Avon's Operations Case Study

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AVON Case Study

Avon was founded in 1886 and has developed to become one of the oldest and largest producer and marketer of beauty-related products throughout the world. As part of enhancing its productivity and success, Avon has recently switched its marketing strategy to transform its image and enhance its marketing approaches. The company has combined national responsiveness with globally standardized marketing initiatives to push into foreign markets and increase its global operations. The firm focuses on standardized products with global brand and conveys its successful practices and organizational learning from one country to the next.

Marketing Orientations

Marketing orientation can be defined as a strategy that is utilized by a business or company to enhance its position in order to meet the needs of its customers. There are various marketing management orientations with varying mechanisms for creating, producing, and marketing products i.e. strategic marketing, selling, production, social marketing, and product orientations (Roberts, n.d.). The production marketing orientation is the only one that does not apply to Avon since the firm focuses on a sales orientation rather than product adaptation in its global operations. The applicability of product orientation is evident in the Avon's modification of its products to meet certain needs of customers. The strategic marketing orientation is evident in Avon's modification of its distribution technique, especially in China. In contrast, social marketing orientation is incorporated in the firm's global image initiatives of supporting women and their needs. The selling orientation is characterized by the use of direct sales representatives in Avon's marketing approaches.

Dependence on Foreign Operations

Avon has become increasingly dependent on its foreign operations rather than its domestic or U.S. operations to an extent that it has its own sales operations in more than 65 countries across the globe.

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The increased dependence on foreign operations is largely influenced by the company's efforts to create a global image that portrays it as a firm that supports women and their needs. Moreover, the outlook in foreign markets is brighter than the United States outlook, which is gloomy. This implies that the company has focused on foreign markets because these markets have higher potential for increased productivity and success as compared to the United States market. The other reason for this dependence is that the domestic market i.e. U.S. market is fully exploited and has no untapped market for its products due to the presence of several competitors and intense rivalry.

Socioeconomic and Demographic Changes

Similar to other companies operating globally, Avon is vulnerable to some socioeconomic and demographic changes that could affect its operations. These changes include increase in the number of employed women, preference to buy expensive products from Avon's competitors, and economic growth of various countries. The economic growth of various countries would have positive impacts on Avon's operations since it will make its products more appealing to customers with more disposable income who would have otherwise considered the products as secondary needs. The other two changes would impact it negatively since increase in the number of employed women will affect the ability of women to schedule appointments for the direct sales. As more women are employed, they are likely to opt for expensive products from Avon's competitors as part of creating perceptions of a higher social status.

Impact of a Global Recession on Avon's….....

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