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Question 1
Define what is meant by a ‘market audit’. Referring to the case study, outline the process
and reflect critically upon its purpose and the value a market audit might hold for an
organisation such as Allbirds.
A market audit is a systematic approach of assessing marketing opportunities, helping
organisations to stay in touch with marketplace trends and to keep abreast of costumer
needs (Dibb, 2002). This process allows a company to understand their position in the
environment in which it operates by identifying its strengths and weaknesses as they relate
to external opportunities and threats, which is essential to keep pace with the current fast-
moving market. Thus, it is crucial to comprehend the efficiency of the marketing audit and
why is still indispensable for the expansion of Allbirds in their industry.
In order to undertake a market audit the company must analyse the macro and
microenvironment and determine the critical success factors for an effective organisational
strategy.
The macro environment compromises a number of broad forces that affects not only the
company, but also the other actors within the ‘micro’ environment (Jobber, 2007). These
factors are external, consequently the enterprise has no control over them.
PESTLE is a tool Allbirds can use in order to analyse the macro environment. This is
composed by the political, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental factors
that influence an organisation. For example, Covid 19 has impacted the production, supply
and purchase of the brand; as well as the increasing concern for environment and climate
change which made Allbirds launch a Carbon Fund in April 2019 to reduce the company’s
footprint and carbon emissions.
Following the macro analysis, Allbirds should identify the factors in an organisation’s
immediate environment that affects its ability to operate effectively by tackling its
microenvironment. Porters 5 factors (1985) could be used as a framework to focus on in
order to understand their competitiveness in market. These are: competition in the
industry, potential new entrants, power of suppliers and customers and threat of
substitutes. For example, new entrants in the footwear industry such as Amazon with their
$45 sneakers could be seen as a threat since Allbirds could lose customers because of their
big different in price.
As a supporting strategy, Allbirds could also implement Porter’s Value Chain (1980) in order
to look at the relative strengths. In this case, Allbirds benefits from several inbound logistics
such as FSC certifications, working with ZQ Merino Wool (sustainable sources organisation
that ensures animal welfare and transparency) and a global supply chain. While their
outbound logistics are characterized for having no middleman and being direct to
consumers. Allbirds has a strong brand image and a unique identity, advantaging the
company in their marketing and sales. Its support activities (technology, human resources
management, procurement and infrastructure) can also help Allbirds to find strengths and
differentiate themselves from the competitors.
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Then, using TOWS matrix (alternative to the conventional SWOT), the company will be able
to examine in a systematic way the emergent trends in the market before looking at the
company’s strengths and weaknesses (Weihrich, 2012). This approach provides a more
rigorous search to a long-term market orientation and allows the brand to be more
proactive but defensive as well in prioritizing action.
In Allbirds case study, the exchange rate instability could be a threat for the brand specially
since they are expanding to foreign markets. An opportunity could be the increase in
demand for conscious and sustainable products such as the Wool Runners. Key strengths
could be the use of innovative materials such as SweetFoam and the comfort of their wool
as described by the Times Magazine. Finally, their range of limited products could suppose a
weakness for the firm.
If this procedure is carried out successfully, Allbirds would be able to spot opportunities and
potential threats faster than their competitors, build up on internal strengths and ratify their
weaknesses as well as encourage the creative process of developing alternatives (Weihrich,
1982).

Image 1

As shown in Image 1, TOWS would allow Allbirds to identify defensive actions and support
‘market shaping’ in the form of Critical Success Factors (CSF). Some of the CSF found are:
 R&D and product line expansion
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 Maintain Allbirds brand reputation, collaboration with known brands to bring

sustainable awarness
 Allbirds as pioneers in the sustainability pace
 Long term staff hiring extension
 Must not differentiate too radically as so not to imbalance the design and marketing
strategy (natural internationalisation).
 No discount policy in order to avoid disappointments from customers because of the
price drops
Having an understanding of Critical Success Factors will allow Allbirds to develop an effective
marketing strategy and prioritise their long-term goals.
The findings of a market audit can include detecting inappropriate marketing objectives,
need for improvements in organization, the necessity for an upgrade in systems for
marketing information, etc. All of these can inform about the company’s marketing
performance. Hence, a successful market audit will provide the marketing team the
foundations to build a stronger branding, improve their customer service and overall,
improve the whole of operations and increase the value of them. However, in order to fully
benefit from the audit, Allbirds must implement the issues identifies during the process.
Although since Allbirds is a relatively new and growing brand, the most crucial aspect to
considerate it is not the audit itself, rather than their knowledge about the environment and
their customer comprehension in order to face international competitors.

