TESCO Marketing and Healthy Living - Essay Example

TESCO Marketing and Healthy Living Introduction Marketing is the introduction of a product into the market. Marketing also has a set of processes that involve creating, communicating and delivering. The process is supposed to be done in such a way that they create good relations between the stakeholders and the customers/consumers. With the development of technology, companies need to adopt new marketing strategy to ensure that they reach their target market appropriately. The marketing strategy that a company uses can help it achieve a competitive advantage in the market. Any marketing strategy a company decides to use it is supposed to be effective and aggressive. In addition, organizations are expected to have the ability to satisfy the needs of their customers. The success of an organization is pegged on the ability to satisfy their customers. Companies are supposed to focus on issues that affect their consumers such as healthy eating. In this view, the essay analyzes the UK marketing activities of TESCO focusing on Healthy living. Background of TESCO Company The TESCO Company was founded in 1919 by Jack Cohen. He started the company by selling groceries in East London. The first day of the business transaction, he made a profit of 1 Pound. In 1924, he sold the first product with his brand name. The name of the company came from the two first letters of TE Stockwell and CO from the surname of Jack (Krafft & Mantral 2010, p.123). Before coming up with the TESCO Company, Jack Cohen had a partner in a tea farm and acted as the supplier. After opening the company, TESCO came up with different marketing strategies, which resulted in the success of the company. In 1979, TESCO attained a landmark by having sales of up to one billion pounds. In 1982, the sales of the businessdoubled, and it had sales of up to two billion pounds. In the same year, the company put up some of the computerized checkouts. The company also was the first to initiate nutritional value of its brand through an initiative referred to as ‘Healthy Eating’. The initiative made the company obtain more consumers because people were interested in the services that it offered. As a result, in 1991, it became one of the biggest independent and petrol retail sellers in Britain. Within few years, the company launched new services and products that included computers for schools, ‘Every little Helps’, and TESCO Organic range. Within a year, TESCO was in a position to improve its customer services through the customer champion’s policy stores. Through the policy, the company became an organic retailer in the UK market (Kingd, Lannon & Baskin 2007, p.90). Healthy brand In 1985, TESCO launched the healthy eating initiative. The aim of the initiative was to provide customers with information on nutrition and health and the foods that are made for a healthier diet. The company was classified as the leading food retailer in Britain. TESCO also obtained a unique position to communicate with its customers and receive feedback. The customers gave feedback on their current needs and attitudes. TESCO provided information on the food that they eat and where they shop. The company decided to be involved in Healthy eating because the media covered extensively on the eating habits in the UK in the 1980s. The reports mainly identified the link between ill health and the poor eating habits (Kurtz 2012, p. 134). The reports stated that if companies wanted consumers to change their eating habits they had to inform them the need for change. The companies had to take up the role of informing the public how the change can be implemented and give them information on how the change is supposed to be carried out. TESCO received many inquiries on the nutritional values of their products from the consumers. The consumers also requested them to make changes in their diet (Kitchen 2009, p.56). TESCO commissioned the Gallup Poll to ascertain people’s concern about the details pertaining nutritional values of their products. Gallup is one of the research companies in the United Kingdom. It carries out independent market research (Pringle & Thompson 2001, p. 198). After the research, the company concluded that most of the people were concerned with general health issues than the particular illness. The consumers were also mostly concerned with the information that is given on the product labels. Additionally, the customers required more information on the product additives. The Gallup Poll research companies advised the company to focus on four main areas. Firstly, to provide information on nutrition values depicted on the labels of its products. Secondly, provide healthier alternatives to the standard products (Ryan 2014, p.120). Thirdly, publish information on publications such as leaflets to inform the people healthy eating. The information should also enable individuals to make sound decisions about the food they are buying. Lastly, review the use of additives and remove any unnecessary additives in their products. TESCO marketing strategy Definition of marketing Marketing refers to a systematic approach that involves the selling of goods and services. The aim of marketing is to ensure that a company makes profits. Through the marketing strategies, a company is in a position to generate more profits. The marketing strategy for TESCO is very clear. It has four main areas that it focuses on. The areas include grocery, international retailing services, and the expansion of other services that include the dotcom, telecommunication and financial services (Evans, Patterson & O’malley 2004, p.155). The healthy strategies that TESCO adopted enable it to reach a broad market. The company also has identified its customers and ensured that it meets all their needs. Marketing segmentation Through the use of market segmentation, TESCO was in a position to decide on the future marketing strategy. The company realized that an effective segmentation strategy must be substantial, actionable, differentiable, measurable, and accessible. The company used the club card program to measure the purchasing power, the size, and the characteristic of each of the segments. The club card program involved the company giving cardholder discounts in exchange for their dietary preferences, their ages, and that of their children, name, address, and any other personal information that they were willing to give (Pringle & Field 2008, p.28). The information obtained enabled TESCO to segment their customers according to their purchasing behaviors and other consideration such as ages. TESCO also grouped their consumers according to their similar needs. After the segmentation, the company aimed at serving a particular segment according to their needs to make the segmentation actionable. Marketing strategy Marketing strategy consists of determining the products to offer, analyzing the