a tactile, hardbound option, and likewise, seems to impress people more as well. Whenever a business or school use the iPad it shoes that they are committed to investing and innovating technology that further more they can use to help their business or school. The presentation support from the quality of the tablet furthers my confidence when seeing a set up when entering a classroom. I take it all for granted now, but Apple technology has had a deep effect on how we all live. Since we are no longer bound to a desk to do paper work, or have to find resources in books, and communication with co-workers, instructors, or family has been made so easy that it’s all just a mouse click away, therefore Apple products have made our lives easier and more efficient. Also I no longer have to take a camera, MP3 player or DVD player everywhere I go. All of it is on my phone now and all I do is slip it in my pocket and Im ready to go anywhere. I cant imagine my professional or personal life without my phone. The integration and ease of use that you get with Apple products and some androids are truly unmatched, and they have spoiled me because of it. Apple products not only helped us innovate the way we operate, but they also made us more time-efficient. We honestly don’t think how easy it is to connect with world now in days because when we think about it now in days we can use our phones, take a quick photo or shoot a video, then go into Twitter or Facebook, touch the photo and its live. As an entrepreneur, Steve Jobs was a visionary that paid the ultimate attention to detail. I strive every day to live up to similar standards. Because Im working 50 hours per week on average, the iPad allows my work-life balance to exist. Therefore in all honesty I do believe Steve Jobs made an impact in everyone’s life, even if people don’t own an apple product he is the revolutionary who was the cause of most of the technology we own today. (Change Slide) Unfortunately like every great legacy it must come to an end and for Jobs his end began when he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer Unfortunately, In late 2003, he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer of a rare kind, that could only be cured by surgery. Although against what everyone said he refused to have the surgery for nine long months. Instead, he tried alternative diets and treatments, including acupuncture and seeing a psychic. Only in July 2004 did he agree to have the surgery. After his surgery Jobs looked healthy for the next couple of years, and spoke publicly of being cured of cancer at his famous Stanford speech in 2005. Yet on June 2008, few observers failed to notice how thin he appeared on stage, and concerns about his health started popping up again. In December 2008, when Apple made a shocking announcement that Jobs would not be the keynote speaker at Macworld in 2009, and that he was taking a medical leave of absence for six months. Although publicly he denied it, the truth was easy for everyone to see and of course that horrifying truth was that his cancer had come back. He was actually weeks away from death when he received a liver transplant in April 2009. But he came back to Apple, as planned, in late summer of 2009, healthier although his physical appearance still seemed to be rundown. He was eager to bring the finishing touches to a new project very dear to his heart. The recovery of Steves cancer was a painful reminder that it was time to put his affairs in order before his time to go. Like every great leader, he made sure that Apple was ready to operate without him: in late 2008, he hired the dean of the Yale School of Management to create Apple University, a sort of internal business track to prepare future Apple executives by showing them to the Apple ways of doing business, by showing them how it was done in the pass. He also met with his executive team and agreed with the board that his natural successor would be his second in command, Tim Cook. Finally, at his last public appearance in June 2011, he unveiled his plans for the future Apple campus in Cupertino, a huge spaceship-sized building in the shape of a perfect circle. All of this was set in place because of jobs increasingly failing health; he resigned as Apple CEO on August 24, 2011. Jobs also prepared his personal legacy. In 2009, he finally started giving interviews to journalist Walter Isaacson to prepare for his first and only authorized biography, giving him his perspective on his life and career. He also spent his last days designing a boat for his family on which he hoped to travel the world. Unfortunately, death took him too soon, and he died peacefully at home on October 5, 2011. Thus to finish it all off I would just like to say that we have lost one of the greatest men to impact technology and very much so our futures.

Building Effective Teams

Introduction Leaders need to build a strong team that can realise its goals by incorporating certain aspects of effective team building. Such aspects would ensure that the team is efficient and effective in its roles. In this context, team members must be aware of the objective of the team and specific periods for realising the set targets. A team must have a method of sharing responsibilities and leadership roles. This ensures accountability within the team. A team should have a clear purpose and concrete outcomes from inputs of its members.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on Building Effective Teams specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Effective Team Building A clear purpose is a characteristic of effective team building. All members of a team should agree on the team’s goals. Shared goals and responsibilities enhance team effort by providing a clear sense of direction. All members should contribute in formulating objectives (Mealiea and Baltazar, 2005). A clear purpose would ensure that all members of the team have clear roles and responsibilities. Moreover, other members will also support such roles and the purpose of the team. Team building requires definitive decision-making strategies. This eliminates challenges related to prolonged and unproductive discussions, which could hinder the team’s effort. A definitive process of making decisions ensures that all team members contribute, and they may resort to consensus to overcome contentious issues. Members must express their opinions and review all areas of disagreements. Building a team requires an open communication system. This allows members to exploit communication channels to express their opinions and offer relevant feedback, as well as share information among themselves. Communication must reach all members of the team. Moreover, it should be consistent through various channels of communications. This ensures that all members are up to speed on the team’s progress and setbacks. Effective team building requires shared leadership. In this regard, the team carries out leadership roles like â€Å"contributor, collaborator, challenger, facilitator, and controller† (Mealiea and Baltazar, 2005). These roles are not exclusively for the team leader. However, shared leadership roles will differ based on the prevailing circumstances and skills of members of the team. Moreover, different members may also have different responsibilities in leadership. This is a participatory style of leading a team. Team members can suggest various ways of improving team activities and services. Participation by team members in various activities enhances decision-making processes within the team. Members can also rely on the group participation to facilitate self-efficacy and development of new strategies. Listening and acknowledging contributions of other team members can facilitate building of effective team. Team members should discuss and formulate strategies for problem solving (Taggar and Brown, 2001). Members of a team could use listening to enhance interpersonal sensitivity and understanding. Listening ensures that all channels of communication within the team are open for contributions and criticism. Listening also facilitates interaction among members of the team.Advertising Looking for research paper on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Summary There are several approaches used in building effective team, but they depend on the prevailing conditions and characteristics of members. The role of the team leader remains imperative in ensuring a successful team that can realise its objectives. Leaders can only realise the overall purpose of the team if they have a clear framework that guides their roles and team activities. The framework should show a clear purpose of the team, decision-making strategie s, listening, communication channels, relationships, and shared leadership and members’ responsibilities among others. Building effective team requires action-oriented approaches and practical solutions to challenges associated with team building. References Mealiea, L., and Baltazar, R. (2005). A Strategic Guide for Building Effective Teams. Public Personnel Management, 34(2), 141-160. Taggar, S., and Brown, C. (2001). Problem-solving team behaviors: Development and validation of BOS and a hierarchical factor structure. Small Group Research, 32(6), 698. This research paper on Building Effective Teams was written and submitted by user Kali Kirk to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Designing the Best Application Essays

Designing the Best Application Essays As someone who has written and edited dozens of application essays, I can tell you from experience that the best application essays are those that are creatively presented. There is no doubt in my mind, as a matter of fact, that the reason I was accepted to my college of choice was mostly due to the creativity behind my purpose statement. In order to give you a better idea of what I mean, I am going to illustrate how I designed my application package. As anyone who is applying to college will tell you, the application form consists of several general information inquiries, the essay section, as well as some short answer questions. When I was applying to school I knew my grades werent my strongest suit, so I decided to make my application package a work of art. Rather than simply filling out the application form by hand, I had my answers professionally printed on the pages. Then, I affixed the pages of the form on to heavy pieces of card-stock paper, so it looked as though each page of my application form was beautifully framed. For my application essay, I also had it professionally printed and then matted on card-stock paper. In addition, I included corresponding illustrations which I attached to the opposite sides of each page. Then, once I had my application, my essay, my short answer questions, and my illustrations beautifully printed and matted, I took everything to a professional print company where I had the pages bound in book-form. As Im certain you can tell, I spend a tremendous amount of time on my admissions essays and their presentations. When all was said and done, it took nearly two months to complete. Be assured, however, that the time and effort was more than worth it. I was accepted to every school to which I applied. If you are interested in learning how you can create the best application essays possible, dont hesitate to click on the adjacent link where you will find lots of ideas.

