Marketing Synthesis - Postie Plus Group New Zealand Ltd - Research Paper Example

Marketing Synthesis: Postie Plus Group New Zealand Ltd of This paper examines key concepts in entrepreneurial marketing. It researches, defines, reference and apply critical concepts in marketing to the situation of Postie Plus Group Limited (PPGL), a New Zealand based clothing selling company. All references to PPGL are taken directly from their website. Competitive Advantage “Competitive advantage is a way of measuring whether the company has sufficient strength and expertise to dominate or succeed in the chosen market” (Kotler, 2011 p183). Competitive advantage refers to the resource base and ability of a business to grow and survive in a given business. The growth and survival relates to how well it does in relation to other businesses that compete with it and its ability to remain profitable and expand. Competitive advantage therefore relates to the sustainability of a given business in relation to the threats and competition posed by businesses that are in the same markets as the entity in question. PPGL maintains a competitive advantage because it remains profitable and it controls a significant share of the market of consumers who seek babies, children and adults clothing and related equipments. Additionally, the financial statements of PPGL shows that continues to make profits and is listed on the New Zealand stock exchange as a public company. Differentiation “Differentiation involves creating differences in the firms product offerings that set it apart from competing offerings” (Ferrell & Hartline, 2010 p209). Differentiation therefore refers to the ability of a business to give a unique and distinct offering to consumers. This will ensure that consumers will prefer to buy their products rather than other products. Differentiation is based on the added value that a business gives to its consumers that cannot be obtained elsewhere. PPGL has a wide range of products, most of which are unique in appearance and design. They provide seasonal ranges that are always different from what others offer and focus on contemporary designs that are appreciated by the middle-class of New Zealand. Total Product/Service Offering Total product offering refers to the idea of developing a unique product into a form that is acceptable for the market place (Longenecker, 2009 p160). In other words, total product/service offering is about how a business presents a given product that it sells to the public. It is concerned with branding, packaging, labeling and related issues like warranties (Longenecker, 2009 p160). PPGL has five unique brands for women and adults: Who is Henri, Spirit, Concept, Isobelle & Live.Love.Play. It also has a range of 21 brands that are related to babies clothing and equipment. All these brands provide a range of cloths that have different images and appeal to different units of the society. The designs are changed regularly and each of them has various packaging, labels and warranties that go with them. Direct Competitors “Direct competition is when products or services that perform the same functions compete against each other in a given market” (Johnson, 2009 p200). This therefore means that direct competitors are the producers who produce the same products as a given entity and target the same markets as the entity in question. In the case of PPGL, the main competitors include local New Zealand and other brands in the region (mainly from Australia) as well as other international importers. These parties target the same level of consumers (women, men and babies). Mention can be made of Pumpkin Patch which has 218 outlets, many of them in New Zealand which sell maternity clothes, babies cloths and childrens cloths. There is the Illicit Streetwear brand which targets women and adults. Whilst Icebreaker primarily targets adults. Aside this, there is a host of importers who bring in brands from the US, UK and Europe for the New Zealand market who compete for a direct market share as PPGLs brands. Segment – Consumer market Basically, market segmentation uses segmentation variables that are characteristic of individuals and groups to divide the total market to segments to ensure that the needs of each segment are met satisfactorily (Lamb et al, 2010 p262). For PPGL, consumer markets involve the individual consumer needs. Stores are therefore set up based on the demographic needs of consumers. In areas where there is a wide demographic tilt in favor of children and babies, like residential neighborhoods, there are baby shops that serve consumers. For areas that the needs of working women and other adults are in vogue like commercial centers in Christchurch and other major cities in New Zealand, there are adult shops that cater for older consumers. So segmentation for consumer shops is usually based on demographics, psychography and geographic circumstances. Segment – Business market Business segmentation is also based on the same preamble of the consumer segmentation. Normally, this involves how to divide the various characteristics of corporate clients and businesses. PPGL segments its business-to-business customers on the basis of resellers, institutions and retailers. It has a group of re-sellers like major clothing brands around New Zealand that order specific brands from them. These resellers get unique brands which are produced for them which they sell to their consumers. There are also institutional clients like businesses that can place specific orders like companies celebrating anniversaries that want unique brands. These groups are catered for. Another group are the retailers, which include smaller clothing shops that buy in bulk from them and sell to consumers. The segmentation of businesses. Another way of looking