Assess the risk of competitors to organisational achievement.
Competitors of ASOS such as Topshop and Missguided could risk the company’s organisational achievement because of the huge overlap in customers that the brands share. If Topshop’s website is easier to navigate and structured in a better way than ASOS, then customers will be more likely to shop with Topshop online. Being a retailer that operates purely online, ASOS has to have the best, most up to date technology that makes their website the most user friendly otherwise competitors will overtake them. If customers think that ASOS is too expensive and they can buy the same or similar products from Missguided for a cheaper price they will be more likely to shop with Missguided. ASOS products have to be priced correctly in order to be desirable to the customer but still make a profit for the company. Another risk would be competitors improving their delivery services, at the moment ASOS offers free delivery on all orders and free next day delivery for just £9.95 a year which gives customers more of an incentive to shop with ASOS. However, if Topshop decides to offer the same delivery service it will pose a threat for ASOS, as they will no longer be the only retailer offering this great service. As ASOS is only available online and the majority of its main competitors have bricks and mortar stores, people might prefer to shop in stores where they know they can see the clothes and try them on before buying. ASOS respond to this by showing their products really well online for example with the catwalk and 360 degree view but it doesn’t compare to seeing the products in real life. To keep up and stay ahead of competitors ASOS needs to provide an omni-channel experience for customers by making sure the website is compatible on mobile as well as computers.
Explain the impact of industry dynamics on an organisation.
The PESTEL model gives an example of 6 different industry dynamics that have an impact on organisations such as ASOS.
P= Political: Government rulings can greatly effect an organisation such as ASOS. For example, they could introduce a new tax law that might change how much revenue the company makes. Brexit is also an example of a political movement, which could have a huge effect on ASOS whether it is positive or negative. Here is a quote from ASOS CEO Nick Beighton who expects good things to come from Brexit "We are an export business. Increased input costs will be more than offset by our international business and we
expect to prosper from a weaker sterling".
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E = Economic: The economy determines how much disposable income people have to spend on products such as clothes, shoes and accessories. If there is a crash in the economy or a recession it is likely that ASOS will experience a drop in sales because their customers will have less money to buy into the brand. ASOS could react to this by lowering their prices but they have to ensure that they are still making a profit.
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S = Social: This takes into account the social environment the target market is in and how it effects their buying habits. ASOS can for example look at cultural trends, demographics and population analytics to try and gauge when it is best to sell certain products. For example, ASOS activewear will be launched in April after Easter which is usually the time when people are keen to start getting fit for summer. It may not be beneficial to release the new range in December because people are generally less focused on getting fit and active at this time of year.
T = Technological: New developments in technology have a huge impact on ASOS and the way the business works, especially since they are an online retailer. For example, the rise of m-commerce has forced ASOS to improve their mobile website to continue to provide a user-friendly service across all channels.
L = Legal: Businesses like ASOS have to abide by certain laws laid out by the government in a certain country as well as the polices developed by the company itself. Here is an example of the legal acts that ASOS has to ensure they abide by:
Data Protections Act 1998 – ASOS must not illegally share their customer’s personal details with other organisations.
Employment Rights Act 1996 – ASOS must abide by the laws concerning their employees whether it is equal pay or weekly working hours.
Consumer Credit Act 1974 – This legislation regulates consumer credit. As ASOS is an online retailer many customers will be paying by Debit or Credit card when purchasing products. If customers use credit card to pay this legal act should be taken into consideration.
Consumer Rights Act 2015 – ASOS has to work to ensure that their customers have no reason to call upon their consumer rights. If for example ASOS sells faulty goods and a customer complain it is within the customer’s rights to receive a refund or have the item replaced.
Consumer Protection Act 1987 – This act is designed to protect customers. ASOS abide by this act by clearly stating health and safety messages on their products where needed. For example, on their false eyelashes it states that if the eyelash glue comes into direct contact with the customers eye they should thoroughly rise with warm water in order to prevent further irritation. By having this warning ASOS are preventing the customer blaming them for any harm.
Consumer Contracts Regulations 2014 – There are various situations where this act could come into place but an obvious one for ASOS would be returns on orders. ASOS has to allow a minimum of 14 days for a customer to return products.
Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2014 – This act protects customers from misleading, unfair and aggressive selling practises. ASOS has to ensure that all their promotional strategies are fair so that the customer is not misled.
E = Environment: When developing new marketing campaigns ASOS has to consider the impact of climate, weather, geographical location and global changes in climate. Although these factors are not as essential to ASOS as other industries such as tourism and farming, it is still important that they are considered. For example, if there is a heat wave in April ASOS have to try and promote their more summery clothes as people will be looking to dress lightly.
