Hi5004 Marketing Management : Swot Assessment Answers

a) Company – what are the strengths and key resources, what are some of the weaknesses? What are the opportunities and threats?
b) Customers – who is the company serving and what type of behaviour is ‘typical’ from them?
c.) Collaborators – describe their suppliers, distributors or other partners that help the company to deliver their products to the market? If company            doesn’t have any – explain why it is not necessary.

d) Competitors – who are the current main competitors, are there any potential new threats or new entrants to the marketplace?
e) Context – what other factors affect this organisation (e.g., legal, political, technological, etc.)?

Answer:

Issue 1

Background of Coles

Coles Supermarkets Australia Pty. Ltd. which trades with the name of Coles operates in the supermarket based industry of the country. The major areas which are an important part of the operations of Coles mainly includes, the retail services chain, consumer based chain. The headquarter of the organization is thereby located in the Melbourne and Coles operates under its parent company named Wesfarmers. The organization was established in the year 1914 in Melbourne by George Coles (Coles.com.au 2018). The company now operates more than 800 stores in many areas of Australia. The employee base which has been developed by the company is more than 1,00,000. More than 80% of the total share in the retail market of Australia has been gained by the two major retail organizations in the country, Woolworths and Coles.

Mission statement and slogan of Coles

The mission statement of Coles is thereby based on the innovation based capabilities of the company which have made them leaders in the industry and has further been helpful in providing effective levels of value to the customers. The superior services and convenience which is offered to the consumers is also considered to be a major part of the mission statement. The slogan that has been followed by Coles in its operations in the retail industry is “Serving you better” (Coles.com.au 2018).

Marketing approach taken by Coles

The marketing related approach that has been applied by Coles in the industry is based on the effective shopping based experience that is provided to the consumers. The company mainly aims at providing effective levels of value to the customers.

Description of the products

The products that are offered by Coles in the market mainly include, baby products, dairy based products, fresh vegetables and fruits, liquor, gluten free products and meat. (Barros, Hernangómez and Martin-Cruz 2016)

Issue 2

Company - SWOT analysis of Coles

Strengths · The returns that are provided by the capital expenditure are high for Coles Supermarkets. · The levels of customer satisfaction of Coles are quite high in Australian retail industry. · The portfolio of the brand in the market is quite strong which acts as a major factor in attracting the customers (Daspit et al. 2017).	Weaknesses · The major weakness is based on the positioning based activities of the products that are performed by Coles. · The major challenges that are posed by the new organizations are not faced in an effective manner by the company. · The investment in new technologies is lacking (Demir, Wennberg and McKelvie 2017).
Opportunities · The new policies based taxation are able to affect process by which business operations are conducted. · The environmental policies which are formed in the retail industry can act as a major opportunity for the company. · The start of new markets has proved to be a major opportunity for growth based operations of Coles (Durand, Grant and Madsen 2017).	Threats · The implementation of new and improved technologies by the competitors is a major threat for the company. · The organization has been facing major lawsuits in the course if its operations in the Australian retail industry. · The rising costs of raw materials is also a major threat to the operations of Coles (Dyer et al. 2015).

Customers of Coles

The customer base of Coles mainly lies in the household based sector. The homemakers are thereby considered to be most important customers of Coles in the retail sector of Australia. The major buying related decisions are thereby taken in an effective manner by the homemakers. This is the major reason behind effective operations of the company in the industry (Engert, Rauter and Baumgartner 2016).

                                                                                                           Figure 1 – Customers

                                                                                                     Source - (Coles.com.au 2018)

Collaborators of Coles

The major collaborators of Coles in the Australia retail industry are the suppliers who are able to deliver the raw materials that are required for the production based purposes. The company is thereby highly committed towards the support which is provided by the suppliers of different merchandise in order to increase their business based operations in an effective way. Coles has thereby been able to recognise the extreme need to developing an efficient supply chain in order to provide the effective services and products. The process of delivering the best levels of products to the customers is thereby based on the effective operations of the company (Ethiraj, Gambardella and Helfat 2018).

                                                                                                     Figure 2 – Collaborators

                                                                                                  Source - (Coles.com.au 2018)

Competitors of Coles

The major competitor of Coles Supermarkets in the retail industry of Australia is Woolworths. The two organizations have been able to acquire almost 80% of the total shares of the Australian retail market. The price based wars that take place in the retail industry of Australia between the two organizations are quite fierce in nature. This has an effect on the ways by which the companies are able to gain their revenues in the market (Frynas and Mellahi 2015).

