LSC UoS BA Business: Aldi's 12-Month Marketing Campaign Plan

This report presents a comprehensive marketing plan for Aldi, focusing on the 'Expressing Ourselves' campaign. It begins with an executive summary highlighting the company's interest in an intensive marketing campaign and the consultant's role in developing a detailed plan. The report includes a TOWS analysis, evaluating Aldi's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, particularly in the UK market. It outlines marketing objectives, such as increasing market share, targeting the high-income group, and enhancing brand awareness. The marketing mix is examined, covering product, price, place, promotion, people, process, and physical environment. The report also provides recommendations for improving customer service. The report concludes with a discussion of the marketing objectives, marketing mix, and customer service, offering insights into Aldi's strategic approach to the UK market.

RUNNING HEAD: MARKETING MANAGEMENT
MARKETING MANAGEMENT
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

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Executive Summary:
Aldi is one of the leading super chains in this world. The management team of this company is
interested to conduct an intensive marketing campaign. The newly recruited marketing
consultant has the responsibility to develop a marketing plan for Aldi. This report conducts
TWOS analysis, marketing mix for this company. The strengths and opportunities of this
company can be used to manage the threats and weaknesses of this company. It can be said that
this company can attract the potential high-income customer group, this company should utilise
its CSR initiatives and sales promotion.

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Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction:..............................................................................................................................3
1.1. Background of the Company:...........................................................................................3
2.0. Task 1:......................................................................................................................................4
2.1. Marketing objective:.............................................................................................................4
2.2. TOWS analysis.....................................................................................................................4
2.2.1. TWOS analysis of ALDI:..............................................................................................6
3.0. Task 2:......................................................................................................................................7
3.1. Marketing objective:.............................................................................................................7
3.2. Marketing Objectives for Aldi:.............................................................................................7
4.0. Task 3:......................................................................................................................................8
4.1. Marketing Mix......................................................................................................................8
5.0. Task 4:....................................................................................................................................12
5.1. Customer service:...............................................................................................................12
5.2. Recommendation for improvement of customer service for Aldi:.....................................12
6.0. Conclusion:.............................................................................................................................14
7.0. References:.............................................................................................................................16

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1.0 Introduction:
During the period of 1st May 2020 to 30th April 2021, an intensive marketing campaign
will be conducted by Aldi (Corporate.aldi.us 2020). The marketing tagline for this campaign is
“Expressing Ourselves”. The management team of ALDI has hired a marketing consultant, who
has the responsibility to deliver a twelve months marketing plan. For the marketing management
plan, the newly hired marketing consultant has to conduct marketing TWOS analysis, marketing
audits, justification of the marketing objectives, evaluation of the marketing mix plan, the
procedure to improve customer service for the “Express Ourselves” marketing campaign In this
report, the result of marketing management tasks will be analysed. It will help the marketing
consultant to develop the 12 months marketing campaign plan for Aldi.
1.1. Background of the Company:
The leading grocery chain of Germany, ALDI group, established in 1946 in Germany, is
controlled by Theo Albrecht and Karl Albrecht. In the global retail industry, ALDI group has
found success not only because of its ‘Spartan atmosphere’ in the stores but also maintaining the
standard of the supermarket. The attributes of the retail strategy followed by this company are
low overhead and scanty range to its thinnest and meanest extreme. Family-owned super chain
market Aldi group do its business throughout the world. Whether cigarettes and tobacco products
should be sold from the discounter or not was the primary conflict for this company divided into
two parts which are Aldi Nords and Aldi Sords. In 2018, total Aldi Group generated gross
revenue of 11.75 billion euros in the UK, which portrays the steady growth of this company
(Wunsch 2020). This company is expecting to generate more than 13 billion euros in 2019 from
the UK. Between 2015- 2019, this company is successful to expand its market share from 4.9 per
cent to 8 per cent (Wunsch 2019). In 2017, this company got the most positive brand recognition

