Primary research helps Marks and Spencer meet their aims and Objective “Accelerate store renewal programme” because Marks and Spencer can use this information to find out what their customers want therefore they can take into consideration all feedback to help them meet their accelerate and renew their stores with new product and provide service.
Secondary research
Secondary research is when business such as Marks and Spencer use existing data from reference books, government reports and from other sources such as the internet. The are many different methods of Secondary research which includes commercial publications, Government Publications and General publications.
Commercial publications are a external method of research where a large number of businesses gather data. Marks and Spencer use this type of research to research about certain market size, market shares, recent trends within their market, and forecasts of futures sales and market segments which are then published as a research report. Commercial publication would be very beneficial to Mark and Spencer such as if Marks and Spencer wanted to launch a new clothing product then they would use commercial publication as part of their research to research about the market size within that area, they would use this information to look at the current trends already on their competitors markets.
Government publications are internal methods of research where the government and the department of Trade and Industry whom are the agency of the government produce a large number of detailed information which is very beneficial to Marks and Spencer. The types of publication that would be expected to be published in a government publication would be Annual abstracts of statistics and any social trends. Marks and Spencer would use Government publication to publish their statistics and social trends within their market.
Marks and Spencer use commercial publications as part of their secondary research as they can use the data research for an example on the market size or recent trends within the market to help them cerate a quality product to meet there customers needs. This will help them to achieve their aim and objective “Continue to invest in and grow core UK retail businesses, by introducing new goods and services” because it allows them to see the market size, trends within the market, and their forecast of their future sales and segments.
Product
The different ranges of products that sold by Marks and Spencer are Food, clothing, and home ware.
To ensure that Marks and Spencer meet their customer needs they need to ensure that they have a wide range of food product that are suitable for all origins as Marks and Spencer have many other customers from all of the country like Polish, Chinese, French, Indian, Pakistani.
The Characteristics of Clothing that customers would look at are whether the clothing is fashionable, safe to wear, reliable, durable in terms of long lasting product and a suitable product to purchase. For an example a customer wouldn’t buy a summer out-fit to wear in a winter season. The characteristics of home ware products that most customers would expect are a product that is safe, a reliable product, a long-lasting product like for an example if a customer purchases a washing machine and it breaks down the first time you uses it this product is not a durable product.
Products are differentiated which allow Marks and Spencer customers with benefits in buying the product. The products are separated in accordance to the brand name, features, Capabilities, Packaging, Design, Quality and durability of the product. These are then differentiated further depending on the type of product bought like if it were an electrical product then customer would expect a warranty, after sales support, delivery and credit and installation. If a customer bought a food or clothing item and they found a fault within the product they would receive Customer service sales.
The after sales that Marks and Spencer provide are home delivery on products such as home-ware, furniture, cookers. Other after sales that Marks and Spencer provide to their customers is electrical help, for an example if a customer buys a electrical product such as a toaster and they have trouble with the toaster they can call the help line which will help them over the home or send an engineer out.
As you can see from the above diagram Marks and Spencer have competitors whom they compete by. When they set prices they have to look at the quality of the product and make a judgement on a suitable price for that particular product. As you can see waitrose have high quality product therefore customers would obviously expect high prices. If we look at Lidils at Alidi and compare them to Marks and Spencer, their products are set a relatively low price so customers would expect that the product would be of a much poor quality.
Product helps Marks and Spencer meet their aims and objective “Continue to invest in and grow core UK retail businesses, by introducing new goods and services” because By Marks and Spencer suing research to find out what customer need and what they want they are able to identify product that are most likely to meet their customer needs.
Pricing
Price is the amount that is charged for a product, when business such as Marks and Spencer are determining a price for a product they would determine three things cost, Customer value and Competition.
There are different types of pricing strategies that companies use to set price on product. The different pricing strategies are Market skimming, Penetration pricing, Discount and sales, Psychological pricing. Marks and Spencer use offers such as Sales. This method of pricing is used by Marks and Spencer such as towards the end of summer Marks and Spencer have many stock such as shorts they would put them on sale to get rid of all the summer stock.
