It has been noted that much of what we know about consumer behavior is from actual shopping behavior rather than the contrived experiments and laboratory tests. A lot of information has been obtained on why and how people shop, what draws their attention and involvement and their purchasing decision making process. This assignment was an opportunity to demonstrate this part of market research and test what we have learned about market behavior. The trip was to the Mayfair Mall located in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Mayfair Mall offers a number of retail products and store ranging from clothing, shoes, health and beauty products, electronics, toys and food courts. The assignment entailed identifying the various marketing strengths, marketing weaknesses and making recommendations that would be discussed below.
A spot check in the Mayfair Mall indicates a number of marketing strengths. My center of interest was the shoe and leather goods retail store. First, the Malls layout and design is attractive and convenient to shoppers. The architectural design and layout of the mall offers large amounts of space for shoppers and retailers alike. Bain et al. (2014) note that customers are increasingly factoring in which retail stores to make their purchases and hence the design outlook of the retail stores is an important factor when it comes to marketing. Visual presentations, as in merchandize displays, should attract and interest the shoppers. Upon entry of the mall, one would notice that the merchandize displays are strategically placed so as to create a sense of interest to the customers. The colors used by the retail stores are also friendly and create an interest to the shopper. The color selection includes shades of blue and purple which are most popular with both the male and female shoppers. These inviting colors play a great role as they affect customers’ moods and capture their attention to the mall. The ambience and the odor of the retail store create a unique feeling upon any customer making him/her consider making a purchase from the store.
Another equally important marketing strength is customer acknowledgement by the salespeople. A customer entering the store would be met by smiles of salespeople who are often willing to help a customer with regards to his needs. This is a consistent strategy as the salespeople monitor the actions of customers and even offer information to the customers related to the products on display. It has been noted that sometimes help is what is needed to influence a shopper’s decision to buy as a shopper may be torn between alternatives. This help is equally important in influencing a customer’s decision to buy a product. This is also part of the excellent customer services that the retail store is offering so as to fully meet the needs of its customers. One would note that the customer aisles are wide enough and lit to ease movements of the different customers. The aisles are also marked with signage that indicates where different products and brands are located. The retail store makes use of superordinate and subordinate categorizing of the different products which is a marketing strength. There is the shoes section on one end which is further categorized according to the designer brands such as Marks & Spencer and Gucci among others.
Advertising is another marketing strength at the retail store as the walls are filled with visible beautiful images of men and women (models) wearing or using the goods in the store. These beautiful pictures of models will easily capture your attention towards a particular product section depending on your wants and needs. There is also provision of discounts and offers on a number of goods as there is the option of buying a second product at half the price of the first good. The store also makes use of ‘add on’ purchases as there are different pairs of socks adjacent to the shoes section of the store. Presence of fitting rooms and mirrors provide the shopper with the first hand opportunity to test the product. The retails store stocks a variety of shoes and leather products (handbags, wallets and belts) from a number of designers hence offering a customer with a variety from which to purchase from. This is a marketing strength as it would enable evaluation of alternatives by the customers (Bain et al. 2014). In the background, soft soothing music plays which invite shoppers to the mall. Purchases can be made either through cash or credit cards. Credit cards offer a more flexible method and can invite impulsive buying. The soft music is also a marketing strategy the outlet employs to deal with the long queues and to keep them longer in the stores.
On the other hand, a number of marketing weaknesses were noted. The sales persons in the store are not friendly enough to the customers as they wait until they are stuck between decisions then they appear to offer advice. A better marketing strategy is to explain the different products the store is offering and taking the customers to the related sections. Salespeople need to create a rapport with the shoppers to increase the likelihood that the shoppers will make a purchase. Salespeople should always be available when a shopper needs help. Excellent customer service is an important marketing strategy in a given business and the store should strive to make that their key priority. There is a lack of thorough product information in the store as all they have is the price and brands on offer. There should be displays indicating the quality and durability of different products, and also when and where to use the products to ensure they last longer. Product information greatly affects the decision making processes of the customers as it would help in eliminating some of the perceived risks associated with certain products (Bain et al. 2014). In as much as the design of the store allows merchandising, it is not being fully maximized and this could have a negative effect to the store. Merchandising provides the customers with the perfect opportunity to purchase a product through the placement of goods along with the use of signage. The store has adequate spaces but the signage is limited and rather not conspicuous. Correct merchandising should attract a customer’s attention and create certain feeling among them.
Another major problem with the store is the issue of crowding especially during the peak hours. The store attracts a number of customers who stop by to shop especially after working hours but little is being done to handle the crowds. The soft music offers little help. Many shoppers go to the store to carry out product research while others may end up buying the same products. These crowding may have a negative effect to the shoppers as it may relate to insecurity of the shoppers. There is also the question of a shopper’s safety as the retail outlet allows almost everybody, idlers included. Mayfair mall is notorious for the number of idlers around and this is a marketing weakness for most of the retail outlets in it.
Having looked at the marketing strengths and analyzed the marketing weaknesses, the following are the recommendations we arrived at. The salespeople should be more receptive to the customers and always be ready to help shoppers with any information related to the products. The management should work on ensuring that customer service remains their key priority. If the customers are comfortable with the service they are more likely to return to the store (Peter et al. 1990). The store should make use of signals that include brand name, price and appearance to ensure that the shoppers reduce their risks and also increase their purchase involvement (Bain et al. 2014). They should also make use of the digital displays that convey a lot of information about products. The retail store should focus more on value marketing as it has proven a more successful marketing strategy like for the case of Walmart. Utilitarian and hedonic value of goods should be their major focus as it would offer their customers goods at low prices and ensure that they get value for money. The management should make use of social networking sites such as Facebook and twitter to provide product information and new developments within the store. This would enable them deal with the large number of people coming to carry out product research. Social media is touted as the next marketing front due to its interaction with the customers. With regards to insecurity, the management should increase their security personnel and install surveillance cameras to enhance the safety of their customers. Customer safety is a major determinant of a successful marketing as customers would shop in places where they feel safe and secure (Peter et al. 1990).
References
Bain, B.; Harris, E. & Murray, K. (2014). CB (Canadian Ed). Toronto, Ont: Nelson.
Peter, J. P., Olson, J. C., & Peter, J. P. (1990). Consumer behavior and marketing strategy. Homewood, IL: Irwin.
