Marketing Essentials Report: Roles, Mix and Marketing Plan

This report provides a detailed analysis of marketing essentials, focusing on the strategies employed by Argos, a British catalogue retailer, and its competitor, Robert Dyas. The report begins with an introduction to marketing, defining its core functions and objectives. It then delves into the key roles and responsibilities of the marketing function, including branding, market awareness, and market research. The report further explores the relationship between the marketing function and other organizational units like HR and R&D. A significant portion of the report compares the marketing mix of Argos and Robert Dyas, examining their approaches to product, price, promotion, place, process, people, and physical evidence. Finally, the report outlines a comprehensive marketing plan for launching a new product, demonstrating the practical application of marketing principles. The report highlights the importance of understanding consumer behavior, market trends, and effective strategies for achieving competitive advantage and maximizing profitability. This report is available on Desklib, a platform providing AI-powered study tools for students, offering past papers and solved assignments.

Marketing
Essentials

INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
P1. Key roles and responsibilities of marketing function......................................................1
P2. Roles and responsibilities of marketing in relation to wider organisational context.......3
P3. Ways in which 2 organisations apply marketing mix......................................................4
P4. Marketing Plan for the launch of a new product at market place....................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES Books and Journals.............................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Marketing is defined as a process in which an organisation engage in the function of
promoting their product and services among customers with an aim to drive their attraction
towards organizational offerings in order to gain value from them. Main motive of marketing
process is to maximize revenue and ensure continuous profitable growth for long period of time.
This is one of the most essential process that aid business organisation to influence large base of
consumers and ensure maximum market share holding introspective industrial sector (Chauhan,
Thapar and Kumar‘Ranjan, 2020). With the assistance of this function organisation can create
awareness among consumers related to entity product and services and can further build strong
brand image in market segment.
Present report has been conducted on ARGOS, entity operate their services as a British
catalogue retailer in the provinces of United Kingdom and Ireland. This company was founded in
the year 1972 and conduct their business operations in retail industrial sector. Products of Argos
are consumer goods and they offer high quality services and goods to their customers that
enhance their market image. In this report formative discussion has been made on responsibilities
as well as role of marketing function along with relation to wider organisational context. Report
also includes marketing mix and a marketing plan.
P1. Key roles and responsibilities of marketing function
Marketing is a process that conducts operations by influencing consumer interest by
creating awareness among them related to organisational offerings. Along with it has been
evaluated that this is an integral aspect of organisation that enhances entity overall sales and
profitability in effective way. With the assistance of marketing function organisation enhances
their reputation and brand image in respective industrial sector. This unit aim towards
influencing consumer purchasing behaviour in order to increase overall profitability organisation
at great extent.
Roles and responsibilities of marketing function
In an organisational context marketing unit conduct wide range of role as well as
responsibility. As this unit have one of the most important role which is related to developing
strong relationship with consumers and organisation to which company can maximum
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profitability. In terms with Argos it has been evaluated that this function of organisation
undertakes wide range of responsibilities and role which is being defined below:
Branding:
Branding is an efficient way through which company can assure success and
development in a premium manner. In terms with Argos it has been evaluated that this function
of marketing engage in the role of evaluating requirement and need of any services and product
of organisation to be branded as to formulate emotional connection with large number of
population. This allows company to maximise their presence in retail industrial sector. In context
to this marketing department is having most important responsibility in Argos by facilitating
company offerings for long period of time. In addition to this it has been evaluated that this unit
also known engage in the role of advertising entity product and services in respective industrial
sector in order to achieve your competitive edge than rivals.
Creation of market awareness:
An organisation conducts process of marketing with the aim to create awareness of entity
product and services among large base of individuals. In this main role of marketing in relation
with Argos is to evaluate features and key aspects of company product and services in order to
influence consumer interest by making aware about entry services and products that influence
their purchasing behaviour. In addition to this it has been evaluated that marketing having
essential responsibility to undertake crucial decisions in which they are required to make sure
that they have formulated efficient strategies through which they can enhance Argos financial
performance for long period of time. This further aid marketing to sure continuous growth and
enhance company brand image in retail industrial sector for long period of time.
