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Introduction
A marketing strategy is a written plan that includes marketing topics like product
development, promotion, distribution and pricing approach; identifies you
company's marketing goals; and explains how you will achieve those goals.
Marketing strategies can help you identify strengths and weaknesses of your
company and your competitors so you know where to focus your marketing tactics.
There are several important components of a marketing strategy that you should
include when writing the document.

Marketing strategies and tactics are very important to any business any field. In
this series of articles we will take a close look on the different marketing strategies
and tactics, how to use them and how to choose between them.

But first we need to talk about the difference between marketing strategies and
marketing tactics. strategies are long term plans, over all campaigns to achieve a
certain strategic goal. Tactics on the other hand are all about the short term, they
are tools you use to achieve short term goals. They are part of your overall
marketing strategy.

Having a strategy and using tactics is essential. More essential however is having
the right ones. Not every plan is a strategy, and not every strategy is right for you.
But when you do have the right one, it will help you immensely in your marketing.
It will help you make your mind faster, because every marketing decision you
choose will be chosen based on one question: will this help my overall strategy?



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Tactics are also important. Good tactics can save a poor strategy, at least for a
while, but bad tactics will ruin even the best laid marketing strategies. You should
look at your marketing tactics as the steps you need to take to accomplish your
marketing strategy.

Another important point is that you shouldn't use the marketing strategies and
tactics used by your competitors because it is yielding good results for them. What
works for them may not work for you. The strategies you adopt should stem from
your needs and goals.














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Meaning
Strategic marketing planning is the process that the operational and managerial
staff of a company goes through to create and implement effective marketing
strategies. Strategic marketing planning takes several aspects of company
marketing and promotion into consideration. The aspects that contribute to
strategic marketing planning include identifying promotional opportunities and
evaluating the marketing opportunities; researching, analyzing and identifying the
target markets; developing a strategic position for the company to pursue and how
to implement the strategy; preparation and implementation of the marketing plan;
and measuring and evaluating the results of the marketing efforts of the company.
Marketing Strategic planning involves combining customer experiences with the
overall direction the company wants and needs to take in order to succeed. For
example, market segmentation plays a vital role in strategic marketing. Geographic
and demographic differences in a companys target markets can affect the
purchasing habits of consumers. Strategic marketing planning allows companies to
go through the process of identifying what these differences are, and then adjusting
marketing messages and presentation of the company and the products and services
of the business to meet the individual needs of the different segments of the
market.
For example, the Baby Boomers generation has created a surge in need for
products and services that range drastically. Some companies have adjusted
existing products and services to meet the increase in demand, while other
companies with the foresight to strategically plan for the increase, developed new
products and services to meet the demand.



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Definition
Marketing strategy is defined by David Aaker as a process that can allow an
organization to concentrate its resources on the optimal opportunities with the
goals of increasing sales and achieving a sustainable competitive
advantage. Marketing strategy includes all basic and long-term activities in the
field of marketing that deal with the analysis of the strategic initial situation of a
company and the formulation, evaluation and selection of market-oriented
strategies and therefore contribute to the goals of the company and its marketing
objectives.

An organization's strategy that combines all of its marketing goals into
one comprehensive plan. A good marketing strategy should be drawn from market
research and focus on the right product mix in order to achieve the maximum profit
potential and sustain the business. The marketing strategy is the foundation of
a marketing plan.

DEFINITION OF MARKETING STRATEGY
A process that can allow an organization to concentrate its resources on the optimal
opportunities with the goals of increasing sales and achieving a sustainable
competitive advantage






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Marketing Strategic Plans
Marketing Strategic planning involves combining customer experiences with the
overall direction the company wants and needs to take in order to succeed. For
example, market segmentation plays a vital role in strategic marketing. Geographic
and demographic differences in a companys target markets can affect the
purchasing habits of consumers. Strategic marketing planning allows companies to
go through the process of identifying what these differences are, and then adjusting
marketing messages and presentation of the company and the products and services
of the business to meet the individual needs of the different segments of the
market.
For example, the Baby Boomers generation has created a surge in need for
products and services that range drastically. Some companies have adjusted
existing products and services to meet the increase in demand, while other
companies with the foresight to strategically plan for the increase, developed new
products and services to meet the demand.





