Ch. 8 - Segmenting and Targeting Markets

The definition of market is people or organizations with needs or wants and the ability and willingness to buy. And the market segmentation plays an important role in marketing products to meet the needs of particular population segments. There are several types of consumers’ market segmentations: geographic, demographic, psychographic, benefit, and usage-rate segmentation. For Whole Foods Market, it mainly focuses on the benefit segmentation. As we all know that, Whole Foods Market is the leading market that selling natural and organic foods. Organic food has become the mantra of consumers who are aware of the dangers of pesticides, chemicals and hormones used in the growing and processing practices of the commercial food industry. Moreover, people are more and more concerned about the calories and nutrition that they take from their meal. Whole foods market mentions that this grouping of customers seeks the healthy benefits from eating these natural and organic foods. For instance, whole foods market produces the low fat foods regarding the situation that people are facing the problem of obesity. People pursue low dat diets for many reasons, including weight loss and disease prevention. Typically, the American diet derives 34% of its calories from fat. Low fat regimens usually prescribe fat intake of 10 to 20% of calories.

For strategies for selecting target market, whole foods market chooses the concentrated targeting. Concentrated targeting strategy used to select on segment of a market for targeting marketing efforts. The main target for whole foods market is college educated people because they are awareness of the important for taking natural and organic foods. So whole foods markets are mainly locates in the place where has large population of high educated people.

Ch. 11 - Developing and Managing Products

The term of market mix refers to a unique blend of product, place, promotion, and pricing strategies designed to produce matually satisfying exchanges with a target market. Typically, the marketing mix starts with the product p. the heart of the marketing mix, the starting point, is the product offering and product strategy.

New products are important to sustain growth, increase revenues and profits, and replace obsolete items. A new product is a product new to the world, the market, the producer, the seller, or some combination of these. And there are several steps for new products development. Firstly, the new product strategy focus and provides general guidelines for generating, screening, and evaluating new-product ideas. Secondly, idea generation is that gathering new idea about products mainly from customers, employees, distributors, competitors, vendors, research and development. Thirdly, idea screening eliminates ideas that are inconsistent with organization’s new product strategy or are obviously inappropriate for some other reason. Fourthly, business analysis figures for demand, cost, sales, and profitability are calculated.  Fifthly, development decides the product packaging, branding, labeling, and so forth. Sixthly, test marketing is the limit introduction of a product and a marketing program to determine the reaction of the potential customers in a market situation. Lastly, commercialization is the decision to market a product. A new kind of product can only be marketed well through this product process.

Ch. 16 - Integrated Marketing Communications

The role of promotion is important in the marketing mix. The ultimate goal of promotion is to get someone to buy a good or service or, in the case of nonprofit organization, to take some actions. Marketers use different strategies to achieve the promotion such as advertising, public relations, personal selling, and sales promotion. Using the promotion strategies is the vital way that marketers convince the consumers about their competitive advantages. For example, whole foods markets, convinces the consumers about their competitive advantage by advertising the high quality of their organic and natural foods. There is no doubt that it makes great sense for attracting consumers who want to have a healthy diet.

Moreover, promotional strategy is closely related to the process of communication. Communication is the process by which meanings are exchanged or shared through a common set of symbols. There are two types of the communication: interpersonal communication and mass communication. Whole foods market does well in the communication with customers. For the interpersonal communication, Whole foods market thinks highly of the personal selling. Employees can explain the new production to their customers face-to- face which is vital for customer to understand their productions well. A competitive advantage can sometimes be created by personal selling, or based on the extend and diversity of channels of distribution. Because the most important advantage is that personal selling is considerably more effective than other forms of promotion in obtaining a sale and gaining a satisfied customers. For the mass communication, the whole foods market also invest great amount of money on the advertising.

