Importance of Marketing and Growth Strategies for Unilever

This report discusses the importance of marketing for business organizations, with a focus on Unilever. It explains the 7Ps of marketing and how they impact a company's performance. The report also discusses how marketing can be used to remain competitive, using SWOT analysis. Ansoff's growth matrix is explained, along with how it can be used to analyze growth strategies. Finally, the report discusses how digital marketing can improve a company's performance and growth.

Introduction to Marketing

TABLE OF CONTENT
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
Explaining what is meant by Marketing:.....................................................................................3
Defining the extended marketing mix and discuss the considerations an organization should
give for each of the 7Ps. Using examples to illustrate points:.....................................................3
Explaining how a business can use marketing to remain competitive. Using SWOT analysis to
explain answer:............................................................................................................................4
Describing Ansoff’s growth matrix:............................................................................................5
Explaining how Ansoff’s matrix can be used to by an organisation to analyse their growth
strategies:.....................................................................................................................................5
Explaining how an organization can use digital marketing to improve its performance and
growth:.........................................................................................................................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................1

INTRODUCTION
Marketing is one of the most important thing for every business organization as this allow
company to reach wider range of audience and become effective in selling of the product. This
study is based on Unilever, this company is one of the largest retail giant that tend to rule over
the industry. This report will discuss what is marketing and how marketing mix impact
company's performance (Baines, Fill and Rosengren, 2017). Later this report will discuss how
business use marketing to become competitive and will discuss SWOT analysis of chosen
business organization. Later this report will provide clear understanding of Ansoff growth matrix
and its four strategies to expand in the market. At last this report will discuss how digital
marketing impact company's performance and growth.
MAIN BODY
Explaining what is meant by Marketing:
Marketing means promotion of product and service in which marketer try to create brand
awareness for the company, without fuel of marketing, company can not process further and sell
their product. Marketing allow company to attract audience and convert them into potential
consumer, it includes advertising, selling, promotion and overall brand awareness. In simple
words, marketing is main pillar of a company.
Defining the extended marketing mix and discuss the considerations an organization should give
for each of the 7Ps. Using examples to illustrate points:
Product mix: product mix of marketing allow company to set different product and promote
them into the market, Unilever have wide range of product that allow them to capture greater
market share (Išoraitė, 2016).
Place mix: place mix allow company to distribute and sales their product in the market, supply
chain of organization play vital role. Unilever have modern system for distribution and supply of
product allowing them to become competitive.
Price mix: price mix highlight price of product and service as compared to competitor, this mix
allows company to analyse what price will be beneficial. Unilever have penetration pricing
policy allowing them to become more competitive.
Promotion mix: promotion is most important pillar of marketing where company try to promote
their product and service with different marketing methods. Unilever have both, traditional and
digital method to promote their product and service.

Packaging mix: packaging is another important element of marketing that allow company to
improve their packaging to attract consumer, Unilever focus on packaging where they try to
provide maintain sustainability and attract consumer as well.
Positioning mix: positioning is marketing mix that allow company to position their product and
service in the market, Unilever position their product to attract consumer from those market
segment where they can generate revenue.
People mix: people are consumer and consumer have habit of buying and consuming product,
this mix highlight mentality of people in buying of the product (Thabit and Raewf, 2018).
Unilever try to analyse mentality of consumer by understanding their purchasing behaviour.
Explaining how a business can use marketing to remain competitive. Using SWOT analysis to
explain answer:
Strength: strength of business organization lies in uniqueness they have, innovative product of
company allow them to get strong presence in the market. Strength of Unilever lies in stable
management they have, this company focus on better working condition with diverse culture that
promote internal capabilities (GURL, 2017). Unilever policy and procedures structure allow
them to become stable and create sustainable business process.
Weakness: weakness of company lies in poor management and poor working environment, it is
very clear that when leaders of business are ineffective then internal abilities become weak and
company started to loss its grip. Unilever have strong leadership and proper management but at
some point culture of this company become weakness, diversity is not mainly promote which
weaken the internal stability.
Opportunity: opportunity is one of the most important thing for business organization, this
allows them to boost their speed. Most of the business opportunity lies in effective marketing
where company try to unlock those areas which have not been explored yet. Unilever is one
those companies to catch opportunity quickly and manufacture those products to fulfil the
demand. Unilever have opportunity to explore untapped market with brand image they created.
Threat: every business organization have to face threat from external environment where
movement of competitor become the biggest barrier for the company, Unilever face threat from
its competitors which continuously impact company and its growth. Unilever is market leader
but its competitor are ready to provide neck to neck competition and push company down. For