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Features of marketing

I often question the amount of money spent on advertising and marketing by
companies that invest in a host of marketing activities without aligning these
to their business objectives.

Interestingly, some such companies do have an annual marketing plan in
place, but it is often unstructured and not goal directed, which inevitably
leads to partial success at best.

Marketers need to know the strength of their marketing strategy before it is
implemented. Offering some insight on this matter, marketing experts Brian
Smith and Professor Malcolm McDonald analysed over 50 years of strategy
research from various companies to define what works and what doesnt.
Here are their top ten pointers on improving your marketing strategy.

Strong strategies define homogeneous targets
A strong strategy should define the target market in terms of real segments,
groups of people with similar needs who respond similarly to a proposition.

Strong strategies contain segment specific propositions
Having defined the target markets correctly as homogeneous segments, good
strategies then offer each segment a distinctive proposition, tailored to their


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needs. Of course, each segment should be assessed carefully and allocated
relevant effort differentially.

Strong strategies are unique
Going head-to-head with competitors is very inefficient, yet most companies
do just that. They target the same customers with essentially the same offer,
disguised with hype. An effective strategy either segments or targets
differently, offers a fundamentally different proposition, or both. By doing
this, companies effectively side-step competition and reduce pressure on
prices. In return, they will win higher share and achieve better margins than
they would have by competing head-on.

Strong strategies leverage strengths and minimise weaknesses
Many companies do not understand their strengths and weaknesses. Mostly,
they recite a traditional list of what they are good at, ignoring the fact that,
while they are good, so are their competitors. The importance of distinctive
competencies is not fully understood. It is important to understand and
nurture distinguishing strengths, and then select targets and develop
propositions that use these distinctive abilities.

Strong strategies create synergy
Targets and propositions are often developed in isolation, ignoring the
interaction of segments and the internal value chain. In sharp contrast, strong


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strategies deliberately seek synergy through the use of internal resources or
between customers, leveraging the influences different segments have on
each other. This creates much greater return on investment than non-
synergistic strategies.

Strong strategies make tactics obvious
Strong strategies save that crucial resource management time. Intuitively,
one thinks that making strong strategies is time consuming and it is often
pushed down the priority list by immediate, pressing, firefighting needs.
However, having a coherent strategy makes tactical choices easy, thus
saving time on countless small decisions. In markets where critical resources
are evenly matched, this is very important.

Strong strategies are aligned to objectives
In many companies, strategies seem to evolve piecemeal, year after year. As
a result, close consideration of the strategies shows that they are frequently
out of sync with the corporate objectives or business goals and result in the
siloed thinking of marketing and finance. Strong strategies integrate
financial and marketing goals and lead to patterns of resource allocation that
are proportionate to the objectives set.

Strong strategies anticipate the future
Companies need to take a longer view of their markets, as well as the


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implications of social, political and technological trends, how they combine
to drive customer needs and the future shape of the market. As a result, their
targeting and propositions allow not just for present marketing needs but
also for those of the future.

Strong strategies are properly resourced
All companies should carefully think through the resource implications of a
strategy in a very detailed way and pull resources away from non-targets to
give to targets. The effectiveness of a strategy can be crippled by unrealistic
resources.

Strong strategies make clear the basis of competition
Strong strategies make a clear decision to be excellent at either product
performance, some kind of service, or on price. A clear choice needs to be
made, as trying to compete at all three levels simultaneously can result in
being merely adequate at everything and excellent at nothing. In most
markets, this middle ground is small and crowded, and results in low
margins.