                                                                                               Figure 3 – Competitors

                                                                                        Source - (Frynas and Mellahi 2015)

Context of business - PESTLE Analysis of Coles

Political	·        The regulations that have been made by the Australian government are based on the duopolistic nature of the market which has been developed. ·       This has been able to increase competition levels that are faced by Coles.
Economic	·       The low rates of spending by the Australian consumers have affected the sales of Coles. ·       The power based on bargaining of the suppliers of the company has started reducing in a drastic manner (Hill, Jones and Schilling 2014).
Social	·       The award of Fairtrade Retail Chain has been received by Coles based on its operating processes. ·       The company has been making efforts to address issues based on Food Security. ·       The organization has also provided major aid to different causes (Hubbard, Rice and Galvin 2014).
Technological	·        The usage of internet by the customers of Coles have increased in a huge manner. ·       The payment facilities that are being provided by the businesses in the market are also able to affect the operating process of Coles. ·       The usage of cloud infrastructure in an effective manner is an important part of operations of retail organizations in Australia (Kasemsap 2014).
Legal	· The legal codes and factors need to be followed in an effective manner. · The strict and mandatory codes are also able to affect the regulations formed by Coles.
Environmental	· The usage of sustainable products has become highly important in the retail industry which has created pressure on operations of Coles. ·       The development supermarkets that are eco-friendly in nature has also proved to be an important factor (Meyer, Neck and Meeks 2017).

Issue 3

Customer needs and wants

The customers are considered to be the most significant part of the processes of Coles in the retail industry of Australia. The different advertisement based campaigns that are thereby designed by the company are based on the needs and demands of different consumers in the industry. The implementation of different new technologies has thereby proved to be an important part of effective operations of Coles and the ways by which the firm has been able to fulfil the needs of customers. The environment which is developed by the firm in its physical stores has proved to be a major reason behind the loyal customer base that has been developed in Australia (Michael, Storey and Thomas 2017).

Competitor Analysis

The major competitor of Coles in the retail industry of Australia is Woolworths which is able to affect the prices of diverse services and products that are offered by the firm to the customers. The price related wars between the organizations is highly aggressive in nature and is able to affect the profitability and revenues of Coles. The major strategy that is implemented by Coles in order to compete in the industry is mainly related to the quality of products that are offered to consumers (Morschett, Schramm-Klein and Zentes 2015). The online shopping based facilities which are provided by the company are also able to attract the customers in an effective manner.

Context of the business environment

The context of business environment in which Coles operates is based on the ways by which the operations of the company are affected by different external factors that have been examined with the help of PESTLE framework. The different external factors of Australia are thereby able to affect the products and services that are offered to the consumers. The product based portfolio has thereby been designed by Coles based on the choices of different customers. The effect of these external factors is quite high on the prices which are decided by the company of different products (Punt and Emory Anderson 2015). The economic and political situation of the company has played a main part in the ways by which the company is able to develop different policies and procedures.

                                                                                                  Figure 4 – Competitors

                                                                                   Source - (Punt and Emory Anderson 2015)

Role of the collaborators

The suppliers of Coles are able to play the most important role in the proper operations of the company in the industry. The major part of the processes of Coles is thereby based on the different technological operations of the company. The suppliers are able to affect the prices of different products that are offered by Coles in the Australian retail based industry. The development of an efficient supply chain is thereby important for the proper time within which the products of the company can be offered to the consumers (Ramamurti 2016). The number of suppliers which is maintained by the company is thereby significant for the ways by which Coles is able to operate in the retail industry.

Issue 4

Target Market of Coles

The major target customers of Coles in Australian retail industry include people who have different types of eating and cooking based habits. The company offers many different ranges of products that include, dairy based products, fresh fruits and many other products. The organization also targets the people who belong to the age group between 10 to 25 years with the help of products that are offered according to their convenience. The special offers that are thereby offered to the customers are based on their individual personalities (Sakas, Vlachos and Nasiopoulos 2014).

Value Proposition of Coles

The value proposition that has been developed by Coles in the current business environment is based on the methods by which the firm is able to offer effective products to the consumers in a convenient manner. The company has always on the ways by which customers can be attracted towards the operations with the help of unique products that are offered at the lowest prices. The organization has been providing more value to the services that are offered to customers within the stores rather than the products. The experience offered to the is considered to be highly important for the effectiveness of operations of Coles in the industry (Simon, Fischbach and Schoder 2014). The homemakers and the young people are mainly targeted with the help of products that are developed by the company.

Positioning of Coles

Coles had not been able to develop its unique position in the retail industry before it was acquired by the British conglomerate named Wesfarmers. After the operations of the company started under its parent company Wesfarmers, Coles was able to develop the price positioning based strategy. This strategy had thereby proved to be useful for the appropriate operations of the business in the industry. The organization has also focussed in a huge manner on the ways by which the back office based processes are designed in order to offer effective services to the customers (Steinbach et al. 2017).

The price positioning based strategy has thereby played the most important role in the ways by which Coles has been able to provide strong competition to the other companies in the retail market. The new campaign which has been launched by Wesfarmers in the industry is termed as the “Down Down price campaign”. Coles had also implemented similar types of strategies in order to operate in the retail industry and provide tough competition to Woolworths. The position which has thereby been developed by Coles in the industry will be based on the prices that are decides for different products. Price has thereby been able to play the most important role in the positioning based operations that have been performed by Coles in the industry (Tassabehji and Isherwood 2014).

