Monday, December 30, 2019

Cirque du Soleil - The Turkey Affair - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 8 Words: 2547 Downloads: 1 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Marketing Essay Type Analytical essay Level High school Did you like this example? Contents Context Business Model Industry Analysis Key drivers: Per Capita Disposable Income: Increasing Alternative Entertainment Options: Government Spending/Spur: Time spent on Leisure activities: Evaluating Turkey as a destination for Cirque du Soleil Factors of production: Demand Considerations: Related and Supported Industries: Firm structure, Strategy and Rivalry: Governmental Factor Recommendation Implementation timeline Appendices References . Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "Cirque du Soleil The Turkey Affair" essay for you Create order Context Towards the end of December 2008, Vice-President Tour Planning and Partnerships at Cirque du Soleil(CdS) is briefed by the director of partnership management about a proposal from potential Turkish promoters (Turkish Television and Entertainment Society and Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Turkey, in partnership with the City of Istanbul) to set up a show in Turkey. Given the fact that Cirque du Soleil had been proficiently capitalizing on its strengths to tour different countries around the world, Turkey sounded great but the location has to be analyzed based on different dimensions before a final decision is made. This paper would address the decision making framework by examining the rationales from the perspective of the decision maker the VP. Business Model Cirque Du Soleil has been a global leader in performing arts industry. It is based in Montreal, Canada and has been privately held since its inception. In 2008, Guy LalibertÃÆ' © à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" the founder of the company sold a 20 percent share of the company to Dubai based partners. Cirque has been able to capture the audience attention through its unique acrobatic tasks. The notable growth at the same time remaining private is very difficult. CdS has a peculiar business model by virtue of which, CdS has been able to distinguish itself from traditional circuses and create a blue ocean à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" a market of its own. CdS has been able to maintain the blue ocean with the help of innovation and creativity, diverse and talented performers (Appendix 2) and its ability to capitalize on the new and emerging international markets and trends. CdS performs various kinds of shows. It has touring shows à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" the so called big tops which operate at various locati ons around the world. There are also arena shows which are also international but are fixed at the same location (Arena) for a period of time. Then, there are resident shows (operated in Partnership) that operate at a particular resort for a considerable period of time. The resort/location responsibility is of the partner. Touring shows are the legacy shows for Cirque du Soleil and have been a source of growth as well. Touring shows take place at various locations around the world with a tour lasting for a particular period of time in a city. Regarding costing structure, if CdS acts alone touring shows are costly as much as 50 M in costs, Arena shows are also about the same but the resident shows cost around 15-18 M in costs as a large portion of the expenses are borne by partner. The problem with the resident shows is that the partners who can invest in infrastructure are hard to find. There are three revenue collection/partnership methods(Appendix 3) for touring and arena shows: C irque act alone à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" CdS pays for all the expenses on its own and all the revenue goes to CdS, Fixed price model à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" the event promoter pays all the expenses of the location, logistics and marketing, CdS only invest in creative content creation (about 15 M), Rock and Roll model à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Cost borne by each party is deducted from the gross revenue and profit is divided as per a pre-determined criteria plus a typical 10 percent of the box office sales goes to royalty to the artists. Fixed Price model is least risky. Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Turkey is interested in a model wherein they will provide the location of Cirqueà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s choice but CdS would have to act alone in terms of expenses. Turkish Television and Entertainment Society has indicated that there is no constraint on the revenue sharing modelà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" either fixed price or Rock and roll model whereas the Ministry of Culture and Tourism is interested in only C dS act alone model. Industry Analysis Most of the revenue generation operations of Cirque du Soleil fall under the category of Performing arts industry. Performing arts industry consists of independent artists, contractual artists, entertainment/theme show companies and entertainment complex service companies. The revenue volatility measured for a five year period has been medium i.e. around 5-6 percent change in annual revenues. ( IBISWorld Industry