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(Wunsch 2019). In 2016, there were 700 stores of this company in the UK and more than 32000
employees were working for this company those stores (BBC News 2016).
2.0. Task 1:
2.1. Marketing objective:
Through marketing audit, the newly recruited marketing consultant will analyse the
marketing plan, recent activities, objectives, and strategies. By using the marketing audit, the
marketing consultant can identify which strategies are working perfectly and which marketing
strategies need more modification. For a business organisation, a marketing audit is important
because it identifies the strengths and weakness. Insight information about the company’s
strengths and weaknesses are beneficial for the company to develop the marketing strategy.
There are certain tools like TWOS analysis, PEST analysis, and Porter’s five forces analysis,
which are used to conduct the market audit (Rahul, Mantha & Rane 2019).
2.2. TOWS analysis
Strengths
 Pricing strategy.
 Huge customer support.
 Appropriate marketing mix.
 Customer satisfaction.
 Product variation.
Weaknesses
 Low margins.
 Poor employee
satisfaction.
 Feeble penetration in
the high-income
group.
Opportunities
 Customer
 The pricing strategy of this
company can be useful to
 To maintain low
margin Aldi group

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preferences
are
changing.
 “Express
Ourselves”
marketing
campaign
can utilise
the market
of UK
properly
become one of the most
preferable companies in this
world for the customer
(Aldi.co.uk 2020).
 Excellent brand reputation of the
Aldi group can help this
company to attract the potential
customer of the UK.
 Initiatives taken by the Aldi
group for customer satisfaction
can be used to create a loyal
customer base (Aldi.co.uk
2020).
depends on the sales
quantity. To ensure
the margin this
company has to take
unethical business
practices like price
discrimination which
can be managed by
appropriate pricing
strategy (Aldi.co.uk
2020).
 Poor employee
satisfaction is a
weakness for this
company which must
be managed by this
company by taking
employee wellbeing
initiatives (Aldi.co.uk
2020).
 Targeting the high-
income group through
proper market

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segment can be
beneficial for this
company.
Threats
 Stiff
competition.
 Impact of
Brexit.
 This company has to face intense
competition from its
competitors. By using the
pricing strategy and product
variation this company can
manage this threat (Aldi.co.uk,
2020).
 Political instability
due to Brexit is a
threat to this
company, which can
be managed by
proper crisis
management planning
and insurance.
2.2.1. TWOS analysis of ALDI:
Through TWOS analysis of the Aldi group, strengths, and weakness of this company are
identified (Gürel and Tat 2017). It can be said that the ‘Express Ourselves’ marketing campaign
has to utilise the strengths and opportunities to manage weakness and threats. The impact of
Brexit and economic condition of the UK due to the recent Brexit are threats for this company.
Not only that this company has to compete with Tesco, Asda and Morrisons, and Sainsbury’s.
This company can enhance its product variety and offers that product at a low cost to manage the
threats (Wurthmann 2020). Though market segmentation, this company has to target the high-
income group of UK. To manage the poor employee satisfaction this company has to take
employee wellbeing initiatives because the human resource of this company has a significant
role in the success of this company.

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3.0. Task 2:
3.1. Marketing objective:
The marketing objective of a company is the business goals of a company, developed by
the company when promoting the product and services to the targeted market segment. Within a
fixed time frame the marketing objective must be fulfilled (Armstrong et al. 2018)
3.2. Marketing Objectives for Aldi:
The ‘Express ourselves’ will be developed based on three marketing objectives for the
Aldi group. The first marketing objective of the Aldi group is to increase market share in
the UK. This campaign will enhance brand awareness in the UK. This company has to create a
loyal customer base. To do that this company has to utilise its strengths. As a discount store
chain. Aldi has to offer products at a low price. To gain competitive advantage, this company has
to use low pricing strategy. It will help this company to beat its competitor in the UK market. To
attract potential customer this company has to offer a wide range of products. Offering a wide
range of products under a roof can be beneficial for this company to attract the potential
customer (Lee, Kozlenkova and Palmatier 2015).
The second marketing objective of the Aldi group is to target high-income group of
UK. Though the success of Aldi group depends on the low pricing strategy yet it can be said that
to enhance market share in the UK, this company has to target the high-income group. To attract
high-income customers, this company has to produce premium products (McDonald 2015). To
target the high-income customer group, Aldi Company has to develop a customer profile, chose
the channels. Offering a premium product to attract the rich customer will help Aldi Company to
enhance its revenue.

