Marketing Management Paper Example: Wal-Mart Inc and Its Operations

Walmart was founded in 1962 in Arkansas (Meeks and Ph., 2011, p. 62). The company was incorporated in 1969 October 31. It is involved in retail and wholesale operations in the United States and various continents around the world. Using the everyday low prices pricing strategy (EDLP), the company offers merchandise and services assortments. Walmart operates using three segments namely: Walmart International, Walmart US and Sams Club. The Walmart US operates under the digital retail and the Wal-Mart brands. The International segment comprises of the operations of the company outside the United States markets and includes some retail websites. Membership clubs in the US are subjects to Sams Club segment (Meeks and Ph, 2011, p. 62). The club site is samsclub.com. The company is considered the largest retailer in the world based on the number of employees and revenues. In 2015, the company had 2.2 million employees worldwide (U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration, 2016).

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During the 2015 fiscal year, the company revenues were approximately 485 Billion US dollars (U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration, 2016). The companys success in trade is associated with the effective strategies employed to meet the mission and vision of the enterprise. Therefore, Wal-Mart intensive and general strategies are aligned and based on the mission and vision statement. The company's vision statement is to be the best in the hearts and minds of the consumers and employees (Sorescu et al., 2011). Through this vision statement, it is clear that the company aims to the best in the retail industry. Using the current economic performance of the enterprise, it has attained part of the vision statement of being the best retailer in the world. Additionally, the company has influenced the consumers and employees by the financial benefits that they gain when making purchases at Walmart retail outlets. While consumers get the competitive advantage of low prices, the workers earn salaries (Sorescu et al., 2011).

Strategic decisions made by the company are a representation of the mission statement. The mission statement of the company is saving people money so they can live better. The companys slogan, Save Money. Live better is synonymous to the mission statement (Sorescu et al., 2011). The company over the decades has achieved part of its mission of saving people money through the low selling prices used. As mentioned earlier, the everyday low prices strategy plays a huge role in ensuring this mission statement is met. A public debate, however, has ensued on whether the company satisfies part of the mission of statement of living better. The company is accused of giving low salaries or wages to it employees that are barely enough to make ends meet for them. The company faces criticism from the public based on the long-term effects of the large scales sale of cheap (at times considered hazardous) imported goods.

By offering new products in the market, Walmart enjoys a wider geographical market (Hicks, Keil and Spector, 2012, p. 311). Before a new product becomes released to the market, the company identifies the target market that the product can address their needs. This process allows the company. Based on the efforts directed at sales and marketing strategies, the company does not indulge in an intensive approach to realize the firms growth. Therefore, the policies and choices of the company follow the mission and vision statements. Eeeimlemention of these systems is seen on the low prices that it offers its customers. The company has over the past years continued to expand globally realizing economies of scale and raising the value of profits. Therefore, through continued expansion; the company will continue making higher profits. However, the fierce global competition can become addressed by increased and aggressive expansion and growth of the business all over the world and tap Africas potential market based on its increasing demand.

5Cs (Company, Customers, Collaborators, Context and Competitors) Analysis of Wal-Mart

The management model approach Porters Five Forces Analysis is applied at Wal-Mart to realize efficient management processes. This concept allows the business to understand the attractiveness of the retail industry. In this case, using these ideas allows Wal-Mart to increase its competitive advantage in the industry. The 5Cs includes company, customers, collaborators, context and competitors (Rahmani, Emamisaleh, and Yadegari, 2015, p. 98). SWOT analysis method allows for evaluation of the market position through its operational performance. Under strengths, the company has enjoyed large scale of operations that is evident based on the market served. The company also enjoys competence of the information systems used. This competitive advantage is clear in logistics and supply chain management.

The company saves the cost of operations through properly managed inventory orders, sales, and levels. The information is easily accessed at any point all over the world. International operations are an evidence of this high scales of operations. However, high employee turnover has become a major issue to the company. The company, therefore, incurs high expenses on recruitment and training of employees due to the employment of unskilled labor force (Rahmani, Emamisaleh, and Yadegari, 2015, p. 108). Walmart has for over a period experienced negative publicity based on poor working conditions for employees. It is signified by the lawsuits that have negatively affected the brand image. Retail market growth in emerging markets has been evident in the company performance. The company has raised its sales by 5% to 7% in the year 2014 (U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration, 2016). According to the Wal-Mart CEO, the company makes a balance in the existing markets through direct acquisitions of products. Online shopping is a trend in the society. The online sales of the company rose 30% (Hicks, Keil and Spector, 2012, p. 311). The company has a higher potential of getting access to newer markets based on its online marketing deals. The two factors act out as opportunities for the enterprise.