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Importance of Marketing Stratergies
A marketing strategy is something that every single business; no matter how big or
small, needs to have in place. Many business owners are hesitant to set up an actual
marketing strategy because they simply dont know how to do it. This approach
means simply trying something new every week or month, whether its Tweeting
one week or running an ad in the paper the next week. Business owners who
usemarketing in this way are simply using different forms of marketing in hopes
that one turns out to be profitable.
For a truly effective marketing strategy, you must study and evaluate your business
and its target audience, then create a plan of action and follow through with it. The
first part of your business that you will need to evaluate is the actual business that
youre in. This means looking at your business from a customers or end users
point of view and finding what they truly get out of your company. And many
business owners are surprised to find that its not what they actually thought.
An insurancecompany for instance, may sell policies but its actually a customers
safety and security that theyre buying, not that piece of paper. Find out what
your Unique Selling Proposition is (USP) and make this the objective of every
aspect of your marketing techniques.
Once youve discovered what customers are really getting from your business, you
can then ask yourself who your ideal customer is, or in other words, looking at the
demographics of your customer base. Are you trying to attract customers that are
homeowners, other businesses, or teenagers? While a plumbing business might
focus on homeowners, companies that supply video games might focus on
teenagers. It cant be said enough how important it is to know who your target
audience is, and how you can best appeal to them.


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The next part of creating a great marketing strategy is finding out what your
company offers that no other company does. While youll definitely want to
advertise the fact that you sell a certain product or service, there are probably many
other companies that offer the same thing for customers to choose from. So to set
yourself apart, you must also advertise the thing that makes your company special
the magic that no other company has. So whether you offer the lowest prices, the
best customer service, or promotions whenever customers shop at your store, this
must not only be included in your marketing strategy, but it must be a part of every
aspect of marketing you do. Just make sure that whatever magic your promising
your customers, that you can deliver on it.
A good marketing strategy is essential for every business to have. This will give
you a clear direction as to where you should go with your marketing efforts, and
will give you a better understanding of what marketing methods are going to reach
your customers in the exact manner that you were hoping for.

No matter what size a business is, it is important to implement some marketing
activities in order to make people aware of your organisation. You cannot simply
do nothing and expect to be inundated with customers. Similarly, you cannot
engage in a very brief and simple campaign and expect to generate a loyal
customer base that way.
Marketing must be taken on as a long term commitment, not only to build up the
brand of a business but also to secure a steady stream of customers and constantly
appeal to potential ones. A marketing strategy is a detailed plan of the marketing
initiatives that you intend to conduct during a set period of time. Supported by a
constant system of evaluation, a marketing strategy will help you to determine


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areas that you need to focus on more, those you are wasting your time on or which
methods work best against certain consumer groups.
When putting together a marketing strategy it is important to evaluate some key
elements of your business. For instance, you must underpin and clearly define your
unique selling point or business mission statement; this may seem a simple task,
but defining your statement allows you to see the point from which your marketing
will develop and it provides all employees a consistent point of reference when
dealing with customers.
A difficult task when determining your marketing strategy can be defining your
target market, but it is imperative that you do this. It is obvious that all businesses
want to attract as many customers as possible, however it is naive to label your
target market as everyone; the products or services you provide will not appeal to
everyone and it is not practical or cost effective to try and target your marketing
materials towards so many different kinds of people. You must be selective and
choose those consumer groups that will be more likely to be interested in your
business.








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Benefits of a Great Marketing Strategy

Marketing comes in many styles and flavors, most of which are defined as tactics.
Examples include all forms of advertising (online and offline), newsletters,
networking events, trade shows, search engine optimization (SEO), social media
platforms, etc.
All of these tactics can be very effective in growing your business, but only if there
is a solid strategic foundation. Otherwise, you will have a tendency to chase after
the shiny object of the week whatever the buzz meisters are talking about. How
do you avoid that? Two words Marketing Strategy.
Unfortunately, developing a marketing strategy is hard work and takes time. The
majority of business owners are spending all of their time working in their
business and not on their business. One big reason for not spending the time to
develop a marketing strategy is not understanding the benefits. Here are 5 benefits
that will help you.
The primary benefit of a strategic marketing plan is that it puts a written guide in
place for a business to follow to reach its goals and objectives. The second major
advantage of strategic marketing planning is that is allows the business to create
and utilize consistent messaging internally and externally. Consistent messaging in
marketing creates efficient companies because employees and customers
understand what the company offers and how the company offers it. They work
toward a common goal. Efficient companies typically see an increase in revenues
and market share, while it sees a decrease in expenses. Ultimately, it all leads to an
increase in company profitability.