Micro Economics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 5

Micro Economics - Essay Example According to the Pareto principle social welfare definitely augments only if the benefit of any member of society increases and the welfare of no one falls. Actually when the Pareto criterion is strictly spoken it can be considered as simply an aggregation and decision rule and which could be enforced to non-utility. In reality the original distribution of income and wealth is generally taken as if it is given and alterations in either income or wealth cannot be measured beyond the need of changes themselves satisfy the Pareto criterion. The possible Pareto criterion, involving the gains associated to some alteration to outbalance the losses induced by it, is a less protective criterion. The Pareto principle by itself does not affirm the conclusion that any alteration from a non-Pareto-optimal position to a Pareto-optimum is an improvement. For this, economists rely on the compensation principle. On the other hand this principle itself can be questioned. Economists actually stress that the compensation required in demonstrating a potential Pareto improvement should be handled as hypothetical. But, now the issue is with regard to what is this potential Pareto improvement (PPI)? The potentiality of the principle is regarded as immaterial for its being an improvement? Many economists attempt to instill a PPI with some quasi-physical meaning. They indicate that a PPI, though not the same to an increment in social welfare, nonetheless still establishes an increase in the dimension of the cake from which welfare is deduced, or the capability of the oven in which the cake is baked. These economists state that a positive result of the compensation test depicts an increase in aggregate real income (Kaldor 1939: 550, 551). At the same time economists like Chipman (1987, pp. 524- 530); Kaldor (1939, p. 550), believe in the productive potential of the economy and Boadway and Bruce (1984, p. 97), Hennipman (1976, p. 476); Hicks (1981,

Registered nurse and Registered practical nurse should have individual Essay

Registered nurse and Registered practical nurse should have individual regulatory body - Essay Example As stated by Melrose and Wishart (2013), RN’s study for a longer period of time and have more in depth scope of practice and have greater knowledge in decision making, critical thinking, leadership, research utilization, resource management and healthcare delivery systems. An RN focuses on greater understanding of patient care and identifies the need for involvement of other health professionals (Melrose &Wishart, 2013). RPN’s focus on collecting data such as vital signs, monitoring the progress of patients and reporting any adverse reactions. RN’s not only gather data, they incorporate the data in a more holistic approach for better patient care (Melrose &Wishart, 2013). Considering their educational background, RPN’s have been trained to care for stable patients, where there may not be medical interventions required. The autonomy of an RPN will depend on the complexity of their patient’s condition (RPNAO, 2012). The RPNAO explains that when the care of a patient becomes more complex, there is a greater need for RN’s. This information would imply that RN’s have further educational training that allows them to care for patients with greater needs. On the other hand, one would argue that the nursing knowledge of an RPN is comparable with the educational knowledge of an RN and for this reason they should be regulated under the same body. Along with RN’s; following graduation, RPN’s take a national certificate examination that will allow them to obtain their license to practice. RPN’s also study from the same body of knowledge as RN’s and have a more focused foundational knowledge. In addition, over the past 10 years, it is evident that the RPN program has started to lengthen and their scope of practice has become broader and comparable with RN’s (RPNAO, 2012). Martin and Weeres (2012) suggest that RPN’s are not working to their full scope of practice and are unable to utilize their

Team Work on the example of the film Oceans Eleven Essay

Team Work on the example of the film Oceans Eleven - Essay Example The paper describes the leadership influence on team work and the group processes. Our goals were simple: we wanted to work together to achieve a quality project with very little conflict and low stress. We made this happen by coming to agreements on section length and due dates and we followed this schedule. It worked out well for us because they were SMART goals. While doing our project we didn’t really ever have to influence each other to do anything we didn’t want to. We think this is because we used a logical, collaborative approach to accomplish our task. Both of these were effective; we were logical in the sense that if we were to force other group members into roles that they didn’t want to be in, they probably wouldn’t excel in those areas which would negatively affect the outcome of our project and we were collaborative in that we worked together to make sure we accomplished the set goals of the group. A passive or assertive approach would most l ikely not work to influence our group members to accomplish our goals. The process of decision making is extremely important and every member must be in unison when it comes to decision making, usually good decisions are made when the team members are all in unison but at times it is just not plausible but even if it is not plausible the team leader must convince each member of the group and a unanimous decision must be made. Communication is another very important factor, each member in a group must communicate and communication must always be a two way process.

