Social Media Advertising's Impact on Consumer Perception at M&S

This report investigates the impact of social media advertising on consumer perception, focusing on Marks and Spencer (M&S) as a case study. It begins by defining social media advertising and highlighting its growing importance in the retail sector, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. The research aims to understand the meaning of social media advertising, assess its impact on consumer perception, and evaluate its relationship with consumer buying behavior. The report includes an analysis of M&S's business environment, using PESTLE and SWOT frameworks, to identify key challenges and opportunities related to social media marketing. It critically analyzes the identified business problems and provides recommendations for M&S to effectively utilize social media to attract and retain consumers. The report also reflects on the academic and professional skills developed during the project.

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Executive Summary
Social media advertising is a process in which organisation undertakes the use of different social
media platforms like Facebook, Instagram Twitter, etc to promote their product service or brand
to consumers. In today’s business world social media advertising is playing a crucial role as it
allows a business organization to conduct cost-effective marketing and reach a maximum number
of consumers without geographical restrictions. Present research analyses that with help of
making use of different social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. Marks and
Spencer can reach to a maximum number of consumers and can enhance their profitability at
greater scale.
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Table of Contents 1
Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................5
Part 1: Analysis of the business environment ................................................................................8
An overview of the organisation / Business context at Marks and Spencer .........................8
Analysis of the external environment (PESTLE) .................................................................9
Analysis of the internal environment (SWOT analysis).......................................................11
Part 2: Critical analysis of the identified business problem ..........................................................12
Conclusion and Recommendations ...............................................................................................20
Part 3: Reflection on Academic and Professional competency skills ...........................................23
REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................26
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INTRODUCTION
Social media advertising is defined as the process of promoting products on
social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. This is an important topic for
research because it helps determine the digital marketing influence on consumer
behaviour, which is a new phenomenon. Digital marketing has been adopted since 1990
by businesses across industries, specifically the retail sector, to influence consumer
behaviour and attain higher profitability (Bly, 2018). It is important for businesses
specifically in the retail industry to adopt digital marketing practices such as social media
advertising to attract consumers and remain competitive in the industry. This is one of
the most effective forms of technology that allow organizations to reach to a maximum
level of consumers in comparatively less cost than traditional marketing. These are
being adopted by the marketing department of an organisation in order to influence
maximum number of customers. This investigation is centred on the concept of social
media marketing. This research highlights the usage and effectiveness of social media
marketing for the profit of the company. This research will explore the social media
effectiveness. The current literature available on the topic of social media advertising
primarily focuses on the key metrics such as increase in profitability and more
associated with social media advertising (Colicev and et. al., 2018). How social media
advertising can be implemented by small businesses and multinational corporations to
attain profitability is also focus of present literature.
However, there is still no research conducted on the impact caused by social
media advertising and marketing on consumers and their behaviour in context of
specific industry. This introduces a specific research gap in present investigation as it is
important to determine how social media advertising affects consumers as these are
primary end-users of company services and products. These answers can help
businesses adopt suitable social media practices according to their industry to influence
consumer positively and gain competitive advantage. For instance, John Lewis is
undertaking use of social media to attract customers from different locations to increase
sales. It is an important to research this topic because it helps businesses further
advance their digital marketing practices. This research focuses on the retail industry,
specifically on Marks and Spencer, which is a company based in United Kingdom.
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Marks and Spencer are one of the largest retailers in United Kingdom and has
many outlets across the world. This company was formed in the year 1884 Marks and
Spencer have a huge history in United Kingdom retail industry and is considered a
quality retailer with renowned public image around the world (ABOUT US, 2022). In
context of the present investigation, the research focuses on understanding how social
media, marketing and advertising can help Marks and Spencer influence consumers to
buy products and services and their impact on consumers. This is an important area to
be covered in research as it helps the company understand the ways their social media
image and tools are helping them attract competitors and rise above competitors. In
addition to this, it has been underlined that main rivals of company is John Lewis, Tesco
and more. In the constantly changing retail industry.
Social media marketing is significant in bringing a high volume of consumers to
the retail industry. Social media advertising spend by retail brands in the UK stood at
US$332 million by end of 2015, accounting for 20.1% of total social media advertising.