Furthermore, the AIDA concept is important for marketer to attain the promotional goals. Firstly, the attention, marketers must gain it from their target market. They need use different strategies to attract customers’ attention such as advertising so that people will know the existing of the products. Secondly, interest, simple awareness of a brand seldom leads to a sale. Thirdly, desire, finding what customers’ needs is the effective way for promotion. Lastly, action, motivating potential customers to take action to buy their products is the other important key.

Ch. 10 - Product Concepts

The term marketing mix refers to a unique blend of product, place, promotion, and pricing strategies designed to produce mutually satisfying exchanged with a target market. The heart of the marketing mix, the starting point, is the product offering and product offering and product strategy.

Product may be tangible good or services. For Whole foods market, product sold in the market is tangible goods. There are different types of consumer product such as convenience products, shopping products, specialty products, and unsought products. The products in Whole Foods Market are convenience products because they are relatively inexpensive item that merit little shopping effort. People buy products such as foods and flowers in Whole Foods Market everyday without much planning.

Whole Foods Market sells variety kinds of product. In order to organize the product item well and make convenient for customers shopping in the market, Whole Foods Market uses the product line to classify products. For product mix width, the numbers of product lines in Whole Foods Market are organic vegetable, fruit, body care, and supplements. For product line depth, Whole Foods Market also provides different product items in products line. For example, the products in body care line in Whole Foods Market are lotion, shampoo, conditioner, and soap.

Branding is the vital tool marketer use to distinguish their product form the other competitors. For Whole Foods Market, they use the family brand because they market several products under the same brand name- Whole Foods. For example, Whole Foods Market markets bread, yogurt and beverage under the same brand – Whole Foods Market.

Moreover, Whole Foods Market also cares much about the package. As marketers, package makes an important role in the process of selling. Beautiful package is no doubt can attract more customers’ attention.  Whole Foods Market expands green packaging, beging with private lable. Whole foods markey has implementes new responsible packaging guidelines for its 2100 body care and supplements suppliers, and is leading the charge toward change by switching to post-consumer recycled content bottles for several of its store brand supplemnets and body care products.

Ch. 18 - Sales Promotion and Personal Selling

Sales promotion is marketing communication activity that motivates consumers purchasing a good pr service within a short-term. And sales promotion is usually targeted toward either of two distinctly different marketers. Whole foods market does use different tools for consumer sales promotion.

Coupon is an effective tool to promote the selling. A coupon is a certificate that entitles consumers to an immediate price reduction when they buy the product. Whole foods market provides several special coupons on their official website; consumers can print out the coupon and get price deduction when they use them. There are supplement coupon, cleanser coupon, and foods coupon which is no surprise that they would satisfy different customers need and attract more customers.  Moreover, Whole foods market also uses the sampling to attract more customers. Sampling allows the customers to try a product risk free. When we go in to Whole foods market, there are usually several sampling displayed in whole foods retail stores for customers to try their production. I can directly say that sampling is a really excellent way to promote consumer purchasing. I have that experience that when I try the sampling in Whole foods market such as snacks that really incentives me to buy that production if I like that taste.

For personal selling, Whole foods market realize that personal selling is as whole food employees. For some types of productions, personal selling is a critical tool especially for some new productions. Employees can explain the new production to their customers which is vital for customer to understand their productions well. A competitive advantage can sometimes be created by personal selling, or based on the extend and diversity of channels of distribution. Because the most important advantage is that personal selling is considerably more effective than other forms of promotion in obtaining a sale and gaining a satisfied customers.

                                       

Ch. 17 - Advertising

As the marketing competition becomes more and more fiercely, advertising becomes more and more important for companies to maintain brand awareness and market share. Whole foods market is leading market for selling natural and organic foods. Because of the high quality of these foods, their prices are also higher than normal foods. Many people do not realize the benefit from eating these organic foods so they prefer to spend less money on the normal foods. And the target market is just limited in educational college residences. However, Whole Foods Market realizes the advertising is a good way to improve people the awareness of the benefits from eating organic and natural foods.

