During the December quarter of 2016, Macy Inc.'s in-store sales dropped (the eighth consecutive quarterly decline) by 2.1%. However, in an effort to increase overall sales - not just in-store sales - Macy's outlined a plan to close dozens of their stores and focus on catering to a technology-savvy generation by increasing online sales.
Many department stores are realizing digital platforms have become a priority in the retail business and thus prioritized this facet in their respective marketing strategies. In evaluating their marketing mix, Macy's intends to test new concepts in order to increase their future sales - promotion being the biggest concern. It was noted that many customers do their research before even leaving their house to purchase a product - which meant less customers making their decisions while physically in the store. This points at a need to increase their online promotion and branding in order to draw in those more organized customers.
Narrowing down to their best opportunities, Macy's obviously intends to gain a competitive advantage over other department stores and provide their target customers (in this case, online shoppers or researchers) superior customer value. Macy's executives emphasized that 2017 "would be a year for testing new concepts before rolling them out nationally. That includes new merchandise and entertainment options, enhanced technology, updated marketing and a simplified pricing structure." These company objectives provide guidelines for Macy's future development; they should be engaging in specific activities to better understand their refocused target market and thus strengthen their marketing strategy.
Erin Larson
MKTG 3343
https://www.wsj.com/articles/macys-profit-tops-views-despite-stumbling-sales-1487686108
No comments:
Post a Comment