market, and considering the needs of the consumers. The considerations are related to the season, sizing, fashion and the appropriateness. In TESCOM marketing strategy, they had environmentally friendly products that would be exported throughout Europe and another range of products that would be distributed in the local market. TESCO carries out a detailed market research before a product is being circulated in aspecific market. The market research is done on the attitudes, and the ideas that the target audience has about the product. The purchasing habits of the customers are also analyzed. TESCO also adopts different campaigns for effective marketing. The campaigns consist of the advertisement in the printing press such as the newspapers and magazines. The adverts in the newspaper and magazines are formulated for a specific audience. There are also advertisementsthatare done on the Radio and TV on a regular basis (Pringle & Field 2008, p.30). TESCO also uses Billboards in their campaigns to reach their target audience. Press releases have also become their tools in the media industries, and they always invite the media to cover their launches. During the launches, they highlight on the introduction of environmentally friendly products to the market. Additionally, the company does direct marketing to the known customers. They do this by sending direct emails. The club cards also assist the company in their direct marketing strategy. The marketing strategies in TESCO have enabled the company to gain a competitive advantage. It is one of the successful retailers in the United Kingdom. With the development of technology, the company has also adopted internet advertisement to target the young generation. The company is expanding each year because it has gained a competitive advantage. TESCO has also secured substantial market shares in the ever-changing global retail market. TESCO offers services in the groceries market (Doyle 2008, p. 179). Consumer buying behavior The marketing activities of an organization are affected by the buying behaviors. Buying behavior involves the study of the process that individuals, organizations, and groups use to select and secure a product in the market. In TESCO, the retail and the multi-store buying all follow the same theoretical patterns. The retail choice in this company is associated with the brand choice. With the market shares, the customers spread the purchases of their products extensively to the other brands (Humby, Hunt & Phillips 2008, p.122). TESCO is good at selling the dry good. Hence, the consumers purchase such goods from the different retail outlets. The buying behavior of the products is affected by the branding assimilation. The process of retail multinationals is a straightforward and a progressive process. TESCO Distribution TESCO always listens to its customers to improve the delivery of their goods and services. They always engage with their customers on different platforms such as the research trackers and the focus groups to seek feedback on what they are supposed to do or not do. Additionally, they have schemes such as the Lego Tesco Member card or the club card in China for their customers. The aim of the cards is to improve continually the shopping trip. The relationship that the company has with the suppliers is the foundation of their customer offer. The company always works to develop brands to bring a wide variety to their customers (Baines, Fill & Page 2010, p. 208). TESCO ensure that they launch their products at the right time and place. The pride of TESCO is delivering a great shopping trip for their customers. They provide different options for their customers such as the opticians, phones shops, and pharmacies. You can purchase their products over the phone, in their stores, or in the online platform. TESCO always works towards bringing the value of simplicity, convenience, excellent customer service, and reliability (Chemssi 2013, p. 11). It offers a wide variety of products at great prices. The products are sold in convenient locations and are available online. Marketing mix The marketing mix is essential in TESCO Company. The Company always aims at creating value for their customers, retaining the loyal people, and ensuring that the customers earn their lifestyle loyalty. Retaining the loyal people does not only focus on the customers but also the staff. An environment that thrives in the business sector needs to have loyal staff. TESCO has to ensure that it keeps their staff happy so that the staff can serve the customers happily. To retain the loyal customers, the company has opened new stores that are beneficial to their target market. With that the company makes more profits which mean more growth and hence success for the company (Masterson &Pickton 2010, p. 353). Moreover, to earn customer loyalty and create value for your customers the objectives must be split into the 4 P’s. TESCO has ensured that this has worked for their company by having the right product range for their customers. They have different stores from area to area, but they ensure that they customize their products according to the needs of the customers in a particular area. The prices of their products are always competitive. The places where their products are located is also accessible to their customers. They also have the online platform to ensure that all their consumers access their goods and services. They have also integrated promotion in their marketing activities (Shaw & Mazur 2007, p.42). They carry our promotion in the following ways sales promotion, personal selling, direct mailing, and advertising among others. TESCO always thinks about their public, and they are always involved in the corporate and social responsibility activities. The Public Relations team ensures that the CSR activities are carried ours often in the company (Zoratti& Gallagher 2012, p. 103). The CSR activities include giving charity to the local community out of their profits. With this, the company gains a real image to the eyes of the public and can attract more customers. TESCO also has other promotional activities such as message and the media strategy. With this, they have an active communication campaign because of their well thought out message strategy. The message that they design involves the use of slogan design and their logo. Domestic and International Marketing Marketing involves the effective and efficient utilization and management of the company resources to meet the needs of your customers and achieve thecompany’s objectives. The processes that are involved in the domestic and international marketing include promotion, execution of ideas, conception, planning, and distribution of the company’s products. All this processes aim at fulfilling the objectives of the enterprise. Marketing can be done locally, domestically or across the national borders (Smithers 2003, p. 100). The domestic market