Introduction

            Application of proper marketing tools and techniques can help organisations to achieve competitive advantage in the business world. According to Lovelock and Patterson (2015), it is necessary for every marketer to understand the position of the business and at the same time, ensure development of the business strategies are made which can help in gaining the loyalty of the customers. The assignment focuses on the application theories that are applied by three renowned companies for being successful in the market. The focus is on companies like Apple, McDonald’s and Starbucks and the application of marketing theories that lead to success within the organisations.

Application on theories

Application on Apple

            The application of SWOT analysis, for the growth of market can be undertaken. The reason for the application of the SWOT strategy for Apple is the fact that the company need to understand the strengths and weakness that exist in the market it continues its practises. At the same time, opportunities as well as threats that exist in the market can be analysed based on which improvement of the market can be done. According to De Mooij (2018), the SWOT analysis usually helps in understanding the internal capabilities that can be channelled for the development of a company in the competitive market.

Strength Posses strong brand imageMaintain rapid profits	Weakness High priceExcessive dependence on sales
Opportunity High sales volumeDevelopment of new product line	Threat Excessive competitionImitation

Table: SWOT analysis of Apple

(Source: Apple.com 2019)

            The analysis of the table that depicts the strength of Apple includes an understanding of the strengths that the company possess. It is seen from the table that strong brand image of Apple can help in the development of the marketing strategies in a rapid manner. Apple as a brand is famous all over the world the application of the SWOT analysis can help in the planning of the activities that can be used by Apple in the future (Apple.com 2019). As stated by Chaffey and Ellis-Chadwick (2019) it can also help in the development and improvement of rapid profits for the company, which can enhance the growth of the company as well as venture into the development of a proper marketing strategy.

            At the same time, weakness of the company can be accounted by the fact that it sets high prices for the products. The reason for this being a weakness is that the middle-income level customers cannot be able to purchase the products sold by the company (Apple.com 2019). In this regard, Tuten and Solomon (2017) pointed to the fact that Apple looses out on a large number of customers since, most of the people in a society are among the middle or lower income group. Hence, due to the high prices, the dependence of sales is which accounts for the failure to segment the customers of the company (Apple.com 2019).

            The opportunities that are possessed by Apple can be accounted to the fact that the company can increase its sales volume if certain changes are made in the strategies of the company (Apple.com 2019). Development of a new product line can help Apple to continue with the manufacturing of new products and at the same time expand in foreign markets. Thus, the opportunities gained can help Apple to continue its dominance in the business market and ensure that it continues with its objective in the competitive market (Apple.com 2019).

            The threats of Apple are received mainly from the competitors such as Samsung or Nokia. The threat is mainly due to the imitation of the products and in a less price that helps in the development of the competitive advantage in a market (Apple.com 2019).

Application on McDonald’s

            For McDonald’s the marketing strategy that the company can apply is the Ansoff matrix. Based on the application of the Ansoff matrix, McDonald’s can develop strategies for the future growth of the organisation (Mcdonalds.com 2019). The reason for the application of this strategy for McDonald’s is the fact that the company need to regain its popularity in the international market since in many of the countries particularly in Asia, McDonald’s have failed to maintain its dominance and had to forfeit its business (Mcdonalds.com 2019). Thus, product-market strategy can be considered as a joint statement that defines the product line of the company (Mcdonalds.com 2019).

            The application of Ansoff matrix can be done based on four metric points that can help in the growth of an organisation. Each of the four-growth matrixes can help in understanding a current scenario at the organisations and thus, based on its understanding of the knowledge products can be offered at the existing market. For McDonald’s the growth scenario can be the offering of products and services so that it can gain its reputation back in the market and ensure that proper market development takes place. It can increase its market share and ensure that existing market segments can be identified by the sale of the products and services.