Moreover, Whole Foods Market is also focusing on the product advertising. The product advertising promotes the benefit of a special goods and service. In the Whole Foods Website, it has the advertisement shows that the 365 everyday product. It says that their product can fill customers pantry without empting their pocketbook. It also advertise that this kind of production are formulated too meet all their quality standards, come in both natural and organic selections.

Whole foods market is also focusing on the advertising strategies. Advertising strategies are typically organized around an advertising campaign. And advertising campaign is a series of related advertisements focusing on a common theme, slogan, and set of advertising appeals. As the summer time is coming, whole foods markets advertises the summer meals and outdoor meals for this special period-summer time.

                                 

 

Ch. 15 - Retailing

Whole Foods Markets are all retail store that all activities related to the sale of goods for personal use. For the retail operations, whole foods markets retail stores are classified as a chain store because the whole foods market is owned and operate by whole food markets. Under this form of ownership, many administrative tasks are handled by the home office for the entire chain. Whole foods markets have many retail stores that located in different states such New York, California, and Alabama.

For retail operation, whole foods market is defined as supermarket. Supermarkets are large, departmentalized, self-service retailers that specialized in foods and some nonfood item. Whole foods markets mainly sell organic and natural foods. The characteristics of supermarkets are low level of service, broad of product assortment, moderate price, and low gross margin.

Whole foods market also use retail marketing strategy to make great profit such as m-commerce. Whole foods market mobile website is eCommerce Enable ans allowes to search, browes and order products using their smart phones. Customers are getting comfortable with mobile commerce-brands needs to keep up.

CH.7-BUSINESS MARKETING

Business marketing is the  marketing of goods and services to individual and organizations for purpose other than perosnal consuption.

The internet is playing an inportant role in business marketing nowdays.It is 2011 and mobile websites have become a "must have" for retailers. Customers are walking with their internet enables mobile phones in their pockets. Making customers' information and storefront available to customers' anytime/anywhere is criticle.Whole Foods moblie website is eCommerce Enable ans allowes to search,browes and order products using their smartphones. Customers are getting comfortable with mobile commerce-brands need to keep up.

Whole foods market also focus on the relationship marketing and strategic alliance

Ch. 6 - Consumer Decision Making

Customers are the foundation for the companies of the development of productions. In order to make a proper marketing mix, companies have to understand consumer behaviors. There are several stages for marketers to make well decision for making profits.

The first stage in the consumer decision-making process is need recognition. for this stage, we need to know the Want and Stimulus for customers to buy the productions. For Whole Foods Company, the Want for customers to buy food is that customers want to eat healthy natural and organic food. For the Stimulus for customers to buy foods in Whole Foods Market, there are internal and external stimulus. For the external stimulus, customers buy food in the Whole Foods Market because the influence of the advertisements.

After recognizing a need, customers search for information about various alternative available to satisfied it. there are two information search: internal information external information search. For the internal information search is that people to buy the foods in whole foods market again because their experience direct them to buy these foods. For the external information, customers buy their productions because of the other people recommend them to buy these things.

The third stage is evaluation of alternatives. Whole Foods Market is a leading foods company focus on selling organic and natural foods. After the recognition and collecting of information, customers may decide what productions they would buy. Because the high standard of Whole Foods production, customer prefer to buy the more healthy foods in whole foods market.

The fourth stage is the action of purchase.

The final step is the postpurchase behavior. According on the whole foods annual report, productions from whole foods market satisfy and delight the customers so much.

Ch. 5 - Developing a Global Vision

Whole Foods Market is the leading foods company focusing on providing natural and organic foods in American society. As the target markets throughout the world, global market has become an imperative for business, and Whole foods market consider to trade abroad now.

Whole Foods Market has subbranches in Alabama, Arizona, California, and New York. As the global market plays an important role in the companies’ economic development, Whole Foods Market expands their shops abroad. Right now, Whole foods market has stores in Canada and Unite kingdom. As time goes on, Whole Foods market will open more stores in these two countries.

