1.

Importance of Strategic Marketing:

According to Peter Drucker (1973), Strategic Marketing can be defined as a methodology
comprising of: investigating natural, market focused and business elements influencing the
enterprise and its business units, recognizing market opportunities and dangers and
anticipating future patterns in business territories of enthusiasm for the undertaking , and
partaking in setting goals and forming corporate and business unit methodologies, selecting
market target procedures for the item markets in every business unit. (Mongay, 2006)
Hart & Stapleton (1977) further believe that, strategic marketing can be seen as creating
marketing destinations and also creating, executing and dealing with the marketing program
situating methodologies so as to meet market target needs. an announcement in extremely
general terms of how the marketing target is to be attained to, e.g. obtaining an aggressive
organization, by value decreases, by item change, or by escalated advertising. The method
turns into the premise of the marketing arrangement. (Mongay, 2006)
With the above two explanations of Marketing Strategy in mind, we will formulate an
effective marketing strategy for XYZ Sports Express.
2. Introduction:
XYZ Sports Express is in the business of manufacturing sports shoes locally and supplies its
products both domestically as well as internationally. The target market for XYZ Sports
Express is young people, in the age group of 14 to 25, who have an active physical life. The
ideal customer at XYZ Sports Express is into fitness and sports. He or she likes to work out
and sweat it either in the gym or on the field. In addition to sport shoes, the company also
manufactures sporty shoes which are fashionable and ideal for casual occasions, such as a
school party or an evening with friends.

3. Role of Strategic Marketing at XYZ Sports Express:

XYZ Sports Express has a great role for strategic marketing. While the importance of
strategic management can never diminish, it especially holds true in our company. We look to
allocate the maximum resources we can to formulate an effective marketing strategy, by
combining the various factors in our objectives. We first set our desired goals, then analyse
how we can achieve our goals through optimal utilization of our resources and form a
strategy accordingly. The strategy is focussed on being properly implemented and at various
stages of implementation; proper control measures and evaluations are done in order to verify
the effectiveness of the implemented strategy. If some modifications are required, the strategy
is thus tweaked as strategies formed at XYZ are normally kept relatively flexible.
4. Process of developing and managing an effective strategy:

Market
Segmentation

Evaluation
IDentification
of Target
market
Product
Positioning

Product
Development

Formulation
Pricing
Pricing

Manufacture or
Outsource

Implementa
People
tion and
Control
Promotion

Distribution

The core of the process of developing and managing the strategy at XYZ Sports Express is
largely based on the 7Ps of Marketing which will be discussed in detail later.

5. Strategic marketing as a link to the overall business strategies of XYZ Sports

Express:
Numerous associations neglect to attain to their coveted development targets in income and
benefit. Most businesses miss the mark regarding attaining to their development goals for
income and benefit. Indeed, studies report achievement rates as low as 20%. (Liabotis, 2007)
Bill Liabotis (2007) questions why is development so slippery? (Liabotis, 2007).
The answer according to me lies in the proper implementation and control techniques utilized
by the organization in question. At XYZ, we pay proper adherence to the implementation of
our strategies and enforce various controls and evaluations from time to time to ensure proper
functionality of our strategies.
Liabotis (2007) outlines some key measures to link marketing to the overall business
strategies of an organization which are:
1. Reinforce the execution foundation by putting resources into 'safe wagers'.
Notwithstanding which development procedure is chosen, a company's base must be
dependent upon a standard that backings effective execution. An on-going duty to making
such a base is a 'safe wager'. Attaining to this obliges (1) dispensing with departmental or
provincial storehouses, (2) using driving markers and execution drivers that adjust to the
methodology and (3) becoming pioneers at all levels managerial and non-managerial.
2. Start a procedure to recognize methodologies with a high likelihood for achievement.
Three client development techniques are displayed underneath: (1) Growing the center
business, (2) Growing by sub-dividing clients and (3) Growing nearby open doors. It is
prescribed that the senior pioneers start the procedure by considering the development
potential inside the present center business and/or the opportunities and development

potential connected with making imaginative worth suggestions for underserved client
bunches. As the senior authority gathering travels through this methodology, it will get to be
clear if and when neighboring development alternatives ought to be considered.
The methodology of recognizing productive development opportunities frequently starts with
the Core Business1, that is, the items, administrations, clients, channels and geographic
territories that produce the biggest extent of income and benefits. Top to bottom discussions
with the senior pioneers on the subject, "What is our center business?", is the favored
beginning stage.
An assessment of the general execution of the center business takes after. This includes
measuring and benchmarking gainfulness, rate of income development and the company's
notoriety with its most vital clients. Such an evaluation will bring up various issues. For
instance:
In what heading is each of these key pointers headed and why?
Who are and who are not the center clients? Why?
What is the company's key focused market differentiator? By what means would it be able to
be fortified?
Is the center business under significant danger?
Are there appealing development opportunities inside the center?
At the point when considering these inquiries, data from outside stakeholder gatherings is
exceptionally useful, especially from dedicated and even not really unwavering clients.
The general methodology require not take a lot of time, yet can yield huge returns. These
include:

A re-established duty to operational perfection inside the center business,

Clever discussions on the development capability of the center business, or then again,
A critical need to roll out noteworthy improvements to the center or even an arrangement for
surrendering the present center and investigating more gainful development choices.
Courses of action were made to help refocus on the center business. Key components
incorporated (1) characterizing three market stages on which the center business is based
Industrial, Fleet and Safety, (2) wiping out items and markets that did not fit on these stages,
(3) including new items to enlarge the center and (4) fortifying market scope with huge
interests in the two noteworthy channels deals stations and the company's site.
2. A second client centered development system is focused around the company's current
clients. This technique includes making High Impact Value Propositions for new client subfragments. Underpinning this method is the readiness to view clients through an alternate set
of lenses.
A procedure can be made to aid both administrators and masters at the client interface pick up
crisp bits of knowledge into client needs and inclination. This is an important initial phase in
finding underserved client bunches and shrouded development opportunities. (Senior
pioneers who often cooperate with clients can make a huge commitment to this
methodology.)
Key components of this procedure incorporate (1) sub-sectioning existing client gatherings
focused around newfound needs, purchasing examples and commitment to benefits and/or
income, (2) making imaginative and high-effect worth recommendations for the most alluring
sub-portions, (3) field-testing the new esteem suggestions and (4) scaling-up focused around
the after effects of field tests.

6. Models in Strategic Marketing for XYZ Sports Express:

As discussed earlier, XYZ largely follows the 7Ps of Marketing Mix to formulate, implement
and control its marketing Strategies.
The 7Ps of Marketing is Product, Price, Placement, People, Promotion, Packaging and
Physical Environment.
At XYZ Sports Express, all these are carefully considered before formulating and
implementing or controlling our strategies.

Product: The product at XYZ Sports Express is sports shoes as well as shoes for

casual occasions, also referred to as Sporty Shoes.

Price: The price of the shoes are kept competitive, as we realize the major players like
Nike, Reebok and Adidas etc. have a slight edge over us with their huge financial

resources and market dominance.

Placement: The products are sold both domestically as well as internationally.
The above three form the basic criteria for formulating our marketing strategies.
People: Sales personnel are adequately trained and managed to consistently

implement and control the marketing strategies.

Promotion: Various promotional activities are included as part of our effective

marketing strategies. We reach out to various schools across the country and
encourage the young people, our target audience to purchase our products. Various
sports competitions are sponsored by our company as well. A big sports personality is

currently in talks with us to endorse our shoes.

Packaging: The packaging is kept simple; it reflects our aim of simplicity and

comfort.
Physical Environment: We like to concentrate on our core abilities and decide to
manufacture the main parts of the shoes. The rest, especially the packaging is
outsourced to external vendors. As Peter Drucker once famously said, Do what you
do best, outsource the rest. (Vitasek, 2010)

Next, we also evaluate the external forces, as defined by Michael Porter, or Porters
5Forces to continually monitor the industry and make relevant changes to the strategy.
Five Forces of Competitive Position Analysis were created in 1979 by Michael E Porter of
Harvard Business School as a basic system for evaluating and assessing the focused quality
and position of a business association. (CGMA, n.d.)
This theory is focused around the idea that there are five forces that focus the aggressive
power and engaging quality of a market. Porter's five forces help to recognize where force
lies in a business circumstance. This is helpful both in understanding the quality of an
association's present focused position, and the quality of a position that an association may
look to move into. (CGMA, n.d.)
Strategic experts frequently utilize Porter's five forces to comprehend whether new items or
administrations are possibly productive. By understanding where force lies, the theory can
likewise be utilized to distinguish regions of quality, to enhance shortcomings and to
eliminate errors. (CGMA, n.d.)

Threat of New Entrants: LOW, as entry into the sector requires huge investments into

infrastructure and planning.

Bargaining power of Suppliers: LOW, Suppliers are high in number and

manufacturers are low, hence the suppliers are not in a position to negotiate.
Bargaining power of Customers: LOW, again no individual customer has enough

clout to negotiate.
Rivalry within the industry: HIGH, With Nike, Reebok and Adidas the market leaders,

the rivalry in the sector is intense.

Threat of Substitutes: MEDIUM, there is no really substitute for sports footwear,
however, customers may prefer to buy from more reputed brands such as Nike
Reebok or Adidas.

