This assignment explores the various marketing strategies implemented by H&M to reach its objectives. It delves into the application of the marketing mix, examines key decisions regarding product lines, and culminates in a proposed plan designed to enhance H&M's business success.
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Marketing Essentials 1
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Table of Contents INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3 LO1.................................................................................................................................................3 P1 Roles and responsibilities of marketing function..............................................................3 P2 Roles and responsibilities of marketing relate to wider organisational context................5 LO2..................................................................................................................................................7 P3 Concept of marketing mix.................................................................................................7 LO3..................................................................................................................................................9 P4 Marketing plan for H&M..................................................................................................9 CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................14 REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................15 2
INTRODUCTION Market is an important place where exchange of goods and services take place in order to create value. The essentials of the marketing involve products and services that are available and are in the latest trend. With the help of marketing essential concept, the demand and competitor analysis of market is done which helps in delivering the desired results for the enterprise (Babin and Zikmund, 2015). This way the anticipated level of standards is achieved and the satisfaction of customers is achieved. H&M is a fast fashion organization which is known for producing the latest trend clothing for different age group people of the market (Griffin and Ebert, 2010). The following report will discuss the roles and responsibilities of marketing manager which will help in understanding how it interrelates with other departments of the organization too. Thereafter the concept of marketing mix will also be discussed which will aid in knowing how the referred enterprise is taking its decision regarding the distinct important areas. LO1 P1 Roles and responsibilities of marketing function H&M is a big brand which has its stores in different parts of the world. It is a Sweden based enterprise which was founded in 1947 by Erling Persson with a view of capturing maximum market share. There are a number of departments which are formulated under this brand among which the marketing division is the most crucial one (Rossi, Allenby and McCulloch, 2012). The roles and duties which are performed by the marketing function is crucial and helps the enterprise in achieving its targets. The prime responsibility of this section is to ensure that effective services are delivered in the market so that the maximum returns are achievedandprofitmarginsaremaintained.Inordertounderstandhowthemarketing department is important for H&M the roles and responsibilities of same are discussed below: Marketing and promotion– In order to sell goods and services properly in the market it is of great importance that the same are promoted in the most effective manner. The mode of advertisement has to be one which is capable of capturing maximum share of market as this way the growth of H&M can be ensured. The advertising department does proper evaluation of organization and selects the best way to reach different customers. With the help of this function the marketing department communicate all the aspects of its products and prove its products better than the other in the same field (Brassington and Pettitt, 2013). H&M is also using this 3
department in order to interact with its potential buyers so that the sales volume can be increased. Variety of techniques are used to reach at clients which has direct impact on the business done in a particular financial year. Market analysis– As H&M is dealing in sector which has a number of competitors and therefore it is important for this enterprise do proper marketing research so that appropriate decisionistaken(Joshi,2012).Themarketingdepartmenthelpsinidentifyingthekey challengers of the brand as this way the production department bring changes in its current production so that better products are manufactured. Apart from this the marketing department also provide all the information that is associated with the organization like the optimum price that should be maintained and the latest trends in the market so that according changes in own product is made. Identifying market opportunities and new segments– In order to grow on a continuous basis, it is important for the enterprise to maintain innovation in the existing products. This can be done by deep analyzing the possible positive chances which are available for H&M so that the same are adopted and growth is experienced. With the help of marketing department, it is identified that which new areas can be covered in order to reach at more customers and increase in revenue is done. H&M promotion team work continuously in identifying new segments for which production can be done so that the sales are increased. Improvement in the quality– With the help of marketing function the products and services of H&M are compared with that of other brands which helps in reaching at top quality output. When clothes are produced after setting the quality standards they are more effective and are capable of raising the customer satisfaction level (Caragher, 2016). Facilitates innovation– Be it H&M or any other organization ensuring changes on a continuous basis is of great importance. It helps in maintaining the interest of customers which has its direct impact on the goodwill of the firm. Those enterprises which maintain changes in the offerings on regular basis are found to be more effective and responsible in the eyes of customers. Marketing department of the referred organization facilitates change by providing the required information on time so that no chance of attracting more clients is missed out. Act as a medium to communicate– It is important to ensure the required level of interaction between customers and the organization as their suggestions helps in making improvements in the current system (Brady, 2014). When feedback are received from the clients 4