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Greatly Improved FocusWhen you are able to identify and profile your very
best customers you can then focus on attracting more of them through your
marketing tactics. Most business owners dont want to miss any opportunities and
end up chasing after a number of bad deals and prospects, wasting valuable time
and resources. When you spend the time to create profiles of your best
customersthen you will stay focused on spending your time and money on those
prospects with the potential for the best return.

Out-flanking Your Competition
With knowledge gained from identifying your best customer profile you can create
a core marketing message that will differentiate you from your competition. Have
you ever noticed how similar the home page on websites are? Have you compared
the first paragraph or two from your home page with your competitors?
Try this exercise: cut and paste the first paragraph or two from your website and
from your competitors into a word doc. Make sure you black out any reference to
company name. Now show it to your employees or others who know your
business, and ask them to identify the companies. Chances are they cant. Which
leads to the question how can your website visitors know what makes you better?
Once you create a marketing message that truly speaks to your customers in their
language, not your industry jargon, then you can put some real distance between
you and your competitors.



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Give Prospects What They Want
Once you have done the first two steps in developing your marketing strategy you
are ready to create content which educates your prospects. They arent coming to
your website to read how great you are, they are looking to solve a problem. If you
dont indicate you can do that in the first few seconds they are on your site they
will leave. With a great marketing strategy you can begin to deliver content online
and offline which engages your prospects and educates them on the solutions you
offer.

Make It Easy For Them to Find You
We call it a Total Web Presence. Your website is your hub and all of your
marketing tactics are designed to direct your prospects to your educational hub.
That includes offline as well as online. A great marketing strategy will help you
identify where you prospects hang out and that enables you to put out bread
crumbs of content which redirect them to your website. If youve done #3 well
you will have compelling content and free offers to further engage them once they
get to your site.


More Highly Qualified Leads


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Not necessarily a higher quantity of leads, but more highly qualified leads. This is
the payoff for all of your hard work, which actually means you wont have to work
as hard to close the deal. Keep in mind that a contact is not a lead, its only a
contact. A lead is someone who knows, likes, and trusts you already because of
your great job implementing and executing your marketing strategy.
Want to know more about how this can work for your business? Scroll back up to
the top of this page and look for the box on the right for our Free Business
Marketing Success Report. Fill that out and you will immediately get a copy of our
7 Steps to Business Marketing Success which will give you more details on what I
outlined above. You will also be subscribed for our SMART (Savvy Meaningful
Articles Resources and Tips) Marketing Ezine which we publish monthly













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STARBUCKS



Introduction
The history of Starbucks starts in Seattle in 1971. Three friends, Jerry Baldwin,
Zev Siegl, andGordon Bowker, who all had a passion for fresh coffee, opened a
small shop and began sellingfresh-roasted, gourmet coffee beans and brewing and
roasting accessories.In 1981 Howard Schultz first walked into Starbucks as a sales


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representative for a Swedishkitchen manufacturer. He immediately wanted to work
for the company as he got so inspiredby Starbucks but it took him a year to finally
persuade the owners to hire him. The owners werereluctant initially to hire Schultz
because they thought his style and high energy might not blendwith the existing
culture of the company.However in 1982 Starbucks hired Schultz as the new head
of retail operations and marketingand shortly thereafter was sent to Milan to attend
an international housewares show in Italy.When he arrived, Schultz found himself
infatuated with the exciting coffee culture of Italy.Schultz went to Verona and had
his first caffe latte. But he observed something more importantthan the coffee. The
cafe customers were chatting and enjoying themselves while sipping theircoffees
in the elegant surroundings. Thats when Schultz was struck with an inspirational
idea."Why not create community gathering places like the great coffee house
of Italy in the UnitedStates?"However, Schultz's idea did not go down well with
Baldwin. Baldwin was not ready to get intothe restaurant business nor to have
anything distract him from his original plan of selling wholebeans.Schultz,
however, branched out on his own and opened a coffee house named after
Italy'slargest newspaper, The Daily, or Il Giornale. Two months later, the new
store was serving morethan 700 customers a day, and it was selling 300 percent
more than the Starbucks locations.In 1987 the owners of Starbucks Coffee
Company decided to sell their coffee business, alongwith the name for $3.8
million. Schultz raised the money by convincing local investors of hisvision.Now
with over 11,000 outlets in more than 36 countries, Starbucks is the
number onespecialty coffee retailer. Schultz philosophy: in the
coffee business, serving pe in the people business, serving
has shaped and continues to shape the company.