Question 2
Define and distinguish between the concepts of McCarthy’s 4Ps and Boom and Bitners
7Ps. Referring to the Allbirds case, and any personal research, reflet critically upon which
aspects of the Allbirds brand might be considered ‘product’ and which service.
The Marketing Mix is one of the most widely accepted concepts in the field of Marketing
(McCarthy, 1960). Its purpose is to highlight and consider the tactical and managerial
features of marketing and include all the elements that may satisfy the consumers over
which the company has some power.
McCarthy’s 4Ps (1964) is a conceptual framework used for marketing decision-making,
which uses product, price, place and promotion in the marketing mix.
Product is ‘anything that is offered to a market for attention, acquisition, use or
consumption, and includes physical objects, services, persons, places, organisations and
ideas or mixes of these entities’ (Kotler et al, 2008). Place takes into consideration the needs
of the ultimate consumer but also the channel intermediaries (Jobber and Ellis-Chadwick
2013). Promotion combines all the marketing activities such as advertising, PR, sales
promotion, etc and communicates it to each of the company’s stakeholders. Finally, price is
a measure of value to both buyers and sellers.
The 4P’s are mostly related to consumer products, hence, Boom and Bitner (1981) suggest
that the particular aspects of the marketing mix should vary in relation to the context being
used. They extend the traditional model for a general use by service organisations. Its
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proposed idea describes the classic 4Ps as well as the inclusion of People, Physical evidence
and processes. People are ‘all the human actors who play a part in the delivery and thus,
influence the buyer’s perceptions’ (Boom and Bitner, 1981), in other words, it is key for
quality perception. Physical evidence includes all the environment in which the service is
delivered and customers interact, for instance stores, websites, etc. Processes are the
mechanisms that allow services to be delivered.

Boom and Bitner’s 7P’s emerged because of the differences between products and services.
While products where described as tangible objects with a functional purpose, services in
contrast are intangible products involving a deed, a performance or an effort that physically
cannot be possessed (Dibb and Smikin, 2013). In order to distinguish products form services,
we need to consider the nature of each. With the purchase of a product, you have
something tangible that can be held in inventory. For example, Allbirds product total offer
(Mondelez, 2018) ranges from shoes to apparel and accessories. We could therefore say
that all items are can be possessed and hence, are products.
In contrast, services are intangible, they are hard to evaluate and have no physic possess.
Service products are consumed simultaneously as they are being produced
(Hoffman&Bateson, 1997). The assistance received in Allbirds street stores would be an
example of service since its delivery is based in a client-based relationship. Given that
services are closely related to people, the level of standardization is very low and service
quality is difficult to control. Whereas products can be easy to regulate. In Allbirds case,
sneakers produce is homogenic whereas media and feedback management in social media
is customized to every customer and more complicated to standardized, hence, in order to
deliver a quality service, the brand requires high levels of training. Other services offered by
Allbirds include free standard delivery within 3 to 5 days, brand image, 30 days trial return
policy, etc.

Today, as products and services have become more commoditized, many companies are
moving to a new level in creating value for their customers. Hence, it is indispensable to
drive customer service value. By going direct from the start, Allbirds was able to forego any
additional channels and maintain a reasonable gross margin into producing a great online
and in-store customer service. To differentiate their products, Allbirds goes beyond by
simply making goods and delivering services, instead, they create brand experiences. For
example, “Meet your Shoes” interactive campaign experience to promote brand’s
consciousness and new Wool and Tree Runners. This allowed consumers to connect and
interact in a live feed and gain a deeper understanding of the sneakers.
When customers buy a pair of ‘Wool Runners’ they are not simply buying some sneakers,
these come with the idea of the brand Allbirds, the customer service, advice from store
staff, delivery of shoes, etc. we could therefore say that Allbirds stands in between the two
extremes of the goods-service continuum (Palmer, 1998) offering products and services.
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As a brand, they advertise “comfort meets sustainability on your feet” stating therefore,
that the product they are offering is not only linked to tangible aspects such as “the most
comfortable shoes” but also to a brand pillar: sustainability.