Explain how to set key performance indicators (KPI’s).
Key Performance Indicators can be tailored to fit any company of any size. A company should choose to measure performance indicators that are relevant to the business in order for the information to help them to improve. The most important factor of KPI’s should be that they are easily measureable and quantifiable, therefore easy to understand in relation to competitors or the company’s previous results. For a KPI to be valid the metrics measured have to be important enough to give the company an idea of how the website is doing overall in terms of sales. An example of a KPI that ASOS might measure would be how many orders are made from their website daily. Once deciding on a KPI to measure ASOS would then have to set a goal determining the amount of orders they aim to receive in one day. For example 10,000 orders would be a reasonable goal that is challenging yet achievable. KPI’s can be set for the company as a whole or for different segments for example the social media marketing team could have a separate KPI of increasing their followers on Instagram. Next the company should set a date by which they aim to reach this target, be it in 6 months or 2 years. ASOS should continue to revisit their KPI’s and monitor them regularly as the business is fast growing and constantly changing.
Explain how marketing plans are monitored and evaluated & specify monitoring arrangements that are capable of identifying variances from targets and expectations.
In order to monitor and evaluate how well a marketing plan is doing, companies such as ASOS will look into a number of different aspects. ROI is a fundamental part of a marketing plan that needs to be monitored and evaluated regularly to ensure the company is profiting from the campaigns they are running. ASOS would do this by looking at how much a campaign has cost them to run for example, shooting the campaign, paying for models, locations and production. As well as the cost to distribute the campaign into the public eye via billboards, magazines and social media. This cost is then compared to the amount of sales the campaign has brought in, if the sales are higher than the cost to run the campaign then ASOS know it has been successful and they will follow similar processes for future campaigns. A similar but slightly less accurate way to monitor and evaluate a marketing plan would be to look at sales in relation to whether they are increasing on the year before, if they are then it proves that the marketing plan is having a positive effect on the company’s overall performance. As ASOS is purely an online retailer, instead of measuring traffic to stores, they only need to focus on traffic to their website. They can do this by looking at Google analytics which can show them how many people have visited the site, how long they have spent on each web page and what parts of the page they are clicking on. This is useful as ASOS can see what products have been most popular and they can see how their customers like to shop. As ASOS is such a fast growing brand the company will regularly evaluate their marketing plan to ensure the company is always setting relevant goals and improving.
All of the above methods of monitoring and evaluating marketing campaigns are capable of detecting variances from targets and expectations, as they are comparable to the company’s previous performances. For example, Google analytics automatically tells you how well you have done this week in comparison to last week whether it be in terms of click to conversion rates or the number of customers visiting the website. Sales and ROI can be looked at monthly and compared to last year’s monthly sales so ASOS can see if they are meeting their targets and KPI's. Not only can ASOS look at their own performances as a guideline, they can compare themselves to competitors such as Urban Outfitters and Zara.
Explain the importance of defining target markets to the development and achievement of the marketing strategy.
Before beginning to develop a marketing strategy it is absolutely essential that ASOS identify the target market that they want to sell their products to. By defining a target market ASOS can tailor every aspect of their marketing strategy so that it will appeal to the correct audience. If no target market is established, the strategy will be less effective because the customer will not have been carefully considered every step of the way. When launching the new ASOS activewear we will focus on targeting women of all ages who are interested in healthy living and who enjoy being active. This will mean having billboards up in locations near gyms or parks where people go running so that the right customers are exposed to the campaign. Digitally we will predominantly promote the campaign on Instagram because of the huge health and fitness trend that is constantly growing on this platform. It is no use a business saying 'we want everyone to buy into our brand' because this will hinder their marketing strategy. It is impossible to appeal to every single demographic so it is much more beneficial to actively target the market that you think is most likely to buy into your brand. By doing this, the brand is increasing the chances of sales being made.
Explain how target markets are established for marketing activities.
Firstly, the product the brand is trying to sell must provide a solution for their customers problem for example the ASOS activewear will be available in sizes 2-22 in order to be inclusive, it will be affordable and good quality while 10% of the profits will be donated to the charity, Mind. These are all incentives for potential and current customers to buy into the brand. ASOS should then analyse their current customers in order to fully understand their wants and needs, they could do this by conducting a survey or by looking at their previous purchase habits. Once looking at current customers they should analyse their competitions customers and gauge whether or not they are trying to target the same audience or a slightly different market. If it is the same market as their competitors ASOS has to have a USP so that customers will choose ASOS over its competitors.