Report 71151 Performers Creative Artists in the US) Key drivers: The performance arts industry depends on demand, the number and size of performances performed. Demand is dependent on the number of consumers, which further depends on the disposable household income, the economy as a whole and available leisure time (Performers Creative Artists in the US, 2013). Per Capita Disposable Income: Per capita disposable income is the major driver for performing arts industry. This income accounts for the in hand salary of people after the taxes. Since, this is an analysis of an international business situation disposable income is better dimension to take into account as compared to income before taxes because taxation policies in different countries are different. As the per capita disposable income increases, the likeliness of people to spend on the live entertainment shows also increases. Source: Britanny Carter Dec 2013, IBISWorld Industry Report 71151 Performers Creative Artists in the US Increasing Alternative Entertainment Options: Increasing alternative entertainment options such as music, theaters, concerts actual decreases the demand for the performing arts industry. This could be the case when the government is supporting these options or when there is significant increase in availability and a decrease in price of alternative entertainment options. Government Spending/Spur: When the government support to the alternative entertainment mediums increases and the growth for the performance arts industry actually decreases. The s upport could be in the form of investment, funding or creating supportive policies to curb the competing industry (Performing arts) and creating policies to spur alternative entertainment mediums. For Cirque du Soleil, this can be related to creating strict censorship policies or encouraging local cultural industry. Time spent on Leisure activities: As performing arts shows have a scheduled timings, hence there is a significant time investment as well from the customerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s perspective. An increase in the time spent on leisure activities could also lead to greater demand for performing arts industry. For CdS, leisure time availability can be analyzed in terms of number of tourists to a particular location on a leisure trip. Tourists are particularly more likely to spend time on entertainment/leisure sources. Evaluating Turkey as a destination for Cirque du Soleil According to Michael Porterà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s model determinants of national advantage (Appendix 4), a firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s international level strategy to invest at a particular oversees location can be evaluated on the basis of the following factors: Factors of production: These factors include inputs necessary to maintain the competitive advantage and compete at a particular location. The essence of CdS is maintained in its ability to innovate and create astonishing live performing arts shows. Thus, CdS is highly dependent on specialized labor and equipment which contribute to its competitive advantage. The specialized labor and equipment is hard to find in international locations but over the years of performing touring shows all over the world, CdS has been able to develop capabilities to capitalize on logistics2 and technology. The logistics would help to remove the constraint of labor and equipment availability and a partnership from a local organization (as per the p roposal) would further help to mitigate the risk of non/low availability of production inputs. The ability to capitalize technology3 (Online billing systems) would make the billing and revenue collection easier for CdS. Thus, factors of production would not be a concern for CdS. Demand Considerations: This factors includes consumer needs, market size, target segments, cost profitability analysis and industry success factors. As discussed in the Industry Analysis section, the demand is dependent on the market size, leisure time availability, and high disposable income which further depends on employment and economy as a whole. The GDP of Turkey is on a rising trend after the 2008 crisis. In 2009 Turkey had a per capita GDP of 7730.38 in US dollars which was comparatively better than some of the latest successfully toured locations such as China-24028 USD (2008) and Brazil-51219 USD (2008). In 2009, the average core inflation rate in Turkey was about 5.6510 percent signifying that the economy was doing great. The unemployment rate was quite low and in 2011 average monthly disposable income was around 80011 US dollars better off than a majority of the toured destinations of CdS. On top of that, the average income was even higher in Istanbul (Planned show location). We can assume that the average disposable income was approximately the same in 2009 as the GDP was quite constant. Moreover, according to global competiveness index report of 2009, Turkey is transitioning from an efficiency driven economy to innovation driven economy which implies that government is enabling market investments and ensuring smooth flow of goods and services. Speaking about the leisure time availability, in 2007 according to the Turkish ministry of Culture and Tourism 56.3 percent of the tourists came to Turkey came on a leisure trip. This adds to the demand