example Nestle provide neck to neck competition to Unilever with wide range of innovative
product and service in the market.
Describing Ansoff’s growth matrix:
Ansoff matrix is one of the most effective expansion strategy that allow company to
expand their business with different method, this tool focus on growth of the business and
analyse risk that occur during expansion process (Dawes, 2018). Every business organization use
this method to expand their business in exiting market or in new market with new product.
Ansoff matrix unlock certain doors for business and allow them to enter untapped market and
create opportunity to survive this market.
Explaining how Ansoff’s matrix can be used to by an organisation to analyse their growth
strategies:
Market penetration: market penetration means business focus on existing market with existing
product. Unilever use this strategy to increase their sales with effective marketing, this company
focus on innovation if they use market penetration process because product innovation is only
method to make company hit in highly competitive market and allow them to survive harsh
market condition.
Product development: product development allow business to focus on new product in exiting
market. Unilever use this strategy to survive competitive market, this company develop new
product in exiting market, R&D team of Unilever try to scan market and analyse demand of
those products which is not been developed by the company yet.
Market development: market development focus on existing product with new market, this
method is quite beneficial for the company because entering new market with existing product
might attract pool of customer (Loredana, 2017). Unilever uses its brand image and reputation to
introduce its exiting product in new market, consumer of new market carefully example brand
image and purchase product accordingly.
Diversification: diversification means business try to enter new market with new product, this
method is quite complicated for the company because entering new market with new product
might become major risk for company and lead to issue in home country as well. Unilever is one
those companies who have skills to enter new market with new product, there are many cases
where Unilever successfully enter new market with new product and survived highly competitive
market.

Explaining how an organization can use digital marketing to improve its performance and
growth:
Digital marketing is one of the most common term in today's modern world, this not only
allows business organization to use digital platform to promote their product and service and
increase brand awareness but help company to become market leader, Unilever online marketing
to provide access to consumer in purchasing of the product through online mean (Bala and
Verma, 2018). There are benefit of digital marketing, these are:
Wider reach and expansion: digital marketing allow company to reach wider range of audience
across the world, it is very clear that audience from different nation only can access product
information through digital means. Unilever use digital marketing to promote their product to
different nation, reaching international audience is now easier for the company.
Brand awareness: brand awareness is one of the most important pillar of digital marketing, this
allows company to build brand image in front audience. Digital marketing focus building that
brand which can reach desired audience and can survive highly competitive market, Unilever
build brand image with the help of digital market, this company use powerful SEO that generate
effective search panel for the company.
Cost effective: digital marketing is cost effective which means business can be free from those
extra charges which is been implemented on print form of marketing. For example; printing
news article for marketing is costly for company as newspaper may charge higher rate. Unilever
avoid use of print marketing as prefer digital marketing to improve performance and its growth.
With cost-effectiveness, Unilever able to generate better revenue and improve their brand image,
digital marketing not only allow them to cut extra cost but this allows them to generate higher
profit as this can be reach across the world.
CONCLUSION
This report has discussed marketing and its importance in business organization,
marketing is fuel that boost speed of business. Later this report has discussed concept of
marketing and provided clear understanding on 7P's of marketing with appropriate examples.
Later this report has discussed how marketing allow company to become competitive and
provided SWOT analysis of chosen organization to understand strength and weakness. Later this
report has discussed Ansoff Matrix and analysed its importance in expansion process with four

strategies. At last this report has discussed how digital marketing allow company to improve
their performance and growth in the process.

REFERENCES
Books and journals
Baines, P., Fill, C. and Rosengren, S., 2017. Marketing. Oxford University Press.
Bala, M. and Verma, D., 2018. A critical review of digital marketing. M. Bala, D. Verma (2018).
A Critical Review of Digital Marketing. International Journal of Management, IT &
Engineering, 8(10), pp.321-339.
Dawes, J., 2018. The Ansoff matrix: A legendary tool, but with two logical problems. But with
Two Logical Problems (February 27, 2018).
GURL, E., 2017. SWOT analysis: A theoretical review.
Išoraitė, M., 2016. Marketing mix theoretical aspects. International Journal of Research-
Granthaalayah, 4(6), pp.25-37.
Loredana, E.M., 2017. The use of Ansoff matrix in the field of business. Annals-Economy
Series, 2, pp.141-149.
Thabit, T. and Raewf, M., 2018. The evaluation of marketing mix elements: A case
study. International Journal of Social Sciences & Educational Studies, 4(4).
1