Sustainable marketing strategies of Target Corporation Essay Example

Sustainable marketing strategies of Target Corporation Essay Example Sustainable marketing strategies of Target Corporation Essay Sustainable marketing strategies of Target Corporation Essay Essay Topic: The Birth Mark Name Course Instructor Date Sustainable marketing strategies of Target Corporation Target Corporation is a retail company in the USA that offers high quality, trendy merchandise at discounted prices. Target is ranked after Wal-Mart as the second largest retailing company in the United States. The company is also ranked in the Fortune 500 at number 30. The company is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota and has an estimated 1,300 stores across all the 47 states. The corporation was established in 1902 in the town of Minneapolis. Initially it was called the Dayton Dairy Goods Company. However, the first target store was opened in 1962 in Roseville Minnesota. With time, target grew to become one of the largest divisions of Dayton Hudson Corporation. This culminated in to the company being renamed Target Corporation with the ticker symbol TGT on August 2000 (Rowley, 56). The corporation is ranked among the top twenty corporate company’s contribution givers in America. The company recorded an increase in revenue in 2011 to a total of $69,865. Target Corporation operates Super Target and Target.com. Target.com is an online retail store while Supper Target is a store that provides full line grocery sales as an addition to the Target retail stores. Other key business ventures of Target are Target Financial Services that has Target Visa Card and Target Red businesses. The company employs over 300,000 members of staff. The company is known by close to 96 percent of the American population. Target is also engaged in an extensive expansion plan into the region. Through the purchase of leaseholds from Zellers in Canada, it plans to operate between 100 and 150 Canadian stores by 2013. The company is also popular for its effective marketing and advertising strategies (Dayton, 54). It also plays a considerable role in corporate social responsibility. This includes social events and charitable contributions. In addition, the company employs environment friendly approaches in its operation. SWOT Analysis Strengths Brand The target brand is a strong and popular brand across 97% of the American population. Their brand promise states â€Å"Expect More Pay Less.† This brand approach in marketing has helped the company mark considerable growth rates. The brand has also become an icon in the retail sector for cool, hip and stylish. Other private brands by Target include Kool Toyz, Merona, Room Essentials, Truetech, Prospirit, Choxie, Embark and Archer farms. This is essential for a sustainable marking strategy. Market presence Target has over 1,400 stores inclusive of super target stores. These stores are often located close to a mile radius of the competitors. The presence of the stores across the country and into neighboring Canada allows easier outreach to the consumers. The expansion plan is also set to reach more consumers. Design The primary focus for target has been its design approach and strategy. This has made it relatively superior to its competitors. Proper design strategies provide the company with a unique and stylish identity that appeal to consumers. Target has initiated partnerships with leading designers such as Isaac Mizrahi, Sonia Kashuk, Michael Graves and Victoria Hages. Their design and style is based on the latest trends and styles with products that range from home furnishings and fashion. Other unique designs include prescription bottles for â€Å"Clear RX.† Innovation in marketing techniques Target has established effective marketing tactics. Their advertising campaigns also help attract new customers. They conduct continuous television, internet and print advertisements. The company also provides weekly circular ads, seasonal brochures and catalogues. The organization also makes changes and improves on its marketing program. This includes an in-store networked named â€Å"Channel Red† and refining the Target Mail program in order to increase productivity. Weaknesses Litigations The organization has been the victim of various lawsuits. The law suits filed are based on labor, trademark, copyright and personal injuries. Lawsuits generally tarnish the image of an organization to consumers. In 2003, the company was forced to implement training and pay a total of $95000 after the court established that they did not accommodate a disabled employee. