Introduction
Article Overview
Marketing environment refers to different factors and forces that affect the capacity of businesses to maintain or build effective and successful relationships with customers. Micro and macro elements form two major issues that shape the debate on the marketing environment. Microenvironmental factors entail all internal aspects that affect organisations’ capacity to serve their customers. It is crucial to note that these elements can also influence companies’ external environments. This section focuses on firms’ internal settings. In the business article published in the Financial Times newspaper, accessible in the website, FT Reporters (2015) examines various internal environmental issues that influence the operations of McDonald’s in its home and overseas markets. According to the article, if the company does not consider addressing threats and weakness that range from meat scandals, contracted workers’ issues, and conflicts with its appointed franchises to allegations concerning unhealthy foods, it risks tainting its hard-earned global image. The article is credible because it relies on data regarding the company’s performance from 2002 to 2015.
Topic Overview
This section examines the area of the marketing environment. However, it focuses on the subtopic of companies’ internal and external environment. Here, McDonald’s home and foreign market settings will be assessed before developing an appropriate strategy that can help to overcome the challenges raised in the article by FT Reporters (2015). Evaluating organisations’ internal and external environments requires the use of various tools, including the SWOT analysis technique. Sarbjit (2017) defines SWOT analysis as a mechanism for identifying strengths, limitations, prospects, and threats associated with a particular institution. Alternatively, Siciliano (2016) presents the concept as a diagnostic system that gauges what an organisation can engage in or disregard based on its in-house and peripheral environments.
According to the article by FT Reporters (2015), in the home market environment, upcoming rival businesses are outperforming McDonald’s in meeting consumers’ demand for fresh and healthier foods with more natural ingredients. In its overseas market environments, such as China, the article reports that a televised investigation raised accusations that McDonald’s relabelled expired meat through its chief supplier. This situation interrupted the company’s productivity, bearing in mind that food safety issues are a major public concern in China. Questions were raised regarding McDonald’s capacity to manage its logistic network in its expanding market environments. According to the article, the company faces substantial challenges in its Indian market. Customers have criticised its capacity to meet the demand for clean, healthy, and affordable foods in restaurants. In the context of arguments raised in the article, SWOT analysis of the company’s internal and external marketing environments can help in addressing these issues.
Analysis
The theory of SWOT analysis argues that daily operations of all organisations are characterised by situations, which present as strengths, limitations, opportunities, or even threats to their success (Siciliano 2016). McDonald’s is not exceptional. According to FT Reporters (2015), McDonald’s is surging in its performance to the extent that upcoming competitor businesses are likely to ruin its internal and external marketing environments and, consequently, profitability. However, as Siciliano (2016) asserts, challenges that constitute weakness and threats are inevitable in any organisation’s peripheral and in-house operational environments. Indeed, McDonald’s enjoys its global presence and a widely recognised brand image. According to Crawford, Humphries, and Geddy (2015), this company opens a store after four to five hours. It applies its global presence strategy in every market it enters, although it embraces local cultures and people’s preferences in its foreign markets. McDonald’s is capable of offering attractive products to woo customers. As such, the study by Crawford, Humphries, and Geddy (2015) reveals the extent to which the company has managed its internal and external environments to attract clients. In particular, in line with Petkovska’s (2015) views regarding the role of innovation, McDonald’s introduces different original products regularly, including its happy meals children’s initiative and planning for birthday parties. The company offers customers great services and choices at reasonable costs.
While arguments raised in the article by FT Reporters (2015) have been identified in other places where the company has established stores, McDonald’s has effective mechanisms for responding to the observed challenges. Indeed, it has experienced many obstacles in its internal and external environments, especially by noting the increasing emphasis on the need for changing eating behaviours to avoid the danger of health risks associated with unhealthy foods (Crawford, Humphries & Geddy 2015). Health specialists classify foods containing high calories, such as fast foods, which form McDonald’s list of options, as unhealthy. Campaigns by health organisations against such products have resulted in the emergence of fibre-rich foods. These strategies support FT Reporters (2015) and Petkovska’s (2015) positions that are looking forward, creativity and innovation will be necessary for McDonald’s to come up with new products that meet customers’ emerging needs.
Conclusion
The article under review suggests that McDonald encounters many challenges, some of which are related to its logistic network. However, by analysing its internal and external market environments through the SWOT framework, it can deploy its strengths and opportunities to overcome operational weaknesses and threats. An important opportunity, which can help to address challenges raised in the article, entails introducing new products and services that support the latest trends of health-conscious groups.
Reference List
Crawford, A, Humphries, S, & Geddy, M 2015, ‘McDonald’s: a case study in glocalisation’, Journal of Global Business Issues, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 11-18.
FT Reporters 2015, ‘McDonald’s and its challenges worldwide: a market-by-market look’, Financial Times, Web.
Hazen, B, Mollenkopf, D, Wang, Y 2017, ‘Remanufacturing for the circular economy: an examination of consumer switching behaviour’, Business Strategy & the Environment, vol. 26, no. 4, pp. 451-464.
Petkovska, T 2015, ‘The role and importance of innovation in business of small and medium enterprises’, Economic Development, vol. 17, no. 1/2, pp. 55-74.
Sarbjit, S 2017, ‘SWOT analysis of special economic zone’, Journal of Accounting, Business & Management, vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 43-51.
Siciliano, J 2016, ‘SWUF analysis: a new way to avoid the “opportunity” error of SWOT’, Journal of the Academy of Business Education, vol.17, no. 1, pp. 201-208.