Table of Contents
Introduction Situational Analysis Aims Plan Tactics Measures Control Conclusion Citations
Introduction
Great Value is one of the most established retail brands at Walmart. It was established in 1993 and offers hundreds of groceries and non-food items, including sliced bread, frozen veggies, light bulbs, garbage bags, and other household necessities (Neebe, 2020). It is stated that its products are nearly as good as those of some of the large brands now on exhibit, with a price advantage due to the absence of advertising and marketing expenses (Neebe, 2020). A new plan must be designed to improve the company's performance in light of the brand's unappealing package design, lack of availability outside of the chain, and reputation-damaging high employee turnover. The SOSTAG (Situation, Objectives, Strategy, Tactics, Actions, Control) framework provides a structured method for assessing the brand's present market position and developing a marketing strategy to handle the existing difficulties.
Situation Evaluation
Great Value is the best-selling retail brand at Walmart, featuring a vast selection of groceries and household goods sold abroad in the company's locations. The commodities are not created by Walmart but by firms that, in addition to producing their own products, also supply big retail chains. The company is dedicated to "providing customers with quality products at unbeatable prices" and asserts that its supermarket and household consumable alternatives are comparable in quality to those of major national brands (Walmart, n. d.). Great Value items are typically marketed to low- to middle-income consumers, as they are sold at cheaper prices than name-brand products.
The 4Ps marketing mix summarizes the company's marketing possibilities in terms of product, price, location, and promotion.
The Great Value collection includes more than 850 goods spanning practically every supermarket and household category (Fortune 500). The product selection is remarkable, and the brand is widely available. One of the primary selling aspects of the Great Value brand is that its items are sold at inexpensive prices. Great Value products are available in every Walmart store in the world. The disadvantage is that the products cannot be purchased outside of the chain. Walmart utilizes a range of marketing strategies to promote its store brand. The primary tools consist of physical and internet advertising, giveaways, and price reduction techniques.
The strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats identified by the SWOT analysis of the company's internal and external strategic environment are as follows (David, Creek, & David, 2019):
Brand strengths (S) include high levels of brand awareness, presence, and expansion, low costs, access to global supply and logistics networks, an efficient HR and resource management system, and a dominant position vis-à-vis competitors. Weaknesses of the brand include copying of other brands, unattractive package design, average product quality, and a lack of visibility outside of the Walmart store network. The primary opportunities (O) for future growth include design enhancements, the adoption of better quality standards, and brand expansion. The corporation faces the COVID-19 epidemic, competition from other companies, and controversies about quality, imitations, and supplier treatment as current risks (T).
Objectives
On the basis of the SWOT analysis, the following SMART targets can be defined for the Great Value product line:
By the conclusion of this year, create and deploy a fresh, identifiable, and appealing package design. By the end of this year, bringing the quality of the products that attract the most customer complaints in line with the average quality of the company's products. Renegotiating the terms with suppliers to enhance the company's media and customer image. By the end of the year, reputation replies should have increased by at least 10 percent. In light of COVID-19 and the widespread destitution of the populace, cut product prices by 5 percent while maintaining the current profit margins.
Strategy
The brand's present marketing mix is reasonably effective for preserving current market positions and even creating modest growth as a result of socioeconomic shifts that cause consumers to purchase less expensive products. However, claimed growth might be boosted by focusing on brand image, consumer perception, product quality, and pricing (Steenkamp, 2017). The brand's image and impression can be enhanced by addressing the packaging's visual appeal and negative repute. Walmart's ties with its suppliers and the company's control over the production process influence the quality of its brands (Steenkamp, 2017). Current pricing are defined by the existing logistics and supply chain, employee labor and retention expenses, and supply and demand pressures. For the corporation to lower prices, it must either reduce expenses or increase economies of scale.
The following strategies for attaining the given objectives can be recommended based on the SWOT analysis. The S–O plan of action includes repackaging to increase brand identification. The fundamental objective of the W–O strategy is to improve product quality while maintaining the pricing. The S–T strategy should employ the company's robust HR policies to eliminate supplier treatment disputes (Neebe, 2020). To boost Walmart's competitive position, the W–T strategy should aim to give its generic brand a recognizable image and features that are difficult to reproduce.
Tactics
Walmart's current tactical strategy emphasizes processes rather than service and people. While the quality of the majority of Great Value's products is mainly rated adequate, the quality of service and staff satisfaction are low (LeCavalier, 2016). It is due to the company's bad employee relations policy, which results in high turnover rates and reputational damage. It is possible to address these concerns on a tactical level while still achieving the larger strategic objectives.
With the strategy specifying which market segments should be targeted, tactics concentrate on the various instruments that could be employed to achieve the intended goals.
Redesigning packaging should maintain the current aesthetic and brand familiarity while making the products more appealing to present and new customers (Roberts & Berg, 2012). To make the package appear more appealing to the intended audience, the color scheme might be altered. Disputes about suppliers and employees should be resolved by enhancing their working conditions and treatment (Neebe, 2020). It is anticipated that the reduced turnover rates and training expenditures will cover any costs associated with this endeavor. By assigning Walmart quality managers to oversee the production processes in partnership with suppliers, quality issues can be resolved. Prices should be determined with a focus on increasing sales, which would be further spurred by enhanced packaging, quality, and brand recognition. Important KPI control indicators should include sales volumes, reputation surveys, quality surveys, and expenditures per unit manufactured (Neebe, 2020).
