Shoppers Drug Mart

Shoppers Drug Mart retail shop is considered as one of the most reliable company that deals in beauty products and drugs in Canada.  It is mainly concerned with quality services, whereby close to 1,100 drug  stores are situated in different regions all over the country.  There are also about 70 stores that deals in Health care services and products.  This kind of distribution of stores has brought about a good commercial network, which has also allowed the company to provide advanced technologies like the mediSystem.  This system is the main distributor of pharmaceutical facilities and services to the general public in that country.

The information and statements of financial conditions and results of the company operations is basically used by the organization to develop its objectives, future expectations, strategies and policies.  This information is important because it helps the company to solve risks that are beyond  its capacity and to be able to abide with the changing rules and regulations that protects the sale of prescription drugs.  Through this information they are able to manage well the competition risks from other medical service providers, problems from increased exchange rates in the financial markets and also poor marketing strategies, has made the company to be unable to attract and maintain new and old clients.

            Shoppers Drug Mart marketing strategies are implemented so that the company is able to operate towards profit maximization and to minimize losses.  Marketing is a process whereby an organization advertises its services and products to the public so that it can increase its sales, or maybe for familiarization by clients in the market place.  A company can market its operations by delivering quality services and products to its potential clients, also by giving credit to the employees who work hard towards satisfying their clients.  The following are the objectives that a marketing representative can use to ensure satisfaction of the clients.  For instance, when the Shoppers Drug Mart wants to boost its sales and marketing activities.  It is the duty of the sales and marketing representatives to provide customers with information about any issue that is related with the company.  Provide an agreement on the level of services and products that are rendered to clients.  This will keep clients informed on the levels of current and future marketing expectations, therefore the clients  are assured of better services and facilities.  Also clients problems will be met on time because the company will be using systems that track down and record calls from these different clients.  When this sound track system is used, the company has got chances to record high number of sales, which will also trigger high profit maximization (Jacobs,2001).

            The marketing representative is also entitled to solve complaints from the customers, in that they should spot the problems in the field, study the effects and relate them with the future expectations of the organization. The Shoppers Drug Mart chose this kind of business approach to competition because it is similar to other  large companies that has got good reputation.  These companies include: Jean Coutu, Katz Group and the London Drugs, which operate in an upscale store with brands which are used by important people like Presidents and other eminent persons.  Frequent shoppers look for a variety of products and services, therefore they happen to be looking for suppliers who can meet their expectations and deliver to them right packaging and branding of products.  Nevertheless the Shoppers Drug Mart managed to record impressing reports of finance, this is because they were the first to be launched, in that they were the first company to operate drug industry during that time.  However, the company is now being faced by stiff competition from different companies that are offering the same products that they offer too.  Also because of diversification in the market segments, a variety of products are coming in the market making shoppers to have a number of options.  When a variety of products come into the market, the demand of these products go down hence their prices are affected negatively resulting into stiff competition, which also leads to low prices of goods and services in the market

            The Shoppers Drug Mart cooperation control their operations, so that they are able to judge whether their organization is a competitive one or not.  This system enables the company to know where it belongs and also to determine where they want to be in future.  An organization can achieve this through improved economies, good branding and packaging of products.  Effectiveness and efficiency of new technologies of telecommunication is important in an organization because  they enable faster distribution of information.  The management is responsible for collection of data from the marts’ distribution systems, which includes the pharmacy sales and accounting records.  This system of gathering information is important because the managers are able to break down the data collected so that they may discover new ways of buying and selling.  Access to this data allows managers to understand how promotion and pricing techniques affect market mix.  It also helps the management to identify what clients’ preferences are, so that the company do not need to venture into new innovations which are not productive.  But to maintain marketing campaigns and promotions which boosts the productivity of the company (David, 1999).

            The term market mix refers to the ingredients in the market, these ingredients include: product, price, place and promotion.  They are also known as the 4p’s of marketing, the 4p’s are the major areas that the marketing department is in charge of.  The marketing manager, supervises the internal and external problems that may be facing the organization’s marketing structure. In addition, the main aim of these ingredients is to help the manager identify the target market, so that the company is able to produce valuable products in response to the consumer’s needs and wants.

The Shoppers Drug Mart deal in a variety of products which ranges from physical products to invisible services.  They include beauty products found in the beauty shops, children’s products available in children palaces, drugs like tobacco and other medical services that are provided by pharmacies.  Shoppers Drug Mart deliver quality products to their esteemed clients through the modification of brand names.  That is, they decide on the appropriate names to refer to their products, these names chosen should be easy to master and simple.  Also these products should be meaningful with a lot of uses not only in one area but in many areas in the field.  The qualities of these products they offer are also high as compared to the ones other organizations provide and therefore, many shoppers are attracted into the company.  The Shoppers Drug Mart also offers warranty to their products, this allows customers to get after sale services in case their products suffer any breakdown (James, 1996).

