205MKT Digital Marketing Assignment Sample
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Executive Summary
This paper discussed about the contemporary issues in the online marketing. In regards to this, Homebase business is selected which is a British home improvement retailer and it offered all types of product such as garden, kitchen, paint and bathroom related products and services. It transforms the business from physical store to online channel. However, it faced several issues in its online services and it majorly involved the improper navigation facilities and lack of informative website. Other than that, the macro and micro factor affects the Homebase in the form of privacy issue, mismanagement and lack of technology adaptation etc, are the areas within which firm struggles to successfully offer the online service to customers. In respect to such issues, the secondary methodology is selected to gain the solution. The journals presented various solution such as CRM system and social-site networking use for gain high recognition in the market. Other than that, cloud computing technique, mathematical optimization method is another one for solving the issue related to navigation and less informative website.
Introduction
The assignment aim is to critically analyse the contemporary issue in the area of online marketing. In respect to perform the study, Homebase which is british home improvement retailer and garden centre with stores across the united kingdom and Ireland. This firm is founded by Sainsbury and GB-Inno-BM in 1979 (Homebase, 2018). It consists of both physical store and online shops. However, firm includes the skilled tradesperson and support team members which provide quality services. It also offers the constant training programs to stakeholder for serving better to customers.
Vision & Mission
The vision of Homebase is to build the long-term connection, prosperity with larger target audiences and sustain for longer duration. This can be done through use of right digital marketing tool.
The mission is to offer quality service to customer through use of appropriate brand message and strategy.
Homebase achieve its vision and mission statement through incorporate online platform with the changing technology. Previously, it only offers the product at physical stores but with the transformation in technology, it switches towards the online and social networking sites. However, firm provide all sorts of home based services to consumer on online platform and this allows it to tap whole European market like Ireland, Britain and UK. It provides each segment products like garden, kitchen, paint, bathroom etc, all related to homebase (Tiago and Veríssimo, 2014). However, Homebase gains various benefits with the use of digital marketing in term to take decision regards to select of target market and solve the queries of people at online channel.
Main body
Digital marketing strategy that deploy by the Homebase
Homebase digital is the new strategy which firm undertake to capture larger market. It hired the digital advertising firm in Dallas for expanding its business beyond the European borders. Besides that, it is also explored the new areas like mobile app. This is because majority of people in UK are using mobiles apps for performing the online operation. It helped the firm to easily contact with larger people (Joseph, 2014). It has launched the social e-commerce with the purpose to build the strong sales. However, it is found that Homebase has recorded in sale growth 6.9% to £203m in just eight weeks. This occurred after expand the business at online channel. Moreover, online platform allows the business to directly contact with the target audiences and this helps them to offer the product which has high in demand. Besides that, online platform also assist to cover the whole European market which didn’t become possible with the physical stores. Moreover, Homebase is also offer number of deals through its co-buying initiatives (Magrath and McCormick, 2013). In this, DIY business provides the discounts up to 50% on home appliances through use of social commerce platform. This practice allows the business to encourage the customers to get their friends to sign up the specific promotion in order to reduce the final price of products. These digital marketing strategies are deployed by the Homebase for boosting the sales and bring improvement in customer service. For future context, Homebase is planning to update its recently launched Ebay store along with the development of marketing plan for its profile on social network Pinterest (Järvinen et al., 2012). However, firm always prefer to make an investment in the digital platform based on changes to its store formats. Thus, this way it improves its customer services and provide value to individuals in the form of quality product & service.
Critically evaluate both macro and micro-environment which affect the Homebase operations
In context to Homebase online services, there are various macro and micro factor that affects it and due to which firm faced lots of issues and challenges. These occur in both internal as well as external basis (Stone and Woodcock, 2014). Likewise, the online consumer survey presented that Homebase online service is dissatisfactory in UK as compare to other online retailer. In regards to this, it is found that consumers faced problem in the operation of firm website as there is difficult to navigate and lack of up-to-date information. These areas affect the goodwill of firm and it also directly influences the sales and profitability ratio.
However, the firm is also failed in term to the factor like price, product range and return process (Järvinen and Karjaluoto, 2015). These areas provide threat to Homebase in regards to sustain for a longer duration. Other than that, Homebase is also lacking to make the website attractive and informative due to which customer easily move towards the different online channel (Ström et al., 2014).
