Comparative Analysis of Marketing Strategies for UK SMEs

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of marketing strategies employed by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the United Kingdom, focusing on the retail sector. It examines various marketing techniques, including digital marketing (social media, email merchandising, mobile marketing), integrated marketing (advertising, public relations, trade shows), and personalized marketing (door-to-door surveys, presentations, product samples). The report also explores the marketing mix (product, price, place, promotion), networking strategies, and types of customer feedback utilized by three specific SMEs: Debenhams, Barrows, and Unicorn Grocery. The analysis highlights how these businesses leverage different approaches to enhance customer engagement, improve sales, and gain a competitive edge in the market. The conclusion emphasizes the significance of effective marketing in driving profit margins and achieving sustainable business growth for SMEs. The report references books and journals providing further context to the marketing strategies of SMEs.

MARKETING
ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
Digital Marketing.............................................................................................................................1
Integrated Marketing........................................................................................................................2
Marketing Mix.................................................................................................................................2
Personalised Marketing....................................................................................................................3
Networking......................................................................................................................................3
Types of feedback from customers in SMEs...................................................................................4
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................4
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................5

INTRODUCTION
In modern business world, marketing plays a crucial role for SMEs when they focuses on
running business in a successful manner. In present context, it is being found that United
Kingdom's economy majorly depends upon performance level of small and medium business
enterprises (SMEs). In this report, 3 SMEs that have been chosen are: Debenhams, Barrows
(department store), Unicorn Grocery that are dealing at domestic level in United Kingdom in
retail business sector (Scarborough, 2016). This assessment will include different types of
marketing like integrated, digital, personalised, types of feedback from customers, marketing
mix of companies and networking as well.
MAIN BODY
Small and medium sized enterprises has approximately 50 up to 250 employees. On the
other hand, turnover stays around £10 million to £50 million. SMEs like Debenhams, Barrows
(department store) and Unicorn Grocery generates that are dealing in businesstrategic direction
which makes them even more vulnerable in such a fast-changing competitive environment.
Retail Sector is being considered as part of the overall UK SME sector. The importance of this
sector to the UK economy is result of its high income generation and its large contribution to
employment. Some of marketing techniques in present context are mentioned beneath:
Digital Marketing
It refers to advertising of a particular product or services using digital mediums mainly
through internet, mobiles, display advertising etc. The small medium enterprises mainly uses
digital marketing to promote their products or services at a global level and to take advantage
from their competitors (Lam and Harker, 2015).
Debenhams is currently using various social media tools like Facebook, Instagram,
Twitter and so on to improve customer base and to encourage them they develop small but
effective ads of their offering to attract customers.
Barrows is currently using digital marketing i.e. E-mail merchandising which is helping
them in reaching to customers at international level as well because this strategy of promoting
products will be much effective and less cost consuming in nature.
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Unicorn Grocery is using effective digital marketing i.e. mobile marketing because most
of public in all over the world uses mobile phones, sending SMS to them of what this company is
selling will help them in enhancing their customer base.
Integrated Marketing
Integrated marketing is a marketing strategy to create seamless experience for consumers
to interact with the brand or enterprise. It experiment to merge all aspects of marketing
communication like advertising, direct marketing, social media and public relations. This process
is designed to create that all communication strategy are consistent across channels and focus
mainly on customers.
Debenhams: It is a British retailer departmental store that uses advertising as their
integrated marketing technique. In present context, this is helping them in enhancing profit
margins because advertising do not cost much to the company.
Barrows: It is a departmental store uses public relations as their marketing strategy to
promote and sell their product in marketplace. This is helping business organisation in
identifying, establishing, maintaining relationship of company with the public (Burns, 2016).
Unicorn Grocery: This department uses trade shows and websites to reach out many
customers. This is helping them in reaching to their customers through putting ads and
developing many trade shows as well and this will raise their customer base.
Marketing Mix
Basis Debenhams Barrows Unicorn Grocery
Product Foundation, Perfume,
Palettes, Lipstick,
Skincare, Mascara and
Aftershave
Fishing tackle, Desks
and Tables.
Headbands, Marquee
Lights, Make up and
Brushes.
Price Dynamic pricing
strategy is followed by
this company
Discount and
allowance pricing
strategy
Promotion pricing
strategy is utilised by
Unicorn Grocery
Place It is located in
different places and
Barrows is located in
Bull Street,
It is located on Albany
Road, Manchester
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one of them is
Churchill Square
Shopping Centre. It is
a famous place where
this company attracts
customers.
Birmingham where a
nearby city centre and
this is aiding them in
reaching to targeted
customers.
where a south west
Manchester cricket
club is located which
is helping this firm in
raising profit margins.
Promotion Social media tools like
Facebook, Instagram,
Twitter and so on
E-mail Marketing and
so on.
Mobile Marketing
Personalised Marketing
Personalised marketing is a one on one marketing process which is used mostly by SME's
who can deliver individualised content to recipients through data collection, analysis, and the use
of automation technology. The goal of this type of marketing in SME's to engage customers by
communicating with each as an individual. Strategies followed by the 3 retail companies are as
follows.
Debenhams: This retail company uses door to door survey form of personalised
marketing in which people from their organisation go from locality to locality to promote their
product.
Barrows: This retail organisation is a departmental store which uses presentation
technique that means employees of organisation which presents their products and services in
tabs or laptops to show to their customers.
Unicorn Grocery: This grocery store uses presentation as well as product samples to
market its goods and services for increasing its market share. Unicorn Grocery uses this
approach through tabs where they provide information to customers about products they are
selling.
Networking
It is a process that fosters the exchange of information and ideas among individuals or
groups that share a common interest. It may be be for social or business purposes. In SME's,
networking is used to develop relationships with people and companies and exchanging contact
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information. Debenhams uses retailing networking to maintain their customers information this
aid them in improving customer base. Apart from this, Barrows uses direct sales networking
process to maintain their stocks, flow of funds etc. where, they keeps information related to their
stock and fills stock as per the requirements and Unicorn Grocery uses mail order networking
for the overall operations and working which aid them in making direct connections with
customers (Burns and Dewhurst, 2016).
Types of feedback from customers in SMEs
Feedback from customers will help small medium enterprises in evaluating their
particular products or services and it will help small enterprises to modify a product according to
their customer needs. Geographical Data a kind of feedback is used by Debenhams. On the other
hand, Barrows uses Customer Preferences related feedbacks and Union Grocery uses online
review strategy to know customer needs and modify their existing products or services in
accordance with needs of it's target customers.
CONCLUSION
With the help of above mentioned report, it is being concluded that effective use of
marketing can help SMEs in enhancing their own profit margins. Along with this, it has also
been summarised that promotional activities may lead small and medium level organisation to
gain many competitive advantages and sales can also be improved.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Scarborough, N. M., 2016. Essentials of entrepreneurship and small business management.
Pearson.
Lam, W. and Harker, M. J., 2015. Marketing and entrepreneurship: An integrated view from the
entrepreneur’s perspective. International Small Business Journal. 33(3). pp.321-348.
Burns, P., 2016. Entrepreneurship and small business. Palgrave Macmillan Limited.
Burns, P. and Dewhurst, J. eds., 2016. Small business and entrepreneurship. Macmillan
International Higher Education.
Online
Marketing Strategies of Small and Medium Enterprises: A Sample Survey. 2018. [Online].
Available through:
<https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261721534_Marketing_Strategies_of_Small
_and_Medium_Enterprises_A_Sample_Survey>.
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