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The third marketing objective of the Aldi group is to enhance brand awareness and
brand reputation. This company aims to enhance its market share in the UK. Brand awareness
among the customer of UK will help this company to attract a new customer. To attract the
potential customer this company has to enhance its brand reputation. The management team of
this company has to focus on ethical business practices. To ensure the margin, this company uses
unethical business practices like price discrimination, which must be stopped. The management
team of this company has to prioritise its CSR initiatives. It can help this company to reduce the
adverse impact of business operation on the community and environment. It will help this
company to enhance brand reputation. To create a loyal customer base, this company has to offer
the best quality product at a low cost (Išoraitė 2016). Brand awareness will help this company to
generate more revenue. Developing a positive brand reputation will be beneficial for this
company to create a loyal customer base in the market of UK.
It can be said that these three marketing objectives can work together. This company can
enhance its brand reputation and brand awareness which will help the company to attract new
customers. Besides its loyal customer, this company has to target the high-income customer
group, which will help this company to generate more revenue.
4.0. Task 3:
4.1. Marketing Mix
The marketing mix is a set of actions, which is commonly used by business organisations
to promote the brand or products (Abril and Rodriguez-Cánovas 2016). A marketing mix helps a
business organisation to put appropriate products at the right place, at the appropriate time with
the appropriate price (Wu and Li 2018). To target a market this method is applied by a business

9MARKETING MANAGEMENT
organisation. Elements of the marketing mix are price, place, promotion, people, process,
product, and physical environment (Blut, Teller and Floh 2018). The management team of a
business organisation allows a company to make profitable marketing decisions (McDonald and
Wilson 2016). By taking profitable decisions, the management team of this company enhances
its strengths and manage the weaknesses. To gain competitive advantage, a business organisation
uses this.
Product:
As a reputed business organisation, this company aims to provide the best quality
products to the consumers. To maintain product quality, the management team of this company
take extra care. A wide range of products is offered by this company. The quality of the in-house
brands is very good. However, if the customer is unsatisfied with the product this company either
replace the product or refund the money. Variety of food products are offered by this company.
The huge number of private level brands are offered by this company. In-house brands of this
company are Rich tea biscuits, Never Any, Choco rice, Simply Nature, and others (Aldi.co.uk
2020). This company offers about 1350 products. Baby products, bakery, fresh meats, fresh fish,
fresh vegetables, health and beauty products, wines, beer, home products are key product
categories of the Aldi Company. According to the operation manager of this company, with the
help of best suppliers, this company delivers the best quality product to the customers. However
sometimes customer of this company complains about the quality of fresh vegetables and fruits.
This it can be recommended that besides its regular product line, Aldi Company can offer
premium products for the high-income customers.
Price:

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The consumer market of UK is excessively competitive. The management team of Aldi
investigates the demand and needs of the customer and take the adequate step to fulfil the need
of the customer with the most suitable pricing strategies. As a discounter, this company is very
much popular among the customer. Without compromising the product quality, this company
provides the product at a lower cost. Not only the best quality but also great value are the core
competencies of this company. Aldi is successful to create a loyal customer base. The
management of this company combines the best quality of products at a cheap price. This
business strategy of this company helped Aldi to create a strong loyal customer base. Though the
targeted market segment of this company are lower-middle-class section and middle-class
customers, yet to enhance market share this company has started targeting the high-income
customers. The management team of this company has to be more cautious while implementing
the pricing strategy. The pricing strategy of this company must fulfil the needs of the lower-
middle-class customer and high-income customers. Due to excessive competition, this company
has to keep prices lower than its competitors. By taking a competitive pricing strategy this
company is managing the competition. Thus it can be recommended that this company not only
has to maintain its low pricing strategy for the low-income customers but also premium pricing
strategy to target the high-income customer group.
Place:
As a super chain market, this company does business several parts of the world. There are
more than a thousand stores in 19 countries, which are operated by this company. In the UK
there are 840 stores for this company. More than 1900 stores in the USA are operated by this
company (Aldi.co.uk 2020). In Germany, more than 4100 stores are controlled by Aldi Company
(Aldi.co.uk 2020). However, this company is interested to increase the number of stores in the