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it acts as a guideline for the enterprises towards identifying the key areas that need to be developed. This way the errors are reduced which is important to develop long term connection with the clients. Setting up of pricing margins for different customers– In market there are a variety of customers who belong to different segments and it is important that product is made available according to them. H&M has to take are about its final price as it should be such which is capable of capturing maximum market share. When the brand is capable of maintaining price differentiation demand for same raises to a great extent and hence the sales gets improved. Understanding the goals of an enterprise– In order to achieve the desired results, it is important that the goals and objectives of the enterprise is clearly communicated to all so that accordingly uniformity is maintained in the enterprise. This way the marketing department ensures that all the necessary message is delivered on time so that no risk is faced due to miscommunication or confusion in what is being expected by the management (Charles, JOSEPH and CARL, 2011). P2Roles and responsibilities of marketing relate to wider organisational context In an organisation different departments have their own roles and responsibilities and therefore it is required that there is a direct connection between each section so that collectively they can contribute in the growth of business. Though the work done by each department is different but they have strong interrelationships and need to maintain coordination among them so that accordingly goals are achieved. Marketing is an effective function of an enterprise which has its impact on overall business and has maximum contribution n taking business to a next level (Thomas, 2011). The roles and duties of the concern department in relation to the wider organisation context is discussed below: Research and development section– In order to maintain changes in the organisation on a continuous basis this department works continuously in which it does the research for which marketing department provides great assistance. It ensures that effective information is provided to the concern department so that it can work on implementing same. The officials of marketing department do the market study on continuous basis so that the latest trends are identified and are adopted in own business which helps in attracting more customers. Production and operationaldepartment– In order to avoid the unavailability in market it is important that continuity in the supply is maintained for which it is required that the 5
optimum level of quantity is produced. Marketing department is in direct connection with the customers and hence does the study about the current demand prevailing in for the products. The same information is shared with the production department so that it can plan its activities accordingly and can also do the arrangements if gap is found (Dibb and Simkin, 2013). Apart from the quantity it is also important that the manufacturing department is provided information about the quality of products that are already delivered in the market. Marketing sections gathers the feedback from the customers and deliver the same to the production department and on the basis of same improvements are made so that the next time when a unit is produced it gives maximum satisfaction to the user. Gradually this way the errors are reduced in the enterprise and management reach to the no error system of production. This way the efficiency level of the enterprise gets improved in the long run and hence it become easy to achieve the targets. Finance department– In an organisation the financial department is one of the most importantdivisionasitlooksafterfinancewhichisacrucialresponse (Perreault, 2010). It is required that all the required information is delivered to officials concern with this department so that they can accordingly plan their future activities and can make the arrangements if required. Marketing department is efficient enough in identifying the future requirements of the company by conducting investigations on possible change that might take place in the coming time. It is important that arrangements are done in advance so that the operations of H&M do not get hamper. When the marketing division study the market it analyses the areas in which more investment is demanded and provide these statics to the financial department. Human resource department– Managing personnel in the referred enterprise is of great importance as it helps in marinating continuity in daily operations. It is important that the process of recruitment and selection is carried out in a manner that no vacancy is kept vacant for a long time as it directly effects the profit margin of the enterprise. With the help of marketing department H&M conducts is recruitment process and attracts different candidates to apply for the job. On the basis of job role, the mode of selecting employees is chosen as it is important that the message of company regarding different job roles reaches to maximum people. if the company is successful in getting the potential resumes than it is said that that the marketing team is effective enough in bringing good candidates to apply for different jobs (Durmaz, 2011). 6
IT department– To compete with the competitive business world it is important that the latest technology is used by the enterprise as only then long term position is maintain by the organisation in the market (William and Jerome, 2012). With the advancement in technology the pressureon companiesalso raisesto ensurecontinuous market improvementsfor which marketing team takes efforts so that it can update the technology department regarding what changes need to be made. This helps in giving good competition to the other brands who are dealing in same industry as when the production is done using latest application it is more cost effective and better in quality. Apart from this the new software’s developed are also helpful in maintaining the records and storing them for long run which is of great importance as promptness of organisation as whole is improved in this way. through marketing research this software’s are identified so that they can be implemented within business (Hauer, 2011). The above discussion shows how there are a number of departments are there