Contents INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................................3 TASK 1.......................................................................................................................................................3 P1 Market audit of Aldi...........................................................................................................................3 TASK 2.......................................................................................................................................................6 P2 Finding and setting smart business objectives....................................................................................6 TASK 3.......................................................................................................................................................8 P3 Marketing mix of Aldi........................................................................................................................8 TASK 4.....................................................................................................................................................10 P4 Measures of customer satisfaction...................................................................................................10 CONCLUSION.........................................................................................................................................12 REFERENCES..........................................................................................................................................13
INTRODUCTION Marketing management connotes the planning, directing and controlling the procedure of promotion and advertisement of specific product or service by a business enterprise. In this report, principles and concepts of marketing management is applied on Aldi. Aldi is a German discount supermarket chain. It is a family business split in two parts Aldi Nord and Aldi Sud. It was founded in the year 1946 by two brothers Karl Albrecht and Theo Albrecht. The report includes the statement and justification of marketing objective according to SMART model. The report covers explanation of principles and common practice of marketing audits. The report also includes assessment of Aldi competitive position using TOWS matrix. The report contains marketing plan of 12 months(Kotler, and et. Al., 2018) . TASK 1 P1 Market audit of Aldi Marketing Audit Marketing audit is an analysis of internal and external marketing environment of business enterprise. It comprises of all elements of marketing such as strategy, tactics, positioning, target
market, advertisement media and pitching process. It is used to find out the areas of improvement, loophole in marketing plan, issue and recommended plan of actions. TOWS analysis TOWS analysis is performed to understand the external threats and opportunities that come with the existing internal weaknesses and strengths. These factors are thoroughly studied to create a marketing framework that produces the best results when implemented at Aldi(Keegan, 2017) . TOWS matrix of Aldi AldiStrengthsWeaknesses 1.Effective utilization of the channels 2.Brand position 1.Researchand development 2.Less diversified team Opportunities1.Onlinepresence- updated website 2.E-commerce 3.Social media 4.Seasonal deals Threats1.Competitors 2.Online media 3.Suppliers 1.New entrants 2.Exchange rates Strengths:Aldi uses the marketing media channels wisely. It sends promotional emails, posts regularly on social media accounts, engage in public relations activities. Among the sea of strong competitors, Aldi positions itself as a brand that provides high quality products in fewer prices than its competitors. It also uses advertising campaign strategies like ‘Like Brands’ to attract prospective customers(Deepak, and Jeyakumar, 2019) 1.. 2.Weaknesses:Aldi is investing less than recommended resources on the research and development. It is important to understand the needs and desires of the audience to before exposing any product promotion in front of them. Any strategy that is not based on the expectations of the audience end up as failure wasting the time and the money of the
Paraphrase This Document
Need a fresh take? Get an instant paraphrase of this document with our AI Paraphraser
brand. Most of the team members working at Aldi are the native citizens. Audience observes and form perception about a brand. This brand perception helps in determining the brand loyalty in customers. Audience is more likely to shop in an environment where they feel inclusive and respected. 3.Opportunities:the internet is a contemporary medium for marketing. It has never been this simple and economic to reach to the audience. It gives an opportunity to send the message across a wide audience as well as keep a check on what audience thinks of the brands and the experience they have with the brand. It’s a two way media with endless possibility for creativity.The world is changing and online shopping has a very important role to play in it. In todays fast pace world, the customers want as much ease as they can get in terms of saving time and energy. More and more brands are adapting to e- commerce. There is an opportunity to introduce and promote Aldi’s e-commerce along with its traditional services. Aldi uses a variety of social media channels like Facebook, twitter, YouTube and Pinterest. Everyday new viral worthy content is generated on social media. Aldi can take the advantage of first-on-the-matter strategy to increase the posts circulation among the audience. People are likely to expect deals during the holidays like thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. With the sales being the maximum during the holiday season, Aldi can take the opportunity cross sell its products with lucrative deals. This approach can be beneficial in observing the admiration towards each product and their success in the sales(Shaw, 2016). 