Figure: Ansoff matrix of McDonald’s

(Source: Mcdonalds.com 2019)

From the figure, it can be seen that each of the growth matrix have certain criteria which is needed to be achieved by the organisations. For McDonald’s it is necessary that the company apply the reduction of the pricing strategy so that it can ensure market penetration (Mcdonalds.com 2019). At the same time, it can improve the promotion and distribution support by the use of social media. As pointed out by Lovelock and Patterson (2015) these strategies are considered as the least risky growth option that can help in the development of McDonald’s in the competitive market.

Apart from this, the market development need to be done based on segmentation of the customers. McDonald’s can segment customers based on choice of proteins such as people that consume chicken as opposed to the people that prefer beef or pork (Mcdonalds.com 2019). Hence, development of the market in a foreign place need to be done based on the choice of the proteins of the customers. However, as stated by Kotler et al. (2016) the risk in this case can be high since for the fulfilment of the new market research need to be undertaken.

The product development and the diversification can help McDonald’s to ensure that investment is made in the research and development of additional products (Mcdonalds.com 2019). For example, if the company is willing to sell desserts, then proper research need to be made for ensuring satisfaction of the customers along with this, diversification in the form of potential synergy of the product need to be maintained (Mcdonalds.com 2019).

Application on Starbucks

            The application of marketing mix strategy at Starbucks can help in the development of the company by taking into account the competition it faces. The application of the marketing mix strategies can help Starbucks to develop on its strengths while avoiding the weakness that exists in the market. At the same time, Baker (2016) stated that the competitive advantage and the adaptability of the organisation could be guaranteed with the help of the marketing mix strategies (Starbucks.com 2019). The internal departments of Starbucks along with the organisation as a whole can work together to ensure that development of the company takes place in the market.

            The components of the marketing mix that can be used by Starbucks for market development and strategic growth include:

Product: Starbucks is the leading coffee chain brand in the world. It provides an unbeaten and an unmatchable experience that is relished by the customers (Starbucks.com 2019). However, the flaw with the product is that it can be imitated by the competitors. Its competitors can imitate the categorisation of the coffee as well as the snacks that are provided with the drinks and thus Starbucks may find it difficult to cope up with the challenges in the market and its importance in the development of coffee in the beverage industry (Starbucks.com 2019). Hence, strategies based on mitigating the imitation of the products need to be developed by Starbucks (Starbucks.com 2019).

Price: The price of Starbucks can be considered based on the products it serves. It is already established that Starbucks serves the best and premium quality coffee and thus, the prices of the products are usually high (Starbucks.com 2019). The application of the marketing mix strategy of Starbucks can be considered as positive since it can help in understanding the prices that the company need to maintain in order to gain competitive advantage in the market (Starbucks.com 2019). The various prices of the drinks at Starbucks depending upon its product chains can be considered as a strategic advantage for the company (Starbucks.com 2019).

Promotion: The promotion of Starbucks coffee and other products are done by the use of social media as well as online and TV advertisement (Starbucks.com 2019). The company also helps in the promotion of social activities and programmes, which can help in the development of the corporate social responsibilities and ensure that it gains the required recognition in the market. Thus, it can be said that for Starbucks to develop its competency in the market, it is necessary that the company use the promotion mix strategies in an effective manner (Starbucks.com 2019).

Place: Starbucks is spread across 70 countries and have a licensed establishment in about 500 areas (Starbucks.com 2019). The maximum outlets are available at the USA. Therefore, the place needs to be in areas that can be easily accessible by the people and in countries that are keen to drink coffee as a main source beverage. Therefore, the place of the coffee company needs to be based on the evidence that Starbucks can open speciality stores that can help in providing the required rewards and benefits for the customers (Starbucks.com 2019).

Recommendation

Recommendation for Apple

            Recommendation for Apple can be based on the evidence that the company need to align itself with the opportunities that are present in the market. It is necessary that Apple reduce its prices so that it can gain the trust and loyalty of the customers that belong in the middle-level income group in a society. It is also necessary that Apple ensure that the prices remain at par with the effort made for the manufacturing of the products so that Apple can continue with the competitive advantage it possesses in the market. Analysis of the competitors can help Apple to understand the amount required for success in the market.