in the referred enterprise and are responsible for their distinct roles and responsibilities. Marketing department is associated in some or the other way with these divisions and help them in producing their effective outputs so that competitive advantage is received. LO2 P3 Concept of marketing mix In order to promote a particular brand and to take effective decisions the concept of marketing mix is used as through the same judgements associated with the core areas are taken so that best results can be achieved (Pike, 2015). Ever organisation has their own way of using the tools of marketing mix and therefore in order to understand how it is used in H&M a discussion of same is given below in comparison to ZARA which is another leading company in fashion industry and is known for quality of products. Earlier there were only 4Ps that were covered in the marketing mix concept but later with the increase in demand of same more elements were added which further added value to the marketing mix concept. The comparative study between ZARA and H&M is given below: Product– It is one of the most effective element of marketing mix. This helps in identifying the different products in which a company should deal in so that profit margins are raised to maximum. The referred brand has a minimum of two thousand merchandise under its portfolio. H&M is producing variety of products for its customers who belong to differ segments. 7
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The line of products that are offered by H&M are jeans, pants inner wear, accessories etc. if compared with Zara H&M gives more focus on its female customers as there are more product variety in women swear (Joshi, 2012). Zara on the other hand gives equal weight to both male and female which makes it more competent and demanding in the market. As H&M produces variety for female’s children and males are less friendly this brand in compare to Zara. An effective attention is given towards maintenance of quality of products by H&M so that it can capture the maximum market share (Nguyen and Simkin, 2012). Price– Pricing strategy of Zara and H&M both are different and these are competitive advantage for company. Although, H&M is offering two thousand more options than Zara but both are dealing in same kind of products still having distinct pricing which is due to the variations of production system followed and standards maintain by each brand. It is found that the prices of H&M are higher than that of Zara which makes it less demanding in the market. Zara offers more options to the customers at low price making it more famous and demanding in the market. It shows that H&M is using the strategy of premium pricing and has focused on attracting high class economy customers (Lamb, Hair and McDaniel, 2011). It is important that more attention is given to the production team so that it can do more appropriate work which is supported with less cost. Place– The selection of location by H&M is done very specifically as it selects the major cities to open its stores which makes it different from their brands. It also gives the options of franchising which further raises the total market share for the organisation as this way the presence of H&M at global level gets increased. Apart from this the referred enterprise also provide the option of doing online shopping for its customers which has direct impact on the total market share. This facility of sales makes the brand more demanding. Cheap labour is found in the online business which reduce the cost for the enterprise hence having a positive impact on the prices of final output. In order to target its different customers, the brand is focusing on giving more efforts on developing good supply chain management so that non availability of product is avoided (LEHTINEN and MÄKINEN, 2012). It is also ensured that the transportation cost is kept minimum as this has direct impact on the cost of goods reduced on the other hand ZARA is not doing online business and has its outlets in differ cities which restricts it total sales. Promotion– In order to capture greater market, share it is important that effective promotion tools are used. H&M is effective enough in reaching to its various customers as it uses 8
variety ofmarketingtools whicharecapable ofattracting customers. Themulti-channel promotion tools of H&M are helping this brand in reaching to customers and also ensuring effective communication with them. TV advertisement, you tube, digital marketing is the most commonly used platforms for H&M through which information regarding the new product is communicated in the market. On the other hand, Zara do not believe in promoting their products on social platforms or using advertisements to communicate with its customers. It saves the promotion cost and use same on other productive purpose like on raising the quality of products. This way the total prise of commodities is also saved and hence indirectly the market share is raised. H&M use the tool of sponsorship in order to create brand value in market like taking assistance from different celebrities to promote brand in a particular region which add cost to the firm and the same is finally charged against the final products (Marshall and Johnston, 2011). Process– In order to retain the potential customers of H&M employees are provided with effective training as they have dirt impact on the company’s profit. The referred organisation is using the system of customer care services as through this the complains of different clients are answered and resolved which develop long term connections among the brand and customers. Apart from this it is also ensured that customers who are visiting the outlet are provided with a helping hand so that they do not find it difficult to select their products. Zara also give much emphasis on using the digital media to deal with the customer’s feedbacks and complains so that the same is resolved in short period of time. Physical evidence– The stores of H&M are designed in a manner that customers do not find it difficult to find what they want. Good ambience is maintained with the availably of polite staff members. Zara is also very much specific with the kind of surroundings they kept in the stores. The employees are well dressed and theme is maintained so that uniformity is established and a good impression is given to all those who is visiting to the Zara stores (McDaniel, Lamb and Hair, 2012). LO3 P4 Marketing plan for H&M In order to expand the present scale of operations it is required that a new marketing plan is constructed so that improvements are made and better market share is captured. In order to beat the other brand, the following plan can be formulated: 9
