Digital Marketing Strategy - Essay Example

DIGITAL MARKETING STRATEGY By Location Contents Contents 2 RETAILER (Q1) 3 Question of site (singer22.com) 3 Question 1: Description of site (footlocker.com) 4 BRICK-AND-MORTAR VS. ONLINE (Q.2) 5 Advantages of physical stores 6 The advantages of using online 6 IMAGE COMMUNICATION (Q.3) 7 RECOMMENDATIONS (Q.4) 9 Footlockers 10 Singer22 11 CONCLUSION 12 Bibliography 13 Digital marketing strategy RETAILER DESCRIPTION (Q1) Question 1: Description of site (singer22.com) For a person having the first look at this site, they will probably have an impression of high levels of professionalism given the choice of some of the features of the site. The choice of theme and font used on this site makes it very easy for a person does deduce exactly what the site is all about. The shop option on the dashboard makes it easier for customers to go straight to the category that they want to buy. This helps in saving time and making the process convenient. The website even makes it easier for customers to find items made by a specific designer by availing the designer option on the dashboard. The navigation bar helps customers in going through a number of advert materials that might be influential in the decision that they finally make. The site also makes it clear that the shop makes free shipping and has a simplified return process. The site makes it clearly evident that they do target female customers given the fact that all their advert materials display female items. In this case, it might be said that the main reason behind targeting female customers is that women are more likely to spend time online looking for items that they like are compared to men. Singer22.com focuses on female fashion products. The pictures of celebrities wearing some of the brands sold at the store are used strategically to lure customers who are fans of these celebrities. This is something that lacks in some retailer sites. However, this site might be said to be lacking shortcuts to connect to the stores social media accounts such as Facebook and Twitter. Question 1: Description of site (footlocker.com) On the first site someone can easily get the impression on exactly what this site is about. Someone will easily realize that the shop specializes in sportswear and footwear. This is because the images used are a perfect replica of an image that would attract anyone who was looking for sportswear and footwear. The use of models who appear to be sportsmen seem to be a good idea because it gives the impression of what a customer should expect from the store. The navigation bar helps online customers in viewing the advert materials that are used in the sites. The mode of categorization is also highly helpful in this case. The site categorizes its dashboard into: new arrivals, men’s, women’s, Kids, Release calendar, Brands, collections, and find a store. These options make it easier for a customer to get what they want without having to go through all the items that are available in the store. The find a store option is important in enabling customers to locate physical store closest to them if in any case they wanted to visit the stores in person. The site also avails a “Help” option through which customers can Chat with the company’s customer service or seek more information on factors such as orders or shipping. Once a customer logs in and registers they are accorded an account through which they can see details such as their order status and their wish lists. The sites avails details on other ways through which customers can get more information including: a YouTube account, twitter handle, Facebook page, and an instagram account. The site also gives customers an option of joining the VIP where they can get allot of discounts (Bird 2007, p. 172). A customer who is a member of the VIP can get up to 20% off their purchases. Other advertisement programs used on the site include gift cards and sweepstakes. BRICK-AND-MORTAR VS. ONLINE (Q.2) Question 2: Differences between physical and online stores: do they encourage consumer to visit or remain online shoppers When a business organization wants to build a successful e-business model, it is important for them to review the debate on physical stores and online stores. Both online and physical stores have their own advantages and disadvantages. It is important for a business to know these advantages and disadvantages so that they can be able to keep loyal online and physical shoppers. Advantages of physical stores As for the stores that are being discussed in this case, the advantages of physical stores will be: 1. Customers are able to go home with the products immediately after paying for them and do not have to wait for the shipping to take place. 2. Customers are able to confirm if the products that they buy are in good order before they go home with them. This reduces returned items cases. 3. Physical stores do not have extra shipping costs. 4. In physical stores, customers can get real life expertise and support, including recommending of the most recent trends. 5. Another advantage of physical stores is the fact that the customers have the chance of viewing the actual product before paying for it. This might include touching and feeling properties such as texture. Such experiences cannot be given to online customers (Flores 2014, p. 134). The advantages of using online The advantages of using online stores include: 1. Online stores usually have many discount making the price relatively cheaper. 2. Some stores such as Singer22 and Footlocker offer free shipping services. 3. Due to the lack of physical evidence of the products being sold, impulse buying is always less tempting in online stores. 4. There are no physical boundaries to online buyers because they can always buy from the stores of their choice and the items will be shipped to them. This implies that they do not have to go through the trouble of going to the physical stores (Fenwick &Wertime 2013, p. 211). 