Organisational business management and marketing audit

Executive summary

Business environmental analysis and marketing mix strategic planning are effective for the organisations to analyse the recent market trend and develop tactics of running the organisational operations successfully. The study focuses on analysing the internal and external environmental circumstances for the organisation Ariel, which is a famous detergent manufacturing company, situated in the UK. The organisation is efficient to satisfy the customers and expand the business internationally. In the first part of the study, there is environmental analysis through which it is possible to analyse the market trend and the organisational activities of Ariel. For the most comprehensive insights and strategies that are tailored in place to Ariel's unique circumstances, you can consider seeking professional business dissertation help The external analysis and internal environmental analysis can be conducted through PESTLE and SWOT analysis respectively. On the other hand, market trend evaluation and discussing the marketing strategic of the organisation Ariel are effective to analyse the brand performance and predict the future productivity of the firm. In the second part of the study, there is market segmentation and targeting for Ariel so that the organisation can retain long run and trustworthy consumers across the international markets. On the other hand, the developing marketing objective and SMART analysis for Ariel as well as marketing mix strategic planning will be developed for suggesting the brand Ariel to expand their business and make it successful. As per the study, the company should focus on promotional and placing strategy to operate in the international market and increase their brand visibility to sustain in the future competitive market and gain high competitive advantage.

Introduction

In the recent era of globalisation, the multinational corporations try to manage their operational efficiency in order to expand their business across the international market. For promoting the organisational activities, the companies try to strategies their product and services, manage customers in the market, developing proper planning to place the products and setting appropriate price, which are beneficial for successful branding (Day et al., 2017). The study aims at analysing the external and internal environment in doing the business internationally. The organisation Ariel will be evaluated through the analytical process. The external analysis can be conducted through PESTLE analysis and on the other hand, internal business analysis can be performed through SWOT analysis. Through the evaluation, it is also possible to analyse USP for Ariel as well as evaluate the current marketing strategy of Ariel to promote their detergents cross the international markets. In the second part of the study, there would be STP analysis, through which it is possible to target the right consumers in the market and evaluate the promotional strategy for Ariel for long run success. On the other hand, the marketing mix strategic planning will be recommended for Ariel so that the organisation would be efficient to expand their business and fulfil their mission successfully. Hence, the study is beneficial to analyse the current strategic planning of Ariel and suggest suitable strategies for brand promotion and achieving long run success by strengthening their customer’s base and maximising profitability.

Organisational background

Ariel is the British brand of washing up liquids, developed by "P&G European Technology Centre" and the company is efficient to satisfy the customers in the global. The company is efficient for producing the cleansing agents, domestic detergents and personal care products. Market by delivering quality liquid washes. It is a long lasting brand of non-biological laundry detergent, original soap based variant (Ariel, 2021a).

Additionally, there are Ariel dish detergents for household purposes. These are the major product range which is beneficial to meet the customer’s requirements in the UK. The organization is also efficient to manage their consumers by promoting their quality products. The company is efficient to run their business across Europe, Latin America, East, Southeast and South Asia, South Africa, Maghreb, North Africa, Pakistan and the Middle East (Ariel, 2021b).

Part 1

1.1 Marketing audit

1.1.1 External market analysis

External market analysis can be conducted through PESTLE analysis, where the forces such as political, economic and social, technological, legal and environmental. These factors are necessary to be evaluated for analysing the current market structure where Ariel tries to operate efficiently.

1.1.2 Internal market analysis

The internal analysis can be developed through SWOT analysis, where the strengths and weaknesses of Ariel as well as the market opportunities and threats can be analysed further. The SWOT analysis of Ariel is described below.

As per the internal analysis, the major strengths of the organisation Ariel is that it is successful to provide high quality detergents products with good fragrances to the customers across the international markets. The organisation is also successful to retain the experienced staff members who are maximising their productivity and performance to operate the brand activities strategically (Ariel, 2021c). Moreover, the financial strengths and customers management practice are also the other strengths of Ariel, through which the brand achieve success and high market share across the detergent markets. On the other hand, there are some weaknesses of Ariel, for which it becomes difficult to operate in such a competitive market. The major weaknesses are such as lack of promotional activity, lack of market penetration mainly in rural areas, advertisement are not arranged efficiently and lack of market communication and sponsorship.

As per the analysis, the market opportunities in near future for Ariel are such as technological advancement, ecommerce activities as well as market growth and increasing product diversification. Ariel has the scope of brand expansion through market penetration, where the brand can diversify their products and retain more customers for future achievements. On the other hand, the market threats are such as intense competition and presence of substitute products in the market. There are many competitors such as Tide, fairy and Ecover which are also running their business by delivering quality detergents. In this regard, the company Ariel must focus on marketing activities and enhancing communication so that it would be possible for the organisation to grab the market share and develop trust and loyalty among the customers. The organisation also needs to utilise the strengths’ and invest in the production and manufacturing activities, for achieving the future sustainable development (Ariel, 2021d). The organisation is strong to compete with other competitors and regain their market share. Through continuous improvement and retain the experienced staff the organisation can also maximise their profitability and sales volume in long run.

