The Body Shop Marketing

This sample essay on The Body Shop Marketing provides important aspects of the issue and arguments for and against as well as the needed facts. Read on this essay’s introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion.

The fierce competition at any business has driven entrepreneurs to find out new ideas that will be salable in the market. The situation suggests that suitable marketing approach will be a killing application that would win customers’ hearts. Usually, a product that attracts customers’ attention is the one that unique and different from the rest in the same market.

This condition put the product to have perceived value by customers, which further awards the product with better deal.

At cosmetics and beauty care industry, the competition is much more intense as companies are racing towards the development of the so-called ‘natural’ products, highlighting the use of natural ingredients. This development of using natural ingredients often used as the marketing jargon to stress the suitability to any kind of skin and free or less side effect to human body.

Another challenge that a beauty-care company face is regarding the pricing scheme where it influences the branding campaign that position the products to be perceived high or low in term of values.

The Body Shop Marketing

Regarding the product development, customization also becomes one feature that is stressed as important factor. In terms of skin types, for example, cosmetics vendors develop different kind of products for people in tropical region, sub-tropical etcetera. Moreover, the pricing scheme also comes in many forms in which branded products like Shiseido, Lancome, and Christian Dior are positioned as expensive products.

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Meanwhile, The Body Shop is considered as a company that produce high quality product at affordable price, as set up by the founder, Dame Anita Roddick Concerning the challenge of marketing cosmetics product, this paper will elaborate the marketing approach that The Body Shop design to position themselves as a leading beauty care company in the world. The Body Shop is a UK-based company that is well-known for their expertise in manufacturer and retailer of natural skin-care and cosmetics products. 2. Corporate Background: The Body Shop

The Body Shop International plc is a well-known brand in beauty care or cosmetics industry since the company stick to their string commitment or philosophy of developing and producing the natural and ethical beauty care and cosmetics product. The Body Shop was established in 1976 in UK by Dame Anita Roddick although some analysts see that the copy of The Body Shop brands from local entrepreneur in California, USA (The Body Shop International plc, 2008a). Currently, after the 30-year journey as well-known cosmetic product, The Body Shop already expands their services and retail shops in more than 55 countries with over 2,100 stores.

Currently, while keep developing products continuously, the Body Shop already has more than 1,200 kind of natural-ingredient products (The Body Shop International plc, 2008a; Pirkayastha and Fernando, 2008). One competitive advantage that the Body Shop has is the awards that the company receives for their commitment of developing cosmetic products without conducting test on animals. The company becomes the first company that awarded the Humane Cosmetics Standard for our Against Animal Testing policy.

Furthermore, The Body Shop’s philosophy also underlying their action to conduct a Community Trade, their fair trade program, resulting in the company’s complete strategy to trade fairly. To date, The Body Shop already conducts community trade programs with 31 suppliers that spanned in 24 countries, which represent more than 15,000 people across the globe (The Body Shop International plc, 2008a; Pirkayastha and Fernando, 2008). One aspect in determining the competitive position is the capability of a company to deal with issues in respective industry in appropriate manner.

In attracting the consumers, especially women, a cosmetic and beauty care-producing company usually develops many kinds of product since there are many skin types, each has to be treated in different manner and thus need particular mix of ingredients as well. Since the development may involve the testing, branding/campaign, and regulation compliance; therefore the three components become three issues in the cosmetic industry.
• Internet marketing The use of internet as media for product campaign is rising significantly within the last decade.

According to a few reports, internet is considered to increase efficiency and product sales for cosmetic companies since the media offer the ability to develop new channel alternative, complementing the existence of retail shops that located in several locations. Amazon. com, for instances, firstly grows from selling book, but turns out today to sell various kinds of cosmetics in their online stores. Interestingly, it is found that the growing internet users have award several cosmetic with raising number of online purchase.

In compliance with the internet marketing, The Body Shop also offers special price for customers who bought via their online stores (http://www. thebodyshop-usa. com/bodyshop/). Figure 2 shows the home page of the Body Shop official online store. Source: http://www. thebodyshop-usa. com/bodyshop/
• Corporate Responsibility Issues (CSR) Another issue that influences the marketing of cosmetic products is about the propaganda in which many companies involve in the corporate social responsibility (CSR) that found to produce real influence on the cosmetic industry.

In addition, such CSR initiative is also driven by government control over the distribution of cosmetic product to comply with specific country’s requirement. In the U. S. , FDA (Food and Drug Administration) become the regulator that monitor the safety standards of cosmetics products in the market (Health Reports Co. UK, 2005).
• Animal testing Animal testing also considered as vital issues in cosmetic industry since the rising concerns of public about the humanity has brought significant influence towards the use of animal testing in the development of cosmetic products.

F or example, in European Union, where the Body Shop located, announces its decision to ban animal testing on cosmetics products, which immediately raise pros and contras. This regional policy follows the previous policy made in several European countries including the Austria, Netherlands, and Britain in which they have already banned animal testing which means that several cosmetic products are receiving tight supervision on their research and production facilities (The Humane Society, 2005) 3. 2 Branding

The branding factor also highlights The Body Shop strategy in strengthen their awareness by incorporating their philosophy of natural ingredient products. The company’s brand of becoming the cosmetics manufacturer that only use natural ingredients products is strong since it provides customers with an image that The Body Shop develops and sells safe cosmetics, which in line with customers’ concerns of having safety. This is inline with the customers’ preferences, especially women that wants a secure feeling when using cosmetics.

The demands are translated into The Body Shop program to use the highest quality natural ingredients. In addition, the company sticks to five values; they are Protect the Planet, Support Community Trade, Against Animal Testing, Defend Human Rights, and Activate Self Esteem (The Body Shop International plc, 2008). Reference: Health Reports Co. UK. (2005). Cosmetic Industry on Notice. (2005). Retrieved March 5, 2009 form http://www. health-reports. co. uk/content/view/52/2 Perner, Lars. n. d.

“Consumer Behavior and Marketing”. Consumer Psychologist Newsletter. San Diego University. Retrieved March 5, 2009 from http://www. consumerpsychologist. com/#Strategy Pirkayastha, Debaprati and Fernando, Rajiv. (2008). Body Shop Brand: Repositioning to Target the ‘Masstige’ Segment and Impacts of its Acquisition by L’Oreal. Icfai Center for Management Research The Body Shop International plc. (2008a). About Us. Retrieved March 5, 2009 from http://www. thebodyshop. com/bodyshop/company/index.

jsp;jsessionid=ERFaLulEQWzSEOutEFWERw**. bsbwilapp03-bsprd-app-102? cm_re=themeB-_-Footer-_-About_Us —. (2008b). Support Community Trade. Retrieved March 5, 2009 from http://www. thebodyshop. com/bodyshop/values/support_community_trade. jsp The Humane Society. (2005). French Government Challenges EU Cosmetic Directive. Retrieved March 5, 2009 from http://www. hsus. org/animals_in_research/animals_in_research_news/french_government_challenges_eu_cosmetics_directive. html