5. Online customers can make decisions on what they want to buy without having to be pressured by the store’s staff. 6. Online shopping is convenientfor disabled people. 7. Comparing products and brands is easier and faster when shopping online. 8. Customers can get alerts on new products in the store as soon as they are available. In both cases it can be seen that the retailers are taking advantage of their online presence by making it possible for customers to make the purchases online. This can be used to prove that both stores give much importance to their online customers. However, the difference between Singer22 and Footlocker is the fact that Footlocker gives details to their online customers on how they can get their physical stores while Singer22 does not make it easy for such information to be found. This is an indication that Singer22 are not keen on encouraging their customers to visit their physical stores. This might be because they are satisfied with the advantages that selling items online gives them. However, Footlocker is keen on inviting customers to their physical store so that they could also benefit from the advantages that are not got with online shopping. IMAGE COMMUNICATION (Q.3) Question 3: How do the retailers communicate image and personality through the website? The online marketing strategy used by Footlocker and singer22 can be said to be similar in some ways. At the same point, they are different in some ways. Singer22 uses the images of female models to communicate their target market, which is fashionable women. Footlocker on the other hand, uses sportspersons to communicate the fact that their main target market is people who need sportswear and footwear. Given the images shown on the site, it is clearly evident that Footlocker main deal in the sale of shoes that are used in sports activities. All the images used on this site are on shoes that are commonly used for sports activities. However, only Footlocker’s site avails the customers with details on how to get in touch with them through social media (Chaffey & Ellis-Chadwick 2012, p. 191). This might be used to show that the business is willing to have frequent communications with their clients on multiple platforms. Social media is another way through which the company can be able to reach out to potential customers through the customers that they already have. If a person “likes” the Footlocker Facebook page their friend will see that they like the page and will want to know about the page. The level of professionalism in both cases can be said to be recommendable. This is seen in the fact that they categorized the products that they sell making it easier for customers to get the exact product that they are looking for. If the information on the site would be all that is available, it would not be hard to tell the kind of businesses that Footlocker and Singer22 are because of the fact that all is presented on the site. The target markets for both businesses are well illustrated by their choice of images. Looking at Singer22’s website someone will get the impression that they sale fashionable goods that are likely to be fashionable for women of the age between 16 and 26. The images used show some of the clothing designs that are at the moment more attractive to people in this age bracket (Hemann 2013, p 211). The use of images of celebrities is used selectively to make sure that the celebrities that are used in this case are those who are adored by the targeted market. As for Footlocker it can be clearly seen, that they do target young male people between the age of 12 and 30. With the kind of images used on the site it can be assumed that their main target are boys and young men. Another thing that is communicated by both sites is the prices for their goods. In fact, navigating through Footlocker’s site someone can be able to get more details on the designs and prices of specific products. This is important in this case because it enables customers to make detailed decisions on which of the products that are available that they would like to have. This reduces the complications that might be brought about by making online shopping. However, in the case of singer22 the main focus is not on the prices of the product but the quality and fashion. Despite the fact that this site gives details on prices of various products that are available in the shop, someone cannot get the same at the first glance. Another thing that can be said about both sites is that they are both keen on making their customers aware of emerging trends. Footlocker and Singer22 have “new arrivals” and “What’s new” respectively. In this way they give the customers the chance to view products that are new in the market. Some customers come to such sites with the main purpose of buying specific products. However, when presented with a chance of viewing new products in the market they might be tempted to take a look. Sometimes customers even end up making impulse buys. These sites also make it clear that they have many deals that their customers might be interested in and the only way through which they could know that is be reviewing the offers present on the site. Both sites also make it clear that they do not charge any shipping fees. This is meant to communicate to the customers that there are no extra costs that will be incurred if they decide to make their purchases online. This highlights the affordability of online buying to the customers who visit these sites (Mayar& Ramsey 2011, p. 99). RECOMMENDATIONS (Q.4) Question 4: Recommendations to Footlocker and Singer22 to improve websites Online retailersusually use the five-factor measurement to tell how customers perceive online shopping experience. The factors are always used to ensure that a company is able to deal with all