When deciding on target market ASOS need to direct their campaign to various demographics, e.g...
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Age
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Gender
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Geographic location
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Income
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Education
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Occupation
As well as demographics, ASOS should consider the psychographics of their target market, such as:
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Personality
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Culture
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Values
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Attitude
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Interests
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Lifestyle
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Behaviour
Describe how digital marketing techniques appeal to different market segments.
Digital marketing allows brands to reach audiences via a variety of different channels. Each platform functions differently and appeals to different target markets. For example, as ASOS is aimed at 20-something men and women who have an interest in trend lead fashion they need to ensure that they are on the correct platforms so they reach their target market successfully. Although ASOS is present across all social media platforms, Facebook and Instagram are the most popular so they should continue to engage frequently with their customers on these platforms, as well as trying to gain more followers on Twitter, YouTube, Pinterest and Snapchat. Aside from the different platforms ASOS also has to consider how to interact with their customers. ASOS uses a casual, light hearted and humorous approach for example on a Facebook post promoting denim shorts the caption read 'Coffee is to Monday, what denim cut-offs are to festivals: essential.' The young ASOS audience will engage with these kinds of post as they feel as though they can relate to the content. For a brand such as Poetry who targets the older generation they might invest more time into sending promotional emails because the older generation are more likely to have email addresses as opposed to Twitter and Instagram accounts.
Explain how digital marketing contributes to market segmentation
Digital marketing contributes to segmentation as the digital revolution means that it is easier to categorize customers today. Online advertising has revolutionised the marketing world as it is interactive, meaning that consumers can counter their responses instantly and reveal what kind of customer they are. With the use of social media and people being much more willingly exposed, ASOS can discover different people and segment them into different groups. This includes geographical, demographic, behavioural and psychographic. Segmentation is not as easy to do with traditional marketing as there is no way of knowing what kind of people you are targeting. For example, when putting up posters and billboards, customers can not counter an instance response meaning that the brand will not be able to tell who it is reaching, unlike online methods, ASOS can tell who it is reaching via analytics and insights.
ASOS can also decide who to send posts out to initially. For example, social media sites such as Instagram and Facebook have the option to add filters onto posts so that ASOS can select which audience they want to tailor the post to. An example of this is if they are bringing out a new prom line and have a photo or video campaigning this, ASOS can select the right buttons so that it reaches females age 15-18 (the prom market). This is particularly effective as it doesn't result in disinterest from the rest of ASOS' consumers, whilst still appealing to the right consumer. By segmenting the consumers into groups they can select which campaign or line will best interest them and therefore target them when campaigning it. For our digital campaign #ASOSMOVEMENT, we will be targeting females age 16-35 on a national scale, so to do this we will be using previous data we have collected to target these individuals.
Evaluate data to inform market segmentation
Data can be evaluated to inform market segmentation through various methods such as order history, insights and analytics. When using an online website, ASOS can track where their traffic is coming from around the UK, which is useful with geographical segmentation. Generally, throughout the UK, different styles may be more or less attractive to specific regions. For instance, what London customers may be buying into could be completely different to customers in Manchester, so ASOS can follow certain product orders and distinguish where the majority of them are going. If this is the case, then ASOS can keep up to date with these regional trends and tailor their advertising to meet this criterion. Order history can also tell ASOS how much disposable income customers have as well as it can indicate which demographic they fall under. If a particular customer only ever shops when there is a big sale on the site, and they still only buy 2 items at a time, it can be assumed they do not have much disposable income and therefore ASOS can segment them into a D category and target them by contacting them when sales are on.
It is also useful to see how customers get onto the site as well as ASOS can then see, which platforms hold the best successful advertising. Through social media, ASOS can see who their customers are via shares and posts on their personal social accounts. With the use of @ASeenOnMe Instagram account, it allows ASOS to visually see their consumers and get an idea for the different styles that their customers buy into. They can then track certain followers as their names will pop up on order history and on social media and they can then segment these consumers accordingly with their orders. By having a visual look at their consumers, this allow ASOS to discover their age, gender, preferred styling etc.
Surveys are another method to accumulate segmentation data. ASOS often send out surveys, which offer the opportunity to win a gift voucher or a giveaway. By customers getting involved in lifestyle surveys, ASOS can add these answers to their database and segment the customers who responded into psychographic categories. It may be the case that customers like beauty products, therefore ASOS can create online ads on beauty websites such as Beauty Bay or even on beauty bloggers websites or YouTube channels.
