Identifying target markets of Seconal Foods
Many segmentation approaches can be applied to Seconal Foods’ market: sales-based segmentation, structural segmentation, bolt-on segmentation, and effective segmentation (McDonald & Dunbar, 2012). Out of these four approaches, it is recommended to use sales-based and bolt-on segmentation methods. Unlike other approaches, sales-based segmentation allows organizing a company around the organization of its sales function (McDonald & Dunbar, 2012).
Seconal Foods plans to open new locations in Canada; therefore, by taking this approach to segmentation, the company will be able to adjust its offers to the needs of the foreign market. It is also recommended to adopt a bolt-on segmentation approach because it is driven by customer data (McDonald & Dunbar, 2012).
Effective segmentation requires “internal (company) and external (market) matching” (McDonald & Dunbar, 2012, p. 47). It allows a company to have a comprehensive framework for evaluating how it has defined and segmented its markets. In the case of Seconal Foods, it is clear that by using bolt-on and sales-based segmentation approaches, the company has managed to make a clear distinction between explicit and implicit functions of its market. This evaluation makes it possible to conclude that the organic foods retailer is a firm that has structured itself around its chosen market segments. Seconal Foods should proceed with taking a customer-driven approach to viewing the marketplace to gain a competitive edge.
A successful positioning strategy hinges on a differential advantage; therefore, it is necessary to correctly identify the most likely sources of a competitive edge. Seconal Foods has a wide range of products that come from different suppliers. Taking into consideration that its competitors such as Whole Foods are bound by their limited supplier base, it can be argued that the company’s product range, which does not depend on local suppliers, is its main differential advantage. Support from complementary industries is another source of differential advantage for Seconal Foods.
The product strategy of Seconal Foods
Value Proposition
Seconal Foods is a company that provides its customers with organic products that contain an extremely limited amount of artificial additives such as preservatives, sweeteners, flavors, and colors among others. Unlike other similar companies, it not only specializes in the retail of organic foods but also offers its consumers a wide range of value-added services.
Characteristics
The company prides itself on high-quality standards, a large supplier base, support from complementary industries, and an extremely loyal and motivated workforce that is interested in providing Seconal Foods’ customers with the best products for the lowest price.
Nature of Product
Seconal Foods offers its consumers organic foods that have been produced in compliance with the most current standards of organic farming in the United States. The company’s products also have more antioxidant compounds as compared to the foods offered by its competitors.
Establishing distribution channels
The Value network of Seconal Foods represents social and technical resources available to the firm. All links in the company’s value network are responsible for the delivery of the overall worth of its products as well as value-added services such as the creation of diet plans for its customers. The network includes the following elements: Seconal Foods, organic foods providers in the United States, organic foods providers in Canada, marketers, and customers. To keep its supply chain as nimble as possible, the company has contracted a Canadian distributor that can take care of the local market needs. Moreover, Seconal Foods has a wide range of suppliers that allow the company to quickly respond to changes in the market.
Reference
McDonald, M., & Dunbar, I. (2012). Market segmentation: How to do it and how to profit from it. San Francisco, CA: Wiley.