Mission Statement:This statement of H&M can be described in terms of its tag-line, i.e. 'Fashion & Quality at Best Price'. Therefore, main mission of this retailer company is - “ Believe in better fashion future, which makes fair and sustainable trendy products at affordable price rates”. Vision Statement:“To lead the change towards a fair, equal and circular fashion industry”, is the main vision statement of H&M. Situational Analysis:This analysis support managers of H&M in building a better marketing plan which increase the effectiveness of business activities. It also entails information related to current needs and demand of customers. It includes:Market analysis:Since H&M operates in fashion industry where low product life-cycle creates a large impact on profitability of business. In this regard, marketplace consists with various risks due to emergence and changing pattern of fashion.Customer analysis:This company generally targets to all age group including men, women and kids. But it focuses more on demand pattern of youngsters. Competitive analysis:As business model of H&M is mainly depends on physical stores where footfall of customers determine the effectiveness of brand. Due to efficient supply of products through online sources, companies like Zara, Morrisons and other, have gain advantage to retain customers towards their services. So, it assist H&M to adopt new techniques to attract people. Marketing objectives To make the brand more famous in the market To focus on increasing sales through reducing total cost SWOT analysis of H&M StrengthWeaknesses Presenceatgloballevelwhich improves the total number of sales in a particular financial year. Thisbrandhascollaborationwitha number of brands which further helps in raising total sales as the resources getsimprovedwhencollaborationis As the company is focusing more on producing products for women’s the major weakness of this brand is that it lacks variety for other segments. The other weakness of this brand is that its pricesaretoohighwhichmakesitless demanding in the market. 10
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done. Keepingthestockupdatedwiththe markethelpsinbuildingtrustin between brand and its customers. The referred brand also faces a major drawback of having limited range of styles. OpportunitiesThreats As the organisation is lacking behind in offering different range of styles H&M can raise its sales by working more on bringing additional styles. Itcanalsousethesocialmedia platforms to reach more costumers and canusetheirfeedbacksformaking improvements. More attention should be given on the promotionstrategiessothatthe competitive advantage is achieved and hence the overall growth is ensured. The major threat for H&M is from its major competitors such as Zara and Gap. Anotherthreatfacedbythisbrandisof continuouschangeinthetrendswhich fluctuatesthedemandfortheproductsof H&M. Changesthattakeplaceintheeconomic conditions also has a direct impact on the sales ofreferredbrandandhencestabilityis demanded to have a normal business. Marketing Strategy– In order to capture greater market, share the referred organisation can take help of targeting its customers so that accordingly the products are produced. This way it is analysed that what is being most demanded in the market so that accordingly changes are made in own products. Targeting positions are the various strategies through which the same can be done. Segmentation:H&M operates its business in fashionable industry with products like trendy clothes and accessories. Therefore, it segmented customers in terms of demographic, psycho-graphic and geographical manner like age, race, income, personality attributes, brand loyalty and more. Targeting:Since H&M work with various sub-brand in marketplace, therefore, it uses targeting strategies. It mainly target college going youngsters and youth who like to acquire trendy clothes. 11
Positioning:In terms of offering a variety of products, at best price, present company has acquired a good position among other retailers at UK. 12
Porter's Growth strategies:Under this stage, H&M use cost differentiation techniques and offer its products on low cost in order to attract customers. Marketing mix: Place:H&M is considered as the second largest retailer in clothing sector in entire world having distributors in near about 55 countries. People can easily find its retail stores in malls and shopping area. Product:H&M is one of the most trust able brand and his core range of products brand of fashion includes accessories, and clothing like sleeved, basic jumpers, jewelry andshoes. The company focus on quality as well as latest fashion. Price:The company offers many discounts and schemes on their fresh and core stock and most important fact of H&M has been capable for supply quality items at lower price ranges. Promotion:Its managers use electronic technologies and social media to promote its products in vast area of marketplace. Budget:This part entails requirement of funds for completing business operations in desired manner:- Marketing budget Particulars 1st year 2nd year 3rd year4th year5th year Capital400001800380020004000 Investments16500161001700019500 Total4000018300199001900023500 Marketing expenditures Promotion70006000600030005000 Sales60001000500040001000 Marketing30001300210023001100 13
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Internet Marketing20001000400030003000 Networking100060008000130001700 Printing6007006002007500 Advertising40009000600013002500 Total2360025000317002680021800 Control, evaluation and review:It is the last phase under which different strategies are evaluated by managers for determining effectiveness of business. In order to control business activities, managers of H&M make policies and different strategies. It helps in attracting customers towards products or services as well as get their retention for longer profitability also. CONCLUSION From the above report this has been summarised that there are major roles that are performed by a marketing manager in H&M as it helps the brand in achieving it goals and objectives. With the help of different tools like marketing mix proper decisions regarding the important areas like in which product the organisation should deal in etc. Lastly the file concluded with a new plan for the organisation which can help in doing better business. 14
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