Marketing Essentials Report: Marks and Spencer Case Study

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Marketing Essentials
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Table of Contents
Introduction...................................................................................................................... 3
LO1.................................................................................................................................. 4
LO2.................................................................................................................................. 9
LO3................................................................................................................................ 12
Conclusion..................................................................................................................... 17
Reference List................................................................................................................ 18
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Introduction
Marketing plays a very crucial role in any organization and relates directly to the
success of the business. From the report below, we will learn about the purposes of the
marketing in the industry and the link it has with all the other functions. For better
understanding, the marketing implementations of Marks and Spencer, a UK based
retailing company, have been considered. The procedure in which the company uses
elements of the marketing principles to achieve the objectives is discussed using the
7Ps technique. In addition, a referral plan for the marketing of the company has been
produced for more knowledge. The report will provide information about the different
techniques of marketing and the factors that affect the same. Moreover, the process in
which the marketing mix and strategies are implemented in the functions of the
business has also been discussed.
Marks and Spencer Group plc is a international retailing industry. Headquarter of this
British-based company is in Westminster, London. The firm majorly trades in clothing,
food products, and home products. Established by Michael Marks and Thomas Spencer
in 1884, this company is known for its vast range of products and their rich quality
(Global.marksandspencer.com, 2019).
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LO1 Explain the role of marketing and how it interrelates with other functional
units of an organisation
P1 Explain the key roles and responsibilities of the marketing function.
Marketing are the actions in the business company that targets towards the promotion
of sales and transactions of the products developed by the company. Marketing
includes activities like delivering the product to the customers, advertisements, and
sales of the products (Armstrong et al., 2014). Natures of marketing in the women
clothing department of Marks and Spencer are:
Marketing as a function of Economy: The marketing is responsible for the delivering
and communicating all the products from the company to the customers.
Human activity: The marketing can simply be defined as the actions of human that are
directed towards human satisfaction.
Consumer Related: The department is responsible to identify the trends and needs of
products of the customers and hence satisfy them by providing the desired products.
Creation of utilities: The marketing contributes to four major factors, which are time,
possession, place, and form (Baker, 2016). The time factor is to ensure that the
products are available at the right time, the possession makes sure that the customers
are given total authority of the product, the place factor ensures that the products are
sold in the right areas, and the form directs towards the services provided by the
company.
Goal oriented: The marketing departments target is to ensure profit to both the seller
and the buyer.
Marketing is dynamic in nature: The functioning of marketing department is complex
and is the resultant of many interrelated processes. This requires regular improvisation,
control, and planning.
The marketing concept is used in Marks and Spencer to analyse the different needs of
the customers and make crucial decisions, which will help them to their rivals in the UK
industry. There are four types of concept:
 The Product Concept: The product quality is a key factor in the marketing and
the customers appreciate a high quality of product.
 The Selling Concept: Every company must excel in this department to sell the
maximum number of the products.
 The Marketing Concept: The main objectives are to meet the needs of the
client, to earn profit, target the right audience for marketing, and achieving the
superior status (Lovelock and Patterson, 2015).
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 The Societal marketing Concepts: This concept ensures that the company first
understands and identifies the needs of the target audience and then delivers the
required goods.
Trends in marketing:
 Relationship marketing: In this, two or more companies come into a
partnership to deliver a product to customers.
 Industrial Marketing: In this, a particular business sells its products to the other
substitute companies who can further resell those (Watson IV et al., 2015).
 Societal Marketing: The sole focus is to satisfy the customer, which would
further help the company to enjoy profits and benefits.
There are different factors that affect the marketing. They are:
 Political: the different legal laws and reforms needs to be followed by the
company before setting the price or selling their goods.
 Economic: This factor lets the company to consider the economic condition of
the country and set the price of their products accordingly.
 Competitive: The activities of the rival companies also affect the working and
functioning of the company.
 Social and cultural: The social outlook and the cultures provide the company
with an idea of the quality of the products that it should manufacture.
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Figure 1: External factors affecting the marketing.
Source: (Kapetanaki et al., 2014)
Structure of marketing in Marks and Spencer:
 Vice President: Responsible for the company’s development in marketing and
creation of marketing strategies and forms a bridge between the marketing
department and the owners of the company
 Marketing Manager: Responsible for carrying out the strategies of marketing in
the company including social advertisements, printings, etc
 Market Researchers: This formulates the information about the market
customers and the competitors of the company (Lee et al., 2015).
 Public Relations Employee: Responsible for the non-paid forms techniques of
the advertisements of the products
 Designers: This set of people manages and improve the image of the brand in
the society.
The marketing processes of Marks and Spencer includes firm analysis of the market
factors and understanding the needs of the customer, their needs that can develop in
the future, reasons behind their needs and develops suitable plans to gain profit
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(Pescher et al., 2014). To convert the ideas that are earned from the analysis into
reality, marketing mix is used. The efficient use of marketing mix, leads to productive
strategic marketing. The strategic planning aims at implementation of the marketing mix
for future production.
