Question 1: B&D leads in two product segments, but trails in the third. Why?
Answer: It seems from the case that there are several reasons why B&D leads in Professional-Industrial and Consumer product segments, but trails in the Professional-Tradesmen segment. It is also clear from the tests performed by Black & Decker that their products were at comparable, or even better at some cases, quality.
Branded as Home Tools: It appears that professional-tradesmen did not want to use the same tools that housewives used at homes (Black & Decker). Tradesmen viewed Black & Decker tools more for home use than being subjected to demands of the job site. This was a perception issue that was hurting Black & Decker big way.
Distribution Channel: It is also evident from the data (Exhibit 2) that Black & Decker lacked in capitalizing one of the most profitable distribution channels i.e. Membership Club. On the other hand, Makita who distributed its product through membership clubs, in which Black & Decker did not take part in, proved to be very successful channel (85%) for Makita.
Color: I believe that the unremarkable grey color did not help Black & Decker. The color was another factor that was strongly linked to the Black & Decker’s image. The color factor was very clearly demonstrated by lab tests and also by the comments from professional-tradesmen.
Multiple Segments: Black & Decker was involved with three different segments Professional-Industrial, Professional-Tradesmen, and Consumer. On the other hand, Makita (who entered the market in 1978) focused on only one segment of the market while B&D focused on three.
Question 2: Describe the salient psychological features of the tradesman’s buying behavior (values & need states).
Answer: This is
Tradesmen seem to believe that Black & Decker’s brand is for Consumer use only. They are well aware of the brand, but regard it as the brand that is more suitable for the tools used at home.
As Black & Decker holds about 45% of the consumer market, it has very good brand recognition. In a tradesmen’s mind the association of Black & Decker with consumer segment is so high that they feel that Black & Decker is for home use only and it is not rugged enough to be used professionally.
Need:
Strong tools, that can be used professionally
Value: They ne...
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...disassociation from Black & Decker brand
· Introduction of a Black & Decker’s one of the stable brands (DeWalt) that has no negative association
· DeWalt got 70 % awareness rating. This in turn means that Black & Decker will not have to spend money to establish a new brand
· DeWalt also achieved an “One of the best” agreement percentage of 63%
· Also scored 58% on the purchase interest by tradesmen in “DaWalt-Serviced and Distributed by Black & Decker’
Cons:
· It seems that every one at Black & Decker takes a great pride in the #7 “brand Power” position of the Black & Decker name. It will be a challenge to sell the option at Black & Decker.
· Linkage of aggressive objectives of doubling the Black & Decker’s Professional-Tradesmen segment share from 9% to about 20%
I strongly suggest that Joseph Galli should drop the Black and Decker name from the Professional-Tradesmen segment, sell the products in this category under the DeWalt brand and build more brand awareness for DeWalt
Stirling Bridge had been a thriving power tool business for over 100 years. The company had sold and distributed power tools and equipment all over the U.S., Europe, and third world countries. Recently one of Stirling Bridge’s top selling products, the Braveheart power tool line, came under attack when consumer agencies conducted research and found many consumers who purchased the power tools were experiencing significant harm and personal injury after use. Stirling Bridge (STIRLING BRIDGE) had identified potential safety concerns with their power tools and hired an independent research company to investigate why consumers were being injured using their power tools, well before the company came under the attack of public agencies.
Their committing strategy to provide excellence in customer service and deliver quality products has brought them leading market share in the industry. Konica is providing them with quality products at competitive prices enable them competition within the market along big names like Xerox, Sharp and Canon. Customers base their purchase primarily on service and dealer reputation and Daytun's commitment to these factors has helped them grow in the market. The industry is maturing and future growth opportunity within London is under question. Competitors are aiming to increase market share through aggressive pricing, which can, consequently affect Daytun's sales (See Exhibit 2).
Home Depot is the brainchild of Bernard Marcus and Arthur Blank and came about after both men lost their job in the home improvement industry in 1978 (Parnell, 2014). Home Depot has acquired several smaller home improvement stores in both the U.S. and abroad through the years which enabled it to position itself as the world’s largest home improvement chain (Parnell, 2014). Home Depot focuses on the do-it-yourself segment of the market and sells sells tools, construction products and services. Marketing is a strong point for the company. They are able to maintain a competitive advantage by keeping themselves available to their customers at all times. Home Depot has been using both online and offline marketing efforts. The internet has become a very useful tool for the company and part of the reason that they are leading the market in DIY stores. Home Depot currently provides DIY videos on YouTube and Vine that cover current topics that consumers are likely to be interested in. They also have social media pages on Facebook and Twitter, where they have a huge following. They provide online communities where actual employees answer consumer’s questions and provide assistance on
Opening its doors for the first time in 1946, Lowe’s is now the second largest home improvement chain in the world, operating over 1,800 stores in the United States, generating $56.2 billion in sales and $2.6 billion in net income for 2014 (Lowes Newsroom, 2015). Employing around 265,000 personal making them one of the top employers in the nation, there is no question that Lowe’s must be doing something right. According to Lowes Newsroom, “Lowe’s professional customers represent approximately 30 percent of total sales, approximately 16 million retail and professional customers are served each week. (2015, para 3) “Never Stop Improving”, is Lowe’s slogan; encouraging employees and customers to work together to maximize their in store
Caterpillar Inc. - Strengths and Weaknesses Caterpillar Inc., sought to better determine customer demand by leveraging the Internet. Using i2 Demand Chain Management, Caterpillar created an online dealer storefront that is accessible to both dealers and end customers, and the company has expanded its sales coverage, reduced the cost of sale, and increased productivity. Caterpillar’s Building Constructions Product Division needed to predict and rapidly respond to customer demand. The company wanted to empower its dealer network to provide the highest levels of service to the end customer. Company executives knew that the Internet was critical to their strategy. Caterpillar wanted to leverage the Internet to provide more visibility into customer buying habits. In doing so, it could save millions of dollars in inventory by building and configuring those products that customers demand, rather than stocking excess inventory. The company wanted to promote specific product lines and associated work tools using a combination of traditional (dealer) and nontraditional (Internet) channels th...