            At the same time, another important consideration that is required to be made by Apple is the fact that the product need to be less imitable. As seen from the SWOT analysis, the products manufactured by Apple can be easily replaceable. For example, the android phones launched by the company were easily replicated by Samsung in the form of a newer version of android at less price and guaranteed customer friendly services. Thus, Apple needs to invest in the technological development of the company so that it can prevent any form of imitation of the products and ensure that Apple manages to dominate the technological industry.

            Along with this, another recommendation that can be made for Apple is the fact that the company need to be less dependent on the sales of the products. This recommendation can be related to the pricing of the products in which Apple is reputed to be high. Hence, investment can be made in the development of strategies at the market that can help Apple to continue with its progress in the technological world. Development of a research and development facility can help Apple to increase its sales volume and ensure that develop new product lines for the development of the company.

Recommendation for McDonald’s

            Therefore, recommendation based on the product and services provided by McDonald’s can be made on the application of the Ansoff matrix. For example, one of the recommendations that can be provided for the development of McDonald’s is the fact that the price decrease option required for market penetration need to be made after the analysis of the competitors. For McDonald’s, the closest competition of the company is KFC and Burger King since these companies sell similar products as McDonald’s. Hence, the price reduction need to be done based on the prices of the competitors.

            At the same time, customer segmentation need to be done based on the geographical location, culture as well as the preference of the customers. The fact that McDonald’s failed to consider the culture and related preference of protein in the Asian countries led to the failure of the company in the region. The customer segmentation needs to focus on the foreign markets and the customers that constitute the population of the market. Hence, changes due to the new market can be considered as risky if McDonald’s fail to implement a proper research strategy based on the customer segmentation in the market.

            Hence, research and development of the market can be taken into consideration as McDonald’s need to ensure that it understands the basis of the needs of the customers. It is necessary that McDonald’s make proper investment in conducting a thorough market research based on the preferences of the customers and the products offered by the competitors. The prices of McDonald’s and the diversified actions need to be based on the potential relationship that exists between the company and customers. Hence, exploration of the growth options for McDonald’s can help in the development of the company and can ensure improvement of its marketing strategies. The application of these recommended strategies can help McDonald’s to improve its reputation in the market.

Recommendation for Starbucks

            Based on the analysis of the marketing mix strategy, it can be said that Starbucks need to undergo major changes that can help in the development of the reputation as well as the product enhancement of the company. One such recommendation that can be provided for Starbucks is the fact that it needs to develop its pricing strategies so that it can align with the products sold and gain a large customer base. The customers need to be lured in for the quality of the products as well as the prices that can be effective for maintaining the loyalty of the customers.

            Along with this, Starbucks need to address the place from where the company can continue with its business. From the analysis, it is seen that the majority of the stores of the company are located in the USA and thus, changes in the form of expansion in coffee favoured countries need to be done so that Starbucks can spread its reputation even further. However, the company need to keep in mind the licenses that are required for the development of the stores as various countries have different license codes while setting up shops.

            The promotion strategy of Starbucks can be considered as effective as it uses the modern methods of promotion. However, it needs to be kept in mind that Starbucks can use the application of social media to enhance the development of the company and its products. For example, it can use social media as well as TV advertisement for the promotion of its products and ensure that it manages to reach the customers it targets. It can also promote products by providing free sample tasting to the customers that pass the stores of the shop. These changes can help Starbucks to maintain its reputation.

Conclusion

            Therefore, it can be concluded that the development and application of the marketing strategies can help in enhancing the reputation and the profitability of these companies further. At the same time, application of further recommendations to improve the companies can help in its position in the competitive business market and ensure that McDonald’s, Apple and Starbucks can continue with its dominance in the business. Despite different marketing strategies that are to be applied, these companies have the goal to dominate the business market and to gain competitive advantage in the respectable industries over the competition that is faced by the companies.

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