William Painter Sunglasses Marketing Plan

Company Overview

William Painter Sunglasses refers to a direct-to-consumer innovation-based company that deals with fashion accessories that symbolize a lifestyle that is more than what meets the eye. The company is widely known for its high-end, patented, unique, and classic sunglasses and has its headquarters in San Diego, California. The company is named after the 19th-century American mechanical engineer, William Painter, known for inventing the crown cork bottle cap and bottle opener, and was quickly transformed into a fashion icon from the school project it had started as. The company was founded on the belief that everyone deserves access to high-quality sunglasses and does not have to compromise for anything less than that. Therefore, they provide customer service that treats everyone like family by providing products that are durable enough to keep up with the adventures that their customers undertake. With this kind of mission statement and mentality, William Painter Sunglasses is regarded as a market leader, due to the business strategy that makes them unique in comparison to other companies in the same line of business.

Market segmentation is a marketing tool that enables a company to divide its target market into smaller but more defined categories based on similar characteristics (Wedel & Kamakura, 2012). This enables the company to focus on the required resources to achieve its business goals. There are four main types of market segmentation: geographic, demographic, psychographic, and behavioral.

Geographic segmentation categorizes customers based on geographical borders using factors such as climate, country, and whether the target audience is located in rural or urban areas. William Painter Sunglasses are manufactured in such a manner that they can withstand any climate or geographical location where the sunglasses are being used, be it the Grand Canyon or deep in the ocean. Demographic segmentation refers to statistical data about a group of people, and William Painter utilizes this by targeting an audience that has a higher income, considering that the material they use is costly. Psychographic segmentation considers the personalities and characteristics of individuals, which are subjective and include factors such as lifestyles, motivations, and priorities. At William Painter Sunglasses, the target audience is mainly customers who value quality, longevity, and assurance that the products they purchase will serve them.

To ensure a company's success and longevity, establishing a potential customer base and choosing the degree of market breadth or narrowness are vital. There are various types of target marketing strategies that a company might decide to undertake, as discussed below. Undifferentiated marketing basically treats the entire market as a whole, considering everyone a potential customer, in the hopes that there will be people who get on board with the brand. While this target marketing strategy is cost-effective, it requires some experience and runs the risk of overexposure and increased competition. Differentiated marketing, on the other hand, focuses on offering more depth and clarity by isolating the primary targets that have the greater potential for the company and then developing different marketing strategies for each.

Concentrated marketing is a target marketing strategy that considers a specific attribute and focuses all its energy there, as a means to create brand loyalty with the ideal consumer group. While it reduces competition, cuts company costs, and optimizes brand loyalty, brands are not in full control over who interacts with their products. Micromarketing, on the other hand, takes the concept of concentrated marketing and focuses all its marketing efforts on the specific characteristics of these small clusters of individuals. Based on the above discussion, it is clear that William Painter Sunglasses has taken a differentiated marketing strategy. Their main aim is to provide durable and lightweight sunglasses that are capable of serving the customer base.

Value Proposition

William Painter Sunglasses are crafted out of aerospace-grade titanium, and some of their frames, for example, the Hook, come with a built-in bottle opener. The material used makes these sunglasses stronger and more lightweight compared to other competing designs, giving the company a competitive advantage (David et al., 2013). Besides, the company offers a lifetime guarantee on its sunglasses: it replaces them if they break and gives the owner a discount on a new pair if the old ones are lost. In addition, the company can maintain a competitive advantage through its Try For Free Program, where customers have access to any pair of William Painter sunglasses for up to a week without being charged, allowing the customers to find the right sunglasses to match their outfits.

Marketing Situation Analysis

1. Macro-environment

For any given business environment, a company operates in a larger context. It is surrounded by forces that either pose a threat to the company or shape opportunities for the company. The following is a discussion of the macroeconomic factors that influence William Painter Sunglasses. In recent times, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected a lot of businesses worldwide (Ahmad et al., 2020). Most stores have been forced to expand their businesses online to maintain their customer base, and this has significant economic effects. For William Painter sunglasses, this means reduced business since most of their customers are stuck at home or quarantined, and therefore, demand for their products has declined.

Technologically, there have been major discoveries that are proving beneficial and provide a competitive advantage to companies willing to exploit them, for example, the Internet of Things (IoT). This connected technology is capable of simplifying and streamlining the various manufacturing processes as it can easily assess and provide real-time feedback on damaged goods, thereby enabling the company to minimize cost and reduce waste. For a company like William Painter, this gives them a competitive advantage as it assures quality products by eliminating damaged items before they reach the consumers.