Market skimming is when a business like Marks and Spencer set a higher price for a new product for a limited period of time. The purpose of Market skimming is to gain as much profit as possible for a new product whilst the product is still unique within the Market. There are two main reasons for why business such as Marks and Spencer use Market skimming, this is to maximise their sales revenue before their competitors use a similar product. It also helps Marks and Spencer to build revenues for a short time so that they are able to make investment within the product.
Penetration pricing is used by firms to gain a foot hold within the market; this can be either by launching a new product within their market. Penetration pricing involves the business setting the price at a low price which will encourage their customers and retailers to purchase this product in large quantities. The main reason for why business use penetration is because customer are encourages to buying the product therefore when prices do increase they shall still continue to purchase this product.
When Marks and Spencer set there prices they would have to consider their competitors pricing. If you look at the diagram below you would be able to see all of Marks and Spencer competitors and where they fit on the graph.
Promotion
Promotion is a method of Marketing that is used to address awareness to customers about a product. The main purpose of promotion is to mainly persuade customers to buy products. Promotion is very important to Marks and Spencer as they are able to use a range of promotion methods.
The different method that Marks and Spencer use to promote their products are Advertising, Sales promotion, personal selling, Public relation, and merchandising.
Advertising is used by Marks and Spencer to advertise a product that it is better than their competitors. Marks and Spencer communicate with their customers using the media such as Newspapers, Television, Radio and internet. The method that Marks and Spencer use depends on the Target Market and the time that they advertise the product. For an instance if Marks and Spencer were advertising teenage clothing for Teenagers it would be a waste of time advertising the products during the day because most teenagers would be at school/college. This too shall be a waste of money as the promotion hasn’t reached their target market. Advertising is an informative method which is used to increase the customer awareness of a product. Advertising most involves using facts, images, being persuasive and convincing.
Marks and Spencer use Newspapers for advertising. The reason for why they use this method of promotion is because they know that a lot of people travelling to work on buses and trains read the newspaper therefore they find this method of promotion a good way of advertising as it gets to the target market instantly as they are reading through the newspaper.
Marks and Spencer use Television as a method of promotions. The reason for why Marks and Spencer use television for promotion is to advertise their product as they now that a large population of their target Market watches television therefore they find this method quick and easy and it get the target Market more easily. The disadvantages of using Television are that Marks and Spencer need to make sure that when they do advertise that they advertise at the time of day when there target market is watching televisions because this method of promotion is very expensive. By using television the target market will also be able to see the product in colour.
Internet is another method that is used a a large number of businesses because they now that they’re target market have all got the internet and therefore they use the internet to advertise promotions such as sales, discounts on their website and other websites as well. This method of promotion is very expensive as a huge population in UK use the internet therefore it is easy to target their target Market.
Sales promotion is a method that provides a financial incentive to purchase a product. Like for an example Marks and Spencer advertises sales promotion that if you buy this product you would get another item free. This is known as a financial incentive to purchase a product.
Merchandising is another method of promotion that can be used by Marks and Spencer. Merchandising is a range of tactics that a business likes Marks and Spencer at a point of sale-where the products are purchased. For an example retailer may be provided with a point of sale advert by business to advertise. Like for an instance coming up to Christmas businesses may provide retailers such as Marks and Spencer with wrapping paper as retailer now that this will be a fast selling product. Merchandising is very important when customers make decisions at the point of sales.
This affects Marks and Spencer aims and objective “Continue to invest in and grow core UK retail businesses by introducing new good and services” because Marks and Spencer need to be able to advertise the goods and services that they provide to address awareness to their customers.
Place
Place is very important in Marketing and it is very important to all business such as Marks and Spencer. The reason for why Place is so important is because it is the location where the product is sold to their customers. Pace is very important because customers don’t want to travel too much just to get to the nearest Marks and Spencer.
Channel of distribution is a method that sis used by Marks and Spencer and other competitors to distribute products like wholesalers and retailers. Marks and Spencer have warehouse where they keep all their stock after it has been produced. All stock is then delivered around Marks and Spencer UK stores. Marks and Spencer is a retail company therefore they deliver to their own stores from their warehouses using their large lorry vehicles.