            The next example of market mix is the pricing decisions made by the management, the company suggests a price which is considered  as the retail price.  The price they have decided must be the standard price that is used in the entire marketplace, this will ensure equal distribution of clients in the market.  However, when they release high prices to the public they are likely to suffer low sales which are accompanied by great losses in the company.  Products which are bought  through whole sale are  charged differently, these prices always appear cheaper than the retail prices.  It is so, because clients who purchase bulky products are given volume discounts depending on the total value and volume of products purchased.  Flexibility of prices is also important because the company needs to change its pricing strategies following the market trends.  That is when shopper are few in the market, then the stores are obligated to reduce their prices.  While, when shoppers are many in the market and the demand of products seem to be high then the company is allowed to shoot up their prices so that they maximize their profits (Borden, 1998).

            The Shoppers Drug Mart system of distribution is very much modernized so that their clients are supplied with variety of products through different distribution channels.  These channels include warehouses, which ensure constant distribution of products and services.  Also there are the order processing companies, which contribute in the distribution process.  For a company to carry out distribution process appropriately it is entitled to survey the status of transportation services in the market.  The transportation sector is vital because it ensures that, products reach clients on time and in good conditions.

            Products promotion and marketing is important because clients are familiarized with the types of products and services that are offered in the marketplace.  Promotion comprises the company’s information about its products and services, the clients opinions on the products and services that the company offers.  Promotions are conducted through advertisements, whereby people are informed of the existence of new products and services in the marketplace.  Adverts enable shoppers to identify what is good from what is bad.  It also prevents clients exploitation through monopoly, in that a number of service and product providers are noticed through advertisements.  Advertisements come in many ways, they include: public notices, press release and newspaper contents.  Personal sales is also away of marketing ones products, for example, the Shoppers Drug Mart promote their products and services through a sales force available in the company (Koffer, 2007).

            This concept of market mix has been used in the early days when tangible products formed the bigger part of economy.  Today, the introduction of marketing strategies in the marketplace has brought about a number of products and services.  Many researchers are currently proposing the fifth P, which is people and process so as to create an expansion in the benefits of the market mix.

            Today’s shoppers have enough knowledge of what their needs and wants are, in that  shoppers walking inside a store after making a clear decision of whatever product he or she may need.  Therefore chances of impulse buying which clients experienced in  early days are now limited in the today’s market.  Resent research conducted on the consumer behavior show that shoppers has refrained from being rigid, and that nowadays shoppers do not consider quantity but rather the quality of a product.  Increase in consumers interest to purchase  commodities is continuing to grow day by day, shoppers are now in apposition to identify themselves with the basic needs.

            Shoppers who frequent the Drug Mart are in the purchase stage, whereby, any activity which is to happen in this stage must be influenced by the decision making stage.  For example, when the shopper made a decision to buy a product, efforts are put to analyze the existing software in the marketplace so that costs of the needs of the company are realized.  After which the clients  buy whatever he or she prefers. The last stage in the Shoppers Drug Mart life cycle is the reevaluation stage.  This is the stage whereby, a company studies the influence the deployment of the software server system used in the business has in the daily operation.  Whether it has brought any benefit or constrain.  This stage is also characterized by the comparison of the efficiency and effectiveness of the systems with the expected functionality that the company may have noted in its entire life cycle.

Conclusion

             The researcher’s recommendation to the CEO of the Shoppers Drug Mart is that whenever the cooperation want to improve the branding of their products.  The cooperation need to develop an IT network which will help them expand their productivity and efficiency.  This system will also provide high level of security in areas of concern.  An approach is also required for the maintenance of a constant distribution of products without necessarily involving the human service.  If this software is developed the business is in apposition to expand and benefit in one way or another.  The need for this Microsoft management system is to assist shoppers minimize the amount of time the information technology team use to repack and reexamine the software operations before its implementation.

            This system has assured the achievement of shoppers aims through an integrated communication network and high levels of security a cross the company.  This process promotes verification of data which informs the IT members whenever the implementation of the software server is complete.

Reference list

Borden, H., (1998). Concept of Marketing. Atlanta, Oxford.

David, H., (1999). Prescription for Success. California, Macmillan.

Jacobs, R., (2001). Marketing. Toronto, Macmillan.

James, C., (1996). Mixer of ingredients. New York NY: Oxford.

Koffer, G., (2007). Shoppers Drug Mart Cooperation. Washington DC: Longhorn.