• 1. Microenvironment

The major competitors for William Painter include Sunglass Hut, Ray-Ban, and Blenders Eyewear. Each of the above-mentioned companies has its competitive differentiation and a reason why it can maintain its position. Sunglass Hut for starters has managed to quantify digital influence on in-store, which is a brand they heavily rely on, while Ray-Ban chose to differentiate their glasses using their brand name. This is the reason why they have their motto as "genuine since 1937", making the brand name gain a competitive advantage in the industry. Blenders Eyewear on the other hand chose to focus on e-commerce automation as their competitive differentiation, and the use of social media platforms to increase the popularity of their upcoming events, ensuring brand loyalty.

• 1. Market/Business Challenges

In general, William Painter sunglasses are increasing in popularity due to their unique features, such as the material they are made of, which ensures their durability. Also, there is a bonus that the glasses come with a lifetime guarantee. However, there are concerns that the manufacturing process is not eco-friendly, considering the material being used in the manufacturing process, and this may rile up environmentalists. The overall sales growth, however, appears to be increasing, meaning that the company is performing well against other competitors in the industry.

• 1. Product/Market Growth Strategies

This is a growth strategy used by firms that helps a firm grow while analyzing the risks associated with each chosen strategy (Burgelman & Doz, 2001). The strategies can be arranged in a table as shown below:

Market penetration is when a company aims to increase its market share in an existing market. In other words, William Painter Sunglasses can utilize this strategy by either decreasing prices on their items to increase customers or by increasing promotions and offering more discounts to establish a wider customer base in the market they already control. Product development, on the other hand, is when a company develops a new product but releases it in the existing market. Therefore, if William Painter Sunglasses understands its current market and can develop innovative solutions through investing in R&D, the can develop new products that then enhance the growth of the company.

Market development is where the company takes existing products, for example, the sunglasses that William Painter already has, and introduces them in a new market, be it a new geographic region or a customer segment. This growth strategy is, however, dependent on whether the consumer behavior in the new market is similar to that in the current market, and if there is enough disposable income in the new market to ensure the profitability of the firm. Lastly, diversification is the riskiest growth strategy, as it involves the firm entering a new market with a new product, say something that is not in the line of making sunglasses for William Painter.

• 1. SWOT Analysis Summary

William Painter sunglasses have a couple of strengths that enable them to stand out; for example, their innovative Try For Free Program. This program gives a consumer the freedom to explore the different types of sunglasses for a period of time in the comfort of their homes, thereby creating brand loyalty, with the added fact that the company offers a lifetime guarantee on all its products. However, the sunglasses are quite costly, which is a weakness, as they appeal only to a certain clique. Companies that have affordable sunglasses, therefore, tend to get a competitive advantage over them here.

Keeping up with the current trends is important for any company that wants to remain in business, especially now that everything is becoming automated. Therefore, the company can exploit opportunities such as IoT in their processes and incorporate the use of bots to handle various tasks, which gives the management ample time to come up with more strategies (Lee & Lee, 2015). The company brags about being able to provide durable sunglasses that can withstand anything, due to their aerospace-grade titanium. However, if the sales maintain the growth rate they have, there is a potential threat that they might pollute the environment more than they are trying to rehabilitate.

1. Marketing Strategy
   1. Product

For a product to be marketed successfully, the marketer must first have a clear concept of what differentiates their product from their competition and, more importantly, what it stands for. At William Painter Sunglasses, they have specialized in their patented products in the use of aerospace-grade titanium in making their frames. This appeals to the general public since the frames are incredibly light and durable, and the use of IoT can ensure that only the best quality is presented to the customers. The aim is to make the sunglasses comfortable enough to meet the consumer's needs and ensure the best possible experience, no matter the location where the sunglasses are being used.

• 1. Pricing

Pricing a product is a delicate art that involves market data by reflecting the monetary value of the product, besides representing the effort, time, and lengths that a consumer is willing to go to acquire the product. Also, it is important to balance the price in such a manner that the reputation of the company is not damaged. Valuing the product for a company such as William Painter is dependent on the price set by other competitors and the value of the product to the company. In this case, the materials used in the manufacture of the sunglasses are quite expensive; therefore, it is expected that the sunglasses themselves will be offered at a high rate, due to their degree of quality.

• 1. Place/Distribution

Place refers to linking the consumer and the product. In the current times, everything is being done digitally, meaning that to reach the target audience, one has to learn the art of putting the product in the right place at the right time to capture the attention of the consumer. The William Painter sunglasses website is a good example of a good opportunity to showcase the products that they offer together with the various specifications, influencing the overall customer experience.

• 1. Promotion

William Painter Sunglasses mainly uses digital platforms in their promotion, which fits the target markets since everyone is turning digital worldwide. They do this by providing various discounts and promotions on their products, with all the relevant information provided online. These promotions are, however, standardized across locations since the firm has only one site, which is in California. Therefore, all promotions and offers are standardized indifferent of the country or geographical location in which an individual is located.