B2B context B2C context
Obtains products for business needs Obtains products for individual customers
Focuses on economical benefits Focuses on physiological benefits
The acquiring policies are lengthy The process are instant or short
Involvement of large groups in purchasing Purchasing done by individuals or families
Marketing decisions taken by large groups Decisions taken by customers
Purchase of large quantity Purchase of small quantity
Major problems arise for supply failure Minor problems are experienced
The price is negotiable The price is fixed
Product bought from suppliers Products bought from intermediaries
Switching supplier is difficult Switching supplier is easy
Table 1: Roles of marketing in B2B and B2C
P2 Explain how roles and responsibilities of marketing relate to the wider
organisational context.
Marketing relates to various organisational activities of Marks & Spencer’s women
clothing department. Its roles and responsibilities relating to wider organisational context
are as follows.
Marketing environment: Ethical, social, technological, political and other changes
occurred in marketing environment of M&S is considered by marketing. It is observed
Brexit has noticeable impacts on retail industry in terms of supply chain cost, labour
supply, and others. Increase in social trends influences marketers to take initiatives
supporting various communities. Similarly, marketing department creates awareness
considering changes in surrounded environment and encourages every department to
make maximum opportunities for positive aspects and execute strategies to combat
implications of negative aspects (Feng et al., 2015).
Relationship with customers: Marketers determine current and future women clothing
needs in various regions and pass the same to production department to ensure timely
fulfilment of needs. They decide price of each category of clothing product by comparing
with competitors’ products. They also compare effectiveness of products with a price to
ensure customers are getting products at right price.
Relationship with intermediaries: Another responsibility of marketing is to manage
relationship with intermediaries so that they can transfer right quantity of products
timely. Customers are able to avail clothing products according to their demand
because of relationship with intermediaries (Piercy and Evans, 2014). Marketers
encourage intermediaries to promote women clothing products of M&S through various
marketing channels, and increase its awareness and brand loyalty in market.
Relationship with intermediaries works in areas of creation of marketing plan and
ensures repeat customers.
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Competition: Marketing department identifies target markets and ensures production
new category of women clothing to fulfil needs. It measures level of competition among
brands selling women clothing by examining usefulness of current product offerings by
each brand. It develops and implements a communication strategy that shall make M&S
reach women with different clothing needs.
In addition to facilitation of marketing relationship with external forces, the function also
interacts with other divisions of M&S. These functions can be research and
development, production, purchasing, and finance. Interaction of M&S’s interaction with
following functions is as follows.
Finance: It controls expenses of marketing department and asks for justifying
expenditure to avoid irrelevant usage of funds. It prepares three categories of financial
statements and asks marketing professionals to present accurate data for reliable
statements (Piercy and Evans, 2014). Marketing function wants flexibility to enable
credit terms to be applied as a negotiation. Financial professionals of M&S decide
budget for marketing division concerning advertisement, packaging, branding, and other
activities.
Purchasing: It purchases desired units of raw materials and deals with suppliers
(Barrales‐Molina et al., 2014). Marketing and purchasing function work collaboratively to
ensure flexible, long-term, strengthened, and cooperative relationship with suppliers of
clothing products. Marketing professionals focus on maintaining quality and standards
of components required to produce products so that these can be differentiated easily in
the market. Both functions decide on pricing materials, measuring economical
purchasing quantities, and managing stocks.
Research and Development: It loses its focus on consumer needs due to emphasis
given on the introduction of new products. Innovation in area of clothing product is a
major role of this functional unit, and this can occur through sufficient market trends,
competitors, and customers’ data. Thus, marketing division of M&S looks for new
demands and helps R&D division regarding introduction of products with better
functionality.
Production: This division has highest clash with marketing activities of M&S. It
supports marketing in operating and managing production runs with a minimal change
to production. Data presented by marketing professionals help production managers to
decide how much to produce so that M&S will not face excess or shortage of clothing
products. Marketing department achieves customisation in various product ranges in
association with a production function.
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LO2
P3 Compare the ways in which different organisations apply the marketing mix to
the marketing planning process to achieve business objectives.
Marketing mix is the concept that is used by the business owners for planning the
marketing objectives as per the needs and demands of the consumers. In this
marketing mix, comparison of two organizations that are M&S and H&M are done
understanding the current tactics used in the women clothing section. Furthermore, this
will help in gaining a detail overview of marketing strategies of both the organizations of
UK.
Elements M&S H&M
Products The firm offers wide ranges
of stylish clothing products
to women. Some products
sold by M&S include coats,
jackets, blazers, dresses,
jeans, shorts, skirts,
sportswear, t-shirts, tops,
and others
(Marksandspencer.com,
2019). These products are
of various fabrics, colours,
designs, and sizes. Bold
colours, smooth fabrics,
and unique prints are some
features of such products.
