Critical Evaluation: Whole Foods UK Marketing Mix and Positioning

This report provides a critical evaluation of Whole Foods Market's marketing mix elements and positioning strategies, particularly within its UK operations over the last three years. It employs Porter's Generic Strategies framework to categorize the company's competitive approach, examining aspects such as cost leadership, differentiation, and focus. The analysis covers the promotional mix, product offerings, pricing strategies, and placement, supported by visual evidence like screenshots to illustrate recent marketing activities. The report reflects on how these elements reinforce Whole Foods Market's positioning and overall marketing effectiveness within the competitive landscape, emphasizing the use of premium pricing, unique product lines, and community-focused promotions.

PRINCIPLES AND
PRACTICE OF
MARKETING

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................................3
TASK.........................................................................................................................................3
Positioning of Whole Foods...................................................................................................3
Marketing mix used for reinforcing positioning....................................................................7
Evaluation of effectiveness of marketing...............................................................................8
CONCLUSION.......................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES.......................................................................................................................11

INTRODUCTION
Marketing refers to activities which are performed by an organisation to promote and
sell their products and services to consumers. The process of marketing is followed in order
to intentionally stimulate demand for the products and services which are offered by the
company. The principles of marketing or agreed upon marketing ideas, waste and
organisation used for effective marketing strategy (Gbadamosi, 2019). The principles of
marketing are based upon price, place, product, promotion, physical evidence, people and
processes which are interconnected and work all together. Whole Foods Market is an
American multinational supermarket chain which was founded by John Mackey, Craig
Weller, Renee Hardy-Lawson and Mark Skiles in 1980. The company is operating as grocery
and health and food store. The parent company of Whole Foods is Amazon and is serving in
around 500 locations. The purpose of this report is to discuss the positioning strategy
followed by the company with the help of porter generic framework. With the help of porter
generic strategy, the report will discuss the marketing mix factors which can influence the
operations of business. The project will define the marketing mx which is used for
reinforcing the positing of the company within the industry. Lastly, some of the metrics and
strategies will be implemented in order to evaluate the effectiveness of marketing strategies
followed by the company.
TASK
Positioning of Whole Foods
PORTER GENERIC STRATEGY
Porter generic strategy is the framework which defines the attractiveness of industries
for long term profitability. As the porter generic strategy is based on three factors, the three
factors are- cost, differentiation and focus. These factors help in determining scope and
competitive advantage. This framework is a competitive strategy which defines the source of
competitive advantage which are cost and differentiation (Pride and Ferrell, 2021). This
framework is used to define how companies gain competitive advantage by choosing the
right strategy. The porter generic strategy is helpful in understanding cost leadership,
differentiation and focus. Here, focus is further divided into- cost focus and differentiation
focus.

A detailed porter generic strategy in context of Whole Foods Market is explained
below:
Cost leadership- Cost leadership strategy involves getting competitive advantage by
reducing the cost. The cost leadership factor is the main component of Porter generic
strategy. In context of Whole Foods Market, the company use cost leadership in various
consumer markets. The organization use this strategy in order to preserve market leadership
position through efficient value chain management and it allows the supermarket chain to
expand their market share by targeting middle class customers who made the largest
proportion of overall consumer marketing mix in most of the countries where the companies
operating (Robertson, 2021). As Whole Foods Market focuses on offering affordable and
accessible products follow around the globe the help of cost leadership strategy this leads the
brand towards high brand awareness in incline in sales revenues which offers them strong
competitive advantage.
Whole Food Market provides discount coupons and promotional campaigns through
which they can reach the sales target and maintain their competitive position in highly
competitive business environment. With the help of cost leadership strategy, it helps Whole
food company to gain various benefits which are offered due to this cost leadership strategy.
This strategy helps the company in increasing consumption, strengthening customer base,
enhancing brand awareness and recognition in the market by promoting their affordable and
accessible products.
Differentiation- By implementing differentiation strategy it allows Whole Food
Market to expand their customer base by offering unique products. By using innovation
strategy, the Whole Foods Market focuses on differentiating their brand with the other
competitors. By incorporating the combination of differentiation and cost leadership strategy,
this supports Whole Foods Company to establish a strong and loyal customer base through
which they can generate higher revenues and maximize their profitability.
With the help of differentiation strategy, The Whole Foods company position their
products in effective manner through which they can differentiate their brands from other
available alternatives in the industry (Whole Food Market generic strategies, 2018). So, all
these strategies such as having management and marketing celebrity endorsement,
advertisement for some of the differentiation strategies followed by Whole Foods Market in
order maintain their competitive position in the industry. The logo of brand is also another