In store the place of the product is very important because when customers come into the store they do not want to be looking for same product because the product has been moved.
Placing the products in the right place is right, Marks and Spencer now what their customers come in to get on regular basis, such as newspapers, sweets, milk, drinks and Crisps this is why theses items are always placed at the front of the store so that customers can just pick these items and go and pay without having to walk all around the shop just to buy one chocolate. Place affects Marks and Spencer’s aims and Objective “Accelerate store renewal programme” as Marks and Spencer need to renew their store so that it is easier for their customer to access products more quickly.
Customer are able to purchase the same products which can be purchased in store however some customers find it more easy and available to purchase products online by the internet because they don’t have to travel to get to Marks and Spencer and they do not have to leave their home as they have direct sales.
Mass Market and Niche Market
Mass market is where a product is marketed to all consumers. Mass market does not focus on small segments of the market. Niche is when you market a product to certain groups of consumers of the Market.
Mass market is used by Marks and Spencer as they market their products and their services that they provide on a large marker. They also use mass market because they provide their customers with a range of products
This mass market shall affect the aim and objective “Strengthen our UK property portfolio”. The reason for why it shall affect this aim and objective is because Marks and Spencer will be able to determine ways in which how far they will be able to expand and ways in which they can expand as a business.
Quality Control
Quality control is a method that is used to find poor quality products that have been produced before they are marketed on to the market. The products are checked during the production process. The different methods of quality control that are used are Total Quality Management, Inspection, Self checking, bench marking, mystery shoppers and Training.
Total quality management is used by Marks and Spencer in their manufactures to ensure that the products that are made in the manufacturing process are up to the standard of the total quality management. It is also used by Marks and Spencers suppliers to check that the products that are being delivered to Marks and Spencer are to the standard of the total quality management and do not drop below the standard. Total quality management check is also done on Marks and Spencers products to ensure that the products before being put on to the shelf to ensure that high standard of products are being served to customers.
This helps Marks and Spencer meet their aims and Objectives “Continue to invest in and grow in our core UK retail business, by introducing new goods and services”. The reason for Quality control affect this aim and objective is so that it allows Marks and Spencer identify any product not up to the standard quality product that are not suitable to be on their market and it also prevents poor quality good being produced in the final stages of the production. This helps Marks and Spencer as they will be able to provide their customers with good quality goods and services.
Teams and Groups
A team is a group which is formed to achieve targets. A group is a team that has been formed to become a group.
Team is a group that have been set clear objectives, in order to achieve these objectives the team have to work within a group in order to support each other and achieve the objectives that need to be met.
At Marks and Spencer all the staff, managers and managing directors work together as a team and support each other. When the staff, manager and Managing directors at Marks and Spencer work within a group they think of themselves as if they are within a team. All people part of Marks and Spencer need each other if they want to achieve their aims and objectives that Marks and Spencer have set.
Team affects Marks and Spencer aim and objective “Continue to invest in and grow in our core UK retail business, by introducing new goods and services” because by working within a team and a group they are able to meet this aim and objective and are able to provide their customers with new good and services.
Types of Organisational Structure
Hierarchical structure-flat
Hierarchical structure is when employees are ranked at various levels within the organisation and each level is one above the other. On the Hierarchical structure one person has a number of workers directly under them, within their span of control. A hierarchical structure that has many levels can be having many difficulties such as it can be harder to communicate, there would be a wider span control.
Hierarchical structure-Tall
A tall hierarchical structure is when there are more levels of sub-division such as Managers, Assistant manager. When a business has a tall structure it becomes harder to communicate around the business as there is a much taller span a control.
Geographical Division structure
Marks and Spencer has a geographical structure therefore Stuart rose would be at the top followed by his Board of directors and then department managers and further more such as finance, Customer service and Distribution, and Marketing. This structure is an advantage to Marks and Spencer because it is much easier for department to communicate more effectively. This helps them to meet their aims and Objective “Continue to invest in and grow in our core UK retail business, by introducing new goods and services” because if there was a problem within the store and the employee need to get the information to the board of directors then it would take long to communicate the information in contrast to a tall geographical structure, which allows them to provide a good service.
