A Mid Size Business Located in the United Kingdom - Essay Example

?AR Soccer Scene Soccer Scene In the world today many businesses exist together to provide competition to each other and one such business which has loomed the market these days is Soccer Scene. Soccer Scene is a mid size business which is applying new business strategies so that it can expand and open new franchises all over the world. It is a shop which specializes in products related to sports such as football and rugby. It has established outlets in the country of United Kingdom. It provides with products like football boots, soccer shoes, football apparel, balls, shirts, scarves, posters, ankle supports and the necessary training equipment for the individuals who are interested in the sports respectively. It has earned a better reputation because of the technical staff that it has hired over these years which is able to provide the customers with the right thing on the right time. The company excels in possessing all the important things that a shop would have for the fans of the respective sports. The company is not only limited to itself but its strength can also be seen in the press. On several instances the company has been cited in the press which has helped people to know about the store. Soccer Scene is believed to be a developing business which would take over the limits in the coming years. With the quality and expertise that it possesses it can be said that soccer scene might become very successful in the future. In this report the strategies followed by the company would be highlighted along with its current plan of growth and advertisements (Soccer Scene 2010; ECR Newsletter 2006). Situation Analysis SWOT: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats The company is developing with the rise in the fans of the football and rugby fans. Currently the company possesses the right expertise and talent required to expand their company in accordance to the needs of the customers. It is creating a brand image which can help them in the future to enhance their promotional activities. The most potent strength of the company is that it has chosen a large audience which can be its customers. It has opened stores in those locations where the sports are commonly seen and hailed. A great part of the population residing in United Kingdom watches the football matches and hence the fans of the sports are more than anywhere in the world. The company uses this as a strength and targets this audience to increase their sales. Furthermore the company is located in specific areas so it is able to attract a large population of fans. The company has some weaknesses which can prove to be a hurdle for it to expand. Currently the company has not created a brand image like other brands which exist in the market for a longer time. Soccer Scene is still in its developing stages and hence faces intense competition in the market of sports where already some famous brands exist. Brand loyalty cannot be easily achieved if certain techniques are not employed and this can prove to be a weakness for Soccer Scene. In comparison to other brands it can also be said that it lacks the funds to advertise itself like other brands. It also has limited options as to where it has to choose the audience from as it is located only in some nations. The company has several opportunities which it can avail to make them its strengths. The company can open its outlets in other countries where already some brands exist so it can have a wider market to choose from. It can include other types of goods so that it can attract a wide range of customers which can benefit the business. It can allocate its funds effectively such that intense advertisements are done to create brand loyalty. Furthermore its products can be improved so that it can face the competition in the market. Currently the company is facing many threats in the market which it exists. It faces immense competition from organized brands in the country that it is located. With intense competition it can be impossible for it to expand as its competitors have already created a brand loyalty. Creating new brand loyalty can be very difficult for Soccer Scene as the customers are loyal to a certain brand (Soccer Scene 2010; ECR Newsletter 2006). Marketing of Soccer Scene Currently the business follows some strategies through which it can be able to expand and reach out to its customers. It is following an intense marketing strategy through which it is able to satisfy its customers. Following is the marketing mix for the company which can help to understand the characteristics that the company follows. Marketing Mix Product:- The products that the business sells are associated with the sports that are famous in the United Kingdom. Currently their products have nice quality along with a successful brand name which can help the business to achieve a better position in the market. It has all the necessary services regarding warranty and after service of the products that it sells just like any other brand. Price: - The pricing strategy that the company follows is reasonable enough for the products that they are selling. With the quality that the company provides its customers with it is able to achieve a seasonal pricing method too which includes sales and discounts on specific items. Place: - The business has established its distribution channels which help the products to reach to the specific outlets that are working in the country. It has the facility of warehousing which helps to provide with all the necessary products to the customers at the right time. In other words the strategy of distribution of the company is fast enough to satisfy its customers. Promotion: - The Company follows several promotional strategies which help it to penetrate the market along with other brands. Its advertising can be seen in the prestigious stores that it has established in certain precincts. It has also strong advertisement packages which are seen on the television whenever the goods are being