Market research:
Marketing research is a crucial function of an organisation in which company engage in the
continuous process of evaluating factors and elements that are prevailing in a respective industry.
In this, main function of marketing is to develop strategies and measures through which they can
assure more competitive advantage (Andersen, Weisstein and Song, 2020). With the help of this
function company can influence and attract maximum number of consumers and inertia
maximum success. In context with Argos main role of this function is to engage in extensive
research as to evaluate current technological trend and factors through which they can promote
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their business offerings. Along with this, main responsibility of the unit is to evaluate forces on
which research can be conducted.
P2. Roles and responsibilities of marketing in relation to wider organisational context
Marketing is an essential element for an organisation through which an entity can
maximize their revenue generation capability at great extent. This crucial department provide
wide range of benefits to enterprise that further aware customers related to product and services
of entity. Further it has been evaluated that marketing department engage in the function of
attracting customers attraction towards organizational offerings in order to influence their
purchasing behaviour towards company services and product. With this they aim towards
increasing overall profitability of organisation. In relation with this it has been evaluated that
Argos performs their business services as a catalogue retailer and conduct their services in the
confines of Ireland and United Kingdom. In addition to this, it has been determined that
company is also having its franchise in other countries like China. Thus, it is essential for
respective organisation to ensure that there is formative and strong interrelationship prevails
between marketing department in other functions of organisation as this assist entity to perform
their business services while ensuring maximum growth and development of Argos in
international business segment.
HR with Marketing:
HR department engage in the process and function of recruiting skilled, talented and
efficient candidates in organisational workplace structure as to fulfil man force requirement of
every department (Sembiring, 2020). In addition to this, this department also aim towards
creating a positive and productive workplace culture by conducting functions like recruiting,
selecting, training and development. This unit perform their operations in the terms of handling
diversity by managing employees in effective manner. In terms with Argos in has been evaluated
that HR department in company perform their operations in efficient way by hiring potential
candidates. This unit is having close ties with marketing unit, as HR department of entity fulfil
recruitment gap of marketing by providing them skilled, professional and talented employees.
While on the other hand marketing department communicate the plan of organisation to
employees and deliver brand messages to work force. With the help of this strong inter-
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relationship both of these units aim towards enhancing organisational profitability and
productivity for long period of time.
Marketing with R&D:
Research and Development Department is one of the most crucial units of an organisation
which is engaged in the process of evaluating trends, ideas that are prevailing in marketplace. In
Argos research and development department continuously engage in the process of evaluating
current prevailing trends in retail industrial sector with extensive research. If it is seen in terms of
research and development relationship with marketing this unit provide information related to
purchasing behaviour of consumers, latest trend product and services in marketplace in order to
enhance marketing process effectiveness. While on the other hand marketing department aid
research and development unit by providing them information on the aspect of what consumers
want and how much they are willing to pay. Strong interrelationship of both of these unit in
Argos enhances efficiency through which entity ensure maximum growth in due course of time.
P3. Ways in which 2 organisations apply marketing mix
Marketing mix can be defined as a marketing theory which defines the strategies as well as
tactics employed by an organisation to create long lasting positive impression over the public at
large (van Gelder, Brown and Shombodon, 2020). In other words, it can be said to be a concept
that encompasses elements like product, place, price, promotion, people, process and physical
evidence. ARGOS is a catalogue retailer which realises the significance of strategically applying
the elements of marketing mix so as to create brand awareness in market place. One of its biggest
rivals has been acknowledged to be ROBERT DYAS. The comparative marketing mix of these
companies is given as follows:-
Element ARGOS ROBERT DYAS
Product ARGOS mainly deals in catalogues.
Apart from this, the entity also deals
within markets like furniture,
refrigerators, insurance, skin care etc.