as generated by the availability of leisure time. Further to add to this, the average expenditure per visitor in Turkey in the y ear 2008 was about 708 USD and average expenditure per citizen was about 1132 USD which further substantiates the demand factor. Related and Supported Industries: According to this factor the growth of supporting industries help to provide input demand for an industry. Tourism is a related and supportive industry taken into consideration. The touristà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s expenditure in Turkey was around 5531.512 Mil USD in 2011 and there was slight increase from 2009 to 2011. The average hotel occupancy in 2009 were around 6512 percent. Turkey is a major tourist destination. According to global competiveness index 2009, Turkey has a domestic market size score rank of 15 and foreign market size score rank of 25 out of 133(world). In 2009, the tourism contributed 9.1 percent to the GDP. The upsurge in tourism gives way to the demand for Cirque du Soleil as well. Firm structure, Strategy and Rivalry: CdS have performed majority of its shows through a partnership. This helps to keep the company private as otherwise it is difficult to raise capital for international shows. A partnership is essential in sharing cost of the show and help to mitigate the risk of losses. Since, there is already a proposal from potential partners in Turkey, partnership would be best way to invest in Turkey. CdS can leverage its partnership to get essential monetary and real estate support for planning a location for its show and also get local expertise to plan the show content thereby avoiding any censorship issues à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Turkey being an Islamic country. The marketing and local governmental issues can also be kept at bay with a partner being involved. Moreover, this helps business expansion at the same time remaining private. This further ties back to their strategy to remain private in order to preserve their competitive advantage of creativity. In terms of competition, the level of operations at which Cirque operates, the barriers to entry are high. The major managerial recommendation would be to enter Turkey through a partnership. Governmental Factor: Recent reforms in fiscal and monetary policies coupled with Turkeyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s move towards EU have been helpful to fuel Foreign Direct Investments19. Regarding the taxation laws, the partnership could help to mitigate relevant taxation risks and the ease of getting money out of the country, as Turkey has high income taxation and low corporate taxes19 Recommendation: Based on the considerations as mentioned above, Turkey sounds like a great location for a show. The ideal way to mitigate risks would be to evaluate the partners and plan a short term touring show (15-30 days). A touring show with the fixed price formula would involve less hassles and also serve both as a risk mitigation as well as a business expansion endeavor. If Turkey provided above average returns and the partners are consistent with Cirqueà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s policies, then Turkey could become a destination f or a permanent resident show. If Turkey does not provide the necessary returns, it would be easy to pull off as the show is for testing the Turkish waters with no strings attached. In terms of partner/promoter selection, the following is the recommended selection criteria: Is the partnership sustainable Maintenance of creative control with Cirque Potential costs and profit margin Social responsibility of potential partner(as per policies) Experience of promoter Turkish Television and Entertainment (TTE) Society is the largest media group in Turkey and has extensive experience in organizing events. Moreover, there are less restrictions on CdS in terms of creative control and business model as expressed by the proposal. According to the above analysis, TTE sounds a better strategic fit. Implementation timeline According to the analysis as described above, the best recommended timeline from a managerial perspective would be as shown: Note: So far Turkey has been a good source of revenue for CdS17 Appendices Turkey GDP https://www.tradingeconomics.com/turkey/gdp-per-capita Organizational Analysis SWOT Analysis Porterà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s five forces PORTERà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢S FIVE (SIX) FORCES Rival Power Med Blue ocean turning slightly red, Unique and strong brand but rivals emerging, High fixed cost of production Supplier Power Med Artists and performers are core strength but with competition emerging and scale of operations increasing at large scale, retentively would be an issue. Still Cirque is a brand that most performers want to be associated with. Barriers to Entry High Difficult to gather capital/partners, strong brand identity of CdS, governmental regulations Buyer Power Low-Med Since, the substitutes are emerging buyer power is increasing. However, the pricing policy is constant still because of the high fixed costs Government Power Med Depends on location but partnership model mitigates the risk of governmental regulations Threat of Substitutes Low-Med There are other forms of performing arts emerging, less priced substitutes are growing Revenue collection methods Michael.E.Porter Determinants of National advantage Source: Hitt et al.