Marketing Strategies of Primark

Marketing Strategies of Primark 1.0 Introduction The research report under consideration is aimed to explore the significant role played by Marketing Strategies in todays modern and dynamic business environment. Marketing has gained substantial importance and has become first priority of decision makers in any organisation. This document presents a research report analyzing and forecasting marketing environment faced by leading retailer Primark with special focus on competitive analysis. Primark Stores Ltd, an Irish upstart and subsidiary of Associated British Foods, is second largest clothing retailer in terms of sales and revenue with its existence mainly in Ireland, UK, Spain and expanding further in the Europe. It is believed that soon it will become leading clothing retailer. This extensive research is aimed at exploring current marketing strategies adopted and evaluating their effectiveness. The critical review of current segmentation, targeting, positioning and branding strategies of Primark and an extensive market analysis is carried out to suggest future marketing strategies and growth areas and to improve and sustain quality of services provided. The expected outcomes of document are recommendations to use marketing strategies tactically in decision making to enjoy sustainable growth. 1.1 Reason for choosing the topic I have selected this topic realizing the fact that in todays intensively competitive business environment, financial successof any company depends on combined efforts of its financial strategy and marketing strategy. In fact, only those companies thrive in business who works closely with their customers; and, marketing has become a successful tool to create a relation with customers indirectly. From small to large, every organisation is realizing that effective marketing strategies can add value and exert tremendous influence over their ability to attract customers, leaving positive impact on companys performance and profitability. â€Å"Marketing is defined as management process that identifies, anticipates and satisfies customer requirements profitably. It involves integrated analysis, planning and control of marking mix variables (Product, Price, Promotion and Distribution) to satisfy both individuals and organizations objectives (Lancaster and Massingham, 1999). Marketing Environment consists of actors; and forces outside that affect marketing managements ability to develop and maintain successful relationships with its target customers (For further information on Marketing Environment, see Appendix I). 1.2 Reason for choosing Retail Industry and Primark Reason for choosing retail industry for research project is because it is a high profile and constantly changing business at the sharp end, but now-a-days, retail industry in UKis under high pressure as key factors like troubled mortgage and housing market, rising fuel prices and utility bills, high interest rates in UK are challenging retail environment as compared to years of strong growth between 2002 and 2004. Formally retail is defined as â€Å"sale of commodities to household or ultimate consumers† (Barry and Evans; 1986).Retail industry can be categorised in various sectors as food retailers, health and beauty retailers, clothing and footwear retailers, home furniture and household goods retailers etc. But now discount, budget or value retailing in UK has taken on a higher profile over recent years despite effects of recession. Especially interests have largely centered on growth of value or discount clothing retail industry. The organisation under focus in this report is Primark known for selling clothes at budget end of market and it is second largest clothing retailer in UK in terms of sales and revenue. Reason for choosing Primark is its wonderfully sustained growth in the worst recession times of history. Retail clothing industry is a fast moving and complex, high profile and constantly changing business environment which demands that marketing process of a large retail organisation like Primark should be managed strategically. Report is aimed at evaluating marketing strategy of Primark and to determine its effectiveness. 2.0 Primark: A Brief Overview Of The Business Primark is a brilliant and unique organisation with a mission statement to enrich the life of everyone with fashionable clothing regardless of social status. It emerged as major force in the British retail industry, contributing through its low price value and great quality fashion products for everyone in society as a whole and leaves remarkable impact on social, environmental and ethical behavior of people. Primark does not rip off its customers and presents excellent example of it motto which states â€Å"look good, pay less† Primark, (2010). Most of their clothes are bought from same factories as other fashion retailers and people producing them are paid exactly the same whatever label and whatever price in shop. Companys success is based on sourcing supply cheaply, they buy directly from factories without involving any agents, making clothes with simple designs and fabrics, only making them in the most popular sizes, buying stock in huge bulks and varieties and targeting young, fashion-conscious buyers under 35s, offering them high quality, fashion basics at value for money prices. They are able to offer such good value and good quality because of low mark-ups and big volumes. Their overhead costs are extremely low as they do not run expensive advertising campaigns; instead they have wonderful strategic marketing approach that stands them out. 3.0 Marketing Strategy Of Primark Retail clothing industry is a fast moving and high profile business environment which demands that marketing process of a retail organisation should be managed strategically. Strategy of an organisation is roadmap towards attainment of its long term goals and objectives. Strategic marketing management involves implementing principles of strategic management in the context of marketing function in organisation. At corporate level, marketing inputs (e.g., competitive analysis, market dynamics, and environmental shifts) are essential for formulating a corporate strategic plan. Primark has well organized strategic Target marketing and Product marketing approaches in place. 3.1 Target Marketing Approach Strategic marketing is about achieving maximum possible differentiation over competition in meeting customer needs, gaining and sustaining competitive advantage and capitalizing on corporate strength and capabilities. In todays dynamic environment, it is highly important for companies to relate characteristics and attributes of their products to customer requirements more closely. Firms are more concerned with the most commercially attractive segments of market for a given product. This not only increases opportunity but also reduces overall costs incurred by company. This process is called target marketing and it must be carried out systematically to be effective and for this purpose it can be divided into three stages as in Figure; 3.1.1 Segmentation At first stage of segmentation, overall market is divided into distinct groups of buyers who are likely to respond favourably to different products, services or marketing mix. Company needs to determine most appropriate basis for segmentation, identify characteristics for each segment and develop criteria to evaluate their commercial attractiveness and viability. Market segmentation allows managers to see clearly the diversity within their markets and uncover opportunities that may exist or segments whose needs have not been properly met by other offerings. Figure, depicts segmentation criteria for consumer market, determines base of segmentation and explains variables for each base As Primark is tagged a value clothing retailer, clothing is most important and leading item in its product portfolio follower by footwear. Its marketing segments are evaluated on basis of clothing and footwear. Although all above determined segmentations bases and variables are important but demographic factors are the most straight forward base for segmenting Primarks consumer market, as they are most meaningful. Main demographic variables for Primark consumer market are identified as in charts below. All demographic factors are identified according to their percentage relative attractiveness for targeting them depending upon their market share for Primark. Hhighlighted segments in diagrams are identified as most meaningful for Primark and they must be targeted to gain marketing objectives. 3.1.2 Targeting Next stage of market targeting focuses on evaluating and selecting one or more previously identified market segments at which to direct marketing resources, developing an appropriate marketing mix for them and develop segment coverage strategy. This selected segment is made focus of comprehensive marketing plan. Kottler (1984) suggested that in order for market segmentation to be effective each of the segments must be distinct, assessable, measurable, and profitable. Once determined which segment attractiveness factors are important, evaluate each of those factor against selected segments using segment attractiveness evaluation matrix below; There are four different targeting approaches can be considered to develop marketing mix to meet marketing objectives. Undifferentiated marketing is used for one marketing mix, targeted towards whole market and marketing mix (Price, Place, Product, Promotion, Distribution), and targets towards everybody. Differentiated marketing is used for multiple marketing mixes and involves multiple products, targeted towards multiple segments. Focused marketing is for one marketing mix and multiple segments with focus on one segment in particular, who will have control over other segments. Customised marketing is used for one marketing mix per customer as in figure below; For Primark, targeting strategy that I have decided to use is differentiated marketing strategy because we have multiple products and consumers can be segmented into multiple segments, hence best approach to be followed is differentiated marketing approach. Different segments identified are based on age, sex, life style, income level and social status and we have multiple products portfolio that can be targeted towards these various segments. 