component of differentiation strategy of Whole Foods company which creates a strong brand
image both the brand in consumer’s mind.
Focus strategy- Focus is the third strategy of Porter generic model which focuses on
resources and gain competitive advantage in niche market. In context of Whole Food Market,
the company implements focus strategy in situations of low cost and offering the best value
to customers. Second play using cost focus strategy, whole food company emphasize on the
size and design of the product which can be helpful in meeting customer demands and level
of satisfaction. By focusing on product attributes, Whole Food Market puts emphasis on its
branding strategy through which they can bring continuous change in their product design
and packaging which can be helpful in meeting customer demands and level of satisfaction
and maximize the value for money through which a strong customer base can be established.
Whole Foods Markets generic strategy relates to the company’s intensive growth
which ensures competitiveness of company within the industry. The company uses
combination of cost leadership and differentiation strategy. Whole Food Market uses
intensive growth strategy to ensure business development and expansion (Whole Foods
Market’s Generic and intensive growth strategy, 2017). In case of Whole foods market, the
company uses broad differentiation strategy which helps the brand in creating a unique image
and stay ahead of competition. The USP of company is the organic and natural characteristics
of their products. the primary objective of Whole Foods Market is based on generic strategy
of broad differentiation which helps the business in maximizing their profitability.
PROMOTIONAL MIX AND ACTIVITY
Promotional mix is the composition of marketing methods which involves
advertising, sales, public relations and direct marketing that can support in achieving specific
marketing goals. Promotion mix comprises of 4 main elements which can influence a greater
number of audiences, these elements are- advertising, sales promotion, direct marketing and
public relations (Marketing Promotional Mix, 2021). In context of Whole Foods company,
the promotional mix and other activities are discussed below:
Promotion- Whole Food Market's promotional marketing approach relies on
advertising, public relations and sales promotion. The company runs advertising campaigns
that highlight and communicate the importance of health and the company's underlying
purpose. The company also offers sales promotions in order to establish a strong and high-
quality brand image. As part of its promotional plan, Whole Foods is offering digital

discounts through its mobile app which will include "substantial savings" on everyday
essentials like milk, yoghurt, and cereal, as well as seasonal specials. In the past, Whole
Foods Market has avoided running advertisements in both print and visual media. Customers
are drawn to their stores by brand awareness and the shopping experience invite them to
return. The company largely relies on word-of-mouth and social media for its success. They
have a marketing staff with a total reach of 11 million followers on Pinterest, Twitter,
Facebook, and Instagram (Whole Food Market marketing strategy, 2017). The company has
oriented its marketing efforts on community non-profit relationships that benefit both the
company and the community.
Product-This factor define the range of products and services which are offered by
the company. The products which are offered by Whole Foods company is from the range of
2600 natural and organic range of products. The products which are offered by the company
are- grocery products, meat/poultry, seafood and catering, coffee and tea, nutritional
supplements, body care, educational products, floral, pet foods, household goods and other
daily essentials (Whole Foods Marketing mix, 2021). The company also offers natural and
organic products which are offered at comparatively high prices due to approval stamps,
stringent regulation and other formalities.
Place- The company Whole Food Market is opening their stores at various locations
through which they can ensure successful business expansion. This element of the strategy
defines the location through which the products and services are offered by the company. The
place of distribution of goods are- Whole Food Market stores ad Whole Food Market online
stores.
Price- Whole Food Market use premium pricing strategy for their product range
which are organic and natural as this will help them in justifying their pricing strategy
through which they can attract customers who are more likely to have health-conscious
products can be attracted and targeted (Marketing mix analysis: Whole Food Market, 2017).
With the help of their premium pricing strategy, Whole Food Market creates a unique value
and position for their brand through which they can meet their targets and differentiate
themselves form the other competitor companies, such as- Walmart. The pricing strategy of
Whole Food Market is aligned to generic strategy of broad differentiation.
People- The company have employed people who work for their sales, customer
service, retail and supply chain department. The people continuously work for the