Actions
Walmart will need to make significant adjustments to its management strategy and staff training in order to enhance its reputation as an employer. McMann (2019) says that "if Walmart were to change its corporate strategy from cost leadership to help generate less negative criticism and high turnover rates, the company's foundation would be drastically altered" (p. 4). However, by reducing employee turnover and enhancing employee-customer interactions, the business can enhance revenues by spending less on training programs and maintaining a greater number of consumers.
Walmart concentrates primarily on sales quantities at this moment; but, by examining human resource management in detail, it can change its operational expenses by investing in more effective management. However, the corporation has acknowledged long-standing flaws that negatively affect its social reputation and has demonstrated a willingness to alter its attitude toward low-level employees (Neebe, 2020). While adjustments are being made to employee working circumstances, the corporation must still handle employee-manager relationships by introducing new policies concerning the professional attitudes and leadership abilities of managers.
As with any firm, individuals may develop product value almost as effectively as an optimized supply chain. Neebe (2020), for instance, states that “b By 2025, Walmart U.S. will have provided millions of employees with career-enhancing skills through targeted training programs such as Walmart Academy (p. 68). The company has already implemented a number of programs aimed at positively influencing the mindset of its employees, and these benefits will be passed on to consumers as employees become more willing to assist them.
The corporation has acknowledged that its supplier standards are excessively stringent. Walmart, according to Neebe (2020), "opened over 600 cases involving allegations of supply chain misconduct" (p. 68). Walmart can benefit from an increase in the number of companies ready to stock its shelves if it modifies its current policies to make them more accommodating. In addition, the company's evolving requirements include the need for sustainable packaging, which can be viewed as more desired by consumers.
Walmart should be able to produce more value overall from an increase in the number of suppliers and a decrease in supplier turnover rates. Today, respecting employees is as crucial as respecting consumers. By changing the staff's attitude to one that is more cheerful and cordial, Walmart can enhance its standing with customers by enhancing its working circumstances. If Walmart repairs its connections with its suppliers and improves its relationships with its employees and customers, it can attract additional business partners ready to stock its shelves.
Control
A variety of suitable control tools should be employed to monitor and assess the company's performance. They consist of the 5 S's (sell, serve, sizzle, speak, save), key performance indicators, testing for visibility, mystery shopping, and customer satisfaction surveys. Some tools and measurements are appropriate regardless of the present objective, whereas others are dependent on the type of campaign the organization is doing (Chaffey, 2019). A frequent analysis provides significant insight into whether the organization achieves its existing objectives, how and why it has failed, and what could be altered in terms of strategy and tactics.
Gross profit, sales and cost of goods sold, market share, and customer happiness are considered as key performance metrics for a house brand. The percentage of house brand sales relative to sales of name-brand products within the same category is one of the most crucial performance metrics that should be tracked. The 5 S's tool checks the brand's compliance with a marketing campaign's five essential objectives: Sell, Serve, Speak, Save, and Sizzle (Chaffey, 2019). Sell refers to the company's primary objective of maximizing profit from sales. Serve means that a brand should be aware of its clients' wants and needs and serve them accordingly. Speak implies that communication plays a significant role in any marketing campaign, and that each plan must answer the needs of customers in a clear and straightforward manner. Save encourages the organization to save money, time, and resources. Sizzle involves generating, expanding, and establishing the brand's market presence. Visibility testing is used in packaging design to guarantee that a brand's items are visible on shelves and attract customers' interest. High visibility enhances brand familiarity and contributes to increased sales performance. Each time packaging is created or modified, testing must be undertaken. Regular customer satisfaction surveys should be conducted to obtain feedback and determine the level of consumer satisfaction with each product and the brand overall. Customer surveys provide significant data into the purchasing experience if constructed properly.
Conclusion
The present market position of Walmart's Great Value brand is strong due to its low prices and large store presence. The brand's flaws include concerns with quality, packaging, suppliers, and employees, which must be addressed at the strategic and operational levels. The planned marketing strategy comprises measures aiming at new packaging design, boosting the quality of items, renegotiating service terms with suppliers, and enhancing the company's employee relations policy. Implementation of suitable control techniques is essential for assessing the company's progress toward reaching the proposed goals.
References
Chaffey, D. (2019). Pearson published a book on digital marketing in London, United Kingdom.
F. R. David, S. A. Creek, and F. R. David (2019). What is the secret to a successful SWOT analysis that includes AQCD factors? The SAM Advanced Management Journal, 84(1), pages 25 to 39.
Fortune 500. (2020). Walmart. Web.
LeCavalier, J. (2016). The law of logistics: Walmart's fulfillment architecture University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minnesota
McMann, S. (2019). Rate of turnover: Walmart (Honors capstone, Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT). Web.
Neebe, K. (2020). Sustainability at Walmart: Long-term prosperity. Web.
Roberts, B., & Berg, N. (2012). Key insights and applicable lessons from the world's largest store. Kogan Page Publishers of New York, New York
Steenkamp, J. B. (2017). Decisions about the global marketing mix: global integration, not uniformity In Global Brand Management (pp. 75–109). London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan.
Walmart. (n. d.). Walmart’s revamped Great Value brand delivers affordable, quality choices when consumers need them most. Web.
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