As against this, ROBERT DYAS
deals in product categories such as
electronic appliance, security and
safety items, laundry items, travel and
leisure, gardening item, kitchen
product which are sold in England.
Price This company stresses on usage of low
pricing strategy to capture the attention
Contrary to this, ROBERT DYAS
leverages affordable pricing to stay
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of all the social statuses within the
society.
ahead of its rivals present in market
place.
Promotion ARGOS intends to set direct
connection with the customers for
which it makes use of promotional
strategies like social media, online
banners, print media etc (Pattnaik and
Shukla, 2020). This provides
assistance to the entity in inflating its
existent level of revenues as well as
profits.
Contrary to this, ROBERT DYAS
uses online as well as offline
promotions to appeal to public. In this
regard, the main channels used by it
are TV, radio, newspapers, social
media etc.
Place ARGOS opts online as well as offline
mode of operations. This is intended to
capture the attention of large base of
audience and satisfy them with the
high quality offerings of the company.
ROBERT DYAS makes its offerings
available within England especially
South East part. Further, customers
can also get access to the products via
online mode.
Process ARGOS uses advanced process to
ensure smooth delivery of its offerings.
The entity functions via online mode.
As soon as the order is received by
ARGOS, it confirms it as per the
availability and then moves to the next
stage to allow its delivery.
ROBERT DYAS gives due emphasis
on manufacturing process with the
sole intent of ensuring the production
of superior quality offerings that can
appeal to the customer base.
People Having an employee base of over
30000, this entity provides
empowerment opportunities to staff so
that it can inflate its capabilities and
competencies in an effective manner.
This instils a sense of motivation
among the employees encouraging
ROBERT DYAS believes in creating
same empowerment chances for men
and women, considering them to be
equal. The entity has reserved 11%
posts for females. This implies that its
main agenda is to empower the
women to be able to rub shoulders
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them to give their best performance for
achievement of objectives in
predefined time period.
with men.
Physical
Evidence
The catalogues sold by this
organisation are currently present in
over 75% of all the households. This
tends to account as the physical
evidence for the trust and belief of
customers in this brand.
The due diligence process of this
company emphasizes over exhibiting
the commitment of the organisation
towards guarantee of 0% engagement
in unethical activities such as slavery,
black marketing, human trafficking
etc.
P4. Marketing Plan for the launch of a new product at market place
Marketing plan can be defined as the documentation done in relation to the planning
associated with marketing for a particular product, service or the whole brand. ARGOS is a
multinational brand which realises the significance of making use of sound marketing measures
and tactics in order to keep the customers engaged at all times. This is aimed at strengthening the
financial performance of the company in market place. Currently, entity sells products via its
brands (Khalili, 2020). This implies that entity does not have its own product line. Looking upon
this, the management of this corporation has decided to come up with a new product in market
under its own name. This is aimed at inflating the brand value in the eyes of customers. A
marketing plan has been developed for this purpose as follows:-
Overview of the organisation: ARGOS is a well renowned British multinational
corporation functioning in the field of catalogue retailing. It is a subsidiary company of
Sainsbury's. The organisation functions through offline as well as online mode of operations.
Current organisational offerings: The respective company does not sell products under
its own name. Instead it sells product via its brands. The products sold by its brands include
kitchen ware, consumer goods, electronics, furniture, beauty care, skin care, gadgets etc.
Overview of the New Product: ARGOS Robotic Furniture is a product designed taking
into due consideration the constraints associated with space. This is a product which can be
compressed and then opened to make lavish furniture. Robotic furniture enables the customers to
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enable the conversion of their small spaces into smart spaces with provision of ease and comfort
at the heart of individuals.
(Source: Self Generated)
Vision: “To be the word of mouth for people across the world”
Mission: “To be the leader within global retail sector by creating out of box products”
Objectives: The objective linked to Robotic Furniture’s launch at marketplace is:-
“To enhance the profitability of the corporation by 15% by the end of 6 months as a
result of launch of robotic furniture”
SWOT analysis: It is a strategic management model used for the purpose of screening the
internal environment of an organisation. The management of ARGOS has conducted SWOT
analysis prior to the launch of robotic furniture in market as follows:-
Strengths Weaknesses
 The extensive brand value and
goodwill of the company in market
will inflate the growth prospects of
robotic furniture in market place
(Anderson, Camm and Cochran, 2020).