Worst and best online shops
This figure clearly signified that Homebase.co.uk is considered as worst online shop and this is because customers gain the negative experiences in different aspects such as poor navigation, offer poor value & money and lack of information etc (Li et al., 2012). These limitations make the firm online service ineffective.
According to Chen et al. (2014), there are some external factor that also responsible for the failure of Homebase online strategy. It includes the competitive environment. Likewise, in UK, there is strong retail online channel exist within which Homebase struggles to offer unique and right service. It also fails to focus on the basic aspect of online shop i.e. navigation and up-to-date information. Other than that, technical issues are another external factor that affects the Homebase in the form of cyber-attacks and hacking practice. Klok and Harrison (2013) found that Europe e-commerce’s market faced lot of risk related to hacking the sites with the aim to access the confidential information. At the same time, customer data, loss of earning tend to considered as a risky with the breach of company site.
In a similar manner, the internal factor also proves to be cause of poor online services. It includes the ineffective management of website due to which site do not attract large customer base. Other than that, lack of adaptation of advanced technology is another area due to which navigation facilities are poor and information is not updated on time. Such limitation impacts goodwill of firm (Gifford and Nilsson, 2014). Other than that, lack of focus on staff skilled improvement is another factor due to which it limits to bring innovation and value addition into the business operations. Thus, such areas restrict the firm to provide the quality online services to target audiences.
Critically review the journals which provide the recommendation to bring marketing specialization
In respect to handle the issue related to online marketing, the given journals could help to achieve the success in the form of high customer base and positive goodwill in the market.
From the Kota (2015), it is determined that due to frequent growth of internet, there is high demand of applications and the development of this requires a well-designed site structure. This becomes a challenge as the given techniques do not help to gain the effective user navigator. In regards to this, it is recommended that the mathematical optimization is the best way to provide efficient navigation to the user. This process provides the change which is easy for user to understand. However, the increasing number of micro-session could help to minimise the path. Therefore, user can navigate by minimising change to the actual page to be improved. This recommendation can help Homebase to bring improvement in the area of navigation due to which customer found the online business services worthless.
According to Mathew (2012), it is identified that cloud computing is the best recommendation for Homebase to solve the privacy issue which is occurring in current scenario. Likewise, firm faced the risk related to hacking and unauthorised access of firm or customer information. Such problem can be solved with the help of cloud computing method. This practice helps the firm to transform the business and achieve the secured website. Moreover, the cloud computing allows the business to store the information to multiple areas so this assist the firm to secure the data from the unauthorized access. Other than that, the cloud computing also includes zero investment of firm which is quite beneficial in terms to save maximum profit and gain high profits. Similarly, the data which is stored in cloud tend to be safe due to which firm easily perform the transit without having a fear of loss of confidential facts. Thus, this suggestion proved to be effective for Homebase to reduce the issue related to privacy. It may help the firm to perform the online service in a proper manner without including the fear of fraud or misleading.
In the views of Farhud (2016), social media is playing an important role in regards to make a communication better and develop a long term relationship with customers. There are sites which are the best way to market the product at online basis. It includes Facebook, Google Plus, Twitter, Youtube and Instagram etc, are some of the well-known social networking sites. However, the social site proves to be effective way to contact with larger audiences and solve the queries and complaints by bring improvement in product or service delivery. Thus the use of social site contributes efficiency for the online firms in the form of developing long-term relationship with customer and achieves their loyalty. Similarly, the social site could help Homebase to promote its product and services through use of Facebook and Instagram. In this, it could post the image of product with the price so this allows the customer to check the price of different product and take right decision.
From the study of Jeng (2017), it is found that the customer relationship management system is important technology which firm extensively used in current business scenario. This technology could help the firm to make a long-term relationship with customers through provide them offers and discounts at online platform. Other than that, the CRM system also helps to improve customer services through provide the services as per the requirement. Thus, this system could assist Homebase to build the loyal customer as right delivery of product and service always make the customer loyal towards the brand. This practice also supports the firm to regain the customer base which is left due to poor services of firm. Thus, this system helps the firm to sustain in this competitive environment for a longer duration.