1.1.3 Market analysis

As per the market analysis, there is high competitive rivalry among the detergent manufacturers, where all the companies are running their business efficiently by serving the best quality products and efficient services to all the customers around the globe. In this regard, the major market leaders in the global detergent market are such as Ariel, Surf Excel, Tide, Ecover, Fairy, Dettol and Vanish. All the brands in the detergent markets are highly efficient to manage their consumers and retain the loyal customers for long run, where the brands mainly focus on delivering quality detergents with no harm (Syarief and Wibowo, 2017). As per the figure below,

As per the figure above, Ariel is able to hold 16.4% market where there are loyal customers for their products and services. The organisation is also efficient to maximise their profitability by £175.6 million where the employee base is also strong, for running the business activities of Ariel. Hence, the organisation is efficient to expand their business activities across the international markets. Apart from that, as per the market analysis, the detergent market is also growing at a sustainable rate across the international markets.

As per the above figure, the laundry detergent sales volume is increasing as well as there is strong market growth across North America, Europe, Asia pacific and Latin America. It has been predicted that, the market growth for detergent market will also be growing in the upcoming years. Hence, there would be sustainable market growth and development opportunities for the organisations to run their business efficiently and manage their operations for making the brand profitable.

1.2 Critical evaluation of the organisation

1.2.1 Organisation’s competitive edge

Unique selling propositions (USP) determines the company growth activities and it also helps to fulfil the mission of the organisation. Ariel tries to maximize their market share through managing their operational activities (Green et al., 2018). The major USP is the product that has been in the market for many decades and it has established its image as the product which can remove dirtiest and difficult to remove stains. The product range of Ariel is effective to satisfy the customers and retain them for long run (Ariel, 2021a). The organisation is also efficient to provide high quality products at effective price, which provides a scope to the organisation to manage their position in the market and strengthen their consumer base in long run. The brand symbol of Ariel detergent is also effective where the company is also successful to develop market leadership across the international markets, where customer loyalty is also maximised. The organisation is also efficient to retain the loyal and long run consumers sand run the business strategically. The product and Pricing strategy are hereby the best USP to run the business efficiently and maximise their profitability in long run (Ariel, 2021d).

1.2.2 Evaluation of marketing strategy of Ariel

In the UK market, Ariel is one of the major categorised brand providing high quality detergent products to the customers. It is able to provide staff competition and eliminate the competitors by satisfying the customers. For marketing strategic planning, the marketing tactic of the organisation is maintaining the product quality and good packaging system. These are the major two strategies which help the brand to strengthen their consumer base ion long run. As per the sales trend, Ariel is also experiencing sustainable improvement in sales volume after such pandemic era of COVID 19. Additionally, the organisation is also efficient to manage their customers by providing them different options of packet size where the consumers can choose the packets of different weights as per their preferences and requirements. Hence, the packaging style of the organisation is good as well as the quality of products is also another major factors contributing in gaining competitive advantage (Ariel, 2021c). This is the major factor through which Ariel operates in the market and retains long run trustworthy customers in the market. The company is also efficient to expand their business across the America, Asia pacific regions, where there is also strong customer base (Camilleri, 2018).

In addition to this, the organisation focuses on another major strategy under marketing which is medium pricing strategy. Through medium pricing strategy is effective for retaining more long run customers. The organisations set different prices for their baskets as per the packaging and quantity of the detergents. The customers also have different options of choosing the basket size for their quality products (Basile, Dominici and Tani, 2016). Hence, the product and pricing strategy are the major two tactics, through which Ariel tries to operate in the market and develop market leadership to run their business internationally. Thee market expansion strategy as well as the customer’s loyalty management are also effective for Ariel to run their business activities and strengthen their consumer base in the company. This further maximises the profitability and sales volume of the firm. The market growth and organisational development are there and it further boosts the performance of Ariel (Ariel, 2021d).

Part 2

2.1 Recognising target market

2.1.1 Segmentation

Customer segmentation and targeting are mandatory for the organisation to identify strong customer’s base and retain the loyal and long run consumers in the market. Through customer segmentation, it is possible for the organisation Ariel to identify the bases of segmentations so that the company can promote the products in the right segment of market and strengthen their consumer base in long run. In this regard, the major customer’s segmentation can be conducted on the basis of demographic factors, areas, income level, gender and age group, occupation (Juwita, Arifin and Dewi, 2018). These are the major segmentations of the customers from where the company would like to identify the potential buyers and retain them for long run. Through this, it is also possible to analyse the buying pattern and habits of the consumers across the international markets. The needs and preferences of brand among the consumers are also possible to be acknowledged in the process of marketing strategic planning and market segmentation and targeting (Jo and Shin, 2017).

2.1.2 Targeting

Targeting is important for the company to attract the potential buyers in the market and promote the quality products so that it would be possible for Ariel to manage the consumers well. Targeting the customers can be described below.