What is more, Whole Foods Market also provides job opportunities to the other countries people. And they also provide special foods into Canada and United Kingdom’s market in order to make profits.

Ch. 4 - The Marketing Environment

Whole Foods Market' target market does not just aim at a single group but to all people.
As beinging,Whole Foods Market' target market is a large number of college educated residents. Whole Foods Market knows that their foods price are more expensive than the other normal foods because they mainly sell the organic and natural foods. As a result, they think that the college educated residents who have disposable income are more interested in the benifits of eating natural and organic foods. However, Whole Foods Market's target market changed with the social factors and economic factors changed in American Society. For example, they produce The Summer Deal to customers family and finance. As the social factor changed, people are more care about high quality life. And summer is the best season people consider to go out with family to enjoy the outdoor activities.So Whole Foods Market produced The Summer Deal, they are on the meal with the best meats for grilling, the best ingredients for simple suppers, the best summer skin care and the best value for customers' buck. As the economic depression, Whole Foods Market also provides the $45 coupon to attract more customers.

Ch. 3 - Ethics & Social Responsibility

The ethics of whole foods market

Whole foods market, the leading natural and organic company, has been recognized as the “World’s Most Ethical Companies”. Whole foods market locates the code of ethics at the core position of the company. “Our core values are the very heart of the business philosophy that drives Whole Foods Market’s unique culture, growth and success,” said Michael Besancon, Whole Foods Market senior global vice president of purchasing, distribution and marketing. “We base all of our business practices on our passion for natural and organic foods, our commitment to our communities and our respect for the planet. We are honored to be recognized by Ethisphere as a company with a conscience.”

The social responsibility of whole foods company

The whole foods company not only is concerned about the long-term profitability but also the social responsibility. Whole foods market focus a lot on for protecting environment and  caring about communities. Whole foods market have taken many actions to achieve the social responsibility through thirty years.

 Organics

Organics is at the root of everything they do. Organic agriculture produces food that promotes the health of consumers, farmers and the earth, with an eye to maintaining that health far into the future. Organic farming is a hopeful enterprise, practiced with compassion and empathy for the land and the creatures upon it.

CARING ABOUT OUR COMMUNITIES & OUR ENVIRONMENT

Sustainable Agriculture

They support organic farmers, growers and the environment through our commitment to sustainable agriculture and by expanding the market for organic products.

Wise Environmental Practices

They respect our environment and recycle, reuse, and reduce our waste wherever and whenever we can.

Community Citizenship

They recognize our responsibility to be active participants in our local communities. We give a minimum of 5% of our profits every year to a wide variety of community and non-profit organizations.

Integrity In All Business Dealings

They trade partners are our allies in serving our stakeholders. We treat them with respect, fairness and integrity at all times and expect the same in return.

CH.2-Strategic Planning for Competitive Advantage

Whole Foods Market was the biggest retailer of organic and natural foods in the world. It was also credited with popularizing natural and organic foods by becoming the first retailer to sell them under a supermarket format. Although WFM was not the only retailer selling natural and organic foods in the US, it was the most successful, with one of the strongest growth rates in the industry.

This case discusses the factors that contributed to WFM's success over the years. It talks about how the company grew by differentiating itself from competitors through its unique value proposition and commitment to natural foods.

It also talks about how WFM managed to build a strong brand by offering an unmatched in-store experience, and promoted itself by converting customers into brand ambassadors.

The case also analyses the unique aspects of the organizational culture at WFM, and how they might have helped the company in its growth. It also mentions the criticisms against WFM, especially with regard to its strategy of charging premium prices. The case concludes with a commentary on the future plans of WFM and the increasing competition from other retailers.

» To examine the factors behind the growth and profitability of a major natural and organic foods retailer in the US.

» To analyze the strategy adopted by the retailer to differentiate itself from the competition

» To study how the retailer managed to create a valuable brand by providing an unmatched in-store experience.