advertised (Czinkota and Kotabe 2001; Soccer Scene 2010; Armstrong et al 2005). Advertisement of Soccer Scene Advertisements have been an important phenomenon for the success or failure of a business. Proper marketing helps businesses in building the brand image, increase sales, achieve consumer awareness about the product/service and a place in the business world. Marketing affects the behavior or choices of consumers. The more attractive an advertisement is, the more appealed the consumers get to buy it. The use of celebrities, overwhelming results, tastes or messages in the advertisements and the use of cultural, moral and social messages to attract consumers are some factors which affect the consumer choices (Czinkota and Kotabe 2001). The business has used several techniques to advertise its products and this can be witnessed in kits which have been supplied to the prestigious stores located in United Kingdom. At many instances it is seen that the television programs use the kits provided by Soccer Scene and this automatically helps to advertise the products of soccer scene. It has invested in its advertisement strategies through which people are attracted to the outlets that it has opened. The shops of Soccer Scene are often scene in famous movies and one such shop was seen in the movie ‘Bend it like Beckham’. It has also signed deals with advertisement companies so that their products can be advertised like any other product. One of the weaknesses in the advertisement campaigns of Soccer Scene is that it does not use celebrities in the campaigns that it organizes. However its products are still widely looked upon by the customers as these products are of a well known quality along with a reasonable price. The advertisement techniques of Soccer Scene revolve around the audience that it targets. The football fans are the ones which are most targeted by these advertisements and it has helped the company to achieve a better position in the market. On the other hand it can also be said that there is room for improvement for the company’s advertisement strategies and these can only be improved once their brand has become a worldwide recognized one (Erdogan 1999; ECR Newsletter 2006). Growth of the Company Currently the Soccer Scene is expanding its outlets all over the world. It is inviting individuals to apply for the franchises to aware people of the brand that has all the necessary equipment and apparel for a football or rugby fan. It is trying new techniques through which it can gain a better market position and it is believed that with the current strategies of the company, it would be able to grow further. The company is following all of the important aspects of growth just like any other company existing in the market. It has used diversification when it comes to products and market introduction. It is trying to grow with the popularity of the sports that it is associated with. It is introducing new apparels and technologies as they are being used in the sports. Furthermore it is also trying to expand in other countries so that it can broaden its customer base. It is developing its market base in accordance to the demand of the sports in the world. Through its advertisement strategies it is able to attract customers and broaden its base (ECR Newsletter 2006). Currently it is not able to create brand loyalty because of the existence of other brands in the country. It has implemented new Information technology methods through which it is able to track its sales. It has been seen that the sales department of the Soccer Scene has improved ever since and it is now much easier for the sales representative to show his sales to the relevant department. The system that it currently uses for the sales mechanism is known as the EPoS system. One of the sales representatives in Soccer Scene stated that “The ease, flexibility, detailed and accurate reporting functions make my job so much easier”. The merchandise sales have improved ever since the implementation of this new technology in the organization and it is further expected that this system would be improved in the coming years. With the popularity of the games associated with Soccer Scene and the endorsements of the stores of Soccer Scene it is believed that it can grow in all aspects. The implementation of IT and broadening of the customer base is helping the company to grow in every state to give intense competition to the brands that already exist in the market (ECR Newsletter 2006; Soccer Scene 2010). Conclusion Soccer Scene is currently a mid size business located in the United Kingdom but it can further expand to different countries all over the world. Like every other company Soccer Scene has its own strengths and weaknesses. It can improve upon its strengths and remove the weaknesses if it takes the advantage of the opportunities that it currently has. By expanding over to other nations the company can ensure a wider base of individuals who would be buying their products. The marketing strategies that the company follows are successful to a certain extent but can be further improved by celebrity endorsements like every other sport brand. Because of the intense competition that Soccer Scene faces it is important that all necessary measures revolving around growth are followed by the company. It is expected that the company would be able to expand in the coming years and deliver competition to the famous brands that exist in the nation (Soccer Scene 2010). Bibliography Czinkota, M.R. and Kotabe, M. (2001), Marketing Management, 2nd ed., South-Western College Publishing, Cincinnati, OH. ERDOGAN, BZ (1999) “Celebrity endorsement: A literature review”, Journal of Marketing Management, 41(3): 291-314. Soccer Scene Official Website 2010. < http://www.soccerscene.co.uk> London Docktours and ECR go with the flow. ECR Retail Systems Newsletter. 2006. Armstrong, Gary, and Philip Kotler. 2005. Marketing: an introduction. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall. 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