During 2011-2015, social media advertising in this industry has increased at a CAGR of
36.7%. The change influencing the retail industry is the shift of consumers from physical
retail stores to digital retailing, as consumers are becoming more aware of digital
options, which can be used to purchase their retail products (Kostelijk and Alsem, 2020)
. It has been analysed that now a days younger generation are more inclined towards
social media which offer significant opportunity to organisation to influence their buying
behaviour. Another important area which will be a part of this investigation is the relation
of COVID-19 and social media marketing. One of the most important aspects of social
media marketing in the retail industry in the recent years is that social media marketing
has seen rise in popularity after the impact of COVID-19 as more consumers are shifting
towards digital retail than ever. As they are more concerned towards safe and secure
purchase. In the current environment, social media marketing has become an important
asset of retail businesses to attract consumers. Businesses who have failed to adopt
digital marketing strategies such as social media advertising have been unable to
survive the COVID-19 crisis. For example, Lush (Lush is quitting social media. The start
of a trend?. 2022.)
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The current retail industry in the United Kingdom is crowded with various digital
retail brands such as Amazon, who have been able to attract large number of
consumers from traditional retailers such as Marks and Spencer. The main reason
behind this is to attract customers from various locations around the globe. Primary
method of improving digital sales is to utilize social media advertising (Hastings and
Domegan, 2017). This showcases the importance of this research topic as social media
advertising is crucial for remaining competitive in the current retail industry. In addition to
this, social media marketing is also essential for businesses in the retail industry, as it
helps them survive from continuously changing external environment and make way for
a more digitized future.
Another reason for completing this research is personal interest in social media
marketing and digital advertising. The completion of this research will offer knowledge
related to social media advertising in context of the retail industry, which will help
improve marketing practices to enhance consumer retention. Social media marketing is
not only essential for attracting consumers but also supports improvement in consumer
loyalty (Deiss and Henneberry, 2020). This knowledge will support personal and
professional development because of the interest around social media, advertising, and
marketing. I want to make my career as a digital marketer. The objectives of this
investigation are to understand the meaning of social media advertising and assess the
impact of social media advertising on consumer perception. It has been underlined that
perception involves both recognizing environmental stimuli and actions in response to
these stimuli. means . In addition to this, another objective of this investigation is to
evaluate the relation between social media advertising on consumer buying behaviour.
To determine the impact of this platform of overall profitability of the company. These
objectives will help attain the research aim as they cover the concept of social media
marketing while focusing on the retail industry and its impact on consumer behaviour.
This investigation includes an environmental analysis by utilizing appropriate
tools to understand the internal as well as external environment of Marks and Spencer.
This analysis is used to understand the main problems impacting Marks and Spencer in
context of social media advertising. The problems identified in the environmental
analysis section are further critically evaluated. This involves completing a relevant
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debate on the topic of social media advertising in context of the retail industry, as well as
synthesizing material and arguments for different sources to accomplish the research
objectives. The critical analysis section of this report focuses on understanding the
impact of social media advertising on consumer behaviour by looking at relevant register
and analysing current debate on the topic. After this, recommendation and conclusion
section are also prepared, which concludes the main points argued in the investigation
and provides recommendations to Marks and Spencer through which the company can
effectively utilize social media marketing to attract large number of consumers. After this
inappropriate reflection section is provided in this report on skills developed during
delivery of the project.
Part 1: Analysis of the business environment
An overview of the organisation / Business context at Marks and Spencer
M&S (Marks and Spencer) is a well-known British retailer that sells food, clothing, and a
variety of home goods. The upwards of a century-old chain, which was originally
established in 1884, has lengthy been a trusted brand in the United Kingdom.
Research aim - To analyse the impact of social media advertising on customer
perception. A case study of Marks and Spencer
Research objectives -
To understand meaning of social media advertising in context of retail industry
To determine the impact of social media advertising on customer perception
towards retail brands
To evaluate relation between social media advertising and consumer behaviour in
context of influencing retail consumers
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Analysis of the external environment (PESTLE)
Political  Several nations have founded trade treaties, which is one of the
most positive aspects of modern elections. This benefits Marks and
Spencer, which is primarily located in the UK but also works in
other countries such as India, Canada, South Korea and more.