 ARGOS has all the means to make use
of latest technologies within robotic
furniture so as to increase the comfort
 The respective company is only having
design and development zone of
catalogues under its own name rest of
the other products are sold under
different brands.
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and convenience for the customers.
Opportunities Threats
 The entity has the opportunity to
launch variations in robotic furniture
so as to create excitement and appeal
within the public at large.
 ARGOS is a big name in market and
thus it can launch more such products
into market under its own name.
 There are many rivals dealing in
furniture sector that may come up with
a same or similar concept at a lower
price, thereby resulting into a shift of
customers from ARGOS to them.
STP: The management of ARGOS has made use of the strategic framework named STP to
identify the potential target audience (Proctor, 2020). This framework consists of 3 main
elements, namely, segmentation, targeting and positioning. The explanation over these 3
elements is given as follows:-
Element Description
Segmentation Company is segmenting the market in accordance with demographic
segmentation.
Targeting The aspect on the basis of which targeting will be done within the segmented
market is social status. The entity will be targeting elite section along with
the upper middle class individuals for sale of robotic furniture.
Positioning The positioning strategy adopted by ARGOS for robotic furniture will be
social media marketing and print media advertising. Both of them will
provide assistance to the organisation in creating a word about the brand and
its new offering.
Budget: The budget developed for the marketing plan is given as follows:-
MARKETING BUDGET (in £)
PARTICULARS I Year II Year III Year IV Year V Year
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Initial money 4050 7425 12230 14370 20890
Investment 8350 11525 23920 31540 12570
TOTAL 12400 18950 36180 45910 33460
MARKETING OUTLAY
Promotion 4647 2600 4691 1976 2113
Sales publicity 1366 805 2453 1493 1052
Direct selling 3136 1806 4752 2005 4331
TOTAL 9149 4171 11899 5474 7500
Monitoring and Control: This can be referred to as the process of tracking the progress
of plan and thereby taking corrective actions if deemed necessary. In this relation, ARGOS
focuses on usage of techniques or tools such as Benchmarks and KPI to ascertain the extent to
which the entity has been able to achieve its objectives by way of the marketing plan intended at
launching Robotic Furniture.
Financial analysis: In this part of project report financial analysis is done in terms of calculating
different kinds of ratios:
Efficiency ratios- Under it, a range of ratios are included such as:
Accounts receivable turnover ratio- Net sales/ accounts receivable
Particulars 2017 2018 2019
Net sales 140 160 180
Accounts receivable 70 60 80
Accounts receivable turnover ratio 2 times 2.6 times 2.25 times
Assets turnover ratio= Net sales/ Total assets
Particulars 2017 2018 2019
Net sales 140 160 180
Total assets 100 120 150
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Total assets turnover ratio 1.4 times 1.33 times 1.2 times
Fixed assets turnover ratio= Net sales/ Fixed assets
Particulars 2017 2018 2019
Net sales 140 160 180
Fixed assets 70 90 95
Total fixed assets turnover ratio 2 times 1.77 times 1.89 times
Accounts payable turnover ratio= Total purchase/accounts payable
Particulars 2017 2018 2019
Total purchase 95 80 85
Accounts payable 30 40 35
Accounts payable turnover ratio 3.16 times 2 times 2.43 times
Profitability ratios:
Gross profit ratio = gross profit/net sales*100
Particulars 2017 2018 2019
Gross profit 40 30 50
Net sales 140 160 180
Gross profit ratio 28.57% 18.75% 27.77%
Net profit ratio= Net profit/net sales*100
Particulars 2017 2018 2019
Net profit 25 28 35
Net sales 140 160 180
Gross profit ratio 17.85% 17.5% 19.44%
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