Place
Persil has many sell outlets including big supermarket chains in the country like Tesco and Sainsbury’s, local or individual owned shops, chemist shops like boots and super drug, garage forecourts and motor way service areas. Most sales end up in grocery multiples because they are more convenient and popular and many are starting to deliver a 24/7 service. They are also the leaders in price cutting than any other outlets. On the technological side, Persil has a website where it offers online ordering and the goods are delivered to the customers’ door steps. This is also convenient because the websites takes orders at anytime of the day and you can access it any where in the world as long as you have got internet access.
Promotion
Persil promotes it Products by advertising on T.V mainly targeting specific programmes, carrying out advertising campaigns on radio, they also have a website which people can visit. It also includes all the different range of products they have which gets the customers to know them. Sometimes they carry out sales promotions like buy one get one free, they also advertise on posters/billboards and cinemas targeting family movies which will include an audience of mothers as well.
You can also submit your e-mail address if you are an internet user and they will keep you up to date about their products, the press is also an important form of advertising because it targets a big audience, Persil is a big sponsor of events, it has got persuasive messages on the products packaging like save 99p. Lastly, it donates money to charities which gives it a good reputation in the public.
Task 2
The internal and external influences of PEST and SWOT on persil are as follows: -
SWOT ANALYSIS
Strength
- Persil has got high popularity in the country.
- Its products have got a very good repetition in quality
- It’s a brand name in the country
- It has got a very high market share of 28% making the leading seller in the country
- They have a full range of internal facilities like modern machinery and well trained staff able to deliver good services
- Very good and convenient outwards distribution channels for their products
- Since their products are consumer non-durables, they can always be selling
- It’s a large well established international public limited company(PLC)
- It has got a wide range of products
Weaknesses
- Low development of new washing liquids i.e. little difference of new products from old ones
- Poor communication with customers because it doesn’t supply products directly but through many distribution channels
- Their products are targeted at a limited age group
Opportunities
- Persil can diversify into a different market to get new market share
- It can also try promoting using large marketing events
- Sponsor big events like football matches which have a very big number of viewing audiences
- Population of the country growing so more consumers
- Increased consumer demand for laundry products
Threats
- Persil’s main competitors like DAZ, bold and Ariel
- More companies diversifying into the laundry industry
- Recessions in the economy which means people will have less disposable income to spend
- Negative government legislation i.e. it doesn’t allow monopolies
PEST ANALYSIS
Political
- The government has tight regulations for selling biological products and biased advertising
- An unexpected war can be very damaging to the economy therefore sparking less spending by consumers
- Increase or cut backs in taxes can have good and bad effects on persil i.e. consumers will buy more if the taxes are relatively low and they will buy less if the taxes go up
- Introduction of minimum wage system forced the company to cut spending in other fields
Economical
- The bank of England always changes interest rates which has both negative and positive effects depending on whether they have gone up or gone down
- The different budget of each single person during certain times affect Persil’s sales
- Predictions of an impending recession might have negative effects on the company if it ever happens because people wont be spending much
- Transportation costs for goods are also high
Social
- Environmental campaigners are concerned that pollution from the factories is damaging to the environment
- consumers tend to like brand names and international products better
Technological
- The rapid development of the technological industry like the internet has had big effects on the way persil advertises and sells its products i.e. it advertises on its websites and also handles online orders
- Costs of maintaining old and purchasing new machinery are high for the business
Task 3
There are three main strategic marketing models namely: -
Boston matrix
This is used by firms to analyse how their existing products are doing. This helps them decide which products are doing well and which are not doing so well. It is mainly made of three categories namely: -
Star product- This is where the product has successfully reached the growth stage in the life cycle. The products are doing as good as they can possibly do. They are the products with a large share of a high growth market
Problem child-These are the products that have just been launched and hold a future potential because they are in growth markets but their sales are not very good.
Cash cows- These are the products that have reached the maturity stage in their product life cycle and are now yielding quite a lot. These products are able to sell at a steady pace and maybe able to support other products, the probably been around for a long time and have a stable market share.
Dog-These are products that have declined. They are generating a negative cash flow and the business should get rid of them.
From all this I say that if I was to use the Boston matrix model, Persil would be a star product.
Ansoff matrix
This is the most useful method for businesses aiming for growth. It provides four different growth strategies namely: -
Market penetration- this is where the firm seeks to achieve growth with existing products in their current market segments, aiming to increase its market share.
Market development- this is where the firm seeks growth by targeting its existing products to new market segments.
Product development- the firm develops new products still targeting its existing market segments.
Diversification- here the firm grows by diversifying into new businesses and developing new products for new markets.
Product life cycle
This is the period over which the product appeals to customers. Firstly, the product may expand and grow, then the market will mature, and eventually the product will move into decline.
It is important for businesses to know the product life cycle because it helps them understand and plan for the present and future. By also understanding the product life cycle, they can evaluate the current and potential of the product i.e. if it’s doing well, they can think of ways to keep it on its highest peaks like sales promotion and if it’s doing badly, they can think of ways to increase the sales like launching more advertising campaigns.
From all this I say that if I used this model, Persil would be in its maturity stage
My chosen new possible marketing strategy for Persil is using the ansoff matrix model.
Task 4
The sources of information I have used to complete this task are: -
- The internet i.e. using search engines like goggle, yahoo.
- Consulting business teachers for help
- News papers such as the financial times
- Mintel reports section “Laundry and house hold equipment” (Yr 2000-2001)
- Business T.V channels like Bloomberg to see how the economy is doing
- My marketing class notes
- E-mailing the company for the information
- Taking observations in all the different out lets
- AVCE business study book