4.Threats:Retails stores such as Walmart, Best Buy, etc. play as strong competitors against Aldi. These stores are higher in the fight for maximum market share. In addition to the convention retailers, brands like Amazon are gradually moving to acquire Aldi’s current and potential audience. There are more people on the internet than ever. Similar brands promoting the same services online come with a threat of the message being lost in the clutter. However, this is assuming if the strategy is similar to that of the similar brands. A number of suppliers have reduced in the previous years, increasing the bargaining power of the remaining suppliers. This could lead to the increase in supply acquisition cost which affects the overall profit affecting the marketing budget. the services provided by brands such as Aldi are less likely to become obsolete thus attracting new entrants in the industry, these new entrants serve as a threat to the market
share and are to be considering while creating exclusively creative marketing strategies. Along with selling locally, Aldi also has business across the border while the supply still being local. This transaction however profitable has a risk of being affected by exchange rates and other global economic events. Explanation of four quadrants 1.Strengths-Opportunities:As Aldi is good in digital marketing of their products which shows that IT infrastructure of firm is very good therefore it can also leveragetheopportunityofdynamicandinteractivewebsite.Aldigood positioningasproviderofgoodqualitycommoditiesinfewerpriceswill definitely bring success in electronic commerce. 2.Strengths-Threats:Aldi effectively utilizes marketing channels which bring a balance between revenue and advertisement expenditure. Company is beating competitors with its effective marketing activities. Bargaining power of suppliers is increasing but Aldi strong positioning would discourage suppliers to withdraw their supplies(Homburg, 2016). 3.Weaknesses-Opportunities:Organization can create questionnaire and circulate insocialmediainordergaininsightofconsumerstasteandpreferences. Customer relationship with employees is not good. It can be improved by offering deals to customers in special occasion. 4.Weaknesses-Threats:Company does invest sufficient money in research and development. Thus threat of new entrants can become severe. Firm is required to investmoneyinR&D. Organizationneedstocombatthreatoffluctuating exchange rate. TASK 2 P2 Finding and setting smart business objectives SMART Business Objectives
SMART business objectives are specific, measurable, achievable, and relevant and time bound. SMART is an acronym of five words. Aldi supermarket chain is required to drive objectives from above TOWS analysis. The three SMART marketing objectives of Aldi are given below:- 1.Aldi supermarket is aiming to increase its sales by 30% within the tenure of one year. 2.Firm second objective is to increase footfall in the stores by 20% with the period of 6 months(Bagozzi, and et. Al., 2018). 3.Company want to increase positive customer reviews by 50% within the tenure of 12 months. SMART criteria objectives:- Explanation of first objective As Aldi supermarket chain is aiming to increase its sales by 30% within the tenure of one year therefore company will focus on pitching consumers. Objective is specific because it emphasis on selling maximum number of products to customers. It is measurable because firm can maintain record of number of sales happens throughout the year. It is achievable because organization can achieve desired increment in sales by little extra effort. It is relevant because increase will enhance growth of the company. It is time bound because firm is firm have to complete this mission in one year(Quelch, 2017). Explanation of second objective Organization second aim is to increase the customer visits in physical stores of Aldi supermarket chain. The objective is specific because it emphasis on attracting large number of customers to the store no matter whether they purchase product or leave bare handed. It is measurable because managers of stores can measure the number of prospective customer visiting the store on regular basis. It is achievable because firm can accomplish this goal by posting persuasive advertisement or by giving seasonal deals to attract more customers. It is relevant because boost in footfall will enhance brand equity and profitability of the organization. It is time bounded because deadline has been set of 6 months. Explanation of third objective
Secure Best Marks with AI Grader
Need help grading? Try our AI Grader for instant feedback on your assignments.