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission also accused Target of racial hiring practices. Opportunities Reaching new markets Target is undertaking an effective domestic and regional expansion plan. However, it may benefit from un-entered markets in the US. Extensive penetration in Hawaii and Vermont will increase the overall output. Increase in private label brands Target has numerous private products in the market. Studies reveal that of every five products one is a private label (Brassington, 89). These products account for up to $50 billion of all retail businesses. This offers an opportunity for Target to increase the overall sales. Global expansion Target Corporation already enjoys global popularity because of brand, marketing and advertising. Therefore, expansion of stores in the foreign arena would make it less vulnerable to a decline in the US economy. This will also increase competition with Wal-Mart. Threats Declining US economy The US economy has been on a downturn in recent years. There has been a recession and a credit crisis in 2009. The revenue growth for Target will also be affected. The housing crisis and inflation in utility prices and food leaves the consumers with little disposable income. In addition, the main market is based in the US. Ultimately, the organization cannot fall back on foreign markets. Ultimately, the company will experience lower profits. Competition Target competes at the local, national and international level with other key retail players. In addition, there are internet businesses that sell similar products. Consolidating their marketing presence under this system becomes difficult. Mergers also threaten the stability of Target. For instance, Sears and K-Mart have merged to reach a larger consumer base. Foreign retailers also create a threat towards Target’s Market share. The four Ps of marketing Organization should ensure their service or product appropriately reach the target market. This can be done with the 4Ps of marketing Product This refers to how the service or product looks and functions in order to meet the requirements of the target market. This takes into consideration branding, product information and packaging. Price This refers to the cost of the commodity or service to the consumer. The price should therefore fit and suit the capabilities of the target market (Hiam, 79). Placement This refers to the availability of the product. This should consider accessibility, type of outlet such as stores and pharmacies and operating hours of the outlets. Promotion This is the method used in communications and advertising in order to encourage consumers to use the service or merchandise. Channels used must reach the target audience. Some of the major channels used are television, internet, newspapers and brochures. Marketing mix Products Target has numerous labels such as Target.com, Target and Super target. They offer various products in Home accessories Furniture Baby equipment Electronics Outdoor sports equipment Men, women, children and baby fashion items and accessories Gifts and gift cards Automotive accessories Office and school supplies Consumables and food items Some of the major services offered include Pharmaceutical services Health clinics Food avenue outlets or restaurants Target Baby Registry Portrait studios Target lists on-line and store The target product mix is inclusive of their private label brands such as Embark, Kool Toyz, Market pantry and many more. Target also sells merchandise under brands that are licensed such as Chefmate, Fieldcrest, and C9 by champion and others. The company has a distribution network but also uses third parties like selected food items. The orders for Target.com are also filled by the corporate distribution network, shipped from vendors or third parties. Target provides services for merchandise from online and stores. The company also entered the generic drug market to provide pharmacy patrons to purchase particular generic drugs at $4 dollars. Target has gift registries for potential purchasers. Target gift cards are among the most popular gift ideas for the organization and are advertised frequently. In the year 2006, target gained over $1.5 billion form gift transactions. The company should effectively use its private labels for major product marketing. Price The company offers discounted prices for quality goods and services. Pricing is done after analyzing the price of their competitors. Weekly sales and clearance items are some of the attractions for Target consumers. The annual offers are also essential towards maintaining and attracting new consumers. Prices should reduce considerably in order to reach to the overall American population. Distribution Target has 5 import warehouses, over 26 regional distribution centers and a single Target.com distribution center. Target.com merchandise is shipped directly to customers through the distribution center or via USPS and Fed Ex. It has standard shipping options, 1-day and 2-day shipment options. Consumers acquire products directly from Target stores. This system ensures that the product that reaches the consumer is of high quality and suits their specification. Promotion Target spends over $1.8 million towards advertising. This is inclusive of newspaper circulars, TV commercials, brochures and internet advertisements. They post weekly ads on the internet and distribute weekly circulars to 50 million households. Target invests heavily in newspaper advertisement. However, newspaper usage is declining and the company should extensively use the internet as an avenue (Blythe, 56). More customers will be reached via the internet particularly the young population. Parameters for Sustainable Marketing Metrics Marketers use metrics as a medium of understanding their target market. These metrics include Return on investment Targets Leads Return on investment The primary goal of marketing matrices is to