3.1.3 Positioning In third phase of product positioning all marketing mix elements are designed to fit a given place within a particular segment. This is how consumer perceives products relative position to competitors product which is highly important. It is like developing a marketing strategy aimed at creating and maintaining a desired concept and image for a product or service in consumers mind (See Appendix V for further information). Key to success is identification of attributes that are considered to be more important. Through market research we can identify what factors (attributes) are key drivers of a consumers preference for a brand. For instance, it was identified from a sample of female teenagers that were surveyed, that being trendy and stylish, having a good range of clothing, and good brand reputation, were most important factors for this target market when selecting a preferred brand Young Dimension of fashion retailer Primark. Brand positioning provides insight into brand performance and gives important inputs for marketing communications used to support a brand. Through communications, especially advertising, information can be conveyed about each attribute and in doing so adjust perceptions customers have of brand. As Primark need to reposition the perception market has of its brands from range and quality of clothing to be more trendy and stylish. Primark has emphasized more on in-store service and convenience; and as Budget Fashion retailer, they might want to maintain their current positioning of low price, affordable, but also good value for money. 3.2 Product Marketing Approach A companys performance is closely linked to its marketing strategies. Each companys strategy must be unique since each company is different with respect to customer, brands and competitors. I used Ansoff Matrix to determine product marketing strategies for Primark to set the directions for its business. With this matrix; I plot current and potential products along one axis and current and potential new markets along other axis. Thus it demonstrates low and high risk options and helps to think about business growth with new or existing products in new or existing markets. Each cell of matrix suggests a particular strategic approach. Output from Ansoff matrix is a series of suggested growth strategies. Market penetration is a growth strategy where business runs as usual and focuses on selling existing products into existing markets with good information on competitors and on customer needs. Primark can maintain or increase market share of its current products by a combination of competitive pricing strategies, advertising, sales promotion. Primark has extensive portfolio and it cans secure dominance of growth markets and drive out competitors by more aggressive promotional campaign. For example Primark brand Active, supported by a pricing strategy designed to make market unattractive for competitors. Primark must uses internal promotion strategy by introducing loyalty schemes and increases its usage by existing customer. One of penetration strategy adopted by Primark is expansion of shop floors and opening new stores. Market development is a growth strategy where business seeks to sell its existing products into new markets. There are many possible ways of approaching this strategy, including moving to new geographical markets; for example exporting product to a new country, new product dimensions, new distribution channels, or different pricing policies to attract different customers or create new market segments. I suggest Primark to move online by launching high tech website for online sales. Product development is growth strategy where business aims to introduce new products into existing markets. It requires development of new competencies and to develop modified products which can appeal to existing markets. Diversification is a growth strategy where a business launches new products in new markets. This is an inherently more risk strategy because business is moving into markets in which it has little or no experience. For a business to adopt a diversification strategy, it must have a clear idea about what it expects to gain from strategy and an honest assessment of potential risks. Analysing Primarks position and its strategies over past decade, we can better construct a growth strategy for Primark using Ansoff matrix model below in Figure; 4.2.1 Product Portfolio Analysis Marketing mix refers to set of marketing ingredients and tools a company can use to pursue its marketing objectives in target market. According to Lancaster and Massingham; (1999), it is at marketers decision to choose from an extensive set of marketing components to find right combination while marketing a product. 4Ps form basis of marketing mix. Kotler (1996) describes, â€Å"Marketing Mix is a social and managerial process by which individuals and groups achieve what they need and want through creating and exchanging products and value with others†. Marketing Mix is viewed as combination of elements that contribute to success of an organisation. If market research is carried out effectively, a company can plan a promotion for right product, at right price, and to get it to their chosen market, in right place.Getting this mix right is critical in order to successfully market a product. 4Ps are Product, Price, Promotion, Place as shown in figure below; Primark needs to combine various elements of marketing mix in order to achieve both a competitive advantage in market place and company objectives. Although company has control over these elements of marketing mix, but must cater elements in companys environment over which it has little or no control (figure above). For organisations like Primark although marketing mix must be is consumer-orientated catering not only profitability but also considering customer needs as in figure, Table below shows some of marketing mix decisions for Primark including aspects from each of marketing mix elements. 4.3 Brand Strategy A successful marketing mix contributes to good marketing of a product; hence there must be a brand strategy in place. American Marketing Association (AMA) defines a brand as a name, term, sign, symbol or design, or a combination of them intended to identify goods and services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of other sellers†. (See Appendix VI for characteristics of a brand). A strong brand strategy can increase awareness of a company and its offerings in such a way that establishes strong feelings and reactions and a favorable view towards company as a whole. To begin development of brands strategy for Primark, there must be clear identification of Primary Target Customer and/or Client, Competition Product and Service Mix, Unique Selling Proposition First step in developing brand strategy is defining brands. By defining brand, its easy to create foundation for all other components to build on. Brand definition serves as measuring stick in evaluating marketing strategies. Primark has an extensive brand portfolio; Brand portfolio usually refers to companys set of brands and/or products. The logic behind having a portfolio of brands rather than a single brand is possible diversification and risk minimization. Hence brand portfolio is a treasure trove. Next step is to determine our brands objectives, Primarks branding objectives include: Delivers message clearly Confirms your credibility Connects your target prospects emotionally Motivates buyer Concretes User Loyalty Gaining a specific number of new clients in next year Positioning company as an industry leader in next 12 months To succeed in branding company must understand needs and wants of your customers and prospects. Brand objectives should be comprised of company personality, image, core competencies and characteristics. The impressions that it makes as well as words people will use to describe company to others, are basic framework of a brand.   With a strong brand company builds credibility, has more influence on its market, and motivates customers and clients to purchase from it. If done correctly company will be looked at as a leader not a follower. Identifying marketing targets enables company to find opportunities available. It gives information needed to focus on buyers that are interested in what company has to offer. This can save both time and money in an ever-changing business environment. Power of brand relies on ability to focus target audiences. That is why defining target market will help to strengthen Primarks brands effectiveness. Target market for Primark is people up to age of 35 who are fashion conscious. Next step in developing Primarks brand strategy is to perform a careful analysis to determine principal barriers that it may face. These barriers are also known as market conditions that can keep your product or service from achieving success. The potential barriers in deploying Primarks brand strategy can competition, timing, financing, location, lack of demand, suppliers not meeting demands and targets. In order to face these obstacles its important to spend time doing a careful analysis of products or service to assist in developing brand, and positioning products in the market. Last step in brand strategy is branding companys identity in marketplace where image is all about appearance of packaging. Its important to realize that packaging always either has a negative or positive influence on purchaser. A negative impression can detour a potential customer, just as a positive reaction can influence a customer to buy. A time to pay special attention to packaging is when going to launch a new brand. If youve already built a strong brand that others recognize often people may not pay as close attention to packaging. Packaging is judged and represented by business cards and stationery, web site, answering system, presentation of finished products. Brand equity does not develop instantaneously. A brand needs to be carefully nurtured and marketed so consumers feel real value and trust towards that brand. When a company manages its brands it has a number of strategies it can use to further increase its brand value. (See Appendix VI for further explanation). Brand strategies that are more suitable for Primark are line extension and introduction of new brands. Primark must focus on its brand management as its a dynamic and a continuous process that needs consistent investment of time and it must be allocated a specific budget as it is much more than mere marketing communications. Due to intangible nature of branding, results may not accrue in a short period of time a it takes time and reinforcement to build customer loyalty. Successfully out-branding its competitors is a continuous battle for hearts and minds of your customers. Proposition