organization where they understand the perceptive and preferences of their customers and
interact with them through which management can resolve customer issues.
Physical evidence- The packaging of products offered by whole foods market is of
distinct color which differentiate the brand from the other companies which are offering
similar range of products.
Process- The process followed by Whole Food Market ensures that their products are
always available at their stores through which they can meet customer demands. The process
followed by Whole Food Market also involves researching market opportunities through
which they can understand the needs and demands of their customers.
Marketing mix used for reinforcing positioning
Marketing mix refers to marketing approach which touches broad range if areas and
focuses on comprehensive marketing plan. The marketing mix strategy is used o understand
the 4P’s, which are- price, place, products and promotion (Marketing mix, 2020). The factors
which are defined through marketing mix supports business in positioning their product
through which they can meet customer demands, generate higher revenues, meet desired
objectives and enhance business profitability.
In context of whole foods market company, a descriptive marketing mix for
reinforcing the positioning strategy is addressed underneath:
 Price- The pricing strategy followed by Whole Foods company is premium pricing
strategy which allows the organization to offer high quality standards products
through which they can ensure customers regarding the reliability and quality
standards of the products offered by the brand. The brand can also position their
products with the help of psychological pricing strategy through which they can catch
attention of greater number of customers. Through psychological and price
penetration strategy, the company can position their products through which they can
gain competitive advantages and gain higher market share.
 Product- As Whole Food Market is a grocery and heath food business; the company
offers variety of products. The main product line of the brand is 365 everyday value
product, Whole Food Market brand and Engine 2 Plant-strong. Through offering 365
everyday value product range, the company targets customers who ate health

conscious and through Whole Food Market brand product the company offers
premium product range for their customers (Whole Foods Market marketing mix,
2017). Therefore, the product range of Engine 2 Plant is the product line where Whole
Food Market offers which addresses vegetarian and special dietary foods. The
company should extend additional benefits for purchasing the product through which
they can strengthen their customer base and this will be helpful in enhancing customer
engagement with the brand. The company should enhance packaging of their products
through which they can make it more convenient to transport and use. The change in
packaging will be helpful in attracting customers and generating higher revenues.
 Place- In this component of the marketing mix, Whole Foods Market uses the
popularity of its brand to draw clients to its rising number of outlets in the United
States, Canada and United Kingdom (Smith, 2020). Whole Food Market must focus
on enhancing the functioning of their online website and make it easier, customer
centric and user friendly through which customers who are looking for online
shopping can be attracted and such states will be helpful in cost leadership ad
differentiation strategy. Whole Food Market must open a company operated retail
store through which they can save cost.
 Promotion- Whole Food Market use various promotional strategies which relies on
season and industry conditions. The promotional strategy of Whole Food Market
focuses on advertising, public relations and sales promotion. The company organize
advertising campaigns where they highlight and share health and deeper purpose of
business. The company also offers sales promotion through which they can create a
strong and quality brand image of the company (Marketing mix Whole Foods, 2019).
The company must collaborate with influences through which they can post attractive
content which will be helpful in advertising their products and increasing the
acceptance among customers at wider geographical area. With the help of positing
creative content through social media, Whole Foods Market can target people which
will result in repeat purchase of their customers. The company must collect data
regarding their customers and send an email or SMS regarding the products,
discounts, offers and services which are offered by the rand as this will increase
customer engagement with the brand.

