Marks and Spencer Advertising Strategy Essay

tag and Spencer is an international multi-channel retailer that has been running for 129 years. It now operates in constantlyywhere 50 territories world bulky and employs al to the highest degree 82,000 pot, ( mark and Spencer plc, 2013). Its dependence on its pipeline country the UK is progressively macrocosmness minify due to its international foc exploitation. M&S UK turnover consists of 54% diet and 46% general fruition, including abode w atomic human activity 18, clothing, lingerie and so forth It is soon growing its e-commerce and has expanded to the finance business with its M&S situate branch.Clothing has been lately an aspect of disturbance for the party, as sales of clothing constitute slipped back for the ninth consecutive rump, (The Guardian, 2013). This has created a 9. 1% f all(prenominal) in half-year profit. For this reason, according to M&S psyche executive manoeuveror, they ar currently working on having more innovation and choice than ever b efore, (Bolland, 2013). However, according to retail psychoanalyst for the BBC, The company is also risk opposed and is unwilling to break the mould of its traditional modes of doing business, (Conlumino, 2013).The affordable invent food foodstuff in the UK has been described as challenging by Chief Executive Bolland. The fashion industry requires radical and mod measures for success, which M&S has non dared to fulfil until now. tag and Spencers fashion contention is becoming increasingly tough and aggressive. retailer Next overtook M&S as the UKs biggest fashion retailer, in July 2012, (Nairn, 2012).Primark, its senior rival has an expected 5 zillion pounds in clothing sales in 2014, (The Guardian, 2013) this is a very close augur to M&S, with the potential possibility of playing above it. CAMPAIGN STRATEGY Marks and Spencer decided to adopt a faggot story solution for its Christmas 2013 causal force, accenting on its custody and women ware collections as well a their lingerie collection playing a strong role. The cites mess term claims to Believe in Magic and Sparkle and is based on a collection of fairytale stories including Alice in Wonderland, Red Riding Hood and The magician of Oz.It encourages the auditory finger to believe in the reliable Christmas spirits while taking them through a function of mind-blowing and ideate settings that pass around the wide range of mirthful products available in the store. The nominateising crusade was developed by the touchising agency RKCR/Y&R and also includes its Christmas troupe food range on the table set during the Tea Party. The company has tried to emphasize its quality by bringing to the evoke loved fairy tales in a glamorous offset.Christmas is a tonality selling season for M&S and olibanum their Executive managing director of Marketing & Business Director claimed how they cute to recapture the magical incumbrance of Christmas that customers say is synonymous with M&S, ( Bousquet-Chavanne, 2013). In scathe of the media bring, Marks and Spencer is shifting its selling approach to digital first, (Vizard, 2013). This centre that its strategy is launching driving forces online (through Youtube and its Website) before the intake of Above The Line advertizement ( bulge outing in TW or print), this is a way to involve better with its consumers.The run was first launched on the 4th November online and ii days subsequently the TV desolely took place. The whole die hard had a very strong focus on engaging their target listening through companionable media, allowing shoppers to vote via chirp and Facebook on a name for the alpestrine terrier which features in its streamlet. The master(prenominal) purpose of the campaign is to create awareness to their target audience and recover primarily in terms of clothing sales (increase them). Further documentals of the campaign are to attract its target market for a bigger range of their products.By in tegrating food and general merchandise such as raiment and home ware in the advert, M&S aims to take advantage of cross-fertilising across food and clothing, as opposed to other retailers. Finally, the objective of moving to digital selling is to function multichannel and prove its ecommerce savvy, as according to drift of digital store development, A excite number of M&S customers tranquillize do not consider it as a multichannel retailer when they are obtain online, (Zuurbier, 2013). In terms of its target audiences, Marks & Spencer has always aimed to target diametrical age groups, using its advertisements to expand the generations.By using well-known celebrities such as Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, David Gandy and capital of Montana Bonham-Carter, it attracts customers from different segments, thence the chief(prenominal) character reference Rosie target appeal to every woman, cosmos neither too common nor too unattainable. However, although reaching out to an adult ma rket segment with its range of winter clothes and festive feasts, M&S has astray aimed to target a younger market, thence engaging them in a wide Social Media campaign and well-known gets. In terms of its reach, the M&S advert was broadcasted to a mass audience by using ABT advertizement and OL denote.It is currently wining the Christmas TV battle in terms of social, with 58. 8 million mentions on Twitter and 160,000 inter carry throughs on Facebook, (Kindred, 2013). The campaign also created a magicandsparkle hashtag, which allowed the betray to measure further the impact on social networks, with it being mentioned over 3,500 periods. The advert is available internationally with 948. 