that Primarks brand strategy makes is very compelling, attractive and unique among competitiv e offerings. It must also be consistently reinforced throughout all phases of an organization, from senior executives to customer service, business development and even business partners. Primark is respected for quality of its products and cheap prices. If we briefly review business environment and other factors identified in this report for Primark then we may realize that consumer behaviour is changing and business environment evolving across retail industry. Concern is rise in suppliers demands regarding price and costs. If it continues to rise steeply it will damage profits that it is currently enjoying. Reviewing forces and factors faced by Primark and their impact on organisation, it is obvious that Primark is facing many challenges and standing at verge of it survival in long term. Market Research World, 2011 revealed that value fashion sector sees worst decline for first time in over 16 years much to gain of higher-priced retailers, reveals data by TNS Worldpanel Fashion. While fashion discounters such as Primark, Tesco, George and Matalan saw a phenomenal sales increase of nearly 30% last summer, growth has now ground to a hold with sales falling by 1% over last six months. In contrast, sales of most expensive clothing are up by 4%, as shoppers head to generally more expensive retailers such as multiples and mail order retailers. Clothing industry has been globalised. Strategies followed by clothing firms, to survive in a context of strong pressure from retailers and from competition from low-wage countries, are a combination of two trends. First trend is relocation of production to low-wage countries; second one is the development of six added-value activities: niche, Quick Response, full package, innovation, branding and retail. Elaine Giles, Research Manager, TNS says, â€Å"Shoppers are starting to favour higher priced retailers and premium end of market is performing well. Growth of value sector last year came on back of new store openings and expansions that brought an influx of new buyers, but now sector seems to have reached saturation point. The only way, budget retailers can continue their success is to increase spend of existing buyers, something they may struggle to do given current retail climate.† 4.0 Strategic Marketing Environment Analysis Primark is one of the leading value clothing retailers in UK. It is highly crucial for an organization like Primark to periodically review its marketing environment to gain competitive advantage in market. Discount cloth retailing in UK has several characteristics including clearance outlets, core business discounters, planned purchasing at high volume, own-label or branding, relationships with manufacturers, attracting customers with good image and service. There are three different analytical tools used to assess marketing environment of an organisation; Porters Five Forces Analysis, SWOT Analysis and PESTLE Analysis. 4.1 Porters Five Forces Analysis First of all Porters Analysis is carried out which is a technique for identifying forces which affect competition level in industry as shown in figure A below; The threat of new entrants in market is a critical element haunting Primark much as there are less entry barriers including low entry costs, high volume of suppliers, vast market in India and china, higher growth space in market, economies of scale, low capital requirements, access to distribution, government policy, low cost product design, access to necessary inputs. But new entrants in industry are not likely to cut their price to defend their market position. In an industry experiencing fast market growth, patents, proprietary knowledge, and brand reputation are also considered as barriers for companies entering industry. Strategic position of a company depends upon the extent to which what it offers is unique and cannot be replaced by something else. Primark has strong brand portfolio which is its uniqueness. As for some of products, like Primark cheap clothing there are alternatives. But there is no substitute for low price of Primarks products. Determinants of these substitution threats include relative price of substitutes, buyer propensity to substitute. Buyers/customers have greatest impact on Primarks strategies as its vision and strategies are customer focused. Hence, it has to cater changing customer trends, their demands and requirements. Customers volume, customer information level and trends, substitute products pull through, price, product difference, brand identity, impact on quality, buyers profit and incentives are few factors that Primark is facing as major challenge in competitive market. Suppliers might have high impact on Primark if they are bigger company and have less competitive market for their products. Primark is facing big challenge from supplier as it has good and long term relationships with its suppliers build on trust but recently three of its main suppliers are found involved in child labour and Primark has to cut-off ties with them immediately which is definitely a big blow for Primark. Primark pays its supplier competitive price for their products to retain them. Primark maintains substitute inputs, and high volume of supplier to avoid extra costs. Apart from five forces identified by Porters Analysis, there are other factors revealed by PESTLE Analysis challenging Primarks position in competitive market, in figure below; (For PESTLE Analysis, refer to Appendix II; and for SWOT Analysis, Appendix III) Strategic marketing analysis of Primark, using different analysis tools reveal that Primark is expanding globally and being in the global market; Primark has adopted an approach of â€Å"Think globally, Act locally† as stated by Armstrong, (2006). They are expanding globally but cater needs of local market and fashion trends in local culture. Primark supports UKs global role by showcasing the best of British fashion to a global customers as well as it reflects how it builds social cohesion and business ethics between customers and its suppliers. Primark faced a major blow to its reputation on 24 June, 2008 after being exposed by and undercover report by BBC exposing it using child labour. Afterwards, Primarks marketing strategy mainly focused to promote itself as ethical organisation with a clear and strict code of conduct to which all suppliers must adhere and which forms part of the terms of their contract. Primark supports nearly two million people through its supply contracts worth  £700 million and is dedicated to improve their standard of living and quality of life. For this, Primark has established ‘Primark Better Lives Foundation (Primark Ethical Trading, 2011 a). In response to the allegations of use of child labour by its suppliers, identified by Panorama (BBC program) Primark stopped buying from three factories in southern India for breaking its Code of Conduct. It also took other major initiatives and is now active member of ETI that announce it ‘Achiever in year 2009-2010 independent audit (Primark Ethical Trading, 2011 b). (For further information on ETI and Primark code of conduct, see Appendix IV) Further apart the positions, greater the opportunity for new brands to enter market, simply because competition is less intense. For example, in fashion retailing there are numerous brands in marketplace all competing with each other across differing core attributes, brand reputation, store presence, price, and clothing quality or trendy and stylish. To show how differing brands might be positioned relative to each other using attribute scores for each brand of fashion retailer we can measure and map brand positioning for respective brands. Figure below shows positioning of a number of fashion retailers using dimensions of price, store presence, and trendy and stylish. Using this list of drivers we can further depict on what we call a perceptual map how different competing brands of fashion retailers in market are positioned according to these drivers.   Understanding complexity associated with different attributes and brands can be made easier by developing a visual representation of each market. These are known as perceptual maps and they are used to determine how various brands are perceived according to key attributes that customers value. Perceptual mappingrepresent a geometric comparison of how competing products are perceived (Sinclair and Stalling, 1990). One thing to note is that closer products/brands are clustered together on a perceptual map, greater the competition. Mapping can provide significant insight into how a market operates. It provides marketers with an insight into how Primarks brands are perceived and it also provides a view about how their competitors brands are perceived. In addition to this substitute products can be uncovered, based on their closeness to each other (Day et al., 1979). All of this data reveals strengths weaknesses that in turn can assist strategic decisions about how to differentiate on attributes that matter to customers and how to compete more effectively in target market. 4.2 Competitor Analysis Like any other business, Primark is also facing tough competition from George at ASDA, Tesco, Marks Spencer, TK Max, Costco, Next, Zara, New Look, Peacock and Matalan. Analysis for each major competitor determines that Primark has better business strength and high market share. It has good financial strengths and high profitability but relatively poor quality of management and low standards of technology position. Primark is paying least attention to its marketing strategies. Marketing represents boundary between marketplace and company, and knowledge of current and emerging happenings in marketplace is extremely important in strategic planning exercise. In relation to competition, several external forces and environmental changes are faced by Primark that need to be considered to formulate its marketing strategy. Currently, Primark is facing high competition with quality competitors like Peacock, Matalan etc. They are offering cheap products as well and growing at tremendous speed, threatening position of Primark. Most of Primark customers are switching to rivals because of their quality products and good marketing strategies which Primark lacks. Marks and Spencer, the biggest rival of Primark has very extensive marketing strategies with strong brand portfolio. They do advertisement on almost every media available; while Primark do not use even single media for advertisement. Marks and Spenc Marketing Strategies of Primark Marketing Strategies of Primark 1.0 Introduction The research report under consideration is aimed to explore the significant role played by Marketing Strategies in todays modern and dynamic business environment. Marketing has gained substantial importance and has become first priority of decision makers in any organisation. This document presents a research report analyzing and forecasting marketing environment faced by leading retailer Primark with special focus on competitive analysis. Primark Stores Ltd, an Irish upstart and subsidiary of Associated British Foods, is second largest clothing retailer in terms of sales and revenue with its existence mainly in Ireland, UK, Spain and expanding further in the Europe. It is believed that soon it will become leading clothing retailer. This extensive research is aimed at exploring current marketing strategies adopted and evaluating their effectiveness. The critical review of current segmentation, targeting, positioning and branding strategies of Primark and an extensive market analysis is carried out to suggest future marketing strategies and growth areas and to improve and sustain quality of services provided. The expected outcomes of document are recommendations to use marketing strategies tactically in decision making to enjoy sustainable growth. 