No AI Generated Content
Introduction: Marketing Analysis and Recommendations for Marks & Spencer Group PLC
Get free samples written by our Top-Notch subject experts for taking online assignment help services.
In all industries, market rivalry is developing rapidly, which is why it is critical for companies to understand market competition so that they can operate more effectively. Marks & Spencer group plc is a retail company with headquarters in London. The company is having 1463 stores worldwide which are going to be a great factor for the profit margins and there are 78,000 employees working (Swinney, 2019). The marketing position is critical that understands its customers and ensures the company's survival, growth, and reputation in the marketplace. Customers are understood on an individual basis, and the company's innovation and improvement are carried out in accordance, resulting in a better working environment. Quality of the products and demands of the clients have to be the same to make the sales be higher. Advertisement is also done by Marks & Spencer’s market team so that they would be able to have a better capture of the clients. The report will include internal and external market study and there is marketing mix which helps in having a better plan for the growth.
Pestle And Swot Analysis
It is critical for the organisation to analyse both its internal and external environments to improve its overall functioning and planning. SWOT analysis for internal factors and PESTLE analysis for external variables will be used below.
Swot
This is a strong tool that firms can use to design their plans and ensure that they are effective.
Strengths Market experience - Marks & Spencer is having a good experience of the market but the methods are traditional. The organization's performance in the market has improved as a result of its experience, which is a critical component (de Sabando and et.al., 2018). Online - Customers have switched to online services as a result of social media, which is why Marks and Spencer has larger profit margins (Mitchell and Balabanis, 2021). This is assisting the company in saving money and time, both of which are important factors. |
Weaknesses Manual costs - M&S uses archaic processes and techniques to create its apparel line, putting a constraint on their ability to function. The government is also modifying labour restrictions and rules to improve the system's efficiency. Employee wages must be increased, and M&S employs 80,000 people, putting a strain on their finances. Sales decline - In 2017, the company over 14 stores due to a lack of sales, resulting in a loss (Shiu, 2017). As a result of this, the company's customer base shrank, and customers moved to other stores in the area. |
Opportunities Online opportunities - There must be numerous campaigns that can help the firm obtain a fantastic opportunity. The company gained a competitive advantage by going online and serving consumers all over the world, which is a terrific way to gain more attention and reputation in the industry (Baker and Saren, 2016). Demands - Marks and Spencer’s products are very popular in Asia, thus it's critical for the company to expand in that region. The Asians favour traditional clothing, which must be preserved for Marks & Spencer to maintain better profit margins in the market (Sodhi and Tang, 2019). |
Threats Competition - In today's market, competition is increasing, and it's critical for the company to be able to keep up with it to retain profit margins. M&S has been in business for 136 years, which means they have a huge reputation and client base, as a result, many changes are occurring (Illiashenko and Strielkowski, 2016). The organisation will need to assess market competition and adjust its procedures and tactics accordingly to get better results. |
Pestle
To improve the organization's performance in the market, there must be effective monitoring and control of external environmental conditions.
Factor |
Impact |
|
Political |
Political parties in the country are stable, which is beneficial to organisations in the long run. The group has developed free trade policies to improve market functioning. |
The company has a low cost for the trades that take place, resulting in a solid profit margin for a lengthy period of time in the market (Fitzpatrick, 2017). |
Economic |
As the country's GDP rises, customers will be able to pay more for the high-quality goods and services that the company produces for them. |
This is beneficial to the corporation since profit margins will grow and will be able to perform more successfully in the market. |
Social |
Trends have shifted to social media therefore it is important for the company to have a place for themselves online as well so that they can have the right value in the market. |
It is critical for the company to be able to function well and understand its customers to preserve profit margins (Keegan, 2017). |
Technological |
The company will need to maintain track of the raw materials and deliveries that are being sent to customers so that both the company and its customers are aware of the products (Siemieniako and Gbarowski, 2016). |
It is critical that manual labour be reduced in the company and that the technology part is increased so that client expectations can be satisfied on a regular basis, allowing them to improve its market reputation. |
Environmental |
The corporation has developed effective disposal processes and strategies to improve its efficiency. The company has developed a number of environmentally friendly strategies to improve its efficiency. |
The environment is affecting the transportation industry, and if the company takes the appropriate measures in accordance with government rules, it will be able to contribute to climate change (Chernev, 2018). |
Legal |
There are no workplace discriminations, so the internal atmosphere can be healthy, allowing M&S to have effective productivity and operations in the market. |
Employees are the organization's backbone, and they must be provided rights so that it may quickly gain a competitive advantage (Olson and et.al., 2018). |
Analysis Of Marketing Mix
There are a number of factors that the company will need to address to reclaim their strong market reputation.