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s (2008) Strategic Management: Competitiveness and Globalization References AtoZworldBusiness.com Marie-HÃÆ' ©lÃÆ' ¨ne Jobin and Jean Talbot Tour Planning at Cirque du Soleil https://sapinsider.wispubs.com/Assets/Case-Studies/2011/July/Cirque-Du-Soleil-Drives-Creativity-And-Expansion-With-SAP-Solutions A country has an absolute advantage when it is more efficient than any other country at producing a product ( https://info.wsj.com/college/glossary/intlbusiness.pdf) https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-11569883 https://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/about/global-citizenship/sustainable-development/partners.aspx https://www.kkr.com/sites/default/files/KKR_Insights_121129.pdf IBIS Performers Creative Artists in the US, 2013 https://faculty.tuck.dartmouth.edu/images/uploads/faculty/ron-adner/Cirque_du_Soleil.pdf https://www.tradingeconomics.com/china/gdp-per-capita https://www.tradingeconomics.com/brazil/gdp-per-capita https://www.tradingeconomics.com/turkey/core-inflation-rate https://www.turkstat.gov.tr/PreHaberBultenleri.do?id=10902 Ministry of Culture and Tourism, https://www.kultur.gov.tr/ https://knoema.com/atlas/Turkey/topics/Tourism/Travel-and-Tourism-Total-Contribution-to-GDP/Total-Contribution-to-GDP-Real-growth-percent https://www.gemconsortium.org/Model DTZ.com à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Turkey hotel market overview 2009 https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/istanbul-a-brand-name-in-entertainment-sector.aspx?pageID=238nID=31126NewsCatID=383 https://www.todayszaman.com/arts-culture_cirque-du-soleil-set-for-first-ever-turkey-show-in-2011_228677.html https://www.atozworldbusiness.com/ https://www.weforum.org/pdf/GCR09/GCR20092010fullreport.pdf Ramon Casadesus-Masanell and Maxime Aucoin (2009), Cirque du Soleil The High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships ibisworld.com.au BUEC 646 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Cirque du Soleil Individual Project Page 1 of 14 Navjot Singh

Sunday, December 22, 2019

Is The Greatest Honor Any Person Could Ever Have

Defending the United States of America is the greatest honor any person could ever have. Not everyone can join the military due to medical issues, education levels, credit problems, or even criminal backgrounds. For some of those people that can join the military, they find the military is too much for them and end up getting out early due to a chapter or finish out their enlistment and ETS (Expiration Term of Service). Living the military lifestyle is a unique and demanding way of living; even though it can be quite fun and eventful at the same time. There are many changes that every Soldier and their families go through during the course of the military. Whether you are a single Soldier, married Soldier or a single Soldier with dependents the changes can be rough and challenging. Even though there are different branches of the military, the way most Soldiers, Marines, Airmen, Seamen think and act are quite the same. The problems can range from; having problems with the civi lians in the community, to marital problems, or even problems with their children that are in school. There are many pros and cons to living in the military. There are several free agencies that a Soldier or even family members can go to, to get information that can help make the transition easier to living the military lifestyle. With all the misconceptions that people have about the military and their way of life, those misconceptions don t make things any easier. The stress still builds,Show MoreRelatedEssay on The Value of Honor766 Words   |  4 PagesThe Value of Honor   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There is a priceless respect that everyone in the world possesses, and that is the respect of a person’s honor. A person’s honor is something that can not be bought, sold, or traded it’s something that must be gained by the respect of your peers. An example of how honor is seen in everyday life in through a persons word. 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Saturday, December 14, 2019

Poetry Analysis If by Rudyard Kipling Free Essays

English 113 9 November 2012 Poetry Analysis by Rudyard Kipling â€Å"If† As I analyze this poem, I  get a sense of life’s challenges and how someone can overcome those who refuse to take  accountability for their own actions. Considering the poem using point of view, I wonder whether it is being told from the point of  view of Rudyard Kipling or not. Is â€Å"If† the story of Kipling himself? Is it an ideal he aspired to or something he attained? If he did  attain it, is it something he attained and knew he attained it, or something he attained and still didn’t realize it? Perhaps the answers  to some of those questions are beyond the scope of this paper, but Kipling’s life can help us understand the poem more completely. We will write a custom essay sample on Poetry Analysis If by Rudyard Kipling or any similar topic only for you Order Now Kipling was born in Bombay, India, in 1856. He always had tales that he was writing for children, including his own children  (Poetry Foundation). Sadly one of his children died at the age of eighteen, fighting the