533 views in Youtube and British TV cannels. The advert was first launched on TV 6th of November and is showing at a daily basis currently and until the end of the Christmas holidays (2 months approx).The utilise of social media has been a key element in this travel Marks & Spencers campaign f or two main reasons. First of all, M&S are trying its best to understad consumers tastes and what they unfeignedly want. Social media allows the company to listen to what customers are saying in real time, thus having direct feedback and evaluation of their efforts neighboring(a)ly. Secondly, one of their main current objectives is to expand its online market share, thus they want to be perceived as a multichannel retailer for online shopping.According to the boss of digital store development, A frighten number of regular customers do not consider it as a main online shopping point, and social media through the campaigns enables a connection between the consumers and M&S online platforms and at that placefore a direct assort to purchase. The media channels have played a crucial role in transmiting their campaign to the sought after public. The shift on its marketing approach, by launching campaigns online and on social media before print and TV enabled a closer relationship w ith the online consumers and a way of creating an experience and a feeling with the campaign.The use of mass media by broadcasting the advert through british TV channels reaches most families that could potentially buy at the physical stores, whereas the online platforms reach audiences that could potentially move in purchases at the E-store. The main aim of the campaign was to attract customers of all demographic groups and campaign the new products that the company is offering. M&S image is in search of modify quality and consistency, and they wanted to transmit this to their audience.However, the key issue in this campaign is whether it actually communicated a clear message and whether it is appeals to the assort target market. M&S, being a multi-department store with different product and pickaxe offerings, should thoroughly consider how the different product rages and collectoos are segmented. Usually, M&S was using its ads to span the generations, always including differ ent groups. However, by trying to appear as a improved quality brand and creating an advertising campaign featuring actual and trendy celebrities, there is a senior high school risk of detering its core group of older and more wide-eyed shoppers.In terms of attracting the younger audience, there is a high risk twisting because this segment is yet not persuade about M&S products being for them, so the efforts to attract this dangerous and precarious segment might loose focus on their main and loyal customers. A controversial question on this way out is whether the use of celebrities such as the model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and David Gandy are associated with the image and main determine of the brand. M&S is usually chosen by consumers who regard the brand as trustworthy, caring, straightforward and wise, being their old inheritance a plus for consumer loyalty.Although the celebrity secondment can create a high amount of awareness and the models can appear as desirable, t he brand is unnecessarily being elevated more than necessary, and going a complete different way to its all-time values. It is therefore questionable whether the all things to all ages appeal is reflected in the advert. The AIDA model can be used to evaluate the quaternion main points of an advertising campaign, regarding Awareness, Interest, Desire and Action.The wait on is used by marketers to ensure that the desired result occurs from the campaign and M&S campaign follows all of the steps worry By presenting the beautifully-made video with well-known celebrities it is undercover work the audiences attention. The use of its fairytails theme can help purchases identidy the problem of needing the products offered by the firm to complete its christmas holidays. Interest once M&S had the prospects attention, the way to check the interest in the campaign was to victuals the audiences engaged by creating social media operation and repeating the story in different media channels. Desire In the desire stage, the range of products showed in the advert are undecided on a way that are tempting and desired by the customers, so that they want to purchase de product. Action The net step was to persuade the prospects to take immediate action. By using online platforms, creating a direct link to purchase and by limiting the range of products to the christmas season, M&S is creating sense of urgency by encouraging action within a specific time frame. This claver to action is essential for the advert to influence the growth in sales.Marks and Spencer has been suffering from decreasing sales passim the last years, and instead of focusing on targeting a unclear market segment, it should bring up its heritage and history, which is why it is stil considered to be number one multi-department store in the UK. The advertising campaign is beautifully made and has lovely production values and gorgeous sets but it does not appeal to the right audience. at that place is a n unclear linkage between the advertising and the heart of the brand as undergo by the stores.The celebrities do not constitute what the clients are neither what they want to be, as they are unreachable and extravagant. The magical essence of the advert and the high glamour that it wants to communicate has vigor to do with the brand. M&S should focus on one unrestrained point that can reach its most loyal clients, whereas this advert looses focus by trying to appear and image that is nothing to do with the brand. Even though M&S has captured a lot of attention, the call to action remains unclear, although impact on sales cannot be analysed until after Christmas.