at business segmentation is about how the internal units of a business are divided up. In that sense, PPGL is divided into three main units, Postie, BabyCity & SchoolTex. These units are specialized divisions that concentrate on the needs of Adults (mostly women), babies and children respectively. These three units control the production and sales of these specific brands. However, there are centralized marketing and management functions that have geographical representations which see to the central oversight of these three units. Market Intelligence Strategy Due to the changing market trends and circumstances, there is the need for businesses to take up information about the business environment (Reif et al, 1997 p13). This clearly means that a business needs to have a way of studying trends and systems about the business environment. Businesses therefore study their competitors, identify trends, study consumer needs and conduct an analysis of the Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental and Legal matters in New Zealand. PPGL has a strategic management unit which is responsible for bringing the centralized management up to date about the business environment. Management matches these trends with the internal strenghts/weaknesses and resources of the company and come up with decisions for the whole company. Sales Promotion Strategy Sales promotion strategy enhances the firms distinctive capability, increases its competitive advantage and builds long-term relationships with customers (Mullin & Cummins, 2009 p39). According to Ferrel & Hartline (2010 p294), sales promotion strategy increases Attention, Interest, Desire & Action (AIDA) amongst consumers of a firm. PPGL uses innovative systems and networks as well as adverts to promote the brands. Advertising is based on individual brands and each brand is treated as a profit centre, thus the costs of advertising is matched with its revenue to justify its advertising campaigns and systems. Each local outlet is able to conduct some levels of adverts and promotion campaigns to promote local interest. Over the past two years, PPGL has focused on promoting its efforts through internet outlets. Pricing Strategy Pricing strategy refers to the prices that will be applied to goods and services that will be applied to goods and services that will enhance the ability to sell too the targeted market and also maintain a desired level of profits and varied where necessary (Edwards et al, 2010 p158). The pricing strategy of PPGL targets the middle class of New Zealand. It always ensures that the prices are within the range of the middle-class in the country. Thus, the prices of PPGL brands are brought down or increased as and when necessary in order to ensure that the interest of this targeted consumber base is maintained. Direct Distribution Strategy Direct distribution involves getting goods to final consumers and it includes modes of transport, warehousing, inventory control, order processing and selection of inventory (Boone & Kurtz, 2010 p799). Direct distribution strategy therefore refers to the long term plan for the products of a given entity to get to the final consumer. PPGLs products that are produced locally are controlled with a Just-in-Time system. They are ordered electronically by shops that get them just when they run out of stocks. For imported products, the products are shipped to New Zealand. When they arrive, the are kept in warehouses in Christchurch from where they are distributed nationwide according to demand. Products are moved from warehouses and industries with trucks which are offloaded at the shops to which they are sent. Public Relations Strategy Public relations strategy is the structures that enables an organisation to interact and communicate with relevant social groups in the wider community, usually through the media (Reddi, 2007 p1). PPGL maintains a Public Relations Officer and an Assistant. These are important units of the company and they monitor the press releases, news and updates that are published on the PPGL website and other media outlets. Emarketing Strategy E-marketing strategy is the strategy meant to create competitive advantage for businesses I their online marketing or e-commerce efforts and must be consistent with the business goals, strategy and resources in order to be effective (Bach, 2008 p17). PPGL has invested in building its e-commerce infrastructure over the past year. It now allows people to purchase their clothes through several online outlets linked to the various brands. Also, it has invested heavily in the advertising of its services online and on social networks over the net. References Bach, B. (2008) Virtual Online Worlds: Enabling Technologies to Establish Business Strategies Nodersdert: GRIN Verlag Boone, L. E. & Kurtz, D. L. (2010) Contemporary Business Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Edwards, P, Edwards S & Economy P. (2010) Home Based Business for Dummies Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Ferrell O. C. & Hartline, M. (2010) Marketing Strategy Mason, OH: Cengage Johnson, P. (2009) Fundamentals of Business Development & Management ALA Editions. Kotler, P. (2011) Attracting Investors: A Marketing Approach to Finding Funds For your Business Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Lamb, C. W., Hain J. F & McDaniel, C. (2010) Essentials of Marketing Mason, OH: Cengage Longenecker, J. G. (2009) Small Business Management: Launching & Managing New Ventures Mason, OH: Cengage Mullin, R & Cummins, J. (2009) Sales Promotion London: Kogan Page Reddi, J. (2007) Effective Public Relations & Media Strategy New Delhi: Prentice Hall India Reif, J, Kirsten, M, & Ditterich, L. M. (1997) Services – The Export of the 21st Century Milton Dyers Press. Read More