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MARKETING STRATEGY:
Marketing strategies help businesses in promoting their products and services in a
certain way that they want to. While cashing on their most important points they
try to create an image of their brand in the minds of their target customers so as to
achieve their target sales and a favorable market share. Marketing strategies help
businesses in gaining a competitive edge by catering to those specific niches that
others fail to identify. Marketing strategies devised by organizations vary in
duration from one year plans to those extending well over many years. A lot of
factors are taken into consideration when devising marketing plans and strategies
that are defined by the environment within which the company operates. This is
most often referred to as a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats)
analysis which helps businesses in pinpointing the areas which they can take
advantage of and the areas which they need to be careful of.
The most important factor that any business has to take into consideration, when
creating its marketing strategies is its competitors. Competitors actions have a
huge impact on what an organization should do. In the coffee chain industry there
are now plenty of independent coffee shops in UK like the most popular Starbucks,
Monmouth Coffee, Coffee Aroma, The Apple Tree and Caffe Nero. In this
assignment the marketing strategies of both Starbucks and Caffe Nero will be
reviewed after which a critical analysis will be given of the both.







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STARBUCKS:
The first Starbucks outlet was opened in Seattle well over thirty years ago. Today
Starbucks proudly stands at $4.1 billion with thousands of outlets not only in the
United States but all over the world. Many companies have studied the secrets and
strategies adopted by Starbucks in an attempt to learn how Starbucks grew so fast.
The marketing strategies being adopted by Starbucks at present will be discussed
in this assignment (voteforus.com 2011).

1. Unique marketing strategy:
The marketing strategy adopted by Starbucks has remained unconventional. They
didnt adopt the common styles of advertisement using billboards, newspaper ads
or television commercials. Rather they relied on word of mouth to promote
their brand name.

2. Product quality:
The most important thing that Starbucks never lost control of is the quality of their
coffee beans. They were the first ones to introduce the true Italian burnt espresso
flavor to the Americans. They justify their high quality by charging a slightly
higher price than most other cafes.

3. Comfortable environment:
Another focus of Starbucks outlets is the environment they provide in their cafes
for their customers. Starbucks has always been promoted as that perfect place to
relax when out of home and out of the office. They have started offering Wi-Fi


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connectivity in their outlets so that their customers can browse the internet as well
while they enjoy their cup of coffee.

4. Customer satisfaction:
Customer satisfaction is the strongest favorable point of Starbucks. Each customer
that enters a Starbucks outlet is given such a special treatment that they truly feel
like they are in a special place.

5. The Starbucks community:
Starbucks has truly taken full advantage of the latest hype of social media. They
have adopted their latest marketing strategies around social media websites like
creating fan pages on Facebook and Twitter where they actually respond to all
customers and keep in touch by posting pictures, videos and all the latest
promotional information.

6. Innovation:
Starbucks has always kept its menu fresh by constantly coming up with new items
and different blends and flavors in their coffee. Some of their latest hit drinks have
been the Green Tea Latte considering the health conscious consumers along with
iced tea and Frappuccino for their outlets in warmer climates.

7. Brand Marketing:
Starbucks has always portrayed itself as a high quality product and thus decided to
rely on word of mouth promotion only. This served to be a quite useful
marketing strategy as comparison to going for promotional ads in magazines,
newspapers, billboards etc. They have recently begun utilizing the social media
websites in the most effective manner ever. Their Facebook and Twitter pages


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have proved quite useful in promoting the image of Starbucks while also enabling
them to have direct communication with all their customers on one platform .



