1.1 Reason for choosing the topic I have selected this topic realizing the fact that in todays intensively competitive business environment, financial successof any company depends on combined efforts of its financial strategy and marketing strategy. In fact, only those companies thrive in business who works closely with their customers; and, marketing has become a successful tool to create a relation with customers indirectly. From small to large, every organisation is realizing that effective marketing strategies can add value and exert tremendous influence over their ability to attract customers, leaving positive impact on companys performance and profitability. â€Å"Marketing is defined as management process that identifies, anticipates and satisfies customer requirements profitably. It involves integrated analysis, planning and control of marking mix variables (Product, Price, Promotion and Distribution) to satisfy both individuals and organizations objectives (Lancaster and Massingham, 1999). Marketing Environment consists of actors; and forces outside that affect marketing managements ability to develop and maintain successful relationships with its target customers (For further information on Marketing Environment, see Appendix I). 1.2 Reason for choosing Retail Industry and Primark Reason for choosing retail industry for research project is because it is a high profile and constantly changing business at the sharp end, but now-a-days, retail industry in UKis under high pressure as key factors like troubled mortgage and housing market, rising fuel prices and utility bills, high interest rates in UK are challenging retail environment as compared to years of strong growth between 2002 and 2004. Formally retail is defined as â€Å"sale of commodities to household or ultimate consumers† (Barry and Evans; 1986).Retail industry can be categorised in various sectors as food retailers, health and beauty retailers, clothing and footwear retailers, home furniture and household goods retailers etc. But now discount, budget or value retailing in UK has taken on a higher profile over recent years despite effects of recession. Especially interests have largely centered on growth of value or discount clothing retail industry. The organisation under focus in this report is Primark known for selling clothes at budget end of market and it is second largest clothing retailer in UK in terms of sales and revenue. Reason for choosing Primark is its wonderfully sustained growth in the worst recession times of history. Retail clothing industry is a fast moving and complex, high profile and constantly changing business environment which demands that marketing process of a large retail organisation like Primark should be managed strategically. Report is aimed at evaluating marketing strategy of Primark and to determine its effectiveness. 2.0 Primark: A Brief Overview Of The Business Primark is a brilliant and unique organisation with a mission statement to enrich the life of everyone with fashionable clothing regardless of social status. It emerged as major force in the British retail industry, contributing through its low price value and great quality fashion products for everyone in society as a whole and leaves remarkable impact on social, environmental and ethical behavior of people. Primark does not rip off its customers and presents excellent example of it motto which states â€Å"look good, pay less† Primark, (2010). Most of their clothes are bought from same factories as other fashion retailers and people producing them are paid exactly the same whatever label and whatever price in shop. Companys success is based on sourcing supply cheaply, they buy directly from factories without involving any agents, making clothes with simple designs and fabrics, only making them in the most popular sizes, buying stock in huge bulks and varieties and targeting young, fashion-conscious buyers under 35s, offering them high quality, fashion basics at value for money prices. They are able to offer such good value and good quality because of low mark-ups and big volumes. Their overhead costs are extremely low as they do not run expensive advertising campaigns; instead they have wonderful strategic marketing approach that stands them out. 3.0 Marketing Strategy Of Primark Retail clothing industry is a fast moving and high profile business environment which demands that marketing process of a retail organisation should be managed strategically. Strategy of an organisation is roadmap towards attainment of its long term goals and objectives. Strategic marketing management involves implementing principles of strategic management in the context of marketing function in organisation. At corporate level, marketing inputs (e.g., competitive analysis, market dynamics, and environmental shifts) are essential for formulating a corporate strategic plan. Primark has well organized strategic Target marketing and Product marketing approaches in place. 3.1 Target Marketing Approach Strategic marketing is about achieving maximum possible differentiation over competition in meeting customer needs, gaining and sustaining competitive advantage and capitalizing on corporate strength and capabilities. In todays dynamic environment, it is highly important for companies to relate characteristics and attributes of their products to customer requirements more closely. Firms are more concerned with the most commercially attractive segments of market for a given product. This not only increases opportunity but also reduces overall costs incurred by company. This process is called target marketing and it must be carried out systematically to be effective and for this purpose it can be divided into three stages as in Figure; 3.1.1 Segmentation At first stage of segmentation, overall market is divided into distinct groups of buyers who are likely to respond favourably to different products, services or marketing mix. Company needs to determine most appropriate basis for segmentation, identify characteristics for each segment and develop criteria to evaluate their commercial attractiveness and viability. Market segmentation allows managers to see clearly the diversity within their markets and uncover opportunities that may exist or segments whose needs have not been properly met by other offerings. Figure, depicts segmentation criteria for consumer market, determines base of segmentation and explains variables for each base As Primark is tagged a value clothing retailer, clothing is most important and leading item in its product portfolio follower by footwear. Its marketing segments are evaluated on basis of clothing and footwear. Although all above determined segmentations bases and variables are important but demographic factors are the most straight forward base for segmenting Primarks consumer market, as they are most meaningful. Main demographic variables for Primark consumer market are identified as in charts below. All demographic factors are identified according to their percentage relative attractiveness for targeting them depending upon their market share for Primark. Hhighlighted segments in diagrams are identified as most meaningful for Primark and they must be targeted to gain marketing objectives. 3.1.2 Targeting Next stage of market targeting focuses on evaluating and selecting one or more previously identified market segments at which to direct marketing resources, developing an appropriate marketing mix for them and develop segment coverage strategy. This selected segment is made focus of comprehensive marketing plan. Kottler (1984) suggested that in order for market segmentation to be effective each of the segments must be distinct, assessable, measurable, and profitable. Once determined which segment attractiveness factors are important, evaluate each of those factor against selected segments using segment attractiveness evaluation matrix below; There are four different targeting approaches can be considered to develop marketing mix to meet marketing objectives. Undifferentiated marketing is used for one marketing mix, targeted towards whole market and marketing mix (Price, Place, Product, Promotion, Distribution), and targets towards everybody. Differentiated marketing is used for multiple marketing mixes and involves multiple products, targeted towards multiple segments. Focused marketing is for one marketing mix and multiple segments with focus on one segment in particular, who will have control over other segments. Customised marketing is used for one marketing mix per customer as in figure below; For Primark, targeting strategy that I have decided to use is differentiated marketing strategy because we have multiple products and consumers can be segmented into multiple segments, hence best approach to be followed is differentiated marketing approach. Different segments identified are based on age, sex, life style, income level and social status and we have multiple products portfolio that can be targeted towards these various segments. 