the obstacles of convenient shopping thus increasing their customer base. The five factors that are considered in this case are: access; search;evaluation; transaction; and possession and post purchase convenience (Thomas, Housden & Thomas 2011, p. 167). These factors can be used in giving recommendations on how Footlocker and Singer22 can improve their digital marketing strategy. Footlockers Access: Footlocker should make sure that information about the variety of products that they sell is availed and is easily accessible by the customers. This can be achieved through making more options available on their sites so that customers can be able to navigate in search of products that they want. For example, they might consider adding options such as “others” just in case what the customers are searching for do not seem to appear in the categories that are presented on the site (Wind &Mahajan 2001, p. 156). Search- they should also make sure that searching for products is easier. This can be possible through introducing the search option. This can help customers in saving time because they would not have to navigate through the site in search of product if they are already decided on what they want. The customer will just type the name of the product that they want to buy and the details will appear on the screen Evaluation- given the fact that this site is basically comfortable to use given the way that it has been designed, there will be no need for any kind of additions in this case. Transaction- the transaction part of this site can be said to be convenient given the fact that it gives customers guide on how to make payments and how the products will get to them once they make their payments. The site also makes it clear that there are no additional shipping costs that will be required. However, it will be of importance for the site to include information on whether there will be any deduction if the customers collect the products from the nearest stores (Ryan & Jones 2012, p. 101). This can be used as a way of encouraging the customers to visit their physical stores. Possession and post purchase convenience- it can be said that in accordance to this factor the organization have done well especially because they even assure customers that they can take items back if there is anything wrong with the delivery. Singer22 Access- given the fact that this is a fashion store, they should make sure that the information given on the site is more inclusive. They should consider adding options such as “accessories”, “other”, and “{trending items”. These might get the undecided customers to viewing a number of their products and finally buying something. Search- if a person is already decided on which product they want to buy it is always easier if a site has the search option enabling customers to go straight to the product that they want to buy. This helps in saving time and making shopping convenient for such customers. Transaction- the transaction part of this site can be said to be convenient given the fact that it gives customers guide on how to make payments and how the products will get to them once they make their payments (Thomas 2010, p. 109). They also make it clear that there are no shipping costs. Evaluation- given the fact that this site is basically comfortable to use given the way that it has been designed, there will be no need for any kind of additions in this case. Possession and post purchase convenience- the site makes it clear that the business would take responsibility for any product that is discovered to be below the expected standards. However, they would consider giving personalized details on order history once a customer makes a purchase. CONCLUSION As seen in the details discussed herein, it is clearly evident that the use of digital marketing can be in varying strategies. However, there are some factors that seem to matter in all cases. For instance, there is the issue of preventability, ease of use, and being informative. It has also been seen that business organizations can use both online stores and physical ones. However, there are some businesses that do encourage their online customers to visit their stores. This can be due to difference in business strategies. In the case of Footlockers and Singer22 it can be said that their digital marketing is highly effective given the professionalism that ensures that they are presentable, easy to see, and informative. However, there are some few improvements that can be made on both sites. Bibliography Bird, D 2007,Commonsense direct & digital marketing,Kogan Page, London [u.a.]. Chaffey, D & Ellis-Chadwick, F 2012,Digital marketing: strategy, implementation and practice,Pearson, Harlow [etc.]. Fenwick, I &Wertime, K 2013,Digimarketing the essential guide to new media and digital marketing,Wiley, Hoboken, N.J. http://rbdigital.oneclickdigital.com. Flores, L 2014, How to measure digital marketing: metrics for assessing impact and designing success. http://www.myilibrary.com?id=586337. Hemann, C 2013,Digital marketing analytics.making sense of consumer data in a digital world,Que, Indianapolis, Indiana. Mayar, V & Ramsey, G 2011,Digital impact the two secrets to online marketing success. John Wiley & Sons, Hoboken, N.J.http://www.books24x7.com/marc.asp?bookid=43188. Ryan, D & Jones, C 2012,Understanding digital marketing: marketing strategies for engaging the digital generation,Kogan Page, Philadelphia, PA. Thomas, B, Housden, M & Thomas, B 2011, Direct and digital marketing in practice, A. & C. Black, London. http://www.contentreserve.com/TitleInfo.asp?ID={68166FFF-2991-42D4-890F-BB9D264982AA}&Format=410. Thomas, L 2010, Online marketing,McGraw-Hill Professional, Maidenhead. Wind, Y &Mahajan, V 2001,Digital marketing global strategies from the worlds leading experts, J. Wiley, New York.http://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=117489. Read More