Marketing mix implementation across countries in international service companies

Fortune 500 Company: Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart is known as a "super store" and a place to engage in one-stop shopping for the home and individual. For example, the store sells groceries and pet supplies, health and beauty items, crafts and school supplies, home repair tools and products, electronics, furniture for the home and yard, health and beauty supplies and has an in-store pharmacy, among many other products. However, the perspective of Sam Walton might be slightly different. Sam Walton might feel as though the goal and overall objective of Wal-Mart is to give the customer exactly what they want. As Walton said, "The secret of successful retailing is to give your customers what they want. And really, if you think about it from your point-of-view as a customer, you want everything: a wide assortment of good-quality merchandise; the lowest possible prices; guaranteed satisfaction with what you buy; friendly, knowledgeable service; convenient hours; free parking; a pleasant shopping experience" (Walmart.com, 2012). Essentially, Wal-mart could argue that aside from selling home/life goods in a one stop shopping environment, they also provide a pleasant shopping experience for the customer.

Aside from being open for business in all fifty states, Wal-Mart operates in 27 other countries such as close neighbors like Canada and Mexico to slightly further away neighbors like the United Kingdom, Argentina, Brazil, Chile and El Salvador, to distant areas like India, Japan, and South Africa.

4 P's Marketing Mix: Product

Wal-Mart's use of product in their marketing mix is very precise in the sense that they have everything: they are able to offer and sell the customer nearly everything that he or she might need. Some might argue that their products fall under the category of "general use" meaning they carry things you would find in a home, from dog food to TVs to basketball hoops. Aside from appealing to a large section of the needs of the general market, they also appeal to the bulk of the middle class: they invite people to enjoy savings.

Wal-Mart urges customers to purchase the products that customers love to buy -- the beloved and trusted brands that all customers have bought for years under one roof. This brings up another aspect of the product strategy that Wal-Mart has employed: it generally does not carry specialty items. Wal-Mart is not the place to look for hard to find, or terribly unique items. Wal-Mart is a store which appeals to mass interests and the middle of the road population: Wal-Mart uses its products, the wide array of products and the familiarity of their products as a means of creating mass appeal. This is a critical, strategic decision.

"Culture varies but human nature is the same everywhere. While it does not dictate the behavior of individuals, human nature does make them more inclined to act in one way or another… Rooting the brand promise in some aspect of human nature is likely to maximize the chance that it will work across countries, provided you can do so in a way that differentiates the brand from its competitors" (Hollis, 2008, p.34). This is precisely what Wal-Mart is doing in offering such a wide array of mid-level products for every household need: they're making their products appeal to some of the most fundamental needs of human nature, something which will transcend the various differences of the cultural backgrounds of people from their market.

Pricing

Likewise, Wal-Mart attempts to maintain an aspect of their mass appeal through their pricing strategy. The advertise that their prices are always low and sometimes even advertise price "rollbacks" when the prices get lower while customers are already in the store shopping. The mass appeal of low prices is obvious, as nearly everyone wants to enjoy low prices and looks for the best deal. However, because Wal-Mart carries name brand items, customers also know that they're not settling for a reduction in quality. The low prices can then appeal to everyone because everyone is getting the brands that they love and trust at prices that make them feel like they're saving. This is a successful strategy in several ways. Customers have peace of mind: they know they're not spending more than they have to and this is important, particularly the way the economy has been rather sluggish for the last few years. Furthermore, it also makes customers feel empowered: they feel like smart shoppers who have uncovered the best deal. This simply makes them feel good, and customers are going to want to return to a place that makes them feel good.

Placement

Wal-Mart has strategically used their strong decisions in product and pricing to help inform their placement. Their superstores are strategically placed in high traffic areas in suburban communities so that people who need general merchandising know they can go there for all of their shopping needs. Aside from consistently selecting high traffic areas like strip malls and plazas in popular suburban areas, Wal-Mart also tends to pick areas where they don't have any direct competitors (like Target) and that any other competitors can easily be stomped out or overwhelmed (such as ma and pa shops).

Wal-Mart has used a strategy of building up a strong reputation along with high visibility in order to drive shoppers inside. Other experts credit Wal-Mart with having a high degree of retailing sophistication: "Wal-Mart's regional hubs, linked to their stores by the latest in electronic communications, make it possible to keep inventories lean and fresh. This gives Wal-Mart a price edge as well as an inventory edge. They can turn their merchandise rapidly (a functions of lean inventories) and at the same time use their enormous purchasing power to drive down supplier prices" (Bangs, 2002, p.81).