Company third objective is to increase the positive customer reviews by 50%. It is specific because firm will emphasis on maximum customer satisfaction. The objective is measurable because marketers can calculate average rating and quantity of positive reviews on the third party website. It is achievable because organization can achieve this objective by delivering good quality products along with good after sales services. It is relevant because increasing word of mouth publicity will encourage other people to buy that product thus sales will accelerate. The goal is time bounded because company needs to accomplish it in one year (Järvinen, and Taiminen, 2016). TASK 3 P3 Marketing mix of Aldi Marketing Mix Marketing mix is a package which contains all marketing element of a product of the company to make sure that right product will reach to right place in right price. Marketing mix compose of seven components which are product, price, place, promotion, physical evidence, people and process. Marketing mix of Aldi for attainment of set objectives is given below:- Product:It refers to the goods and Services Company is delivering to their potential customers.It is often concerned with the strategy company is adopting relating to the product. Product of the Aldi is its services that company is offering in form of supermarket. Firm is providing all the materials of household needs to customers under one roof. The strategy that organization will utilize to accomplish the desired objectives is to make proclaimed one day of week as the cheapest day on which all the products would be sold on heavy discount(Foroudi, and et. Al., 2017) (. Price:It connotes the price on which company is selling its core product. It mainly defines pricing strategy that firm is using to lure customers. It can be market penetration, price skimming and premium pricing. Aldi supermarket will sell its products on competent prices. Organization will use competitive pricing strategy. Price will be low enough to increase sales and boost footfall. It will eventually help in gaining positive reviews. Thus brand equity of the product will increase. Corporate image of the company would also enhance.
Place:It implies the place where customers avail the product. In case of Aldi product and services will be available in the existing supermarket. Company had been established their stores in heart of the city. Sales unit are easily visible to public because of crowded location. People can buy groceries from supermarket located in the market area (Johnsen, 2018). Promotion:Company will advertise their services on online and offline channels. Firm will use digital means of marketing. Aldi will launch ‘Express Yourself’’ campaign. Campaign will be customer centric. Organization will concentrate on fulfilling the desires of customers. Campaign will launch on social media mainly Facebook and Instagram. Aldi will advertise their goods and services on social media, search engine marketing, mobile marketing and YouTube commercial.Organizationwillpromoteitsproductson newspaper,hoarding,bannerand billboards in offline platform. Process:It refers to the procedure of delivering products tothe final customers. It is often related tosupply chain system of the particular business enterprise. Aldi is a supermarket chain and operate in retail segment of supply chain system. It sells other company’s products to large number of customers. It aggregates the commodities of different companies and sell them to customers. It caters to the domestic needs of final consumers. Company purchase goods directly from the factory and sell them to customer in cheap prices. There is no wholesaler in between. Firm purchases grocery items in very large quantity and sell them to customers in small units. Bulk purchases and elimination of middle man make business very lucrative(Möller, and Parvinen, 2015). People:It refers to the employees and labours involve successful closing of sale. This component of marketing mix is concerned with the customer handling process of employees. For theachievementofdesiredSMARTobjectivesAldiisrequiredtoprovidetrainingand development to workers of the stores. Company will conduct a training programme in which sales trainee will enhance their soft skills. Firm needs to make employees proficient in customer handling. Physical Evidence:It implies the proof of product existence. Physical evidence of Aldi service will be the unique of catalogue and brand logo. Catalogue and logo of the brand will be unique design and structure which provide an aroma of weekend shopping.
TASK 4 P4 Measures of customer satisfaction Importance of retail customer serviceGreat customer service leads to customer satisfaction which then leads to customer loyalty.Customer service in this sector includes everything that can help the customers have a great experience with the brand. Right from one on one interaction with the customers to carefully observing their buying patterns falls under smart customer service. However great the products and the services are, if the customer services offered by the brand is not up to the mark the customers are likely to switch brands. Pleasant shopping experience and good customer service is appreciated as much as the core products or services offered. Apart from the team members who wear the tag ‘how may I help you?’, every single person associated with the brand must adhere to the established customer service standards. The driver, the gatekeeper, the checkout person, the stocking personnel, the managers, the CEO all have the equal responsibility into making the brand more likable and trustworthy(Hüttner, 2018). To form anoutcome oriented customer service strategy, it is important to understand the current perception of the customer about the brand. While analyzing the same one must try to find the answers to the important questions like, what do the customers associate the brand with? How loyal are