Marketing Research, Markets, and Developing a Strategy for Target Marketing

Essay by mtg373University, Master's December 2008

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People everywhere, from all walks of life may have varied demands, needs, and tastes of goods and products, but can all agree that one of the biggest hassles arising from "running errands" is the sheer amount of time that even routine shopping trips can take. By the time you have bought the groceries, run to the post office, picked up diapers for the kids, gone clothes shopping, and bought the dogs and cats there food the day is pretty much shot. Retailers know this, and to ease customers shopping days there has been a marketing shift towards "one stop shopping". You can now go to Wal-Mart or Target and buy most anything you need without going anywhere else. While it sounds like great news for the consumer, this paradigm shift, like most things in life, does not come without its drawbacks. Specialty stores once renowned for their selections and expertise in that market segment, are being marginalized by stores that can duplicate their efforts while offering so much more.

The case we will examine today involves Wal-Mart and there new ploy to target specific cultures in a specific area.

In this Case Study we are asked the question…Instead of or in addition to the markets it currently serves, should Wal-mart target the following markets: African-Americans, the Affluent, Empty Nesters, Hispanics, Suburbanites and Rural Residents? In today's world and the ongoing dilemma of illegal immigrants, I will focus more of this case on Wal-Mart and the targeting of Hispanics. This could be looked at in both a positive and a negative way depending on your stance on the issue.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has been the largest retailer in Mexico for five years. But until recently, its approach to targeting Hispanics in the U.S. has been low key. Now the world's largest...