M&S can import foreign items for sale from many European
countries in their retail locations at reduced costs through cheap
labour, while still maintaining a healthy profit margin. For example,
M&S is doing business in Venezuela in which they are taking use
of low costs labour as compared to U.K. Many trade deals with
European resellers may be lost if the UK leaves the European
Union in this "Brexit," resulting in higher product costs for the final
consumers.
Economical  Price has always been an important concern in the retail industry,
but in the past decades, emergence of discount retailers in the
United Kingdom has affected pricing strategy of retail businesses.
This includes retailers such as Ocado, Asda and Aldi. In order to
encourage guests to experience similar products at much reduced
premiums, these competitors are stealing price competition from
more expensive products (like Marks and Spencer). For example,
John Lewis. In fact, it's likely that these discount competitors
affected Marks and Spencer's decision to use importers in 1999.
Technological  Marks and Spencer do indeed have a large following, with each of
their own brands, from clothing to foods to household goods,
accessible on the platform. M&S takes a traditional approach to
buying stuff with their own clothing, supplying products directly to
the consumer. Nonetheless, unlike the other large food stores in
the UK, Marks and Spencer does not appear to deliver the food.
This industry-wide trend aims to save retailers money on store
clerks while also providing consumers a faster shopping
experience. Social media advertising provides consumers faster
shopping experience by enabling them to reach online channels
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(Farris and et. al., 2017). Like most other UK supermarkets, Marks
and Spencer has indeed installed self-scan structures in its shops.
Also have app. With the help of offering mobile based application
services M&S is providing easy and flexible shopping experiences
to customers.
Social  Throughout the last decade, the use of convenience foods has
grown tremendously in societal structure. This could be due to the
fact that, thanks to advancements in functional foods, processed
foods are more appealing than ever. Inside any case, this large
new manufacturing can benefit immensely any grocery store. While
the amount of sales growth at M&s is unknown, it is one of the top
ten lunch manufacturers there in UK. The company also partners
with Hollywood celebrities to promote clothes such as Emma
Thompson and Rita Ora.
Legal  There are different legal rules and regulations which a company in
retail industry has to follow without any exception. Similarly, M&S
has to adopt different excise taxation laws, labour laws, inflation
cost, important export restrictions so that it can easily and smoothly
run its operations. This company has the ability to take labour from
Asian countries as there is availability of cheap labour.
Environmental  Fair trade, which again was created to better reimburse
landowners, has a negative effect on the natural. It’s because local
producers, who profit so much from a good bargain, are now more
likely than their competing firms to use environmentally sustainable
business practises. As an outcome, Marks and Spencer's move to
close goods is environmentally friendly. For example, company
M&S goal to become zero-wate business by 2025. Environmental
factors influencing meat, attire, and home furnishings purchases.
Plenty other UK retailers it has made positive pledges, so Marks
and Spencer's judgement to become a more commercially
sustainable seller is not unexpected. For example, British retail
consortium's climate action roadmap and WRAP's Textile.
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Analysis of the internal environment (SWOT analysis)
Strength The great quality of Marks and Spencer's products is well-known. It's a
greater store with several of the best in-store purchasing in the UK. In a
multitude of European, Middle Eastern, and Asian regions, Marks and
Spencer has retail locations and an online presence. It has more than 1500
locations worldwide. M&S own-brand garment and housewares can be found
in many entire store locations, channels, and on the M&S.com homepage.
Weakness One of the major weakness of Marks and Spencer is their inability to
penetrate in a successful manner in foreign markets. For example, in the
Middle East and Asia. The firm is not notably trendy and caters to the
elderly. As an outcome of this perspective, M&s has had quite a lot of issues.
While this assumption may have been harsh, it is true that such a huge
percentage of Marks and Spencer's customers are seniors. Click and collect,
which is famous among several other retailers, is less popular among M&S
customers, according to some forecasting models, since many of friends are
closer to retirement and less intrigued in the choice.
