Examine the role and importance of marketing in an organisation.
As more Victorians start using this particular service, the image of Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat will be enhanced and the enterprise would gain relevant share in the market. This is the first dry cleaning enterprise within Australia that has implemented its own app of and added to its brochure of the services provided to customers.
This report would take into account their target market, its current position within the marketplace, growth data along with the marketing promotion plan so that the enterprise is able to market them in better way. Its objectives for the second year is establishing it as a sustainable business by the end of the year in and around Melbourne and generate net profits along with offering of customer satisfaction.
Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat have prepared certain keys to success factors that would enable them in working towards the goal they started their enterprise with. A comprehensive strategy in marketing holds key as the business enters its second year of operation (Sheppard, 2017). It is also significant to remember that the targeted customers do have money and want to be facilitated with high quality service where digital communication would play an important role. It is also imperative to note that the hours of operation needs to expedient and the completion of service needs to be timely so that the customers are not harried after a long day’s work (Lovelock & Patterson, 2015).
Target Market:
Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat has been focusing on the people whom they appreciate in being professional, trustworthy, unswerving and perfect the service of dry cleaning and are more than prepared in paying for this. Victoria and Melbourne in particular have many dry cleaning home delivery services, though Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat is the one that targets the prosperous in exclusive manner. These groups do have the money for the services provided by the enterprise, just as they always desire to wear clean clothes.
The wealthy aspiration for quality and their willingness in paying a premium for the service that can be trusted 100 per cent generally extrudes professionalism, and basically permits them in forgetting that they have to deal with whatever it takes in wearing clean clothes every day. The core target market of the enterprise is the time-poor people professionals who are in the habit of wearing suits every day or those staying at home responsible for the laundry.
Competition in Dry Cleaning Market:
There exists number of players in the sector of dry cleaning within Australia, especially in Victoria, but none of the enterprises have quite been able to corner the space. Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat are keen on grabbing the opportunity and provide this on-demand laundry. On demand laundry is something that is being done elsewhere, but no company was doing it here in Australia. The on-demand services are stated to be the latest trend that has hit the market with the mobile apps in the break of few years. With the initiation of these new and exciting business apps sculpt of UBER, consumers would fundamentally anything run, concluded, delivered and taken with the click of a button (Osterwalder et al., 2014). This is generally helpful for the people who work 9-6 jobs or generally live in cities that are densely populated. It is difficult to run errands after work that can become a task when most of these people are stuck in the traffic.
Competition within the laundry industry generally centres on the factor of pricing for the type of laundry and dry cleaning services presented (Payne, Frow & Eggert, 2017). The position or the location of the players within the market is generally stated to be another important factor that needs to be considered. Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat faces both direct and indirect competition. Other enterprises like Dryz Pty Ltd or Bancroft Dry Cleaning Co Pty Ltd maintains a strong customer base, so it becomes important for Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat in positioning themselves in better fashion than the competition. It is important for Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat to be proactive and take a harder look at the ways they have been operating within the region. In combating the competition, Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat needs to endeavour in having a better understanding of the dry cleaning market, it will fundamentally supplant the competitors’ market understanding. Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat would attempt to deliver better services according to the needs or requirements along with the penchants of the target market.
Better Value Proposition:
Clear communication along with the factor of connectivity is significant in keeping their customers engaged and satisfied within the industry (Jang, Kang & Son, 2017). There are certain dissimilar channels through which the customers would like to bond with the enterprise. Sending of SMS, Email, Mobile Applications and Websites are such factors that the enterprise needs to empower for their customers to communicate with the enterprise or place orders. If a new service is on offer the enterprise needs to notify their customers with promotional SMS or in-app announcement (Hoffman & Turley, 2015).
Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat would also do well if they facilitate their customers with garment tracking which is a must. The company is also thinking of bringing an app to the market where even the customers would be able to track their garments. They do hold the right where they need to know the state of their garments by being at the office or in home. It is important to systematize the process and track the garments at every possible checkpoint. Technology has made great strides and it is important that to stay ahead in competition enterprises do take the assistance of technology. This will minimize the errors frequently made in this industry like wrong delivery of garments and garments lost which would result in losing of a loyal customer.