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Compare digital and non-digital marketing techniques
Since the digital revolution, ASOS have taken into account the many new techniques they can use to market their product for example, using social media channels. Digital marketing is much more interactive than traditional methods such as posters or billboards. With the use of social media, ASOS have the ability to interact with their customers and discover what their response is. By determining what kind of response their customers have, ASOS can adapt and change their strategies and campaigns on a much quicker rate than they would be able to if they were simply relying on traditional marketing methods. By using social media, ASOS can reach people on a national/global scale due to re-posts and shares. However, if ASOS put up a billboard, it will only reach customers in that specific area. Through the use of social networking, customers can share and re-post links and articles so that in hindsight, the customer is doing ASOS' job for them by promoting it.
Depending on who ASOS want to reach, they can use traditional methods to reach more specific regions or they can use online techniques if they want to target everyone nationally. Social media is also interactive, meaning that users can comment and like things, however offline methods mean that consumers can only read or view it and not counter an instant response to the brand easily. ASOS are an online clothing company so most of their methods are online. This is because their target audience are predominantly young so there isn't a big need for any offline advertisements apart from the one form they use, which are billboards. 
Conversely billboards are still a great method as it will certainly reach people. If ASOS were to supply the billboards in the right places, it would be more effective. Areas where potential customers will be waiting with no mobile reception such as the underground tube, people have no other choice but to absorb the things around them including the ASOS posters, which if course beneficial to the company. With advertising online, there is always the issue if there isn't any phone signal so sometimes this can't be an option. There is a big competition online too as most brands now promote online cause and ASOS find it hard to compete with other things that people will be viewing, therefore traditional methods are always good to have as a backup.
Within our campaign #ASOSMOVEMENT, we are aiming to reach women aged 16-35, therefore to target the older customers, we will be using traditional methods. This is because the majority of online users are younger. If we solely used online techniques such as social media and online ads, we may not be reaching everyone within our target market as some 35 year olds could possible not have any social media accounts, therefore using both methods, we know we will target our customers accordingly.
Explain the effect of a marketing mix on a promotional mix
A marketing mix is a directive of a promotional mix, therefore a lot of it dictates how brands such as ASOS use promotion. A marketing mix is made up of 7 P's including:
Price
Place
Physical
Promotion
Product
People
Process
These are all factors to consider when creating their promotional strategies. ASOS' main method of promotion is online marketing, therefore when promoting their brand, they take into account all of the 7 P's of the marketing mix. For example, when considering both place, physical and also price, ASOS are based online, therefore they will promote predominantly online, so they use methods such as online advertisements, email marketing and the main source of promotion- social media. Comparing advertising online and offline, ASOS can advertise online for either a very small price or for free. With offline advertising, it is very expensive, for example ASOS would have to pay £24,000 for a page in Stylist magazine, which makes all the different as they can then put that advertising cost elsewhere.
Not only online ads cheaper, but also very effective as it means that customers can click straight through the links and directly end up at the website instantly. By using these instant methods, it becomes more effective with selling their products as it makes the process very convenient for the customer.
What ASOS also tend to do now within their promotional methods, is use influencers. ASOS can send out press releases for a product and select particular influencers and bloggers to have their product appear on their YouTube channel or blog. It is often the case with upcoming influencers, that they will not charge a fee to work with ASOS as they are not yet well-known and they simply feel privileged to work with an established brand like ASOS. Therefore, it means that ASOS have successfully promoted their product without having to pay. This also fits in well with the aspect of people. By working with certain influencers, they can target their market accordingly with who they use to help advertise and promote. It is important to select the right influencers to appeal to the right consumer.
Within process, what ASOS can do to promote themselves is offer excellent customer service. Having customer service is very important to any brand as it can determine whether or not a customer decides to shop there. If a customer has a bad experience with ASOS and ASOS decide to ignore it, the customer can get on their social media account and complain about the brand. To stop this from happening ASOS have their own twitter help account called @ASOS_HeretoHelp, where they can communicate with customers to resolve their issues and even retweet positive tweets about the brand. This acts as a form of promotion within itself as it tells their customers that ASOS are a good brand and they handle complaints and customer care very efficiently.
And lastly product, ASOS have great quality products, which they delivery at an extremely quick rate. Fast fashion in terms of both delivery and trends. ASOS are very hot on keeping up with trends and often will bring out styles that have been recently seen on celebrities. If they have recreated a similar celebrity look, they can promote this via social media with two pictures, one of the celebrity and the other with the similar ASOS outfit. By keeping up with the current trends in fashion, it appeals to their target market of fashion conscious 20-something year olds and keeps the process of buying and selling going.