the customers when in comes to other similar businesses? How would the customer define the brand if they were asked to personify the brand? How often do they interact with this personified brand? What are the most appreciated aspects according to them? What are the most disliked factors associated with the brand? And the list goes on. It is also important to recognize in what medium do the target audience engage themselves the most- social media, television, newspapers, etc. To provide the most thoughtful services to the customers it is important to think like the customers. The above mentioned questions can help in creating the strategies that solve customers existing problems rather than just blindly exposing them with unserviceable promotions.The data can be collected through the methods of surveys, observation, feedback, social media engagement, website visits and sales. Once the planned strategy is executed it is also important to track the key performance indicators for future reference as well as to apply any changes it may require. Some of the important key performance metrics to acknowledge are average sales, application of coupons or deals offered, average daily traffic count, average buying time, most sold products and the time period during which the most sales are observed. Proposal for improvement in customer service
Paraphrase This Document
Need a fresh take? Get an instant paraphrase of this document with our AI Paraphraser
Compassion, patience and consistency:Employees is required to keep their mind calm while dealing with annoying customers. Customer will do cross questioning with workers and do lots of chats. Employees must know the art of dealing with them and render the similar level of service all the time. the weak points of services. Company is required to take measures to overcome weaknesses. Firm needs to highlight the good points mentioned in feedback as testimonials to attract more customers. Acknowledge reviews:Company is requiredtogive reply to all negative reviews. They should apologize for negative reviews. Firm needs to write thank you for positive reviews given by customers. Salespromotions:Firmcanimproveitscustomerservicebysalespromotions. Organization is requires to give discount voucher, loyalty cash back, reward points and so on. Company needs to retain customer by giving discount coupons that can be redeemed only in Aldi supermarket. Product placement:Grocery items should be arrange in very systematic manner. All products should be in the reach of customer hands. All the should be kept separate. Commodities should be visible in the eye of consumers. Multiple counters: There should be more than one point of sales counter so that customer would not stand in a long queue. Flexible payment options:There should be multiple payment options in the stores. Company should accept debit card, credit cards, wallet, Unified Payment Interface along with cash. There should be flexibility in payment mode. Social media analysis:It is essential to keep an eye on the likes and dislikes of customers. Firm should post social media campaign. Marketers should use social media analytics to look into the insight of consumer taste and preferences. They should analysis the demography, geography and psychographic segmentation of prospective customers.Demography includes income, age, gender, occupation, life stage and education. Geography includes the regions and
areas. Socio cultural segmentation covers culture, values and belief. Lastly the psychography includes mindset, lifestyle, likes and dislikes. Corporate Social Responsibility:Firm needs to keep aside some portion of money on charitable purpose. Organization should proclaim that some portion of its profit will spend in corporate social responsibility. Aldi would invest in CSR activities such as poor children education and nature conservation. Company will donate 2% of profit in charity which brings a sense of moral satisfaction in customers. Thus customer will purchase more and more products. Customer satisfaction will boost significantly. In this way company improve its customer service. CONCLUSION From the above file it has been concluded that company have some strengths from which opportunities can be leveraged. Company have weaknesses which should be overcome. Opportunities can reduce weaknesses strength can combat threats. Company set three smart objectives. Marketing mix plays crucial role in success of the firm. Firm can improve customer service in several ways.
REFERENCES Books and Journals Bagozzi, R.P., and et. Al., 2018.Marketing-Management. Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. Deepak, R.K.A. and Jeyakumar, S., 2019.Marketing management. Educreation Publishing. Foroudi, P., and et. Al., 2017. Digital technology and marketing management capability: achieving growth in SMEs.Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal. Homburg, C., 2016.Marketingmanagement: Strategie-Instrumente-Umsetzung- Unternehmensführung. Springer-Verlag. Hüttner, M., 2018.Marketing-Management: allgemein-sektoral-international. Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. Järvinen, J. and Taiminen, H., 2016. Harnessing marketing automation for B2B content marketing.Industrial Marketing Management.54. pp.164-175. Johnsen, T.E., 2018. Purchasing and supply management in an industrial marketing perspective.Industrial Marketing Management.69. pp.91-97. Keegan, W.J., 2017.Global marketing management. Pearson India. Kotler, P., and et. Al., 2018.Marketing management: an Asian perspective. Pearson. Möller, K. and Parvinen, P., 2015. An impact-oriented implementation approach in business marketing research: Introduction to the Special Issue on “Implementing Strategies and Theories of B2B Marketing and Sales Management”.Industrial Marketing Management.45. pp.3-11. Quelch, J.A., 2017. Global marketing management: a casebook. Shaw, S., 2016.Airline marketing and management. Routledge.