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UK. While opening a new store, the management team of this company analyse several factors
like location with the best visibility and the minimum number of population should be more than
30,000 (Aldi.co.uk, 2020). Proper accessibility and adequate parking spaces are key factors,
which are prioritised by this company while opening a new store. To ensure the best shopping
experience, this company takes these initiatives. Customer can order the products online. For the
delivery purpose, they can choose ‘Collect Plus’ (Aldi.co.uk 2020). By using the Collect pass,
consumers can collect the product at the chosen collection point in the UK within five working
days. It can be recommended that this company can conduct this company in the UK. The
premium product will attract the high-income customer of the UK.
Promotion:
For the promotion part, the executive team of this company uses several methods such as
advertising, sales promotions, and public relations. To reach the maximum number of customer
this company advertises on television and newspaper. For the customer of the UK, the USA and
Australia this method is used by this company (Aldi.co.uk 2020). Besides of this, Aldi Company
does public relations to enhance brand awareness. This company uses its corporate social
responsibilities for public relation. To enhance the brand awareness this company is interested to
fulfil its CSR initiatives. To manage the cancer issues, this company works with Teenage Cancer
Trust of the UK (Aldi.co.uk 2020). Sales promotion is done by this company. This company
often cut prices of several products which helps this company to enhance the volume of sale and
attract potential customers. For the promotion purposes, this company uses social media site like
Twitter, Facebook (Kaura, Prasad and Sharma 2015). By targeting mass audiences, Aldi
Company improves brand awareness. It can be recommended that for the promotion purpose this
company can utilise its CSR initiatives and sales promotion.

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5.0. Task 4:
5.1. Customer service:
Customer service plays a significant role in the business organisation. The responsibility
of customer service of a business organisation is to engage with consumer to manage any kind of
conflict issues. The customer service ensures that customers are well educated about the products
and services. To manage confusion and conflicts, the customer service of a company
communicates with customers. The business organisation uses customer service because it
enhances customer loyalty. Customer service generates positive word-of-mouth regarding the
company. It can be said that the customer service of a company has the ability to enhance the
business of the company.
5.2. Recommendation for improvement of customer service for Aldi:
Consumers are the key to the success of a company that is the reason every business
organisation has to prioritise the customer (Wong et al. 2015). A happy customer can create the
credibility of a company and help the business organisation to accomplish the business goal. As a
leading super chain, Aldi has to prioritise its customers (Juanamasta et al. 2018). The
management team of Aldi has to satisfy the customer with the best quality product and services.
According to the UKCSI Retail (Food) Sector report of 2017, Aldi is the best performing super
chain market in the Retail sector of UK (Aldi.co.uk 2020). The customer satisfaction index score
of this company in 2017 was 84.8 out of 100 (Aldi.co.uk 2020). However, to do business in an
intensely competitive market, this company has to provide the best quality product and services
to achieve competitive advantage. In this part recommendation for improvement of customer
service for the Aldi will be discussed. To improve the customer service, the management team of
Aldi can follow four steps which will be analysed below.