achieve an accurate measure of Return on Marketing Investment (ROI) or program effectiveness. This can be useful for Target Corporation in order to ensure the organization is spending more on profitable revenues (Kerin, 97). This can be applied on the concept of newspaper advertising where the company invests heavily despite the decline in newspaper usage. Targets This takes into account any person across the globe that receives the marking methodologies. When this is applied to the Target brand, it is resourceful towards tracking the number of individuals receiving the advertisement. This can also be applied towards the people receiving internet advertisements from target in order to formulate an effective internet marketing strategy. Leads This refers to the prospects of having a particular likelihood that a qualified market is suitable for a particular product and is likely to use the solution through a specific timeframe. Target marketing can use this to reach out to the male market. This is because majority of its customers are female. Some companies use the BANT criteria. The source for the leads and those that produce the highest profitability in revenues for Target should also be analyzed. Social Media Marketing for Sustainability Social media use has been on the increase in recent years. Companies have also realized the importance of marketing in this new frontier. Businesses are also marking great results from social media marketing. Some of the main marketing strategies include Using various means to attract customers and compress the sales cycles (Chaffey, 56). This is done through homage to compelling reportage where organizations hire experienced writers, filmmakers and reporters to tell a complex story about the organization. Creating brand awareness, priority and preference using decision makers and key social figures. This is done through building bold alliances and collaborating with NGOs and charities in support of similar goals and raising awareness. Monitoring and analyzing the level of competition with other corporate organizations. This is also done to ensure the organization is ahead. This is done through creation of a social media sustainability vehicle. Sustainability Audit Sustainability audits refer to a review of company programs and emphasizes on market based solutions for environmental problems. Target Corporation has been among the organizations that employ green solutions towards their business activities. It agreed to reduce the sale of harmful materials that contain PVCs. These chemicals have adverse effects on the environment. The marketing and other strategies have also integrated environment friendly approaches. In the year 20007, Target initiated a 13-page report for current and future plans towards being more earth friendly. Though the organization has undertaken major efforts towards sustainability, more efforts should be undertaken to protect the environment. Recommendations for the Target brand The organization should undertake a more effective marketing strategy through the internet. The internet is labeled as one of the major marketing frontiers (Hanson, 98). Therefore using social media sites and blogs will create a bigger market reach for Target. This advertisement process should be on a regular basis. The company should also diversify to the global market. Emerging markets such as China, India and Brazil offer a key investment destination for the organization. This will also cushion the company from the effects of the economic crisis that may occur in America. The organization should also have a direct mailing strategy. This should have coupon, incentives and other attractive offers in order for more people to shop at Target and Target.com. This will help attract and sustain more customers. Report findings Target Corporation has established an extensive marketing strategy for all its brands. The organization also allocates a considerable level of finances on marketing and marketing strategies. It has also made use of the conventional methods of advertising such as newspapers, mail and television. However, it has not yet established itself in internet marketing. The organization also needs to reach out to the male population in order to strengthen the market share. Carryout advertisements that appeal more to men will be beneficial for increasing the total male consumers. Work cited Blythe, Jim. Key Concepts in Marketing: Marketing. Los Angeles, Calif: SAGE, 2009. Print. Brassington, Frances, and Stephen Pettit. Principles of Marketing. Harlow, England: Financial Times Prentice Hall, 2009. Print. Chaffey, Dave. Internet Marketing: Strategy, Implementation and Practice. Harlow: Prentice Hall Financial Times, 2011. Print. Dayton, Bruce B, and Ellen B. Green. â€Å"The Birth of Target.† Hennepin History. 71.2 (2012). Print. Hanson, Ward A, and Kirthi Kalyanam. Principles of Internet Marketing. Mason, Ohio: South-Western, 2004. Print. Hiam, Alexander, and Linda G. Rastelli. Marketing. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley, 2007. Print. Kerin, Roger A. Marketing. New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin, 2006. Print. Rowley, Laura. On Target: How the World’s Hottest Retailer Hit a Bullseye. Hoboken, N.J: J. Wiley, 2003. Print.