Explain how emerging approaches to digital marketing can contribute to a marketing mix
There are many emerging approaches of digital marketing that contribute to a marketing mix. As ASOS are an online brand, they have latched onto new methods very well and have adapted their techniques to their online market making everything easier for consumers and beneficial for ASOS. For example, when assessing marketing different products and processes, it is much easier to promote these services through the use of emails. ASOS often send out lots of emails to their customers with brand new lines they are bringing out or if they are offering free delivery on that particular day. Email advertising is a great way to offer deals instantly if they are for a limited time only and this is on available online, making the procedure much quicker and easier for ASOS to advertise.
Digital marketing also makes it much easier to communicate with different people/customers. Along with adhering to the Data Protection Act, ASOS can collect data from their customers and create a more personalised experience for their customers, which wasn’t a possibility before digital marketing as it was harder to collect data. The only data that could have been collected was via phone calls or sales in physical stores, where customers do not have to give much away at all like they do nowadays. Promotion can also be done via online methods, the best one and cheapest way is social media. It is completely free for ASOS to set up their social media accounts and promote themselves via these sites. They can pay an additional price per day to advertise certain posts and boost them onto people’s social sites, which they often do, however it is extremely cheap. This would not be the case with traditional marketing methods as advertising in a magazine such as Vogue costs £325,000 for one page. And lastly physical and place- ASOS are solely online and therefore save a lot of money on renting and running a building. Apart from paying their hosting site and employees, it is much cheaper and a more effective method to run a business. They can link the website to all their social accounts and track all kinds of data and traffic that they draw in, making it a much more efficient way to run their business.
Analyse the implications of the overall purpose of marketing to the selection of marketing techniques and platforms
The purpose of marketing for any brand is to generate brand awareness and produce sales. To do this, each brand will have to select particular platforms and techniques which will best suit their image and also the their target market.
ASOS' main techniques and platforms are social media and online advertisements. Because of their young target market, they have to have an online presence to appeal and attract the right customers. They do this particularly well over Instagram. Most of their target market are on Instagram, therefore the pressure is on to get the right message across in the right way. ASOS often use quirky captions to accompany the images of their stock, which is then appealing to their target market. We could incorporate this technique within our ASOS activewear campaign by posting a picture of some running shorts and caption it 'Run the world with #ASOSMOVEMENT running shorts' or post a picture of some mesh panel work out leggings with 'Mesh around in #ASOSMOVEMENT'. Although having good quality pictures are important, so are the captions to charm customers and show off the ASOS personality and sense of humour. Also in Instagram, they have their own social account @AsSeenOnMe, which is a page where ASOS shoppers can post their looks with the hashtag and tag the account, and they could have the chance to be reposted on the page. It is a great way for customers to get involved online and also use as a new form of marketing.
Another great technique and platform that ASOS use to advertise is their magazine, which they have offline and online. They use attractive imagery and also use huge influencers and celebrities such as Taylor Swift, Jennifer Lawrence and Blake Lively on their front covers. By using these big celebrities on the front cover, it entices readers and possible customers. Additionally, users who read the magazine online, can shop straight on the page making it a great method for quick shopping and fast fashion. Other magazines such as Cosmopolitan and Vogue tried to compete with ASOS, however there are still additional links between the magazine pages and the purchase, which if you compare to ASOS' instant links, it is more of an inconvenient and slower process than ASOS. So it is a great way to put their products out there promotionally and have their consumers go straight to their website.
Explain how oranisations develop marketing strategies and explain the key factors which influence marketing decision making
1- The first step is to take a look at ASOS as a brand and see where they stand within their status. This process is called a 'situation analysis' where ASOS will assess their attributes and assess their understanding of their market and who currently buys into the brand. ASOS will have to develop a SWOT analysis of their brand and their idea to see if it will work. Strengths and weaknesses must refer to internal factors, and opportunities and threats must refer to external factors.
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2- Introducing a new line or campaign involves also considering the target market and also consider the 7 P's of marketing- price, place, product, physical, people, promotion and process.
Price- How much will the campaign cost to run?
Place- Where will you market it?
Product- What are you marketing and will it be succesful?
Physical- Any physical cues to tempt customers?
People- Who are you targetting/ will you be using any brand ambassadors?
Promotion- How will it be promoted?
Process- Are there any unique processes?
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3- Create a detailed customer profile considering all factors like demoraphics, psychographics, geographics and behavioural. Also segment customers into gender, age and interest so you can really work out the type of customer you want to attract to the campagin.
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4- List the marketing goals that you want to achieve through the campaign, so you can use this as a structure towards your campaign (KPI's). By figuring out what it is you want to achieve through the campaign, it will be easier to follow these objectives so you can assess the performance throughout the process.
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