Threat Marks and Spencer faces stiff competition both domestically and
internationally. Marks and Spencer's main competitors include Tesco, ASDA,
Sainsbury's, Morrisons, Next, Gap, Sports Direct, Debenhams, John Lewis,
and Amazon. Marks and Spencer are in danger of losing customer base due
to fierce competition. This organisation is among top 10 rank in the list of
supermarkets. Due to increased competition and some other factors, it is
scaling back its global operations. In fact, it has already left China and
closed several stores in France and the United Kingdom. Company left
China in November 2016.
Possibilities/
Opportunities
Marks and Spencer maintains a website. It does, however, lag some of the
other major UK retail chains. It really should seize some good potential
online growth prospects. In fact, in order to transition to the future, it recently
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declared its intent to transfer a large portion of its clothing online stores. In
addition to this, it has been underlined that M&S is having opportunity to
make expansion of its business in many Asian markets such as India.
Part 2: Critical analysis of the identified business problem
Consumer perceptions of brands, as well as how responses are communicated, are all
part of the brand experience. Some brand experiences are conceptualised around
feelings, emotions, sensations, and behaviours, while others are conceptualised around
feelings, emotions, sensations, and behaviours. This, is having more impact on the
younger generation, as it is making them to buy products and services by touching their
emotional touch points. Brand-related stimuli have become an important part of the
brand information transfer process. The associations formed because of responding to
brand cued shape not only brand recognition but also increased brand. When applying
marketing programs to widely consumer interactions, brand equity is becoming a part of
the process. The introduction of some ways in which information about a product line
can influence customer way of responding to marketing methods can be defined as
brand equity. A positive response from consumers/customers is the ultimate goal of
branding. Companies do this by commercialising products to the customers and
emphasising distinguishing features. For example, John Lewis one of the rivals of M&S
is duly practising this strategy. While businesses see Facebook as a way to raise brand
awareness and attract customers, not all of the reactions to social media advertising are
positive. While brand-related content is being introduced to the Facebook platform at an
increasing rate, social media-based advertising is sometimes seen as an unwanted
element, and businesses must be aware of how consumers react to their ad campaigns
can affect the value of that brand-related content. This can be done with the help of
taking us of SEO. Companies must recognise that the process of incorporating branding
and logo content in social media necessitates a close examination of the substance and
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a focus on manufacturer community building. An example is social media branding of
new products or versions of products because the logo fro the specific product sets up
specific brand messages of the product on social media.
Potential customers can be found on every social media platform. Some, on the other
hand, are more conducive to sales than others. Facebook and Instagram, according to
Statista, are two of the best places to learn about, discover, and buy fashion apparel.
Because Facebook (now Meta) owns Instagram, creating an effective ad campaign for
both platforms from the Facebook Ads Manager isn't difficult. Facebook has over 48
million users in the United Kingdom. Approximately four out of ten Facebook users claim
to find fashion inspiration on the site. To put it another way, the opportunity to engage a
new audience and build brand loyalty on Facebook's platform is too great to pass up. It's
also worth noting that Facebook claims its platform is a key place to reach 18-34-year-
old fashion buyers. Influencers and celebrities on the platform, in particular, are said to
be a source of fashion inspiration for women.
There are several benefits for Marks and Spencer while engaging in social media
advertising. It boosts brand recognition and trustworthiness. The best platform for
showcasing their fashion studio is social media, which also serves as the best medium
for brand recognition. In this, it has been underlined that Facebook also get some extent
of the money for ad space. By showcasing all of their designer collections on social
media sites like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Pinterest, Marks and
Spencer can raise brand awareness and grow their following. Businesses can raise
awareness by hosting photo fashion shows and events on the social media platforms
mentioned. Fashion brands on social media can assist fashion-conscious people in
obtaining fashion trend information.
It boosts customer loyalty and engagement - Because people spend so much time on
social media. The average daily social media usage of internet users worldwide
amounted to 147 minutes per day. This states that attracting new customers via social
media is not difficult. Three factors make any visitor a loyal customer: content, quality,
and regular posts related to the fashion industry. Marks and Spencer can increase
customer engagement by showcasing various designer collections and offering
exclusive offers and deals with the help of Augmented reality, robotics and AI.
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