3.1.3 Positioning In third phase of product positioning all marketing mix elements are designed to fit a given place within a particular segment. This is how consumer perceives products relative position to competitors product which is highly important. It is like developing a marketing strategy aimed at creating and maintaining a desired concept and image for a product or service in consumers mind (See Appendix V for further information). Key to success is identification of attributes that are considered to be more important. Through market research we can identify what factors (attributes) are key drivers of a consumers preference for a brand. For instance, it was identified from a sample of female teenagers that were surveyed, that being trendy and stylish, having a good range of clothing, and good brand reputation, were most important factors for this target market when selecting a preferred brand Young Dimension of fashion retailer Primark. Brand positioning provides insight into brand performance and gives important inputs for marketing communications used to support a brand. Through communications, especially advertising, information can be conveyed about each attribute and in doing so adjust perceptions customers have of brand. As Primark need to reposition the perception market has of its brands from range and quality of clothing to be more trendy and stylish. Primark has emphasized more on in-store service and convenience; and as Budget Fashion retailer, they might want to maintain their current positioning of low price, affordable, but also good value for money. 3.2 Product Marketing Approach A companys performance is closely linked to its marketing strategies. Each companys strategy must be unique since each company is different with respect to customer, brands and competitors. I used Ansoff Matrix to determine product marketing strategies for Primark to set the directions for its business. With this matrix; I plot current and potential products along one axis and current and potential new markets along other axis. Thus it demonstrates low and high risk options and helps to think about business growth with new or existing products in new or existing markets. Each cell of matrix suggests a particular strategic approach. Output from Ansoff matrix is a series of suggested growth strategies. Market penetration is a growth strategy where business runs as usual and focuses on selling existing products into existing markets with good information on competitors and on customer needs. Primark can maintain or increase market share of its current products by a combination of competitive pricing strategies, advertising, sales promotion. Primark has extensive portfolio and it cans secure dominance of growth markets and drive out competitors by more aggressive promotional campaign. For example Primark brand Active, supported by a pricing strategy designed to make market unattractive for competitors. Primark must uses internal promotion strategy by introducing loyalty schemes and increases its usage by existing customer. One of penetration strategy adopted by Primark is expansion of shop floors and opening new stores. Market development is a growth strategy where business seeks to sell its existing products into new markets. There are many possible ways of approaching this strategy, including moving to new geographical markets; for example exporting product to a new country, new product dimensions, new distribution channels, or different pricing policies to attract different customers or create new market segments. I suggest Primark to move online by launching high tech website for online sales. Product development is growth strategy where business aims to introduce new products into existing markets. It requires development of new competencies and to develop modified products which can appeal to existing markets. Diversification is a growth strategy where a business launches new products in new markets. This is an inherently more risk strategy because business is moving into markets in which it has little or no experience. For a business to adopt a diversification strategy, it must have a clear idea about what it expects to gain from strategy and an honest assessment of potential risks. Analysing Primarks position and its strategies over past decade, we can better construct a growth strategy for Primark using Ansoff matrix model below in Figure; 4.2.1 Product Portfolio Analysis Marketing mix refers to set of marketing ingredients and tools a company can use to pursue its marketing objectives in target market. According to Lancaster and Massingham; (1999), it is at marketers decision to choose from an extensive set of marketing components to find right combination while marketing a product. 4Ps form basis of marketing mix. Kotler (1996) describes, â€Å"Marketing Mix is a social and managerial process by which individuals and groups achieve what they need and want through creating and exchanging products and value with others†. Marketing Mix is viewed as combination of elements that contribute to success of an organisation. If market research is carried out effectively, a company can plan a promotion for right product, at right price, and to get it to their chosen market, in right place.Getting this mix right is critical in order to successfully market a product. 4Ps are Product, Price, Promotion, Place as shown in figure below; Primark needs to combine various elements of marketing mix in order to achieve both a competitive advantage in market place and company objectives. Although company has control over these elements of marketing mix, but must cater elements in companys environment over which it has little or no control (figure above). For organisations like Primark although marketing mix must be is consumer-orientated catering not only profitability but also considering customer needs as in figure, Table below shows some of marketing mix decisions for Primark including aspects from each of marketing mix elements. 4.3 Brand Strategy A successful marketing mix contributes to good marketing of a product; hence there must be a brand strategy in place. American Marketing Association (AMA) defines a brand as a name, term, sign, symbol or design, or a combination of them intended to identify goods and services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of other sellers†. (See Appendix VI for characteristics of a brand). A strong brand strategy can increase awareness of a company and its offerings in such a way that establishes strong feelings and reactions and a favorable view towards company as a whole. To begin development of brands strategy for Primark, there must be clear identification of Primary Target Customer and/or Client, Competition Product and Service Mix, Unique Selling Proposition First step in developing brand strategy is defining brands. By defining brand, its easy to create foundation for all other components to build on. Brand definition serves as measuring stick in evaluating marketing strategies. Primark has an extensive brand portfolio; Brand portfolio usually refers to companys set of brands and/or products. The logic behind having a portfolio of brands rather than a single brand is possible diversification and risk minimization. Hence brand portfolio is a treasure trove. Next step is to determine our brands objectives, Primarks branding objectives include: Delivers message clearly Confirms your credibility Connects your target prospects emotionally Motivates buyer Concretes User Loyalty Gaining a specific number of new clients in next year Positioning company as an industry leader in next 12 months To succeed in branding company must understand needs and wants of your customers and prospects. Brand objectives should be comprised of company personality, image, core competencies and characteristics. The impressions that it makes as well as words people will use to describe company to others, are basic framework of a brand.   With a strong brand company builds credibility, has more influence on its market, and motivates customers and clients to purchase from it. If done correctly company will be looked at as a leader not a follower. Identifying marketing targets enables company to find opportunities available. It gives information needed to focus on buyers that are interested in what company has to offer. This can save both time and money in an ever-changing business environment. Power of brand relies on ability to focus target audiences. That is why defining target market will help to strengthen Primarks brands effectiveness. Target market for Primark is people up to age of 35 who are fashion conscious. Next step in developing Primarks brand strategy is to perform a careful analysis to determine principal barriers that it may face. These barriers are also known as market conditions that can keep your product or service from achieving success. The potential barriers in deploying Primarks brand strategy can competition, timing, financing, location, lack of demand, suppliers not meeting demands and targets. In order to face these obstacles its important to spend time doing a careful analysis of products or service to assist in developing brand, and positioning products in the market. Last step in brand strategy is branding companys identity in marketplace where image is all about appearance of packaging. Its important to realize that packaging always either has a negative or positive influence on purchaser. A negative impression can detour a potential customer, just as a positive reaction can influence a customer to buy. A time to pay special attention to packaging is when going to launch a new brand. If youve already built a strong brand that others recognize often people may not pay as close attention to packaging. Packaging is judged and represented by business cards and stationery, web site, answering system, presentation of finished products. Brand equity does not develop instantaneously. A brand needs to be carefully nurtured and marketed so consumers feel real value and trust towards that brand. When a company manages its brands it has a number of strategies it can use to further increase its brand value. (See Appendix VI for further explanation). Brand strategies that are more suitable for Primark are line extension and introduction of new brands. Primark must focus on its brand management as its a dynamic and a continuous process that needs consistent investment of time and it must be allocated a specific budget as it is much more than mere marketing communications. Due to intangible nature of branding, results may not accrue in a short period of time a it takes time and reinforcement to build customer loyalty. Successfully out-branding its competitors is a continuous battle for hearts and minds of your customers. Proposition