Marks and Spencer Organisational Structure
To take a screenshot of Organisational Structure
Below is an organisational structure for Marks and Spencer. The organisational Structure shows Stuart Rose at the top as he is the chairman of Marks and Spencer and he has the entire final says. Below Stuart Rose is eleven other boards of Directors of Stuart Rose who are in charge of Different departments. Below the Board of Directors would be the store manager and then assistant mangers and then staff etc.
Job role at Marks and Spencer
Human Resources
The main job role of a Human resources department at Marks and Spencer is to to recruit and select the best candidate that meets the business needs. The human resources department is also responsible for training the employees at Marks and Spencer so that they can help in providing a good service to their customers. The human resources department are also responsible for keeping track records of staff records and managing staff welfare. As human resources manager they have the role of creating a job advert to advertise jobs.
Marketing
The main job role of the Marketing department in Marks and Spencer is informing the customers that there is a product on sale and to persuade them to buy the product. The Marketing main roles involve collecting research that relates to their target market or their potential market. This information is then used by the marketing department to analyse the information and to make predictions about the Market and to create and place the advert. Without the marketing department it would be very unlikely that the products and Marks and Spencer would have sold, this shows how important this department is to the business.
Administration
The Administration at Marks and Spencer main job role is the performance and management of the business. The administration at Marks and Spencer make the major decisions. The Administration at Marks and Spencer has the role to communicate between stores to keep up to date for the head office. The admin department are also in charge of payable accounts and their main responsibility is to pay the suppliers of Marks and Spencer for stock. They also have the responsibly for the money that is delivered by banks to the store.
Finance
The finance department at Marks and Spencer are responsible for the money coming in and out of the business. The finance department at Marks and Spencer are also responsible for the payments of bills, staff wages and salaries. They are also responsible for the payment of good and services that are received by the company and the supplier’s money.
Sales and Customer service
At Marks and Spencer sales and customer service are the public face of Marks and Spencer and without the customer service department Marks and Spencer wouldn’t be able to deliver a service people talk about. Marks and Spencer have Customer service desk with customer assistants throughout their stores were they all receive range of training that allows them to offer expert advice to customers at Marks and Spencer about products or service received.
Research and Development
The research and development department at Marks and Spencer are responsible for investigating potentials of a new product and new and more effective methods of producing his product.
The above job roles affect Marks and Spencer aims and objectives Continue to invest in and grow in our core UK retail business, by introducing new goods and services” because without theses department Marks and Spencer would not be able to provide a good service to their customers or their suppliers therefore these departments are very important in the management operation of Marks and Spencer.
Leadership
Leadership is a social process in which an individual influences the behaviour of the others without the use of threat of violence. The different theories of leaderships they are positive self image, genuine ability to inspire, identifying problems and have visions to solve, Expert within their field and have out of the ordinary intelligence.
Positive self image is where a member of a team or a group puts them selves forward to be a leader and take the leader of the group. By appointing themselves forward to become the leader of the team they are creating a positive self image of themselves, as people within the team will have positive opinions of the person for appointing themselves forward.
Genuine ability to inspire is where a team member of a group enthusiastically shows their skills to the rest of the group to motivate the rest of the group. This is another theory of leadership as that leader is motivating the rest of the group.
There are many different methods of leadership such as Autocratic. Autocratic is a method that can be used by managers to set objectives for staff that they hope to meet, allocate them specific task to be carried out. The disadvantages of this method are that this needs high levels of supervision to ensure that the jobs are done appropriately to the standard. This method uses poor motivation therefore staff feel more disappointed and unwilling to get on with things as there’s not much encouragement.
Democratic is another method which is used by Marks and Spencer this methods is used to help in encouraging staff, this method has good communication within staff and there manager, staff are more motivated at Marks and Spencer by their manager due to constant appraisals for good work therefore staff are more willing to work harder and get more jobs done.
This affects Marks and Spencer aims and Objective “Continue to invest in and grow in our core UK retail business, by introducing new goods and services” because if staff are more motivated are constantly appraised for their hard work then this encourages staff to work harder and also provide good service to customers.