From this study, Subba Rao (2013) identified that role of management is significantly increasing in today’ business environment. An effective management system enables the organization in smooth functioning of business operation and decision making process. At the same time, an effective management facilitates the organization in order to reap the competitive advantage in current dynamic market conditions. Similarly, the effective management would also help the “Homebase “company for its further business growth. It would bring the better coordination among various departments that enables the organization for delivering the products on time. Additionally, better management provides the new ideas like, updating official websites, festive offers and discounts that would help to strengthen the customer base and generate the more profits.
Conclusion
From the above discussion, it is concluded that Homebase faced various issues in its online service. It majorly includes the navigation problem which restricts the consumer to search for a desired product and service. Moreover, websites is less informative due to which consumer found problem to get the full facts about the usage of product. Other than that, micro and macro factors like strong competition, security problem and mismanagement are the key issues that limit Homebase towards bring improvement.
In regards to such issues, the journal articles provide various solutions in the form of cloud computing technique, mathematical optimization method. These areas could help the firm to overcome the problem of navigation and informative. Other than that, social-site and CRM practice are the other solution that may help the firm to bring value in the form of provide quality offering to consumer and achieve the loyalty of customers. These solutions could help Homebase to achieve marketing specialisation.
References
Chen, Y., Wang, Y., Nevo, S., Jin, J., Wang, L. and Chow, W.S., 2014. IT capability and organizational performance: the roles of business process agility and environmental factors. European Journal of Information Systems, 23(3), pp.326-342.
Dr M. Subba Rao, 2013. Role of management in Today’s changing world Environment and Emerging challenges of Organizational behavior, International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Business management.1(1), p.p. 72-81.
Farhud, A., 2016. Social media, its positive and negative implications on society. School of distance education university sains malaysia, pp. 2-12. [Online] available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/310046721_Social_media_its_positive_and_negative_implications_on_society. (Accessed on: 18-01-2019)
Gifford, R. and Nilsson, A., 2014. Personal and social factors that influence pro‐environmental concern and behaviour: A review. International Journal of Psychology, 49(3), pp.141-157.
Homebase. 2018. Company Profile. [Online] available at: https://www.homebase.co.uk/ (Accessed on: 18-01-2019)
Hotten, R., 2018. Britain’s worst and best online retailers named by Which? [Online] available at: https://www.bbc.com/news/business-46180790 (Accessed on: 18-01-2019)
Järvinen, J. and Karjaluoto, H., 2015. The use of Web analytics for digital marketing performance measurement. Industrial Marketing Management, 50, pp.117-127.
Järvinen, J., Tollinen, A., Karjaluoto, H. and Jayawardhena, C., 2012. DIGITAL AND SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING USAGE IN B2B INDUSTRIAL SECTION. Marketing Management Journal, 22(2).
Jeng, I., 2017. Benefits of Having a CRM System in Addition to an ERP System: Case study: Company X. University of applied sciences, pp. 42
Joseph, S., 2014. Homebase details digital plan to boost sales. [Online] available at: https://www.marketingweek.com/2014/03/13/homebase-details-digital-plan-to-boost-sales/ (Accessed on: 18-01-2019)
Klok, C.J. and Harrison, J.F., 2013. The temperature size rule in arthropods: independent of macro-environmental variables but size dependent. Integrative and comparative biology, 53(4), pp.557-570.
Kota, H., 2015. Productive User Navigation through Website Structure Improvement. International Journal of Computer Science and Mobile Computing, 4 (8), pp. 287-294.
Li, Y., Li, Y., Zhou, Y., Shi, Y. and Zhu, X., 2012. Investigation of a coupling model of coordination between urbanization and the environment. Journal of environmental management, 98, pp.127-133.
Magrath, V. and McCormick, H., 2013. Marketing design elements of mobile fashion retail apps. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management: An International Journal, 17(1), pp.115-134.
Mathew, A., 2012. Security and privacy issues of cloud computing; solutions and secure framework. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, 2(4).
Stone, M.D. and Woodcock, N.D., 2014. Interactive, direct and digital marketing: A future that depends on better use of business intelligence. Journal of Research in Interactive Marketing, 8(1), pp.4-17.
Ström, R., Vendel, M. and Bredican, J., 2014. Mobile marketing: A literature review on its value for consumers and retailers. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 21(6), pp.1001-1012.
Tiago, M.T.P.M.B. and Veríssimo, J.M.C., 2014. Digital marketing and social media: Why bother?. Business Horizons, 57(6), pp.703-708.
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