» To analyze how culture can be a source of competitive advantage for a company.

» To study the future prospects of the retailer in light of increasing competition and its own shortcomings.

» To suggest possible future courses of action through which the retailer can maintain an edge over the competition

WHOLE FOODS MARKET INC MISSION STATEMENT

The following list of core values reflects what is truly important to us as an organization. These are not values that change from time to time, situation to situation or person to person, but rather they are the underpinning of our company culture. Many people feel Whole Foods is an exciting company of which to be a part and a very special place to work. These core values are the primary reasons for this feeling, and they transcend our size and our growth rate. By maintaining these core values, regardless of how large a company Whole Foods becomes, we can preserve what has always been special about our company. These core values are the soul of our company.

• Selling the highest quality natural and organic products available
• Satisfying and delighting our customers
• Supporting team member happiness and excellence
• Creating wealth through profits & growth
• Caring about our communities & our environment
• Creating ongoing win-win partnerships with our suppliers.

BRIEF HISTORY OF WHOLE FOODS MARKET

Whole Foods Market was founded in Austin, Texas, when four local businesspeople decided the natural foods industry was ready for a supermarket format. Our founders were John Mackey and Renee Lawson Hardy, owners of Safer Way Natural Foods, and Craig Weller and Mark Skiles, owners of Clarksville Natural Grocery. The original Whole Foods Market opened in 1980 with a staff of only 19 people. It was an immediate success. At the time, there were less than half a dozen natural food supermarkets in the United States. We have grown by leaps and bounds since our first store opened.

The Early Years

In 1978, twenty-five year old college dropout John Mackey and twenty-one year old Rene Lawson Hardy, borrowed $45,000 from family and friends to open the doors of a small natural foods store called SaferWay in Austin, Texas (the name being a spoof of Safeway, which operated stores under their own name in Austin at that time). When the couple got booted out of their apartment for storing food products there, they decided to simply live at the store. Since it was zoned commercial, there was no shower stall. Instead, they bathed in the Hobart dishwasher, which had an attached water hose.

Two years later, John and Rene partnered with Craig Weller and Mark Skiles to merge SaferWay with their Clarksville Natural Grocery, resulting in the opening of the original Whole Foods Market on September 20, 1980. At 10,500 square feet and a staff of 19, this store was quite large in comparison to the standard health food store of the time.

Less than a year later, on Memorial Day in 1981, the worst flood in 70 years devastated the city of Austin. Caught in the flood waters, the store's inventory was wiped out and most of the equipment was damaged. The losses were approximately $400,000 and Whole Foods Market had no insurance. Customers and neighbors voluntarily joined the staff to repair and clean up the damage. Creditors, vendors and investors all provided breathing room for the store to get back on its feet and it re-opened only 28 days after the flood.

Expansion

Beginning in 1984, Whole Foods Market began its expansion out of Austin, first to Houston and Dallas and then into New Orleans with the purchase of Whole Food Company in 1988. In 1989, we expanded to the West Coast with a store in Palo Alto, California. While continuing to open new stores from the ground up, we fueled rapid growth by acquiring other natural foods chains throughout the 90's: Wellspring Grocery of North Carolina, Bread & Circus of Massachusetts and Rhode Island, Mrs. Gooch's Natural Foods Markets of Los Angeles, Bread of Life of Northern California, Fresh Fields Markets on the East Coast and in the Midwest, Florida Bread of Life stores, Detroit area Merchant of Vino stores, and Nature's Heartland of Boston.

Whole Foods Market started our third decade with additional acquisitions of Food for Thought in Northern California and Harry's Farmers Market stores in Atlanta. In 2001, Whole Foods moved into Manhattan, generating a good deal of interest from the media and financial industries. 2002 saw an expansion into Canada and in 2004, Whole Foods Market entered the United Kingdom with the acquisition of seven Fresh & Wild stores.