Irish Guards (Bhaskart, Rao). Kipling himself suffered bullying growing up and was often punished by his parents. This poem expresses the importance of an individual taking and accepting the responsibility for their own lives—including their  mistakes—and not blaming others. The poem has two important lessons. The first is that we are all equal. Don’t put yourself above anyone else, but know that you are just as good as everyone else, so don’t let anyone else put themselves above you. The second is that you should believe in yourself, even when everyone doubts you. Don’t believe in lies people say about you—or about anyone else. Tell the truth, believe the truth, and behave truthfully, not matter what those around you do. These lessons come from the point of view of a father instructing his son; naturally, we could also look at it as coming from the point of view of any older man to any younger man—an emotional or spiritual father-son relationship—but it seems the intent of the author was clear that this poem was directed to his physical son. This poem is a beautiful personal goal and an inspiration for anyone who wishes to be a better individual; it acts as light on a dark night. It is exactly the kind of talk a father might give to his son about growing into a good man. People sometimes talk about becoming productive members of society, but Kipling seems to take a different approach in this poem. Making â€Å"one of of all your winnings† and risking â€Å"it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,† and then losing it all and having to â€Å"start again at your beginnings† (lines 17-19)—this kind of encouragement hardly seems like it’s rooted in productivity being the measure of a man. Instead, Kipling talks about the importance of making the right choices, and how those choices can have a huge effect on someone’s life. The poem also says to have confidence in your actions and to not allow anyone to say that you cannot do it. Don’t let anyone push you down, Kipling says, or doubt your competence, and don’t let those people stop you from reaching your goals. â€Å"If you can dream and not make dreams your master† talks about daring to dream; yet not letting that dream control your life (Paul, Halsall). Accept your dreams as yours; however, don’t mistreat others to get there. Again using lines 17-19 as our evidence, we see that Kipling also suggests that we must always learn from our mistakes and not ignore them. Line 20 describes his interpretation of this kind of behavior: â€Å"Never breathe a word about your loss. † We all have a lot to learn. We can learn from bad choices, by not committing the same mistake again, but complaining about our mistakes or our losses does no one any good. If there are roadblocks in your path of life, it is okay to make adjustments to your course and sometimes even to make U-turns; however, use it as learning a lesson for what is to come: If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken, And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools. (13-16) The most important lesson here is to never give up. It is very hard to get back on your feet after life has beaten you into the ground. If circumstances throw you off, get back on your feet and don’t let that cheat you out of reaching your goals. Instead, put all the broken pieces together to make you a stronger person. When you are stronger it is easier to encounter life’s challenges. In two sections, the poem also talks about recognizing the truth and speaking the truth, and how the truth can affect both you and those around you. In the first, Kipling addresses the mindset he wanted his son to have when doubts and lies were directed at him: If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies, Or being hated, don’t give way to hating, And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise. (3-8) Believe in yourself, Kipling says, even when everyone doubts you; don’t believe the lies people say about you or anyone. The second section that deals with honesty deals more with a person being honest with himself: If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster And treat those two impostors just the same; If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools. (11-14) Kipling continues this theme in the fourth stanza: â€Å"If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, / Or walk with Kings, nor lose the common touch. † Strive to be successful, but don’t let being successful fool you. Continue to help others and be nice to them. Don’t get lost in the world of money and luxury. Help others who need you. Don’t be selfish and concentrate only on your needs and wants (Paul, Halsall). We might use the phrase today, â€Å"Be true to yourself. † As Shakespeare in one of his plays had a father (Polonium) advise his son (Laertes): â€Å"This above all: to thine own self be true, / And it must follow, as the night the day, / Thou canst not then be false to any man† (Hamlet 1. 3. 