I hope your reflection is positive as I know you have struggled with this module, but once again you have proved how well you understand marketing concepts. I hope your confidence has increased and you feel better going forward. Well done Leanne. 

BBC. “The Impact of the Economic Climate on Businesses - the Economy and Business - Edexcel - GCSE Business Revision - Edexcel.” BBC Bitesize, 2022, www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zrwtmfr. Accessed 15 Feb. 2022.

Blythe, Jim. Principles and Practice of Marketing. 3rd ed., London, Sage, 2014.

Briggs, Fiona. “Two Major UK Brands Sign up to US Cotton Trust Protocol – next and Byford.” Retail Times, 4 Mar. 2021, www.retailtimes.co.uk/two-major-uk. Accessed 10 Feb. 2022.

Dibb, Sally, and Lyndon Simkin. Marketing Briefs : A Revision and Study Guide. 2001. Amsterdam ; Oxford, Elsevier  Butterworth-Heinemann, 2004.

Distanont, Anyanitha, and Orapan Khongmalai. “The Role of Innovation in Creating a Competitive Advantage.” Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences, Aug. 2018. www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2452315118300080, 10.1016/j.kjss.2018.07.009.

Fairify. “How Sustainable Is Next?” Www.fairify.io, 2020, www.fairify.io/en/brands/how-sustainable-is-next. Accessed 15 Feb. 2022.

Kotler, Philip, and Gary Armstrong. Principles of Marketing. 17th ed., Harlow, Pearson Education Limited, 2020.

Michael, Andrew. “Inflation Rate Updates.” Forbes Advisor UK, 19 Jan. 2022, www.forbes.com/uk/advisor/personal-finance/2022/01/19/inflation. Accessed 15 Feb. 2022.

My Accounting Course. “What Is Customer Orientation? - Definition | Meaning | Example.” My Accounting Course, 2010, www.myaccountingcourse.com/accounting-dictionary/customer-orientation. Accessed 11 Feb. 2022.

Next. “Environment.” Nextplc.co.uk, 2019, www.nextplc.co.uk/corporate-responsibility/environment. Accessed 11 Feb. 2022.

“Next Careers | Diversity & Inclusion – next Careers.” Careers.next.co.uk, 2021, careers.next.co.uk/diversity-inclusion/. Accessed 11 Feb. 2022.

Next Plc. BUSINESS MODEL 1 Great Products. 2019.

Next plc. “Collect in Store Service | Orders Ready in 1 Hour | next UK.” Www2.Next.co.uk, 2021, www2.next.co.uk/delivery-service/store-stock-checker. Accessed 11 Feb. 2022.

Partnership International. “Why Is Cultural Diversity Important? - Partnership International.” Partnership International, 16 Nov. 2018, www.partnershipinternational.ie/why-is-cultural-diversity-important/. Accessed 11 Feb. 2022.

Pegden, Tom. “Brexit, What Brexit? Next Plc Shares Surge 8%.” Business Live, 31 July 2019, www.business-live.co.uk/retail-consumer/brexit-what-brexit-next-plc-16674390. Accessed 15 Feb. 2022.

Russell, Cally. “Next Knows the Customer and Grows Full Price Sales.” Forbes, 24 Sept. 2019, 

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Ruychev, Kostadin. “GRIN - Promotional Mix Policies of UK Clothes Retailer next Plc.” Www.grin.com, 2018, www.grin.com/document/459722. Accessed 11 Feb. 2020.

Signature analytics. “The Effects of Inflation and Roaring Economy on Businesses.” Signature Analytics, 24 June 2021, signatureanalytics.com/blog/the-effects-of-inflation-and-roaring-economy-on-businesses/. Accessed 15 Feb. 2022.

Story, James. “What Is Sustainable Marketing and How Should You Use It? | Smart Insights.” Smart Insights, 23 Oct. 2019, www.smartinsights.com/online-brand-strategy/brand-positioning/sustainable-marketing-how-should-you-use-it/#:~:text=Sustainable%20marketing%20is%20a%20great%20way%20to%20promote. Accessed 11 Feb. 2022.