Lowe’s employs more than 260,000 people in more than 1830 stores; these employees are trained to provide exceptional customer service as well as receiving up-to-date product knowledge to assist customers with their improvement needs. In addition, Lowe’s has upgraded store information technology infrastructure to assist employees in accessing product data faster and easier. This is accomplished by providing the sales team with computers that have Internet access, and Ipad’s and Iphone’s loaded with specialized apps (Lowes, 2014).
Lowe’s is leading the way by example. Lowe’s believes that creating long-term partnerships is a win-win situation for both sides of the deal. Lowe’s is the second largest home appliance retailer in the country, by working hand in hand for twenty-six years with Whirlpool, the largest marketer and manufacturer of home appliances. Whirlpool and Lowe’s have worked together to become unmatched in bringing their customers a high quality product and a very low competitive price. Through a tremendous logistical effort Whirlpool and Lowe’s have created a one of a kind Innovation Tour. A semi-trailer transforms itself into a functioning kitchen to show customers cutting edge appliances that will be available at Lowe’s in the future from Whirlpool and Kitchen Aid. As Lowe’s motto states, Lowe’s truly is “Improving Home Improvement”. (http://www.businesswire.com/)
In 1978, when two executives Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank received news they were fired from their jobs at Handy Dan Home Improvement Centers, they decided to take something negative and turn it into an opportunity. They put their experience and knowledge of the business and industry together and developed a business plan to create a chain of home-improvement warehouses. Their idea was to create a business which would be larger and more profitable than any of their competitors. So in 1979, one year after being fired, they acquired their funding and opened three stores in Atlanta which they branded with the name Home Depot. Today, Home Depot is the world’s largest home improvement chain and second-largest retailer after Wal-Mart, operating approximately 2,250 stores throughout the Americas (Parnell, 2014).
The company had to be the second largest retailer shop in the US; it has many advantages that come along. The customers well acknowledge the company and its brand have been well established.
Sears does have a fairly good reputation despite the bad press that they may have received because of problems they have had with the federal government. If they can keep out of trouble and try to keep their reputation clean, they should be able to leave these problems behind them. People will forget unless they run into similar problems again.
Behind every product manufactured there are parts, fasteners, gloves, welds, holes that are drilled, and maybe a headache or two. These are all products that are sold and manufactured by the companies W.W. Grainger and Fastenal Company. Both of these companies are in the top ten in revenue for the industrial supply industry and I just so happen to work at one of them, that being Fastenal Co. The industrial supply industry generates about $73 billion in revenue and has a growth rate of 4.4% a year and employs about 95,000 people, according to IBIS World.
(Reingold, 2014) Nardelli had a hard edge and was driven by the numbers, whereas Blake preferred a management style of a service culture. He wanted engaged employees who excited customers with their knowledge of the latest tools and products available for purchase. He wanted to dominate the professional contracting business. He realized that employee morale is an important factor in the retail business. “He slowed store growth to focus on quality over quantity.”(Reingold, 2014) He spent money to train associates. He was determined to build a sense of pride among the associates. He felt that the training would provide for better customer service.5 Blake believed that customer service was the key to Home Depots ability to succeed. (Aluise,
BHP Billiton is the most successful company throughout the world by using unchanged strategies in their business. They have a strategy to operate large, low cost, expandable, and upstream commodities by using raw materials, geography, different assets and market, which give them a superior marginal costs throughout economic and commodity cycles for several years. They put the security of their workers first and supporting them by providing various facilities (see appendix 1). Their diversification makes the easy cash flow system by reducing the exposure to any one commodity and give for more identifiable and great financial performances. To become more successful BHP have heaps of human resources or workforce which reflect their values and communities. They have aim to recruit and attract other people who make their organization successful and thrive on working in teams and going to their extra miles to give their best. Moreover, they are committed to meet the changing needs of their customers. They have world class portfolio of growth option that will make them able to plan for a short term and long term goals and continuing them to create value for their shareholders which BHP more powerful (BHP Billiton, 2014). By using these all measures BHP Billiton kept its solid position in the nine month period till the end of March 2014 with the record of production attained for four items and at 10 operations. In aggregate, processing expanded by 10% for throughout the period what's more is required to develop by 16% over the two years to the end of the 2015 fiscal year. For further development BHP having a plan to start new projects where they pursuing a higher rate of returns on incremental investment and increasing inter...
Sharp’s business philosophy is to focus on developing innovative products to benefit people and society. However, for much of its history, the company was too small to successfully develop and market its own new products and instead relied on imitating others. Only recently has the company grown large enough to be able to research and develop innovative new technologies and products that truly differentiate it from its competitors.
withstanding a large recession, and commanding high market share. In the last five years, the company’s