Evaluation of effectiveness of marketing
Evaluation plays a crucial role in marketing which helps an organization to eliminate
ineffective strategies and develop a plan that can support them in strengthening the business.
Marketing effectiveness is measured which helps in determining the effects and influence of
marketing strategy which can be observed in incline in revenues and cost of customer
acquisition.
In order to determine the effectiveness of marketing strategies and approaches followed
by Whole Food Market is evaluated with the help of various factors, these factors are further
discussed below:
 Evaluate return on investments- In order to determine the effectiveness of
marketing strategy, the Whole Food Market company must evaluate the return on
investments through which they can gain insight regarding the efficiency of the
marketing strategy followed by business (Monitor and control effectiveness of
marketing plan, 2019). In order to evaluate the return, the company must calculate the
cost of each campaign and number of working hours and then measure the cost
against the profits which has been earned by the marketing strategies which are
followed by the organization.
 Capital expenditure by marketing channel- This factor acts as KPI where the
capital expenditure is tracked by marketing channel which is critical to determine the
cost of customer acquisition. The Whole Foods market company must evaluate their
Click-through-rate (CTR) of their marketing channels through which they can enrich
data and cross refer against the past performance of the brand through which they can
track their marketing campaign (Marketing effectiveness, 2019). With the help of this
KPI, Whole Food Market can evaluate the traffic which has been generated by their
channel and turn those conversions into stronger customer base.
 Customer response- Customer reaction is another approach to evaluate the reactions
and effectiveness of marketing. In context of Whole Foods Market, the company must
organize surveys through online and offline mediums and gather customer feedbacks
through which they can understanding the response of their customers (Measures to
evaluate marketing plan, 2019). Through collecting data which can be helpful in
gaining insight of customer response and their interest can be helpful in evaluating the
effectiveness of marketing strategies followed by the company.

 Market reaction- The reaction of competitors acts as barometer which helps in
evaluating the success and failure of the marketing strategy followed by an
organization. In case of Whole Foods company, the brand must gather partner
feedback through which they can analyze the effectiveness of the efforts of suppliers
and vendors and overall marketing strategy followed by the company.
 Sales performance- Examining the number of people and the overall performance of
sales can be helpful approach for determining the effectiveness of marketing strategy.
The salesperson can interact with their customers ask them for their feedbacks
through which the efficiency of marketing strategy can be determined (Ways to
evaluate marketing plan, 2016). In context of Whole Foods Market, the change and
incline in profits and loss, change in revenues can be helpful in examining the
effectiveness of marketing strategy.
CONCLUSION
From a detailed analysis of the information mentioned in the above project, it can be
concluded that marketing is a function which is performed by companies in order to promote,
advertise and sell their products through which they can earn higher revenues and ensure
business success. It can be understood that marketing comprises of various factors which
must be focused, these factors are- price, place, product and promotions through which an
organization can set themselves distinct from others and meet the planned objectives.
Promotional and marketing mix are the marketing strategies which are used by
companies in order to understand the various factors of marketing through which they can
target customers by positioning the range of products which are offered by the brand. In order
to determine the effectiveness and efficiency of various marketing strategies and approaches,
various indicators, analytic and other approaches are used through which insight can be
gained.

REFERENCES
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Pride, W. M. and Ferrell, O. C., 2021. Foundations of marketing. Cengage Learning.
Robertson, M., 2021. Sustainability principles and practice. Routledge.
Smith, T., 2020. The Roots and Uses of Marketing Knowledge: A Critical Inquiry Into the
Theory and Practice of Marketing. Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG.
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