78–82). Being kind and true to yourself, your family or anyone that walks in your life, can bring you many rewards. My analysis of this poem might be different from other analysis that you may have read, but it is my understanding of it and how I took this poem and put it on my life. Kipling was very realistic and clear in his words, and everyone can learn something from it. This poem was written in 1910 and it still applies today. No matter how many years have passed since it was written, it can always be applied to anyone, anywhere, and anytime. This poem, in general, is about living by what is often called the golden rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Think about the bad you don’t want for yourself and don’t do it to others. Above all odds—and above his troubled childhood—Rudyard Kipling became a courageous and honest man. He knew how hard life can be, so he wrote this poem to his son teaching him solutions  to life’s problems. That was the main reason he wrote this poem: He wanted his son to become a good man (poetry foundation). According to Kipling, getting through this life with all the challenges, good or bad, and making the right choices and being proud of yourself, being happy with your winnings, and learning from your mistakes these will help you achieve the best reward: to be a man (Geofrey, Wansell). Work Cited Geofrey, Wansell. â€Å"The Remarkable Story Behind Rudyard Kipling’s If. † Daily Mail. 15 Feb. 2009. Web. 8 Nov. 2012. Paul, Halsall. â€Å"Modern History Source Book. † Rudyard Kipling: If. July 1998. Web. 8 Nov. 2012. Poetry Foundation. Web. 8 Nov. 2012. Rao, K. Bhaskara. â€Å"Rudyard Kipling. † Critical Survey Of Long Fiction, Fourth Edition (2010): 1-7. Literary Reference Center Plus. Web. 7 Nov. 2012. How to cite Poetry Analysis If by Rudyard Kipling, Essay examples

Friday, December 6, 2019

Challenges Faced By Woolworths Group Limited-Samples for Students

Question: Discuss about the Challenges faced by Woolworths Group limited. Answer: Introduction The report deals with the Woolworths Group limited an Australia based organisation that is listed under ASX (Australian securities exchange). It is one of the top 100 companies listed under ASX (Asx 2018). In Australia the Woolworths Group limited own supermarkets named as Woolworths supermarkets. It was founded in 1924 and currently it accounts to eighty per cent of the Australian market (Woolworths Ltd 2018). It operates as food and liquor merchandise retailer. The products offered by the company are packaged food, vegetables, fruits, magazines, beauty products, baby products, pet supplies and other household products. Woolworth is also available currently as online shopping portal and there are more than 1000 stores in the country (Woolworthsgroup.com.au 2018). The aim of the report is to highlight the current challenges faced by the organisation and managerial implications. The purpose is to apply the theoretical knowledge in resolving the real world business issue. The report in volves collection of secondary data in this context and analyse the marketing and communication approaches to suggest appropriate situations. Objectives The aim of the research is to learn the current business problem of Woolworths and analyse approaches taken by the organisation. The objective of the research are- To identify the business problem of Woolworths Group limited Analyse the problem using the integrated marketing communication approaches of Woolworths Recommend effective solutions to resolve the business issue Methodology The methodology used for the research is qualitative study. Literature review is used for collecting the secondary data. It is the tool to gain current knowledge on the chosen topic along with substantive findings, theoretical and methodological contributions (Neuman and Robson 2014). For this purpose the, review of books, journal articles, and news articles will be conducted. The key terms used for the literature search are, Woolworths Group limited, business issue Woolworths, Woolworths challenges, and integrated marketing communication Woolworths and IMC Woolworths. Boolean operators such as OR and AND are used for effective research in database. The inclusion criteria for the literature review are papers and news articles published in English, in between 2012-2018 and on Woolworths Australia. Australian based journals are used for this purpose. The rationale for choosing the range of the date is the availability of the significant data in this period and chance of obtaining bulk of data. Since recent challenges of the organisation may not be available in journal articles, the news articles are also considered. Before proceeding with the journal articles, the relevance of each of them is scrutinised by review of its abstract, full text followed by its references. Results and findings The current business problem faced by Woolworths is the slow consumer cycle and slowing growth in the market. It led to shift of the consumer focus towards fresh foods and broader grocery categories, which does not appear to be optimistic (Janda 2018). It is due to lack of product innovation and creativity, the company is not able to communicate with the stakeholders. The customers are unsatisfied (HA Bijmolt et al. 2014). There is clearly lack of integration of marketing communication strategies at different levels of management (Ellis and Waller 2017). For the last two years, the grocery has been challenging for Woolworth as the company has not communicated with variety of target audiences (Pulker et al. 2018). Further, there has been less volume growth (InsideFMCG 2018). Since, last two years there is no improvement in the stock loss rates. There is the slowing market growth observed with lack of robust marketing and communication strategies (Kurnia et al. 2015). According to Irvine and Moerman (2017), the growing challenges have led the organisation to reduce the price of shares from $30 to $27. As per the analysts, the margins appear to shrink in the key Australian Food and Liquor division (Gilbert, Stafford and Sehgal 2016). As per Knox (2015), there is an increasing pressure building on the margins due to increasing competition from the Coles and Aldi. There is an increase in pressure to look outside the Australian food and liquor business. The multiple pressures on earning is evident from the cut on the earnings per share by 2% and 3% in financial year 2015 and 2016 (Janda, 2018). Analysis of the integrated marketing communication approaches Integrated marketing communication or IMC is an approach to plan business communications that yields profitable results. It is possible by reducing the marketing costs and intense campaigns. Different components of IMC are sales promotion, sponsorship, advertisements, public relations, product placemats, online marketing and direct marketing (Barker 2012). Analysing the 4 Ps marketing mix concept, promotion is one of the P. Promotions can be successful using different mix off communication tools, provided they work in harmony. A maximum communication impact can be achieved by integrating tools such as direct mail, sales promotions, advertisements, telemarketing, and use of social media. It helps maintain the clarity with the stakeholders (Armstrong et al. 2014). According to Grimmer (2017) Woolworth takes approach of too many stock-outs. The company is investing huge amount of money in advertisements. The primary component of the marketing mix is advertisement as it helps reach the mass target. It has invested money in various loyalty schemes, such as petrol pump discounts. It uses intense campaign methods such as Fresh Food People campaign (1987-2012). Other methods are use of online media for extensive promotions, magazines, and promotion through newsletters. The company ensures lucrative discounts, and extensive deals, and also prom ote through gift cards and celebrities. It has been successful in attracting huge crowd by online stores. Target segment is reached by extensive promotional channel. Further, its presence in the market has increased through physical evidence such as billboards and hoardings and distribution of bags with its name and logo in the shop.These strategies have markedly increased the sales and popularity of the food and liquor product. Analysing the Woolworths promotional strategy as a part of marketing mix, several key issues were identified. There is lack of integration in the head office. In Woolworths, there is confusion in regards to allocating price investment between promotion and everyday low prices. As a consequence, the supply chain department and the procurement are not well connected with the marketing department. Considering the present crisis, its supply chain is not focusing on efficiency and cost cutting to reduce unnecessary expenses. Currently it is not having the strong supply chain support. This outcome is surprising despite heavy investment in the different advertising streams starting from television ads to lucrative discounts. Thus, the brand image is lowering and shift in customer focus. The company has not taken steps for promotional uplift or buy additional products which indicate overlooking the IMC principles (Fernie, Fernie and Moore 2015). IMC also requires innovation and accountability integration. This approach was used by the Woolworths and was evident from the announcement made by CEO in 2016 to recapture the innovation and customer focus. The company intrinsically focused on its resources and has also invested 150million dollars to overcome the grocery challenges. However, even after one year the strategy did not lead to increase in growth in the Australian market. There is no focus on the product innovation since last two years (Methner et al. 2015). Focusing on the customer contact and single voice relationships consist one of the distinguishing feature of IMC (Yeshin 2012). On relating the same with Woolworth it was found that the premium customers were not interested in the discounts. They were interested in convenience and were major part of the Sunday Convenience consumer base (InsideFMCG 2018). However, Woolworths focused more on the everyday customers rather than the premium ones. Both the above drawbacks can be considered the cause of slow consumer cycle and slow market growth rate of Woolworths. Communications were not wrapped around the buying process of the customers. It consequently hampered the brand values and client relationships. There is a decreasing market power of the company with the increasing competition. The company is failing in innovation and sustain its differentiated image of quality (Bowles et al. 2016). There is a need of company to focus more on branding and marketing although it had earlier created an image of healthy product range. Upon analysing the online marketing approach of Woolworth as a part of IMC, it can be said that online shopping service seems to be incompetent and is diverting the customers attention to other competitors products. The technological factors need to be improved. There has been an instance where the customer has paid the bill via credit card and the company could not deliver the