In conclusion, Allbirds brand offers both products and services altogether. Although at first,
it seemed the footwear company produced only products, we have demonstrated that they
go beyond the simple functional purpose and create excellent services and brand
experiences which differentiates them from their most competitive rivals.

Question 4
According to De George (1999) an ethical stance requires consideration of both ‘duties’
and ‘consequences’. Explain what this means, and referring to the case study and any
personal research, appraise the extent to which Allbirds’ brand position could be
considered as ‘ethical’ and ‘sustainable’.
Ethics is the study of morality: those practises and activities that are right and wrong (de
Geroge, 1999). De George studied the field of marketing ethics, which is comprised of how
ethics relate to marketing and communication. Ethics are of critical importance to
businesses, as they can potentially have huge impacts in their environment.
In order to be considered morally good, an organisation must consider both ‘duties’ and
considerations.
Duties are described as certain actions or things that are always good or bad. Consequences,
on the other hand, help measure the extent to which an action might be considered ethical
in relation to the final outcome (De George, 1999).

Determining if a brand is ethical and sustainable can be challenging, however, a useful tool
we can use to analyse a company such as Allbirds is the Scope of Ethics (de Geroge, 1999).
This tool classifies companies within the ethical spectrum. In other words, categorizes
businesses depending on their proactiveness in both their duties and consequences of their
operations: from private equity funds, whose main purpose is the short-term investor to
social enterprises concerned about the environment.
Allbirds have maintained a strong sustainable approach and ethos in numerous occasions.
Their mission “simple design, comfort and sustainability” is strongly positioned around all
their Integrated Marketing Communication. As Red Antler mentions, they want to “create a
brand that can build a movement.” However, despite its sustainable efforts, which rank of
the ethic spectrum would Allbirds occupy?
Allbirds has opted for a integrity-based approach which combines a respect for law with an
emphasis on managerial responsibility in which ethics has become central to the
organisation’s culture. The brands has act proactively by creating SweetFoam, which is an
alternative to the existing EVA polymer that comes from sugar cane, making the foam of
their shoes to be carbon negative. Furthermore, Brown declared “the core technology
within SweetFoam is something that everyone is going to be able to use”, giving the formula
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to other companies so “if everyone used it, the cost would go down”. We could consider
therefore, Allbirds to be an enterprise which meets all stakeholder obligations as well as
acts with a firm social corporate responsibility since, taking all this into consideration, it is
not common to find a private equity-based firm that considers both their duties and
consequences as rigorously and accountable as Allbirds.
Still, how ethical and sustainable Allbirds is could be discussed by looking at the negative
side of the spectrum. Fast fashion is the retail strategy of adapting merchandise assortments
to current and emerging trends as quickly and effectively as possible (Sull, D.; Turconi, S.
2008). The production usually takes place offshore using contracted suppliers and it is
known to be the antithesis of sustainability and ethical operation (Kemper and Ballentine,
2019). In comparison to Allbirds attributes, fast fashion is clearly designed to ensure that
acts within the letter of the law instead of relating to the spirit of the law. Thus, disregarding
duties and competences and taking on a compliance-based approach. Even though Allbirds
stills needs to work on improving their global supply chain and raw material transportation
methods, the company’s sourcing decisions are based on their carbon footprint, rather than
price and time as Mr Brown suggested in the case study about moving the manufacturing
from China, which relies heavily on coal, to Vietnam, where there is an emphasis on
hydroelectricity, lowering their footprint significantly.

Moreover, Allbirds have shown a strong focus towards the Triple Bottom Line (Savitz and
Weber, 2006), which is often known as “the challenge of sustainability marketing” (Bridges
and Whilhelm, 2008), prioritizing the environmental, social and economic aspects of its
operations instead of concentrating on monetary measures. As Zwillinger stated: We’ve
imposed a carbon tax on ourselves”. By treating the cost of its carbon tax as a line expense
on their balance sheet, demonstrates a true commitment on the company’s beliefs and
sustainable approaches and evidence they are not marketing persuasiveness methods, but
key standards that Allbirds understands and aims to continue with them. Hence, Allbirds
seems to have achieved a balance between all three approaches that meets all stakeholder
needs equitably (Jones et al, 2008).

In sum, even though Allbirds, has still activities to improve, their constant re-evaluation of
their duties and consequences to ensure the maintenance of their beliefs and promote
environmentally friendly actions leads them to be seen as an ethical and sustainable brand,
as these two ideas are what the company stands for and the direction the enterprise is
moving towards.