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Seek customer feedback:
Before providing the best customer service, Aldi customer service team must understand
the needs, and experience of the customer. It will help this company to understand the positive
and negative side of customer service. Clear knowledge about the customer experience will help
the customer service team of this company to identify areas, which needed to improve. This
company has to collect customer feedback, which can be done through a survey by telephone,
email or social media. Or this company can develop a complaint system, through which customer
of Aldi Company can provide their feedback and opinion about the customer service of Aldi
Company. This initiative will help the company to involve with the customer. Through this
initiative, the management team of Aldi Company can interact with the customers. It can be said
that by following this step Aldi Company will identify certain issues which needed to be fixed.
Create an efficient customer service team:
To provide the best customer service, Aldi Company has to develop a strong customer
service team. To do that this company has to recruit the candidate who has adequate skills. After
the recruitment process is done, the company has to train the employee by professional to
improve the communication skills of the employee. Empathy, patience, appropriate
communication skills, and knowledge will be improved by the training (Iqbal, Hassan and
Habibah 2018). After that, the customer service executive has to track the performance of the
newly recruited employee. Appropriate monitoring will help this company to identify areas of
customer service which needed to be improved. However, good work must be appreciated by the
customer service executive.
Use CRM platforms:

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To provide the best customer service, Aldi Company has to maintain efficient
coordination between various departments of this company. Otherwise, the customer service
department of Aldi Company cannot solve the problem of customer dissatisfaction. To enhance
and coordination between every department of this company, Aldi Company can use smart CRM
platforms. Using technology to enhance the coordination between inter-departments can be
beneficial for this company. This system can deliver insights about the consumer. Customer
interaction and engagement can be enhanced by using this system. This system will help every
department of this company to work together. Using this system will help the customer service
tea, of Aldi to solve any issues regarding the customer at any time from anywhere.
Leverage multi-channel servicing:
To provide the best customer service, the Aldi Company has to provide multi-channel
service to the customer. Mobile devices, social media, and self-service can be used to do that.
This company has to support the customer and satisfy them by providing the best customer
service.
In the end, it can be said that though customer service of Aldi is very good yet this
company has to ensure that best customer service is provided by the customer service team of
this company to enhance customer satisfaction. It will help this company to get a competitive
advantage in an intensely competitive market.
6.0. Conclusion:
Thus, this report concludes that an intensive marketing campaign can help this company
to enhance its market share. Within 12 months ‘Expressing Ourselves’ can enhance brand
awareness. The business goal of this company is to increase market share and accomplish a

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competitive advantage. To attract the potential high-income customer group, this company
should utilise its CSR initiatives and sales promotion.

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7.0. References:
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at: <https://www.aldi.co.uk/awards> [Accessed 15 March 2020].
Armstrong, G.M., Kotler, P., Harker, M.J. and Brennan, R., 2018. Marketing: an introduction.
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BBC News, 2016. Aldi To Hire 5,000 Staff This Year. [online] BBC News. Available at:
<https://www.bbc.com/news/business-35577900> [Accessed 13 March 2020].
Blut, M., Teller, C. and Floh, A., 2018. Testing retail marketing-mix effects on patronage: A
meta-analysis. Journal of Retailing, 94(2), pp.113-135.
Corporate.aldi.us, 2020. ALDI History | ALDI US. [online] Corporate.aldi.us. Available at:
<https://corporate.aldi.us/en/aldi-history/> [Accessed 15 March 2020].
Gürel, E. and Tat, M., 2017. SWOT analysis: a theoretical review. Journal of International
Social Research, 10(51).
Iqbal, M.S., Hassan, M.U. and Habibah, U., 2018. Impact of self-service technology (SST)
service quality on customer loyalty and behavioral intention: The mediating role of customer
satisfaction. Cogent Business & Management, 5.
Išoraitė, M., 2016. Marketing mix theoretical aspects. International journal of research
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Juanamasta, I.G., Wati, N.M.N., Hendrawati, E., Wahyuni, W., Pramudianti, M., Wisnujati,
N.S., Setiawati, A.P., Susetyorini, S., Elan, U., Rusdiyanto, R. and Astanto, D., 2019. The role of
Customer Service through Customer Relationship Management (CRM) to Increase Customer
Loyalty and Good Image. Int. J. Sci. Technol. Res, 8(10).
Kaura, V., Prasad, C.S.D. and Sharma, S., 2015. Service quality, service convenience, price and
fairness, customer loyalty, and the mediating role of customer satisfaction. International Journal
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