Assignment 1 is worth 20% of your total mark for this course; it should be submitted after you have completed the readings and learning activities for Lessons 1 through 6.

Your assignment submission should be no more than 10 pages in length. A page is defined as double spaced, with standard margins, and using a standard 12-point font. The cover page, which should include your name and student number, does not count as a page. A deduction of 10% will apply if your assignment is more than 10 pages long.

For additional advice on how to complete this assignment, refer to the Preparing Assignments page (a link is also provided in the Evaluation block on the course homepage).

Read the case “Target: From ‘Expect More’ to ‘Pay Less’” …show more content…

This brand will offer products at a 30% discount from regular priced name brands. This caused a expansion of this label from 730 to 800 and showing increase in store brand sales with this new design. By changing the aspect of some of the operations Target was able to get a new image with consumers as a one stop shop, and a new label with discounted prices.

In conclusion these four actors played a major role in the microenvironment in changing the image and turning the loss of market share to a gain of market share.

Question 2 (10 marks)

Describe how economic and cultural factors affected Target’s marketing strategy during the economic downturn.

Question 3 (10 marks)

According to its chief financial officer, Target primarily allocates its money to remodelling existing stores to better accommodate the shifts in inventory. Under such a circumstance, which growth strategies in the product/market expansion grid best describe Target’s strategy?

Question 4 (20 marks)

Name Michael Porter’s four basic competitive positioning strategies. Which one of these best explains Target’s original positioning of “better stuff for slightly higher prices” in the context of global recession? Explain.

Micheael Porter came up with 4 basic competitive positioning strategies. 3 of which are winners and one is a loser. The winning ones are overall cost leadership, Differentiation, focus, and the losing one is middle of the roaders. I believe target