is the selling products within a local financial market. Domestic market focuses on one set of economic issue and competition. There are no barriers such as language barrier in the domestic market. Developing marketing strategies for the domestic market is an easy process. The risks in the domestic market are few, and it needs less financial resources. On the other hand, the international market is complex and involves the sale of goods and services in different countries. It requires an enormous financial resource to run it. In this case, the preferences and tastes of the consumers may defer, and marketing strategies must be formulated to reach the target market. With the international market, more effort is required, and it is riskier. Companies have to ensure that they have a high level of commitment to succeed in this sector. TESCO operates in both international and domestic markets. Information Systems and Technologies TESCO Company uses both the internal and external communication strategies to communicate with their clients. This includes the use of the advanced technologies in the communication processes. Any business that has to succeed in the business platform has to adapt the modern forms of communication to ensure that it reaches both its internal and external stakeholder. The success of any company or organization is pegged on its ability to communicate effectively with its audience (Lindgreen,Hingley&Vanhamme 2009, p.65). For effective communication, companies have to understand the needs of their target audience and ensure that they fulfill them. A business has to connect its activities with the target audience using effective communication. TESCO has also increased its market because of its effective use of the information systems and the technologies. The company has increased its primary brand suppliers from a hundred countries to more two thousand suppliers. TESCO has a management strategy that helps it to gain a competitive advantage. It supports the government activities through strategies such as execution of the moral, commercial, and trading policies. It also practices the government’s statutory supplier code of practice and conducts ethical trading activities such as training all their commercial staff (Zentes, Morschett& Schramm-Klein 2011, p. 313). All the activities of the organization are geared towards improving the livelihood of their staff and customers. They also promote healthy eating habits through some of their campaigns. Moreover, the company has the superior effectiveness of the computer controlled logistics activities or schemes. Some of the computer-controlled activities include the e-tailing that is critical in the sales and the marketing activities. The customer can place their orders on the website. Through the characteristics of their services, the company is looking forwards towards strengthening its relationship with its suppliers (Lamb, Hair &Mcdaniel 2012, p. 528). The aim is to increase the market share based on the perishability, heterogeneity, intangibility, and simultaneity of supplying their products. There are also different communication strategies adopted by the organization thatincludes awebsite, email, television, and the telephone. They have also adopted technology in the security sector. The technological security services adopted include the use of alarm systems, self-scanning machines used by the customers, mechanical doors, and the advanced CCTV systems. In the transportation sector, the company has adopted a swift transportation service in the warehouse. It has also adopted new expansion strategies to sustain its competitive advantage (Kaufmann & Panni 2013, p. 362). The strategies that the company uses have enabled it to realize an agile and lean supply management chain. Effective marketing only happens because of the use of the new development systems and information technology. Linkages between marketing and operations The objective of most companies is to get the attention of the consumers and other beneficiaries. Thus, companies are supposed to ensure that they adopt the marketing techniques and strategies according to their needs. There is supposed to be a proper linkage between the business and all the stakeholders and the public in an organization. Thus, when developing the marketing strategy, it should be done in a manner that it improves the viability of the organization (Doyle 2008, p. 140). All the marketing strategy and the manufacturing decisions are supposed to be closely related to the success of the business. When marketing the products and services, there should be a distinction. The services require more contact with the customers when marketing them than the products. For instance, personal selling is an effective promotional method for promoting the services. TESCO emphasizes on improving the sales of the products and services. Thus, they mainly concentrate on the way the goods flow from the manufacturer to the end user. Additionally, the TESCO marketing strategies play a primary role in formatting the corporate policy. The company also focuses on activities such as product development, internal communications, customer support, distribution, and credit policies (Doyle 2008, p. 145). The staff also has to feel that it is part of the organization for it to perform efficiently. The managers of TESCO have also formulated different strategies that ensure that the staff are satisfied and can relate to the customers happily. Through that, the staffensures there is a suitable linkage between the company and the consumers of its products and services. Conclusion TESCO is one of the firms that have gained a competitive advantage in the market over the years. The company has an antenna of the sensitive changes happening in the buying population. Market research has been one of the most important activities that the company has carried out over the years. Through the antenna, the company learned that the consumers were seeking a healthier lifestyle, and it worked towards ensuring they fulfilled that need. TESCO went ahead and developed naturally healthy products such as pasta, rice, vegetables, and the fruits. They also decided to manufacturer food that had different recipes to create a new sub-brand product. Nowadays, the product that the company producesis over 200. Their dairy products such as semi-skimmed and skimmed milk were first to be labeled. The company has also recognized infrastructure and technological changes, especially in its e-tailing business. Bibliography Baines, P., Fill, C., & Page, K. (2010). Marketing. Oxford, Oxford University Press. CHEMSSI, Y. (2013). Health-oriented Marketing Strategies and their Impact on the Consumers A Critical Study of the Tesco Food Retailer in Greater London Area. Saarbrücken, LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishing. Doyle, P. (2008). 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