Marketing Tactical Tools |
Current Strategy (based on each P) applied by M&S |
Evaluation/argument on the effectiveness of each marketing tool currently applied by M&S |
Product |
Customers complain about the company's and efficiently in response to their requests. |
The items that the company is developing are highly beneficial, but the most appealing product is the sports bottle, which is a new link with the clients (Danko and et.al., 2018). |
Price |
Customers must feel at ease with the company for it to perform properly, resulting in increased income generation. |
Only by promoting the team will they be able to restore the company's reputation and market share, both of which were lost in 2017 (Zhang and et.al., 2018). |
Promotion |
There are old and new ways, but the corporation will have to employ both. For marketing, the company will focus more on the new methods because society has fast changed to them. |
Social media is the finest medium for advertising because it may attract proper people and get them to shop online, increasing the company's sales (Terho and Jalkala, 2017). |
Place |
M&S closed 14 locations in 2017, owing to the fact that they were unable to earn a profit. UK is an excellent market for the corporation to invest to resurrect their rivalry. |
The company placing the products according to the location and have the right customer base impacting on the economic factor. |
People |
People are easily attracted to the organisation since there are numerous discounts, offers, and other promotional strategies that they employ from time to time. |
Employees will also be found in large numbers, which will aid the company in increasing production and ensuring long-term viability (Taheri, O'Gorman, and Baxter, 2016). |
Process |
There is a lot of competition in the market, which the company must contend with to establish a stronger foothold. |
Many firms have their headquarters in London, thus the company will need a strong foundation to run, which will aid in better operating (Wali, Uduma and Wright, 2016). |
Physical evidence |
The company plans to develop a variety of appealing stores as well as a well-designed website to attract more clients. |
The comfort of the clients will be prioritised in the new items that are being developed to have a better experience. |
Sales And Negotiation Skills Applied In The Organization
There are a lot of skills which I have observed from sales and negotiation sessions which understand the expectations of the clients and the demands so that the company would be able to gain their trust and loyalty on time. Team working and listening is another very important factor which I have learned from the session. To get in new products in the market, Marks & Spencer is also using them so that they can get in the right working and value does not fall. I understood that these skills can help the marketing team which I observed that needs to be very strong and make sure that the targets are being achieved from time to time. Marketing team must be good with problem solving and communication as well so that they would find it easier to make sure that the objectives of Marks & Spencer are being achieved on time.
Conclusion
From the above report it can be concluded that there are a lot of factors which needs to improve upon with time but the most important factor for Marks & Spencer is advertisement. Using the social media effectively, the organization would be able to make a strong place for them in the market which is going to be good for the overall sales as well. Objective of the company is to find sustainable customers and profit margins which make them have a competitive advantage.
Recommendations
Marks & Spencer will be taking the right actions for marketing so that they can have the right place in market. Social media and advertisement needs to improve and be stronger as well so that they would be able to have the right working for the long run as well.
Marketing Tactical Tools |
Recommendations to each P |
Product |
Innovation and invention should be invested upon by Marks & Spencer to find a better customer base. |
Price |
The company must use skimming pricing strategy to be able to gain more customers than the competitors. |
Promotion |
Social media has to be invested upon and its importance needs to be learned in the company as well. |
Place |
Impact to be better on the clients then the organization must have a good survey to open more stores. |
People |
Staff must be well trained according to the standards of the company and all the customers must be given better services. |
Process |
Internal working has to be improved to match the demands and operations to be faster. |
Physical evidence |
Infrastructure and more stores globally must be started to find the right working and placing for themselves in the market. |
References
Books and Journals
Baker, M.J. and Saren, M. eds., 2016. Marketing theory: a student text. Sage.
Danko, T.P and et.al., 2018. Foresight in management as a tool for the design transformation of marketing management of the potentials of small and medium-sized businesses. International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology. 9(13). pp.1105-1113.
de Sabando, R and et.al., 2018. The marketing orientation as a university management philosophy: a framework to guide its application.
Fitzpatrick, H., 2017. Marketing Management for Non-marketing Managers: Improving Returns on Marketing Investments. John Wiley & Sons.
Illiashenko, S.M. and Strielkowski, W., 2016. Managing economic growth: marketing, management and innovations.
Keegan, W.J., 2017. Global marketing management. Pearson India.
Mitchell, V.W. and Balabanis, G., 2021. The role of brand strength, type, image and product-category fit in retail brand collaborations. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. 60. p.102445.
Olson, E.M and et.al., 2018. The application of human resource management policies within the marketing organization: The impact on business and marketing strategy implementation. Industrial Marketing Management. 69. pp.62-73.
Shiu, E. ed., 2017. Research Handbook of Innovation and Creativity for Marketing Management. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Siemieniako, D. and G?barowski, M., 2016. B2B Relationship marketing management in trade fair activity. Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
Sodhi, M.S. and Tang, C.S., 2019. Research opportunities in supply chain transparency. Production and Operations Management. 28(12). pp.2946-2959.
Swinney, J.H., 2019. Marks and Spencer Made Me. Postcolonial Text. 14(3 & 4).
Taheri, B., O’Gorman, K. and Baxter, I., 2016. Contemporary issues in museums and heritage marketing management: introduction to the special issue.
Terho, H. and Jalkala, A., 2017. Customer reference marketing: Conceptualization, measurement and link to selling performance. Industrial Marketing Management. 64. pp.175-186.
Wali, A.F., Uduma, I.A. and Wright, L.T., 2016. Customer relationship management (CRM) experiences of Business-to-Business (B2B) marketing firms: A qualitative study. Cogent Business & Management. 3(1). p.1183555.
Zhang, D and et.al., 2018. Eco-labeling and retailer pricing strategies: The UK Haddock Market. Sustainability. 10(5). p.1522.