Hence, it can be stated that, Ariel tries to target all the individuals in the society including upper, middle and lower class. Mainly the house makers are targeted and the company also aims at expanding their business both in rural and urban areas. However, the company is successful to maximise their sales volume in the large cities due to high uses of Ariel. Hence, the company targets the urban areas mostly with large packets of detergents. And on the other hand, for the rural areas, the organisation provide small sachet so that the customers can make purchase for the small packets of detergents. The target of the Ariel is to help the individuals who wash their clothes and make it clean and good (Kaiser, 2018). Through using the detergents, the individuals can clean their products as well as maintain the quality of clothes. The size of target market of the organisation is large and the premium products are also sold to the niche market with smaller packets and lower price of the detergents. Through targeting the rights consumers in the market, Ariel would be able to expand their business and manage the customers across the international markets.

2.2 Developing marketing objectives

2.2.1 Marketing objectives

The objectives of the organisation Ariel are such as,

To maximise the market share and gain competitive advantage

To serve the customers with high quality detergents

To maximise profitability and sales volume

To create values for the stakeholders

To secure future sustainable development

2.2.2 SMART goal analysis

2.3 Suggesting Marketing mix strategic planning

2.3.1 Product

Ariel has strong product base such as fragrance detergents and power bristle. Apart from that, the organisation also introduced the bar and gel form detergents to gain competitive advantage. In such a competitive era, the organisation must focus on product diversification strategy for launching new products (Lagat, and Frankwick, 2017). The organisation needs to provide premium quality products to the customers so that the consumers have several options to choose the Ariel products such as soap and bars for detergents and fragrance soap bar to the customers. In this regard, product diversification as well as launching the economically sustainable products is also beneficial for Ariel to secure future sustainable development.

2.3.2 Pricing

Ariel delivers quality detergent and it is mandatory to strategies their prices for retaining the customers. In this regard, for premium quality products with high quantity, the price of the packets is high and on the other hand, the organisation set the sachet price low, so that the customers can afford their premium quality products, hence, the organisation focuses on setting affordable prices for their products as per the quantity of the detergents (Breazzano et al., 2018). This price penetration strategy would be helpful for Ariel to strengthen their customer’s base and increase sales volume in long run. The organisation must provide different offers on pricing in different occasions such flat discount or buy one get one offers.

2.3.3 Placing

The company has extended its market in many countries like Japan, India, China, Peru and Brazil where Ariel also has strong share in the Asia pacific markets. Ariel must focus on penetration distribution network where the organisation must retain the distributions and suppliers by providing them high return on their investment (Payne, Frow and Eggert, 2017). Investing in green supply chain by electric cars would also be great movement for the company to manage sustainability and distribute the products efficiently. On the other hand, sponsorship with the famous retail stores in the UK such as Tesco and Sainsbury will provide a scope to Ariel to promote their products and place the products in the market through the retail supermarket chains. This is effective for the organisation to strengthen their position and improve their sales volume in long run.

2.3.4 Promotion

For successful promotional activities, the organisation Ariel must focus on social media such as Facebook, YouTube and Instagram to launch their new products and increase brand visibility. Social media platform ensures two way communications between customers and organisational representatives, and Ariel must utilise the online platform and arrange social media campaign to target the audiences and promote their products and services efficiently. On the other hand, there are television and radio advertisement, through which the organisation may expand their business and strengthen their consumer base successfully. On the other hand, the organisation must restructure their website and develop customer portal so that the consumers can get efficient services for purchasing their products directly from the website. Additionally, the company also focuses on sales promotional activities for promoting the brand in the market.

Conclusion

As per the PESTEL analysis, there is competitive environment across the globe, where Ariel focuses on gaining high competitive advantage. The stable political environment, as well as economic growth and social development support the business activities of the MNCs. In the other hand, SWOT analysis is helpful to identify the strengths of Ariel, where the brand has the capability to invest in production and operations, and expand the business efficiently across the markets. There are opportunities which are ecommerce growth, technical advancement, product diversity and customer’s retention across the international markets. The organisation Ariel has its USP which is quality product base, where it is successful to deliver quality detergents to the customers for washing the clothes without damaging the quality of the clothing. As per the marketing strategic planning, the organisation must focus targeting the rural markets as well as strengthen their operational activities across the globe. Strengthening the supply chain and distribution network would be beneficial for Ariel to fulfil the above mentioned objectives. On the other hand, the organisation must focus on social media marketing and arrange campaign to target the audiences and improve their participation for the best quality detergent brand in the market. Through internet advertisement as well as sponsorship with famous retailer like Tesco and Sainsbury’s would be the great opportunity for Ariel to maximise their profitability and sales volume as well as secure future sustainable development.

Reference List

Ariel, 2021a. About us. [online] Available at: https://www.ariel.co.uk/en-gb/about-ariel/about-us [Accessed on 8 February 2021].

Ariel, 2021b. Our vision. [online] Available at: https://www.ariel.co.uk/en-gb/about-ariel/our-vision [Accessed on 8 February 2021].

Ariel, 2021c. Sustainability. [online] Available at: https://www.ariel.co.uk/en-gb/about-ariel/sustainability [Accessed on 8 February 2021].

Ariel, 2021d. Innovation. [online] Available at: https://www.ariel.co.uk/en-gb/innovation [Accessed on 8 February 2021].

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