Some threats affect the performance of the business including the rise in commodity prices and the increased resistance from communities that these stores are established. According to a recent market analysis report, local retailers are forced to close when a new Wal-Mart store is opened. Due to this trend, the company faces a high number resistance from these communities in cases where a new store is to be opened. In todays world, the production and manufacturing costs are high. This increased production subsequently forces the company to raise the prices of their products in the to maintain the profit margin. However, to remain in the competitive gain, the company is forced to keep their prices at the expense of smaller profit margins. This move affects the company and hence a threat to its existence in the economy.

The company faces increased competition in the retail industry from other well-established companies including mortar and brick. Other online businesses are also within the competition. Other international competitors like Tesco, Target, Alibaba and Amazon reduces the pricing advantage the company has in the market. These companies have also established a method of the door to door delivery of goods and services. Therefore, the company remains not to be so much different from its competitors. Therefore, this becomes difficult for the company to expand by opening more stores. Competition in the retail and wholesale industry has remained to be moderate due to the current game and Walmarts ability to pen more outlets currently.

The bargaining power of collaborators is also an issue of consideration in analyzing the 5Cs of management. When a supplier is powerful in the market, few substitutes to the goods and services they offer are few. The customers would consider the supplies useful and unique. Therefore, for them to change their mind for other products would remain challenging. Walmart has ensured a larger share of the market. Therefore, the effect of suppliers in the market remains low. The enterprise considers offering a broad range to customers using the pricing strategy of EDLP to address the needs of the consumers (Hicks, Keil and Spector, 2012, p. 311). This approach has created a general appeal to most of its customers. This process is realized by considering the bargaining power of the consumer since the price is a sensitive matter for every business. Suppose the products are similar, a buyer would go for the one that is cheaper. The low prices also come about as a result of competition.

Some contextual factors also influence the performance of the business. These are political, social, technological and economic factors. A recent report released suggested that the political contribution of Wal-Mart increased based on the spending directed towards local and or state or projects. As a result, this increases the political willingness of people towards the company. The report suggested that the company used approximately 11.9 million dollars as a contribution to the Republican Party committee and candidates. However, the political factor can also affect the business negatively. For example, in 2013, the company recorded lower sales due to delayed income tax refunds from the government (Hicks, Keil, and Spector, 2012, p. 311). Other factors to be considered under political environment include health, the war against terrorism and labor issues. Economic factors define the purchasing power of the company. Thus domestic and international economic factors affect the performance of the enterprise. These factors include insurance and transportation cost among others. Regarding technological influence, Wal-Mart remains to be a more productive and innovative company. For example, the company database management is the application of technology. Online marketing platform is also available.

Wal-Marts Marketing Intelligence and Research

Wal-Mart uses the phone, in person surveys and internet to capture the market research data and analyze the business performance while at the same time developing key marketing strategies. Walmarts NBO (New Buyer Online) enhances and improves customer purchases. This platform targets regular customers based on their everyday purchases (Hicks, Keil and Spector, 2012, p. 315). The company has therefore opted to gather information about its customers based on their profiles. The information available is then tailored to provide a potential market gap. Data collected here includes age, residential address and behavior data when that particular customer accesses the network. According to a recent research released, the company makes direct calls to the customers to ask them about their experience during a purchase. This strategy makes the company understand its customer preferences while improving customer relations.

The company analyzes approximately 100 million keywords daily of clients from different sources (Hicks, Keil and Spector, 2012, p. 316). The company has designed this data collection method as portrayed in the increased sales being experienced. To analyze the market, the company uses market-based analysis data to capture new markets. The data set kept by the firm allows it classify its customer's historical data based on the purchase. This market segmentation allows the company to use customized advertisements that allow a realization of a larger market. This extended market ensures that the intended products reach the target market to ensure increased sales and higher profit margins. Some...