that Primarks brand strategy makes is very compelling, attractive and unique among competitiv e offerings. It must also be consistently reinforced throughout all phases of an organization, from senior executives to customer service, business development and even business partners. Primark is respected for quality of its products and cheap prices. If we briefly review business environment and other factors identified in this report for Primark then we may realize that consumer behaviour is changing and business environment evolving across retail industry. Concern is rise in suppliers demands regarding price and costs. If it continues to rise steeply it will damage profits that it is currently enjoying. Reviewing forces and factors faced by Primark and their impact on organisation, it is obvious that Primark is facing many challenges and standing at verge of it survival in long term. Market Research World, 2011 revealed that value fashion sector sees worst decline for first time in over 16 years much to gain of higher-priced retailers, reveals data by TNS Worldpanel Fashion. While fashion discounters such as Primark, Tesco, George and Matalan saw a phenomenal sales increase of nearly 30% last summer, growth has now ground to a hold with sales falling by 1% over last six months. In contrast, sales of most expensive clothing are up by 4%, as shoppers head to generally more expensive retailers such as multiples and mail order retailers. Clothing industry has been globalised. Strategies followed by clothing firms, to survive in a context of strong pressure from retailers and from competition from low-wage countries, are a combination of two trends. First trend is relocation of production to low-wage countries; second one is the development of six added-value activities: niche, Quick Response, full package, innovation, branding and retail. Elaine Giles, Research Manager, TNS says, â€Å"Shoppers are starting to favour higher priced retailers and premium end of market is performing well. Growth of value sector last year came on back of new store openings and expansions that brought an influx of new buyers, but now sector seems to have reached saturation point. The only way, budget retailers can continue their success is to increase spend of existing buyers, something they may struggle to do given current retail climate.† 4.0 Strategic Marketing Environment Analysis Primark is one of the leading value clothing retailers in UK. It is highly crucial for an organization like Primark to periodically review its marketing environment to gain competitive advantage in market. Discount cloth retailing in UK has several characteristics including clearance outlets, core business discounters, planned purchasing at high volume, own-label or branding, relationships with manufacturers, attracting customers with good image and service. There are three different analytical tools used to assess marketing environment of an organisation; Porters Five Forces Analysis, SWOT Analysis and PESTLE Analysis. 4.1 Porters Five Forces Analysis First of all Porters Analysis is carried out which is a technique for identifying forces which affect competition level in industry as shown in figure A below; The threat of new entrants in market is a critical element haunting Primark much as there are less entry barriers including low entry costs, high volume of suppliers, vast market in India and china, higher growth space in market, economies of scale, low capital requirements, access to distribution, government policy, low cost product design, access to necessary inputs. But new entrants in industry are not likely to cut their price to defend their market position. In an industry experiencing fast market growth, patents, proprietary knowledge, and brand reputation are also considered as barriers for companies entering industry. Strategic position of a company depends upon the extent to which what it offers is unique and cannot be replaced by something else. Primark has strong brand portfolio which is its uniqueness. As for some of products, like Primark cheap clothing there are alternatives. But there is no substitute for low price of Primarks products. Determinants of these substitution threats include relative price of substitutes, buyer propensity to substitute. Buyers/customers have greatest impact on Primarks strategies as its vision and strategies are customer focused. Hence, it has to cater changing customer trends, their demands and requirements. Customers volume, customer information level and trends, substitute products pull through, price, product difference, brand identity, impact on quality, buyers profit and incentives are few factors that Primark is facing as major challenge in competitive market. Suppliers might have high impact on Primark if they are bigger company and have less competitive market for their products. Primark is facing big challenge from supplier as it has good and long term relationships with its suppliers build on trust but recently three of its main suppliers are found involved in child labour and Primark has to cut-off ties with them immediately which is definitely a big blow for Primark. Primark pays its supplier competitive price for their products to retain them. Primark maintains substitute inputs, and high volume of supplier to avoid extra costs. Apart from five forces identified by Porters Analysis, there are other factors revealed by PESTLE Analysis challenging Primarks position in competitive market, in figure below; (For PESTLE Analysis, refer to Appendix II; and for SWOT Analysis, Appendix III) Strategic marketing analysis of Primark, using different analysis tools reveal that Primark is expanding globally and being in the global market; Primark has adopted an approach of â€Å"Think globally, Act locally† as stated by Armstrong, (2006). They are expanding globally but cater needs of local market and fashion trends in local culture. Primark supports UKs global role by showcasing the best of British fashion to a global customers as well as it reflects how it builds social cohesion and business ethics between customers and its suppliers. Primark faced a major blow to its reputation on 24 June, 2008 after being exposed by and undercover report by BBC exposing it using child labour. Afterwards, Primarks marketing strategy mainly focused to promote itself as ethical organisation with a clear and strict code of conduct to which all suppliers must adhere and which forms part of the terms of their contract. Primark supports nearly two million people through its supply contracts worth  £700 million and is dedicated to improve their standard of living and quality of life. For this, Primark has established ‘Primark Better Lives Foundation (Primark Ethical Trading, 2011 a). In response to the allegations of use of child labour by its suppliers, identified by Panorama (BBC program) Primark stopped buying from three factories in southern India for breaking its Code of Conduct. It also took other major initiatives and is now active member of ETI that announce it ‘Achiever in year 2009-2010 independent audit (Primark Ethical Trading, 2011 b). (For further information on ETI and Primark code of conduct, see Appendix IV) Further apart the positions, greater the opportunity for new brands to enter market, simply because competition is less intense. For example, in fashion retailing there are numerous brands in marketplace all competing with each other across differing core attributes, brand reputation, store presence, price, and clothing quality or trendy and stylish. To show how differing brands might be positioned relative to each other using attribute scores for each brand of fashion retailer we can measure and map brand positioning for respective brands. Figure below shows positioning of a number of fashion retailers using dimensions of price, store presence, and trendy and stylish. Using this list of drivers we can further depict on what we call a perceptual map how different competing brands of fashion retailers in market are positioned according to these drivers.   Understanding complexity associated with different attributes and brands can be made easier by developing a visual representation of each market. These are known as perceptual maps and they are used to determine how various brands are perceived according to key attributes that customers value. Perceptual mappingrepresent a geometric comparison of how competing products are perceived (Sinclair and Stalling, 1990). One thing to note is that closer products/brands are clustered together on a perceptual map, greater the competition. Mapping can provide significant insight into how a market operates. It provides marketers with an insight into how Primarks brands are perceived and it also provides a view about how their competitors brands are perceived. In addition to this substitute products can be uncovered, based on their closeness to each other (Day et al., 1979). All of this data reveals strengths weaknesses that in turn can assist strategic decisions about how to differentiate on attributes that matter to customers and how to compete more effectively in target market. 4.2 Competitor Analysis Like any other business, Primark is also facing tough competition from George at ASDA, Tesco, Marks Spencer, TK Max, Costco, Next, Zara, New Look, Peacock and Matalan. Analysis for each major competitor determines that Primark has better business strength and high market share. It has good financial strengths and high profitability but relatively poor quality of management and low standards of technology position. Primark is paying least attention to its marketing strategies. Marketing represents boundary between marketplace and company, and knowledge of current and emerging happenings in marketplace is extremely important in strategic planning exercise. In relation to competition, several external forces and environmental changes are faced by Primark that need to be considered to formulate its marketing strategy. Currently, Primark is facing high competition with quality competitors like Peacock, Matalan etc. They are offering cheap products as well and growing at tremendous speed, threatening position of Primark. Most of Primark customers are switching to rivals because of their quality products and good marketing strategies which Primark lacks. Marks and Spencer, the biggest rival of Primark has very extensive marketing strategies with strong brand portfolio. They do advertisement on almost every media available; while Primark do not use even single media for advertisement. Marks and Spenc