H&M sells products with
latest trends, premium
quality concepts, and
sustainable styles (hm.com,
2019). Its clothing product
ranges include waistcoats,
trousers, skirts, dresses,
jeans, sweatshirts,
maternity wear, knitwear,
and others. Some of H&M’s
products are based on
campaigns such as
Everyday Summer, The
Blue Crew, shades of
summer, and others.
Price It adopts a competitive
pricing strategy for its
clothing products. All
products are priced
according to a medium and
high product category. The
increased competition due
to online retailers and
traditional players enables
M&S to follow this pricing
strategy. The major
advantage is that the
retailer can gather many
insights into strategies
adopted by competitors to
attract women. The pricing
strategy is useful to
regulate market share to
The firm’s women clothing
products are sold at a
premium price. It creates a
picture in buyers’ mind that
products are of superior
quality. Thus, consumers
attract towards its products
and this leads to increased
revenue and profit.
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retail competitors (Piercy
and Evans, 2014).
Place M&S is found be an
international brand that is
having clothing stores in
about 50 countries. The
company is found to own
website where customers
are able to choose their
clothing products and
facilities of home delivery
as well. The company is
currently having about 959
stores, among which about
300 stores are consisting of
clothing products of
women.
H&M is offering products
using franchising and
partnership strategy. The
company is currently selling
the fashion products in
about 4135 stores
(hm.com, 2019). The
clothes that sold from
online stores as well where
customers are having
option of get huge lists of
varieties.
Promotion M&S is found to use
advertisement campaigns
and mostly focus on the
digital marketing strategy.
They use print ads and
mobile ads for promoting
the clothes for women. The
customers are provided
options to write blogs and
give fashion tips in their
website as well.
The promotional strategies
followed by H&M are TV
advertisements, YouTube
campaigns, digital
marketing, promo codes
and discounts,
sponsorships and PR
strategy. However, the
most common strategy
using by the firm is TV
advertisement where
creative advertisements
with latest innovative
fashion designs are showed
to the customers (Aras et
al., 2017).
People M&S follows competitive
payment policy for retaining
the employees. Rewards
are given to the employees
based on their
performance. Learning and
development programs are
also arranged for new
trainees of the company
(Mayrhofer and Roederer,
2016).
The staffs that are working
in H&M are well-trained.
The employees are working
at a rotational shift and are
motivated constantly that
helps them in coming up
with innovative clothing
designs. In H&M, staffs
come from the diverse
backgrounds along with
special skills that help in
bringing latest designs in
products.
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Physical evidence The products of the M&S
are having prominent logo.
Moreover, the company is
having their own website
that indicates they are
having effective physical
evidence in UK as well as
other global countries.
The stores of H&M are
having sound ambiences
and the staffs are having
humble characters. The
company is having diverse
portfolio that has helped
them in entering in
international market
successfully.
Process The stores of M&S are
located at shopping malls
and sub urban areas. The
company follows suitable
business process by
helping the customers to
pay bills of the products
effectively in the checkout
counters.
Staffs working in the outlets
of H&M are helping the
customers in selecting the
best products from the
stores. The services and
the delivery time for the
online products is also
quick that shows that they
are able to gain satisfied
customers in their business.
Table 1: Marketing Mix Comparison
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LO3
P4 Produce and evaluate a basic marketing plan for an organisation.
A detailed marketing plan for M & S is done below.
1. Executive Summary
In order to create an efficient marketing plan, the internal and external factors of Marks
and Spencer need to be analysed. This is done with the help of SWOT analysis (for
determining strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) and PESTLE analysis
(for identifying political, economic, social, technological, and environmental factors). The
7p’s of Marketing Mix is used in creating this marketing plan. Before these are identified,
the purpose and objectives of the marketing plan will be set and a market overview will
also be provided that provides an analysis of the market. The budget of the marketing
plan and the period required for the operation is elaborated.
2. Objectives
Marks and Spencer is trying to launch a new fashion product – The British Kimono in
the Women-clothing department after realising the potential market for fashionable
clothing in the UK. A budget of 5 million pounds is allocated for the completion of this
marketing plan. A period of 5 months is given to conduct all necessary marketing
operations to achieve the objective.
3. Situational Analysis
The marketing plan will analyse the situation of the market – the internal and external
factors that have the capability to influence the new product and this marketing plan.
The external factors will be identified by using PESTLE analysis of Marks and Spencer
in the UK along with SWOT analysis to determine the company’s strengths and
weaknesses.
PESTLE Analysis of Marks and Spencer
Factors Effects
Political Political factor like the issue of Brexit has influenced the political
stability of the country in an uncertain way. Some believe that its
influence will create chaos in the country while others believe that it
will pave the way for new business opportunities. Foreign Direct
Investment (FDI) has increased in the UK in the last couple of years,
especially in the sports, grocery, and clothing departments. The
current corporation tax rate is 19 percent on company profits.
However, this has been lowered to 17 percent effective from 2020,
which will beneficial for the company in future business aspects
(Gov.uk, 2019).
Economic The UK is the 5th largest economy in the world when GDP is
considered; Inflation has been on the rise in the UK as cost of
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