Wadham, Caroline. “Brexit’s Broken Promises Heap More Pain on Fashion Retail.” Drapers, 30 June 2021, www.drapersonline.com/insight/analysis/battling-with-brexits-administrative-burden. Accessed 15 Feb. 2022.

Wood, Zoe, and Jasper Jolly. “Next Shares Hit All-Time High as Covid Crisis Fuels Online Sales Surge.” The Guardian, 1 Apr. 2021, www.theguardian.com/business/2021/apr/01/next-boosts-profit-forecast-as-covid-crisis-fuels-online-sales-surge. Accessed 11 Feb. 2022.

Description

For our marketing module we had to complete tasks in our seminars. Within our seminars we were given lots of multiple activities to complete that would help me complete the end assignment. For example, the Simba pillows in which we compared different pillows therefore teaching me how to complete a contrasting task.  

 

Feelings

When completing these seminar activities, I found myself a bit overwhelmed however informative and a great starting point for the rest of my studies to gaining information. I felt these seminar activates enabled me to complete the end assignment. I have found Thalia exceptional at keeping me engaged and good at explaining the task at hand. 

 

Evaluation

In reflecting on my experience, it was made very clear of my lack of ability’s when it came to the technological side of the seminar activities. I found completing most seminar activities helpful. I found that these seminar activities were useful in preparing me for the end objectives. However, I found that concentrating in lesson was difficult due to disruptions from peers. This could lead to me feeling disengaged. I overcame this by knowing I was better to be seated at the front of the room where I could absorb more beneficial information. I also found it hard to catch up on my seminar work due to my operation that meant I was 6 weeks behind my peers in my class. This was difficult for me, so when I had recovered, I came into university every day to complete this seminar activities that would help me with my assignment. 

 

Conclusion 

In conclusion I have found these seminar activities to help me reach a higher understanding of my assignment and all tasks given. That although through no fault of my own missing these seminars can have a huge effect when coming to submit my work. And that not attending these lessons has had a detrimental effect. As Thalia was a key component in me understanding and progressing. 

 

Action Plan

Going forward I will become more vocal if I am struggling to understand something, this will help the tutor to understand that I need extra support. By doing this I will contribute into giving further advice to help myself and peers. I can also help myself by planning with my time management as this is something I have found difficult to juggle between work, children, and health issues. However this at times feels impossible. 

Political and legal factors such as Brexit, has not only impacted Next, but also many businesses within the UK. When researching how it affected Next, I discovered 53% of customers had their orders cancelled in the fashion industry (Wadham, 2021). This results in bad promotion as customers’ orders were not being fulfilled, this then creates a bad customer experience and dissatisfaction. Also resulting in not fulfilling the marketing mix alongside the customers want and needs.

Economic factors also effect the promotion due to inflation rates increasing by 5.4% (Michael,2022). Inflation impacts Next, as more money is needed to manufacture and produce a product or items (BBC,2022). A result of this being Next increasing prices to prevent loss of profit occurring. Should Next begin to lose profit rather than gain, it puts the company on hold and prevents them from being able to progress and grow the brand (Signature Analytics, 2021). To combat and justify the price increases, Next must promote why their products are worth buying with the added costs.

Technological progression allows businesses like Next to expand its opportunities to reach a high level of customer satisfaction. One example of this is the ability to order clothing and goods from the comfort of your own home, Next also offer both home delivery and collection from one of its many stores (Next,2021). This aspect links into place as you don’t have to physically visit a store to conduct a transaction with the organization. On occasions it is more convenient for the consumer to order from home and collect at their leisure. This was certainly the case during the pandemic. With the various number of options to enable you to purchase goods will itself add to a higher level of customer satisfaction. Concluding on this video Next will need to continue making improvements to stay sustainable in a competitive market.