desired product. Therefore, online marketing should be more innovative to enhance the customer retention (Humayun 2016). Recommendations Analysing the above approaches of Woolworths indicate managerial implications. Managers must emphasise on integration during creative sessions and annual reviews. It implies for the managers to ensure that the different members from advertising, marketing, sales promotions are integrating their messages. This process requires good internal marketing. The managers must ensure crystal clear communication strategy linking core values of the organisation to add brand value (Yeshin 2012). Applying the innovation adoption model, it is recommended for the company to spend a huge part of promotional expenses on consumers to share information on products. It can boost sales by introducing new products and attracting new customers for purchase, by creating cohesive brand. It is advised to promote using celebrities for premium label products. Since the quality of the products offered by the organization is same as that of its competitors, it must focus more on campaigns such as, Always at Woolworths, and iconic Fresh Food People campaign. New campaign can be on drop in product prices (Yeshin 2012). In addition to the better convenience, the company must focus on superior freshness of the products. It will prevent the customers to focus on competitors products. The company must continue to deliver the liquor growth by giving innovative offers for every occasion. Innovation and customers trust will help the company gain the sustainable sales momentum and increase the growth ( Keith 2012). The company must invest highly for promoting through mobile apps, websites with pages for different products and categories, and virtual stores to promote its presence among new customers. A regular redesign of websites during occasions such special buys, Fathers day or special offer week will help retain customer focus and beat the competition. The websites use more significant potential keywords to increase traffic to site. As per the Ansoffs matrix, product development or generating more modified products would beneficial in current situation. It will increase the market penetration (Methner et al. 2015). The company has been focusing on lean retail model to sustain competition in new market since 2015. It is recommended to increase the cost saving initiatives to increase the customer experience in the non customer-facing areas. There is a need of strong focus on the capital management for growth. It is suggested to increase the investment in the online pricing system, online marketing and collection points to increase the multi-channel customer experiences (Spillan and Ling 2015). It can develop the current market by branding and extensive advertisement campaigns and through Facebook, Instagram and other social media platform. This platform is easy way to help existing customers to invite new people, allow people to post photos of stores or create funny hashtags on Instagram. Social media campaign is easy way to inform customers about new products now available at stores and keep engaging them by directing to product survey forms (Keith 2012). Applying the information processing model, it is suggested to motivate consumers by providing information that will influence their purchasing decisions. Telemarketing would be more effective then personal selling and advertising (Batra and Keller 2016). Guerrilla marketing involving low cost tactics and innovation would give memorable experienced to the customers. Like ALDI it can engage in email marketing for featuring new products on occasions such as mothers day or offers on chocolates during festival (Leibold and Hugo 2015). Applying the financial and strategic integration as a part of the four stage of model IMC, the company must focus on low profit margin. Only by revising the pricing strategy, the company can target the large segment of the market as it is the capital intensive industry (Kitchen and Burgmann 2015). Changing the pricing and the range strategy may neutralise the Coles and Aldis impact on Woolworths sales. The companys pricing strategy should be changed to accom modate the customers needs, brand awareness and gain cost advantage (Fernie and Sparks 2014). Using technology integration as a part of this model, the company must use database to track the customer response to emails or social media updates can help effective IMC. It can design attractive homepage on mobile like Aldi to increase visitors. This approach will help in collecting and sharing vital information related to customers throughout the buying life (Kumar and Reinartz 2012). Conclusion The report is the outcome of the current challenge of Woolworth. It has been ranked one of the most popular retailing industries. However, recently, the challenges faced by Woolworths are the slowing consumer cycle and market growth due to defective IMC approaches. For the last two years, the grocery has been challenging for Woolworth and a slowing market growth observed. The IMC strategies need to be modified as the recent downturn is due to ineffective integration of the marketing and communication tools in different level of management. The company must come up with innovative and competitive strategy to sustain it competitive position. 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