Customer Analytics:
Customer analytics, also known as the customer data analytics, is stated to be the methodical examination of the information of the customer related to the company along with the customer behaviour to recognize, draw and keep hold of the most profitable of customers. Customers have admission to information anywhere and at any point of time like at what time the garments would be picked up, the current status of the garments and time and date of delivery. This makes it significant in utilizing the predictive analytics and data in forecasting the ways customers would behave while interacting with the staffs of the enterprise. The main goal of customer analytics is in creating a single, precise view of a customer in making the decisions about ways of acquiring and retaining the customers. As per Lovelock & Patterson, (2015), the better the understanding of the customer’s habits, and preferences, the more precise predictive behaviours become. This is the tool that can be taken in as specialized tools in gaining insight into the experience of the customers, understanding their behaviour and in helping them tailor marketing campaigns to detailed customers segments (Lee, 2016).
Focus Groups:
Enterprises do make use of focus groups in determining the most efficient of marketing messages to send to the probable customers, develop the pricing factor, select packaging and even naming certain offers. Focus groups also help in bringing home relevant feedbacks from a group consisting of individuals representing the target market. For instance if Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat have developed on a new service for delivery purpose and the same is not functioning properly or is not being utilized the same way hoped by the enterprise, a focus group might be formed to find out the reason. The objective of this focus group would be to augment the number of customers exploiting the delivery service through determi9nation of the barriers to use.
Future Value Propositions for Victoria Cleaners and Laundromat:
People are becoming more careful in the things they use and the things they eat. The dry cleaning industry is stated to be filled mostly with outdated businesses that have been failing the customers on repeated basis. It would be important for Victoria Cleaners and Laundromat to offer an eco-friendly and convenient option. This enterprise would also be looking forward to provide an unique 24/7 pick-up and drop-off expertise with a boutique store that flaunts itself like those in Europe. It would allow them to differentiate themselves from most of the cleaners. The franchise part generally offers the eco-friendly and convenience facet of an industry that does not possess a gorilla of 800 pounds. Moreover, the enterprise is willing to start something that is done by Washio, an on-demand laundry platform back in USA, where users provide details of the washing instructions. The enterprise is also having discussions on tying up with other small dry cleaners in the area for making use of its app.
Customers’ perceived value for the chosen product, service or brand; and ways competitors meet those values:
At the time when customers appraise a particular product or service, they generally weigh its apparent value against the price that has been asked for. As per Hylton, (2017), marketers have generally been focusing much of their energy and time on managing the price part, as raising prices has the ability in boosting the profits. The nature and quantity of a particular value within a particular service or product generally lies in the eyes of the beholder. A thorough model of the consumer value facilitates an organization in coming up with fresh combinations of value that its services along with products could convey.
The complicated part of constructing a price-value map is estimating the value of a product to the average customer. It has often been found that with the help of general knowledge along with the reticent amount of evaluation. For example, in case of Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat, drawing of a price-value map would be deciding that the sector’s significant components of value are the speed of delivery of the garments, the number of customers served, dependability and the existence of the tracking service of the garments along with the pick-up and service related to delivery.
A customer value proposition that is good in nature would be providing convincing reasons on the ways a customer should purchase a product, and differentiating the products from that of the competitors (Covin et al., 2015). The trend has generally been that the local dry cleaners have joined forces with on-demand platforms in many countries to stay ahead of the competition and retain most of the customers as there exists many dry cleaners in Australia with most of them providing same sort of services. Gaining the attention of the customer along with approval would help in building sales at rapid rate along with increasing the share of the market. A brand is generally the perception of either a product or service that is being designed for staying in the minds of the targeted customers within a market. It is always desirable in building a stronger and positive brand association with the offerings of the enterprise.