                                                                                                    Figure 5 – Market position

                                                                                           Source - (Trigeorgis and Reuer 2017)

Issue 5

Marketing tactics

Marketing mix of Coles

The marketing based analysis of an organization is able to provide an effective picture of the operations of Coles and the marketing based strategies that are thereby implemented by the company. The different elements of marketing mix are thereby able to depict the ways by which the company is able to develop its product line.

Product – This factor mainly consists of different products that are offered by the Coles in the retail industry. The products of the company thereby include, groceries, liquor, fresh food and the financial services as well. The different offerings are thereby based on the strategy that has been implemented by the company in the retail industry. The different business based segments of Coles thereby include, Coles online, Coles supermarket, Coles express. The various products that are thereby considered to be an important part of the product base of Coles (Trigeorgis and Reuer 2017).

Place – Coles has developed more than 2300 outlets all over Australia and has been able to reach out to more number of customers with the help of its distribution strategy. The better network of stores can be further developed by Coles in order to offer effective services to the consumers. The open market style operations which is thereby followed by the company has proved to be quite effective for its revenues and profitability. The expansion of online supermarket operations can also lead to effective operations of Coles in the retail industry (Wheelen et al. 2017).

Price – Coles has emerged as a leader in prices of products that it offers to the customers. The company thereby aims at lowering costs based on production in order to continue its effective operations in the industry. The company had introduced a scheme known as the “Every Day Value pricing” which is based om the ways by which the customers are provided the products at lowest prices. The value which is offered to the customers with the help of services and products is based on the price based factor of marketing mix of Coles (Tassabehji and Isherwood 2014). The loyalty based programmes, promotions and discounts are thereby considered to be important part of the price related policies of the company.

Promotion – The advertising and marketing based strategies that are developed by Coles revolve around the lower prices of services and products. The company has further designed many interactive campaigns in order to create awareness among the customers in an effective manner. The loyalty based programmes of the company have proved to be effective for the operations of Coles in the industry. The company thereby needs to improve and enhance the marketing based strategies in an effective way in order to provide the services to the customers based on their needs and demands (Simon, Fischbach and Schoder 2014). The customer analysis related activities that are performed by the company are also an important part of the promotional strategies made by Coles.

                                                                                               Figure 6 – Marketing goals

                                                                                 Source - (Simon, Fischbach and Schoder 2014)

Porter’s five forces analysis of Coles  

Threats based on the new entrants – The entry of new organizations in the Australian retail industry has proved to be a major factor that affects the processes of Coles. The company has huge issues in managing various new companies that have entered in the retail industry. The company is thereby affected in a huge manner by the innovation levels that are introduced by the new entries in the market.

Bargaining based power of the suppliers – Coles has developed an effective supply chain with the help of its huge number of suppliers. This has thereby proved to be an important factor which has reduced the costs related to production in the company. The customers are thereby provided with desired products with the help of its numerous suppliers (Dobbs 2014).

Bargaining based power of the buyers – The buyers or the consumers of retail industry have high bargaining power. Coles needs to provide highest levels of importance to the consumers in order to develop a reliable base. The products and the services that are offered to the consumers are related to the lower pricing strategy which has been implemented by Coles (Morschett, Schramm-Klein and Zentes 2015).

Threats from the substitutes – The threats related to substitute products which are faced by Coles are high. The products which are provided by an organization like Woolworths are able to fulfil similar needs of the consumers. This is thereby considered to be an significant factor which is able to affect the operations in a huge manner. Coles has thereby faced huge issues based on offering of products in an effective manner by other competitors in the market (Punt and Emory Anderson 2015).

Rivalry between existing players – The levels of rivalry that exist among the organizations in Australian retail based industry are quite high. Coles thereby needs to face aggressive wars based on the services and products that are offered by its competitors in the industry. The increase in overall profitability based levels is also an important factor which is affected in a huge manner by the pressure which is created by the competitors of Coles in the industry (Michael, Storey and Thomas 2017).

Porter’s competitive strategy

The analysis of the retail industry of Australia and the operations of Coles has been able to depict that the company has implemented the cost leadership based strategy in the market. This strategy is built on the methods by which lowest prices have been able to affect the operations and competition levels in the market (Engert, Rauter and Baumgartner 2016).

Conclusion

The report can be settled by stating that Coles has been able to develop active levels of operations in the retail industry with the help of its services and products. The most important factor that has been able to affect the operations of Coles and its revenues is considered to be the price based strategies. The advertising techniques which are thereby used by the company have also been able to affect the total revenues in a huge manner. The external factors are thereby able to affect the processes that are implemented by the company. The levels of rivalry in Australian retail industry is also a major factor that has major effects on the prices that are set by Coles for different services and products. The significant part of the analysis is thereby based on the ways by which the target market and market position of Woolworths can be decided with the help of appropriate study of external environment.

References

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