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CAFFE NERO:





Introduction
According to chairman of Caffe Nero, Gerry Ford (2008), Caffe Nero Group Ltd is
the largest independent coffee retailer in UK, with over 400 stores in the UK. It
was founded in the year 1977 and today has its outlets open overseas as well in
Turkey and Middle East. They distinguish themselves from other cafs in UK by
emphasizing on the fact that they are an Italian Coffee Company. Their main aim,
as in the words of Gerry Ford (2008), is to provide a European style coffee house
experience offering premium espresso based gourmet coffee, authentic Italian
food products and a relaxing atmosphere in every store.
Caffe Nero has been given many awards for its high quality coffee over the years
and for its outstanding experience that they deliver in their shops. Tatler has rated


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Caffe Nero as The best espresso this side of Milan while Egon Ronay has labeled
it as The Traditional Italian Caf. Caffe Nero has also been given the label by
UK consumers as The best UK Coffee House in nine consecutive years (Allegra
Report, the UKs definitive guide for the coffee industry).
























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CAFFE NEROS USP:

The Caffe Neros marketing strategy mostly emphasis on its unique selling point
which is a pure Italian theme. Caffe Nero portrays its self from more than just a
caf. Rather it has created a perfect blend of a caf cum bar and restaurant.
Therefore Caffe Nero is not limited to only providing a place for coffee and snacks
rather you can go there just to enjoy a meal. They have a wide range of exquisite
desserts along with many Italian dishes like the Italian wraps, soups, sandwiches,
pasta and paninis.


















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CAFFE NEROS TARGET MARKET:

Caffe Nero mainly targets tourists in UK or the Italians searching for their Italian
taste in cuisine. They are targeting the middle income group of people who are
middle aged, students or business people who prefer to go to a caf during their
lunch breaks. Furthermore, Caffe Nero has formed a partnership with the famous
chain retail store, House of Fraser, due to which around 145 cafes opened up, many
of which were located within House of Fraser stores (James, Situation Analysis of
the Caffe Nero Group Ltd Festive City http://www.ivoryresearch.com/sally-
james.php Accessed on 16 April, 2011).



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CRITICAL ANALYSIS BETWEEN THE TWO COMPANIES:
Now that a basic review has been given on the marketing strategies being used by
both Starbucks and Caffe Nero, an analysis will be done on what differentiates
them from each other.
Caffe Nero and Starbucks are direct competitors but Caffe Nero
distinguishes itself from Starbucks by selling cheaper coffee than Starbucks.
Caffe Nero offers a wider range of food items along with its coffee
beverages which makes it stand apart from Starbucks which does not have
such a wide range of assortments.
Caffe Nero adopts a strong brand positioning by emphasizing on its
European style coffee shop as compared to Starbucks which is of
American origin. Caffe Nero has a unique selling point which emphasizes on
the cafes continental style whereas Starbucks is of American style.
Starbucks has successfully opened thousands of outlets overseas and in the
international market whereas Caffe Nero still lacks in international expertise
and has just recently opened its stores in Turkey and the Middle East.
Starbucks has plenty of outlets all over UK whereas Caffe Nero does not
have sufficient outlets in Central London.
Caffe Nero has a lot of potential of growing because it enjoys many unique selling
points like its pure European authenticity.





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Conclusion
A marketing strategy is something that constantly evolves, adapting to changing
market conditions. Within Enterprise, the outcomes from its many different types
of business are constantly reviewed and evaluated. Judgements are then fed into
the decision making process. This enabled new strategies to be developed to
improve operations.

However, while strategies change, one aspect of the business has remained in
place. This is a continued focus on high levels of customer service and employee
relations. This strategy has enabled Enterprise to enjoy continued growth for more
than 55 years and the prospect of further growth in the future.













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Biblography
http://www.businesscasestudies.co.uk
http://www.marketingtoday.co.za
http://www.stanford.edu
http://smallbusiness.chron.com