Current ‘Value’ proposition of Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat:
It is important for Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat to understand that the business of dry cleaning would thrive when one can change the way one look at things, along with the things one look at change (Kitchen & Burgmann, 2015). It is important to see everything through the eyes of the consumer. If customers are dropping off clothes to the store, the stores need to have the best possible counter service representatives. They have some of the best who has the ability in countering any small issues that might crop up. The company makes the best possible use of social media like the Twitter or Facebook in familiarizing the community about the business along with the services that is on offer (Porter & Heppelmann, 2014). The enterprise has started a fan page where locals do give important feedback and provide suggestions as and when they feel like.
The company is also offering or rather sponsoring “Free Trousers Friday” where anyone in Melbourne can bring in a pair of trousers and have those pairs cleaned for free. These free counts add to the total piece and the revenue jumps up every time for such a campaign. The enterprise has opened up to its customers in four convenient locations within Victoria so that people can get easy access of them.
Marketing Promotion Plan:
Promotion can be stated when a business decides on the forms of communication it requires or needs in its marketing plan. The primary step is always to improve on the strategy of marketing communications and the strategy would be defining the consumer along with the best possible ways of reaching them and the content of the message (Huang & Sarigöllü, 2014). There are several ways of promoting a business or a service or product depending on the budget that is being generally allocated for such things like the advertisement vehicles, hoardings, banners and print media.
Day or Week Promotions:
It is important to notice that every laundry or dry cleaning service has slow times and every laundry owner would feel like developing their business during such periods. In helping business drive through these slow phases, providing promotions at certain time or hour of the day or during certain days of the month can be an option. For bringing in extra flare, it is important to consider social events like “College Day” or the “Single Nights” along with promoting the event. The local media can be called upon to let them know what the stores are up to.
Budget allocated: AUD $1500
Laundromat Signage:
Outdoor advertising taking in the storefront signs, handbills and billboards is stated to be popular and moderately inexpensive way for telling people the location of the store and the services that are been offered by the enterprise. It is important for the stores in having adequate signage on the business front and the fact that it can be read or identified from the street.
Budget Allocated: AUD $1000
Coupons:
It is important to consider for “free wash” or provide with other coupons to the customers. This is important in bringing in new or fresh customers to the laundry for the first time, or enticing the customers in coming back and trying for the service once again (McAlexander, Koenig & DuFault, 2016). Only a portion of the offered coupon would be redeemed and one will produce some greater attention and exposure for the laundry services.
Budget Allocated: AUD $500
Getting Publicity:
Unlike the factor of advertising, public relation does not engross payment for the factor of positive revelation. It is generally of free nature. Instances of positive activities related to public relation are the several fundraising drives that is being conducted by the charities and churches. For example, if Victoria Cleaners do participate in one of the Blood Drives organized by Red Cross and if the enterprise is being mentioned in the local newspapers, the Laundromat would be appearing as being conscious about community along with the free publicity that would be reminiscent of the potential customers where the store is being located.
Sports Sponsorships and Promotions:
If there is one within the area, it is worth considering in partnering with any of the local colleges or the little leagues existing in and around Melbourne. This is one of the great ways in generating publicity along with the word of mouth from the fans of the sport along with generating the additional income from the drop off service in laundry.
Budget Allocated: AUD $2000
Conclusion:
It can be concluded that the laundry service or the dry cleaning service industry has come a long way in terms of technology and marketing strategies. Victoria Cleaners & Laundromat has been doing all by themselves so that they can have their own strong customer base along with all the required facilities for them to count the profits. The enterprise has been making the most of the social media in keeping a close watch on the customers it serves, moreover it has thought of bringing in more innovative apps to its plate to serve the customers in much better way. It has been competing hard but in fair manner, investing where required and trying to provide its customers an unique experience of dry cleaning services
References:
Belveal, B. T., Weiss, D. S., Barbino, W. J., & Walden, C. (2017). U.S. Patent Application No. 15/267,669.
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