7. Role of Relationship Marketing:

At the center of relationship marketing is trade that is productive to gatherings included in
the trade. (Kanagal, n.d)The idea of trades as it applies to relationship marketing can be
seen at from either an exchange cost examination methodology or a social trade theory
approach. (Kanagal, n.d) Transactions are recognized into discrete transactions and social
transactions. Social contract law oversees social transactions. In traditional contract law
that administers discrete transactions character of gatherings is not important; however
this is not valid in relationship marketing. In social getting the reference point shifts from
the understanding (as in established contract law), to the connection itself as it has created
over the long run. (Kanagal, n.d)There may be or may not be a unique assertion and if
there will be, there may not be any incredible reverence to it. In a social exchange, the
contractual holes between gatherings are decreased, as the connection gets to be stronger
also stronger. The recurrence with which transactions repeat impact the terms of the
exchange (rebates as in regular customer). (Kanagal, n.d) The extent to which tough
exchange particular speculations are acquired focus the velocity of duty given and got, the
time of duty and the force of the connection between two gatherings. Exchange particular
ventures (resource specificity in physical capital and human capital) prompts social trades
where trust is a prime arbitrator. As being what is indicated non-particular trades prompts
exchange marketing also for trades that are not non-particular the idea of Relationship
marketing will hold (Williamson, 1979 cited by (Kanagal, n.d)). The Williamsonian
methodology to comprehend social contracting has been increased (Anderson and Weitz,
1992 cited by (Kanagal, n.d)), by proposing that at whatever point eccentric speculations
are made by the trading gatherings in each other then there is a stronger responsibility to
the relationship. In a relationship the set of understandings that has grown up over the
long haul the understood contract) is more compelling. Restrictiveness to the next

gathering is additionally seen as a sign of duty. Further the relationship dyad has been
inspected from point of view of a solid purchaser confronting an extensive number of
little suppliers ( Heide and John, 1992 cited by (Kanagal, n.d)) . It has been appeared
social standards do assume a part in serving as an administration instrument to protect
against pioneering conduct in the vicinity of exchange particular resources. It has likewise
been appeared in the event of a relationship dyad between a solid supplier and countless
purchasers social standards don't assume a noteworthy part (Berthon, Pierre et. Al, 2003
cited by (Kanagal, n.d)). George Homans (George Homans, 1961 cited by (Kanagal, n.d))
initially proposed social trade theory. He said that trades of merchandise and
administrations occur between two gatherings who are objective elements acting in their
own speculation toward oneself and who will perform social activity focused around
prizes and expenses. The trading of products and administrations happen for cash as well
as for non-financial profits, for example, affection, regard, love and support. Such trades
are social trades. Social trades quite often include a component of force, permitting one
gathering to do exercises the way it needs to do. Social trades includes association;
communication happens when an action transmitted by one man is remunerated (or
rebuffed) by an action discharged by an alternate man. Social trades regard slant;
assessments are indications of the mentality and emotions a gathering takes towards an
alternate gathering. This social trade theory (George Homans, 1961 cited by (Kanagal,
n.d)) draws on the controls of behavioral brain research and basic financial matters in
proposing the standards of social trade. Behavioral brain science chooses current
activities focused around past history of conduct/ activities. Rudimentary financial
matters settles on present activity focused around future stream of benefits. It is hard to
adjust these two headings. Further primary financial aspects accept immaculate markets.
Relationship marketing circumstances are a long way from great. Additionally

relationships are based on future guarantees as much as on past conduct. In examining

relationship marketing, both the exchange cost investigation and social trade theory ideas
can be utilized to clarify and conceptualize relationship-marketing standards. Relationship
marketing alludes to an extensive variety of 'relationship sort methods' that have created
over the recent decades in item and administration markets and in shopper as well as
business to business parts. The forerunners of RM go to Industrial marketing and
Administrations marketing. RM discovered prepared acknowledgement in a marketing
world where it had gotten to be evident that strategic preference could never again be
conveyed on the premise of item attributes alone and where corporate benefit was starting
to wind up connected with fulfilling existing clients (John Egan, 2001). Relationship
marketing as differentiated to exchange marketing includes social trades that follow to
past assentions. There are four sorts of purchaser dealer relationships two-sided
relationships, vender kept up relationships, and, purchaser kept up relationships, discrete
trades (Dwyer, Schurr and Oh 1987 cited by (Kanagal, n.d)). For a firm, social trades
could happen with merchandise suppliers, administrations suppliers, business units,
workers, useful offices, middle clients, extreme clients, contenders, philanthropic
associations, government (Hunt and Morgan 1994 cited by (Kanagal, n.d)).
References:
CGMA Porters Five Forces of Competitive Position Analysis , [Online], Available:
http://www.cgma.org/Resources/Tools/essential-tools/Pages/porters-fiveforces.aspx [10 January 2015].
Kanagal, N. (n.d) 'Role of Relationship Marketing in Competitive Marketing
Strateg', Journal of Management and Marketing Research.
Liabotis, B. (2007) THREE STRATEGIES FOR ACHIEVING AND SUSTAINING
GROWTH , July/August, [Online], Available:
http://iveybusinessjournal.com/topics/strategy/three-strategies-for-achievingand-sustaining-growth#.VLFNG3upevc [10 January 2015].

Mongay, D.J. (2006) 'STRATEGIC MARKETING: A LITERATURE REVIEW ON

DEFINITIONS, CONCEPTS AND BOUNDARIES.', SBS Swiss Business School.
Vitasek, K. (2010) A New Way To Outsource, 06 January, [Online], Available:
http://www.forbes.com/2010/06/01/vested-outsourcing-microsoft-intel-leadershipmanaging-kate-vitasek.html [10 January 2015].